WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. - With high hopes resting on each team after both made the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series in 2018, the Lycoming College football team will open its 2019 campaign against rival Susquehanna University in the Stagg Hat Trophy game on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 1 p.m.

The Warriors were predicted to finish third in the Middle Atlantic Conference after a 5-6 campaign in 2018. Fourteen starters return from that team, including eight on the defensive side of the ball, which allowed just 20.2 points per game.

The River Hawks were predicted to finish third in the Centennial Conference after posting an 8-3 record in 2018, as it returns seven all-conference picks.

Warrior Notes
• The Warriors lead the Stagg Hat Trophy series, 14-8, and have won 14 of the last 19 meetings.

• The Warriors are 40-28 in season openers as a four-year college.

• Junior Jamie Fisher is one field goal shy of becoming the third player in school history to hit 25 in a career. 

• Sophomore Elijah Shemory became the first freshman quarterback in Lycoming history to pass for 2,000 yards in a season in 2018.

• Four Warrior seniors are closing in on 100 tackles in their careers - Jarrell Payne (94), Ahmad Curtis (93), Sam Pawlikowski (91) and Korahn Williams (90).

• The Warrior secondary of seniors D.J. Boyd, Williams and Jeff Coplin have combined for 29 breakups and nine interceptions in their careers.

• Senior Keith Batkowski needs 29 more yards rushing to reach 500 in his career.

Golden Anniversary
Assistant head football coach Steve Wiser will participate in his 50th season opener when kickoff comes on Saturday. Wiser came to Lycoming as a linebacker in 1970, spending four years with the team and earning two All-MAC honors. In 1974, he was hired as an assistant coach for linebackers under head coach Frank Girardi and in 1978, he was promoted to defensive coordinator. He has held that title since, adding assistant head coach in the 1980s. Wiser has been associated with Lycoming athletics longer than anyone in the 130-year department's history, as his four years as a player and 46 as a coach distance him from Girardi (39), former assistant football coach Robb Curry (37),  former wrestling coach Budd Whitehill (37), former women's tennis coach Deb Holmes (34) and former men's basketball coach Dutch Burch (32).

Two First Team All-MAC honorees return
Two of Lycoming's five First Team All-MAC selections in 2018 have returned to the team for the 2019 campaign in senior kicker Jamie Fisher and senior defensive lineman Ahmad Curtis.

Fisher earned his second mention on the all-conference team, moving from honorable mention accolades as a sophomore to first-team honors as a junior. Fisher became the first kicker in school history to post 10 field goals in back-to-back years, as he has hit 10-of-17, including a school-record four against Widener. Fisher was the school's First Team All-MAC kicker since Zack Czap in 2011.
 
Curtis also earns his second all-conference accolades, jumping to first team after earning honorable mention accolades in 2017. A disruptive force at defensive tackle, Curtis posted 50 tackles, seven tackles for loss, two sacks, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick last season. He is the first first-team defensive lineman since Cole Welham in 2014.

Reaching 100
After four Warriors reached 100 career tackles in 2018, it appears four more are on track to do it early in the 2019 season.  Senior Jarrell Payne, a linebacker, leads the group with 94 career tackles, posting 19 as a freshman, 42 as a sophomore and 33 as a junior. Senior Ahmad Curtis, a defensive lineman, has 92 in his career after posting 12 as a freshman, 31 as a sophomore and 50 as a junior. Senior Sam Pawlikowski, a linebacker, has added 91 stops, posting two as a freshman, 59 as a sophomore and 30 as a senior. Senior Korahn Williams, a defensive back, is the fourth Warrior on path to reach 100 tackles, as he has 90, posting 38 as a freshman, 28 as a sophomore and 24 as a junior.

Senior cornerback D.J. Boyd is the lone Warrior to already have 100 tackles, posting 115 in his career. He posted 25 tackles as a freshman, 13 in an medical hardship year and 52 as a sophomore before notching 25 this year. 

May the Fourth be with you
In 2018, the Warriors led Division III with an 9.5 percent fourth-down defensive conversion rate. Lycoming allowed just two first downs in 21 opportunities on fourth down, which included three stops inside the 10-yard line.

Booking It with Botts
Junior Cody Botts became the fourth player in school history to earn Academic All-District honors in back-to-back years. In 2017,  the left tackle earned the honor alongside Erik Wagner '17, who went on to become an Academic All-American tight end. He repeated on the team in 2018 and he also repeated on the Academic All-MAC squad. A three-time member of 2016 MAC Academic Honor Roll, Botts is a history major.
 
Staff changes
Head coach Mike Clark announced the addition of four assistant coaches to his staff for the 2019 season, as T.J. Vernieri will coach wide receivers, Andrew Wagner '13 will coach tight ends and assist with the offensive line, Luke Wiley will coach outside linebackers and Christian Vasquez will assist with the defensive linemen. Vernieri was a wide receiver, manager and student assistant at UConn. Wagner served as part of the Lewisburg Area High School staff for the past six years and Wiley was a two-time Honorable Mention All-Centennial Conference defensive back. Vasquez will serve as a defensive assistant, helping Wiser with the development on the line in his first year with the Warriors.

Warriors third in preseason poll
Lycoming was predicted to finish third in the Middle Atlantic Conference Coaches' Preseason Poll. Two-time defending conference champion Delaware Valley was picked to win the MAC, scooping up nine first-place votes and 99 points, while Stevenson, the 2016 conference champs, finished second with 90 points and two first-place votes. Lycoming took third with 72 points, edging out Widener, which took fourth with 69 points and Misericordia at 65.  King's and Wilkes tied for sixth with 51 points ahead of FDU-Florham (37), Albright (32), Lebanon Valley (26) and Alvernia (12).

Academics first
Fifteen of the 20 Warriors return that earned a slot on the 2018 MAC Fall Academic Honor Roll. The honored athletes were: Keith Batkowski, Cody Botts, Logan Chetaitis, Owen Covert, Zach Kovach, Kevin Krawczyk,  Allen Martin, Jarrell Payne, Kyle Pierce, Trent Riggs, Elijah Shemory, Markus Sidwell, Stephen Toczylousky, and Korahn Williams.