GETTYSBURG, Pa.  – Gettysburg College begins the 2018 with its only non-conference outing of the season, hosting Bridgewater College at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium this Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
 
GAME COVERAGE
Saturday's game will feature live stats and live video at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/gettysburg/. You can also follow in-game updates on Twitter (@GburgBullets) and check out post-game coverage at GettysburgSports.com.
 
READ ALL ABOUT IT
The official 2018 Bullets Football Yearbook will be on sale at the front gate for $4. Fans can also purchase a game day program featuring rosters, stats, lineups, and team information for $1.  
 
THE SERIES
Bridgewater has won three of four meetings with Gettysburg since the series began in 2014. Two of those meetings have been decided by three points or less, including a 27-24 victory by the Eagles last fall.
 
LAST MEETING
Bridgewater scored the game-winning touchdown with 50 seconds left to slip past Gettysburg 27-24 in last season's opener. The Bullets jumped in front with 10 points in the first quarter, but the Eagles tallied the next 20 to pull in front 20-10 heading into the fourth. A pair of Gettysburg scores put the visitors ahead before Brendon Maturey found Corey Jochim for a 65-yard scoring strike on fourth and three. Justin Davidov '18 led the offense with 334 yards of total offense, while Jake Skinner '19 (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) posted a dozen tackles for the Bullets.
 
Gettysburg Overview
It's the start of a new era of Bullets football as former offensive coordinator Kevin Burke '90 takes on the mantle of head coach. Burke spent 14 seasons as an assistant coach under Barry Streeter, who retired as the program's all-time leader with 196 victories over 39 seasons. Burke is looking for his first win as a head coach since coaching Juniata College to a 20-7 victory over FDU-Florham in 2003. Gettysburg was picked sixth in the Centennial Conference Preseason Poll. The team rebounded from a 0-4 start to win half of its remaining games in 2017.
 
Gettysburg Offense
Sophomore transfer Mike Welsh (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) is in line to start under center this weekend. Welsh was an all-state selection at Shawnee High School and spent two seasons on the roster at Division I Monmouth University. His top targets include seniors Johnny Davis (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah) and Chase Fee (Spotswood, N.J./Spotswood).
 
Senior Nick Rella (Denville, N.J./Morristown-Beard) leads a young backfield. Rella posted 335 total yards and three touchdowns while splitting carries a year ago. He'll run behind a veteran offensive line that includes seven individuals with starting experience. Seniors Nick Rollo (Haddonfield, N.J./Haddonfield) and Trent Seibert (Cape May Court House, N.J./St. Augustine Prep) are both two-year starters on a line that has paved the way for an average of 420 total yards of offense in two of the last three seasons.
 
Gettysburg Defense
Gettysburg broke through the line often in 2017, racking up 29 sacks and 65 tackles for a loss. Senior defensive end Logan Aikey (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) leads the defensive front after posting 17.5 tackles for a loss and eight sacks last fall. Junior Ryan Greene (Easton, Pa./Easton) returns as one of the team's top defensive tackles.
 
Senior linebacker Jake Skinner picked up All-Centennial Conference Honorable Mention after leading the team with 109 stops last season. Junior Cole Keyes (Mount Laurel, N.J./Lenape) posted 15 tackles in his only start against Dickinson College and will join Skinner in the linebacker corps.
 
The secondary features a pair of pass break-up specialists in senior safety Mike McKnight (West Chester, Pa./Bayard Rustin) and sophomore cornerback Thomeir Richardson (Trenton, N.J./Trenton Central). The duo combined for 26 pass break-ups and four interceptions last season. McKnight was named All-CC Honorable Mention.
 
Special Teams
Junior Justin Geisel (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day School) has hit 16 field goals in his first two seasons with the Orange and Blue. He kicked three field goals in a victory over Susquehanna University last season, including a career-long 47-yarder. Sophomore Evan Tannenbaum (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) returns as the team's punter after averaging 35.2 yards per attempt in his first year.
 
Bridgewater Overview
Bridgewater finished 4-6 overall and 1-5 in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in 2017. The Eagles finished eighth in the ODAC Preseason Coaches' Poll. Michael Clark enters his 24th season at the helm with a career record of 147-96-1. After winning its first three contests in 2017, the team dropped six of its final seven contests with each loss coming by 10 points or more.
 
Bridgewater Offense
Outside of two-year starter Jay Scroggins at quarterback, the Eagles will be young on the offensive side of the field. Scroggins threw for 1,241 yards and 11 touchdowns a year ago. His options down the field include Maturey, who moves over to wide receiver, and seniors Alex Galloway and Dakota Shrader.
 
Sophomore transfer Matt DeMasi is in line for starting reps at tailback. DeMasi sat out last season after transferring from Hampden-Sydney, where he racked up 948 all-purpose yards as a rookie in 2016. The offensive line will be young with just one senior among the opening-day two-deep.
 
Bridgewater Defense
A strong defensive unit returns for the Eagles led by All-ODAC end Muhammad Khan. Khan posted two forced fumbles, four sacks, and 9.5 tackles for a loss in 2017. Sitting behind the line will be All-ODAC linebacker Gary Ramey, Jr., and Re'Shaun Myers, a former transfer from Coastal Carolina. Ramey totaled 51 tackles last fall, while Myers picked up 26 tackles in the final six games of his first year in Bridgewater.
 
Senior cornerback Davonta Womack will track down the Gettysburg wide receivers in the secondary. Womack was an All-American for the Eagles in track and field last spring after finishing sixth in the 100-meter dash.
 
Bridgewater Special Teams
Placekicker Cameron Gieseman connected on 6-of-9 field goals last season, including 40- and 42-yard kicks against Emory & Henry.
 
Looking Ahead
Gettysburg will hit the road for its first Centennial Conference affair at Ursinus College on Sept. 8 at 1 p.m. The Bullets lead the all-time series with the Bears 35-22-4.