GETTYSBURG, Pa.  – Gettysburg College (0-3, 0-2 CC) will host McDaniel College (1-2, 0-2 CC) in front of the Homecoming crowd this Saturday at 1 p.m. at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.
 
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.
 
THE SERIES
Gettysburg holds a 51-19-1 lead in the series with McDaniel, which began in 1891. The Bullets are 31-10-1 at home against the Green Terror with the team's only setback at home in the last 17 years coming in 2009. Gettysburg won six in a row in the series before the Green Terror won last fall in Westminster.
 
LAST MEETING
McDaniel scored on its opening possession of overtime to beat Gettysburg 27-20 at Gill Stadium last fall. Trailing by 14 points with nine minutes to play, the Bullets rallied with a pair of rushing touchdowns by Justin Davidov '18 to force a tie in regulation. On the Green Terror's first possession of the extra period, Will Koester found Andre Henry for a 25-yard touchdown reception. Davidov finished 14-of-38 for 169 yards and gained 34 yards on the ground. Kevin Benavente '20 (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel) hauled in three passes for 58 yards. Mike McKnight (West Chester, Pa./Bayard Rustin) led the defense with nine tackles and three pass break-ups. Koester finished 17-of-38 for 183 yards for McDaniel with nine tosses and 118 yards going to Bamasa Bailor and Henry. Isaac Murray added 88 yards and a touchdown for the Green Terror.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Bullets scored the opening touchdown on a blocked punt return for a touchdown, but Dickinson rattled off the next 30 points to claim the Little Brown Bucket last Saturday. Freshman Kevin Sawtell put Gettysburg on the board by swatting away an attempted punt and hauling the ball 30 yards into the end zone with four minutes left in the first quarter. The Red Devils turned the tide with turnovers leading to scores at the start of the next two quarters, the first on a 42-yard interception return and the second following a fumble recovery on the second-half kickoff. Sophomore Mike Welsh (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) totaled 105 yards of total offense to lead the Bullets. Junior Andrew Howard (Swansea, Mass./Moses Brown School) hauled in three receptions for 42 yards, while senior Jake Skinner (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) paced the defense with nine tackles.
 
The Green Terror gave No. 24 Franklin & Marshall all they could handle before falling 21-14 last Saturday. McDaniel opened with the game's first score as Isaac Murray polished off an 11-play, 75-yard drive with a five-yard plunge to the end zone in the first quarter. After the Diplomats came back to take the lead, John Chamberlin rushed in from a yard out to tie the score going into halftime. Franklin & Marshall held the Green Terror to just 66 total yards in the second half and scored the eventual game-winning touchdown with 11:59 remaining in the game. Murray finished with 59 yards on 11 carries and Davon Ingram caught five passes for 46 yards. Jarius Ransom led the McDaniel defense with 10 tackles.
 
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.
 
GETTYSBURG OFFENSE
Gettysburg is averaging 201 yards of offense through its first three games. The team will be handing the reins of the offense off to sophomore quarterback Ryan Finlay (Long Valley, N.J./West Morris Central) this weekend. Finlay came in late in the third quarter against Dickinson and managed 64 yards passing and 18 yards rushing in the game. Finlay is averaging four yards per carry this season. The Bullets' leading receiver this fall is senior Johnny Davis (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah) with six receptions for 95 yards.
 
GETTYSBURG DEFENSE
Senior Jake Skinner is looking to lead the Bullets in tackles for the third year in a row. The linebacker has totaled 27 stops and an interception through the first three games. Senior safety Mike McKnight is once again filling the stat sheet and has logged 20 tackles, three tackles for a loss, one interception, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery on the year. McKnight is just four tackles shy of 200 for his career. After setting the program record with 17.5 tackles for a loss in 2017, senior defensive end Logan Aikey (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) has racked up seven hits in the backfield this fall, including 3.5 sacks.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS
Junior Justin Geisel (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day School) hit his third career field goal of 40 or more yards in the season opener. Geisel has already climbed into fourth on Gettysburg's career list with 17 made field goals and is one behind Rich Eppleman '79 for third. Sophomore punter Evan Tannenbaum (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) set a program record with 448 yards on 11 punts against Ursinus. He is averaging 38.5 yards per punt this season, which ranks second in the CC. Freshman Thomeir Richardson (Trenton, N.J./Trenton Central) has returned 13 kickoffs for an average of nearly 19.2 yards per return this fall.
 
MCDANIEL OVERVIEW
McDaniel was picked last in the CC Preseason Poll after going 3-7 overall and 2-7 in conference play a year ago. Head Coach Mike Dailey is in his third season at the helm after spending seven seasons as an assistant on the coaching staff. The Green Terror are searching for their first winning campaign since 2010.
 
MCDANIEL OFFENSE
After putting up 400 yards of total offense in its opening win over Catholic, McDaniel has totaled 365 yards in its last two games combined. Sophomores Ben Igo and Tyler Palermiti have split reps at quarterback and have combined for 446 yards and one touchdown. The duo has yet to throw an interception this season. Senior John Chamberlin has totaled 198 yards rushing and is averaging five yards per carry. Senior Davon Ingram has reeled in a dozen passes for 155 yards.
 
MCDANIEL DEFENSE
McDaniel has held opponents to an average of 264 yards per game. The Green Terror also rank fourth in the conference with only 114.7 rushing yards allowed per game. Junior linebacker Jarius Ransom leads the team with 27 tackles and five tackles for a loss. Against Moravian, Ransom posted a dozen stops and three tackles for a loss. Senior defensive back Angelo Payne has racked up 24 tackles, a sack, and four tackles for a loss.
 
MCDANIEL SPECIAL TEAMS
Senior Joey Cornwell leads the Centennial Conference with an average of 38.9 yards per punt. Cornwell has placed seven punts inside the opponent's 20-yard line. Freshmen Peyton Denlinger and John Compere have combined for three made field goals and have each connected on a 37-yard attempt this season. Isaac Murray is the team's top returner on kickoffs and is averaging 18.8 yards per return.
 
HALL OF ATHLETIC HONOR
At halftime of Saturday's contest, the newest members of the Hall of Athletic Honor will be announced. Among the new inductees is former Gettysburg head coach Barry Streeter, who spent 39 years at the helm and finished with a program record 196 wins. Joining Streeter in this year's class is Wes Bartlett '94 (tennis), Liz Janelle '03 (swimming), Curtis McNeil '02 (basketball), Terry Reinman '89 (cross country, swimming, track and field), and Jennifer White '01 (field hockey, softball). Additionally, the 1977 men's track and field team will be recognized as a Team of Distinction, while the women's lacrosse team will be honored after winning its third NCAA Division III championship in 2018.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Gettysburg travels to Moravian College next Saturday at 1 p.m. The Bullets have won the last two meetings with the Greyhounds and hold a 12-4 edge in the series.