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WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - Although just halfway through the season, the Lycoming College football team finds itself 1.5 games back of conference leader Delaware Valley in the Middle Atlantic Conference standings with five games to play. With every game left a must-win, the Warriors host the only MAC team that head coach Mike Clark hasn’t beaten in his four-year tenure, Wilkes, for Homecoming and Reunion Weekend. The game will be broadcast on Comcast Channel 70 as the Cable Sports Productions Game of the Week on Sunday at 10 a.m. and Monday at 7 p.m.

The Warriors (4-1 overall, 2-1 MAC) are off to their third 4-1 start under Clark thanks to a 42-10 win over King’s (Pa.) on Oct. 8. The Warrior defense has led the team all year, allowing less than 215 yards of total offense in all but one game.

The Colonels (2-3 overall, 2-2 MAC) are coming off a 14-6 loss to league-leader Delaware Valley.

Warrior Notes
• In the 2010 meeting which the Colonels won 31-14, all 45 points were scored in the second half.

• Junior Jarrin Campman surpassed his career high with 118 yards receiving against King’s (Pa.).

• Lycoming leads the MAC in total defense, allowing just 173.6 yards per game. The team also leads the league in rushing defense (54.6) and passing defense (119.0).

• The Warriors lead the league in turnover margin at +1.80, having gotten 11 turnovers this year and let go of the ball just twice.

• Lycoming also leads the league in red-zone offense, coming away with points from inside the 20-yard line on 16-of-17 (94.1 percent) opportunities.

• Sophomore Zack Czap leads the league’s kickers with an average of 7.6 points per game. He has hit a MAC-best seven field goals this year.

Scouting Lycoming
Offense: Multiple/Pro-Style
Lycoming continues to use a two-headed running attack to provide most of its offense, as both junior Parker Showers and freshman Craig Needhammer are listed amongst the top 10 backs in rushing yards in the Middle Atlantic Conference.

Showers is fourth in the league with an average of 74.2 yards per game and the speedy back posted a 22-yard touchdown by bouncing outside against King’s. Needhammer is another quick back and is tied for ninth in the league with an average of 45.6 yards per game. In just 12 carries at King’s, he compiled 79 yards.

The passing attack is also becoming a two-dimensional game, as both sophomore Warren Oliver and junior Jarrin Campman are amongst the top 10 in the league. Oliver sits ninth with an average of 62.6 yards per game and Campman is 10th at 55.4.

Defense: 4-3
With one of the most versatile units in the nation, the Warriors have proved equally adept at shutting down a team’s passing or running attack. Against King’s, the Warriors allowed just 89 yards through the air and in the past two weeks, opponents have completed just 20-of-67 passes while being intercepted four times and tossing for just one touchdown.

The Warriors’ run defense has allowed more than 100 yards just once this year, as King’s posted 107.

The team’s defensive swarm has been balanced, as no Warrior is amongst the top 10 in the league in tackles, although senior Anthony Marascio is third in the league with five sacks and two other players are in the top 10 in the league in that category. Likewise, all four defensive backs are in the top 10 in the league in passes defended, led by junior Ryan Fenningham, who is tied for first with an average of 1.60 per game.

Scouting Wilkes
Offense: Spread
The Warriors will have to shut down the MAC’s top rushing offense, as the Colonels enter the game averaging 248.0 yards per game on the ground. The team is averaging 5.4 yards per carry.

Wilkes’ offense has rolled up 428.8 yards per game and is averaging 28.4 points per contest, led by senior Zach Tivald, who has scored a team-high six touchdowns and leads the league in rushing, averaging 109.2 yards per game.

Three WIlkes’ players are amongst the top 10 in the league in rushing, led by Tivald, but quarterback Alex George is also sixth with an average of 54.8 yards per game and sophomore Auxence Wogou is eighth with an average of 49.8 yards. The team’s top receiver is senior Todd Eagles, who is sixth in the league in receiving yards per game at 74.4 and he has caught a team-high five touchdowns.

Defense: 4-3
The Wilkes defense centers around sophomore Preseason All-American linebacker Tate Moore-Jacobs, who is second in the league with an average of 12.0 tackles per game. Moore-Jacobs is a sneaky fast linebacker, sitting tied for second in the MAC with three interceptions on the year and he has added 1.5 sacks.

On the defensive line, senior James Moore is fifth in the league with 5.0 sacks and sophomore Rob Houseknecht is tied for 10th in the league at 1.20 tackles for loss per contest.

In the backfield, freshman Justin Pellowski is tied with Fenningham for a MAC-high 1.60 passes defended per game and senior Matt Gunther is fourth in the league in the category and sixth with two interceptions.

Out the Gate
Mike Clark became the fastest football coach in school history to reach 20 wins with the win against King’s, reaching the mark in 35 games and in only four seasons. It took David Busey (1954-66) 37 games and six years to reach the mark and Frank Girardi (1972-07) 39 games and five years to get the mark. However, it took Girardi just 13 more games to reach 30 wins, which he reached during the school’s first MAC Championship year in 1978.

Second(ary) to None
All four Lycoming starters in the defensive secondary are ranked amongst the top 10 in the Middle Atlantic Conference in passes defended, led by junior safety Ryan Fenningham, who is tied for the league lead at 1.60 per game. Both junior cornerback Matt Talerico and freshman cornerback Ryan Mihoci are tied for fourth at 1.40 and senior Ray Bierbach is tied for 10th at 1.00 per game.

An Offensive Defense
The Lycoming defense has not just been keeping points off the board, in the past two weeks, it has been adding them. On Oct. 1, both sophomore linebacker Kabongo Bukasa and junior safety Ryan Fennigham found the end zone for the Warriors in the 35-13 win over Albright. Against King’s on Oct. 8, it was freshman Kody Flail that ripped a fumble out and strolled 40 yards for a touchdown. Amazingly, in the last two weeks, the Warriors’ defense has scored as many touchdown as their opponents’ offenses have. The last time the Warriors had defensive touchdowns in back-to-back weeks was in 2009 when Matt Talerico recovered a fumble for a touchdown against Bridgewater and Anthony Marascio posted a pick-six the next week against King’s.

Father Judge’s Verdict
It’s no secret that Lycoming’s football teams have been loaded with Philadelphia Catholic League players. This year is no exception and the Warriors were led at King’s in particular by a trio of players from Father Judge in the Northeast section of the city. Senior Anthony Marascio posted a sack and two tackles for loss and junior Ryan Fenningham notched an interception. Offensively, sophomore Greg Kovacs recovered a fumble in the end zone and caught a pass for another in the game.

Pick Me
Senior Ray Bierbach entered the school’s career top 10 in interceptions with his first pick of the season against Albright on Oct. 1. With 11 career interceptions, Bierbach is tied with Matt Henrich (1999-02), Jeff Mahalik (1990-92), Jason Logue (1993-96) and George Connaghan (1981-83) for the ninth-most in school history.