Game Notes | Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - Fans coming back to Lycoming College for Homecoming will see a familiar sight when they look at the Middle Atlantic Conference football standings. The Warriors have a share of first place and will look to keep a slice of a four-way tie as they take on fifth-place Albright College on Saturday, Oct. 26, at David Person Field.

The Warriors (4-2 overall, 4-1 MAC) are a weekend separated from their last game, a 14-7 loss at Lebanon Valley that knocked the team out of the D3football.com Top 25. Senior Matt Atkinson led the team against the Dutchmen, catching eight passes for a career-high 109 yards.

The Lions (4-2 overall, 3-2 MAC) sit just a game behind the Warriors despite being in fifth place after posting a 30-12 win over Wilkes on Oct. 19.

Warrior Notes
• Assistant head coach Steve Wiser has been a part of 299 wins with Lycoming College, 290 during his 40 years as an assistant coach and nine during his four years as a player.

• Junior Craig Needhammer needs 11 more rushing yards to become the ninth player in school history to reach 2,000 in a career.

• Needhammer needs 116 more yards to become the 21st player to post 1,000 all-purpose yards in a season.

• Senior Kabongo Bukasa is 12 tackles shy of becoming the 25th player in school history to record 200 in a career.

• Junior Tanner Troutman became the 20th player in school history to post 10 interceptions in a career with his pick at Lebanon Valley.

• Senior Matt Atkinson needs 52 more yards to become the 20th player in school history to reach 1,000 career receiving yards.

Scouting Lycoming
Offense: Multiple/Pro-Style
Lycoming enters today's game ranked eighth in the MAC in scoring offense (21.7), eighth in rushing offense (130.7), sixth in passing offense (207.3) and eighth in total offense (338.0).

The team does have one of the most accurate passing attacks in the MAC, though, as junior quarterback Tyler Jenny is second in completion percentage (64.7) and third in passing efficiency (142.2). His two favorite targets are among the top 10 receivers in the league, with senior Matt Atkinson is seventh in yards (466) and third in receptions (36) and sophomore Ryan Umpleby eighth in receptions per game (4.5) and ninth in receiving yards (438).

The running game is led by junior Craig Needhammer, who has rushed for more than 100 yards four times this year. He is third in the MAC and 19th nationally with 702 rushing yards.

Defense: 4-3
The Warrior defense, after allowing 30 points to Brockport in the opener, has settled in to allow just 15.1 points per game in the last five contests. The team is tied for third in the MAC in scoring defense, allowing 17.7 points per game.

The defense is paced by its athletic linebacking crew, which includes senior Preseason All-American Kabongo Bukasa, who is fifth on the team with 29 tackles despite playing in only five games. Senior Tyler Denike leads the team with 40 stops and also has three tackles for loss and two interceptions, and junior Kyle Sullivan is second on the team with 39 tackles and has four tackles for loss.

Junior Tanner Troutman leads the secondary, as the safety has three interceptions in the last two games.

Scouting Albright
Offense: Multiple
Albright enters the game ranked second in the MAC in scoring offense (32.5), passing offense (253.0) and total offense (416.3). The Lions are fourth in rushing offense (163.3).

The Lions have made good use of a balanced offense this season, helping the team average more than 30 points per game. The rushing attack is led by Ty Hughes, who is fourth in the MAC with 588 yards through the first six games.

The passing attack is led by quarterback T.J. Luddy, one of the most successful passers in the MAC. He leads the league with an average of 246.5 passing yards per game and is second in the league with a 143.7 passing efficiency. Luddy has tossed for nine touchdowns and thrown just four interceptions.

Daniel McNair and Devron Clark lead the receivers, with McNair second in the league with 6.3 catches per game and Clark sixth at 5.3.

Defense: 4-3
The Lions are ranked third in scoring defense (17.7) and second in total defense (298.0) and rushing defense (102.8). The team is also fifth in sacks (2.2) and tied for first in interceptions (1.7).

Albright's defense is paced by Preseason All-American defensive back Drew Peterson, who leads the league with six interceptions. Fellow defensive back Matt Hnatiuk is also enjoying a fine season, as he is sixth in the league with 51 tackles.

Matt Capetola and Matt Pattison are both tied for 10th in the league with 5.5 tackles for loss. Don Gould is fourth with 4.5 sacks and Tyler Hamlet is ninth with three.

The quest for 300
After assistant head coach and defensive coordinator Steve Wiser '74 became just the second football coach in MAC history to reach 200 career conference wins, he is closing in on another milestone. Since Wiser joined the program in 1970 as a linebacker, he has helped the Warriors win 299 games. As a player, he helped the team win nine games from 1970-73 and since 1974, he has helped win 290 as an assistant coach.

The hammer report
Junior Craig Needhammer enters today's game within shouting distance of two more milestones. The 5-7 running back needs 11 more yards to become the ninth player in school history to reach 2,000 rushing yards in a career. He also needs just 48 more rushing yards to become the 21st player in school history to post 750 in a season.

Race for 100
Three Lycoming College defensive players enter today's game with a shot at reaching 100 career tackles. Junior safety Tanner Troutman leads the group with 92 tackles while a pair of linebackers are just behind him. Senior Tyler Denike and junior Kyle Sullivan each have 91 career stops.

About the race for 15
The loss to Lebanon Valley on Oct. 12 dropped the Warriors into a four-way tie for first place in the MAC with Widener, Delaware Valley and Lebanon Valley. The loss makes several tiebreaking scenarios a possibility at the end of the regular season to decide the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III playoffs. Two things are for certain, though - it is still too early to tell which team in the conference will walk away with the league title and if the Warriors win out, they can do no worse than share a piece of the school's 15th MAC title.

A dynamic duo
Senior Matt Atkinson and sophomore Ryan Umpleby are among the top 10 receivers in the MAC in receptions and yards per game. The duo are the first pair of Warrior receivers to each go over 400 receiving yards since 2008, when Ryan Wagaman and Brad Shellenberger reached the mark.

.500
With a win today, the Warriors would ensure their fourth straight non-losing season. The Warriors have posted winning records in 34 of the last 38 years, recording a 287-107-5  (.726) record during that time.