Oct. 31, 2012

Johns Hopkins-Franklin & Marshall Football Notes 

•• Johns Hopkins-Franklin & Marshall Game Links ••
Live Video • Live Stats

The Last Meeting

Franklin & Marshall	23
Johns Hopkins	28

November 5, 2011
Homewood Field

11th-Ranked Hopkins Escapes F&M, 28-23, for 14th Straight Win Franklin & Marshall gave 11th-ranked Johns Hopkins all it could handle before the Blue Jays prevailed, 28-23, at Homewood Field Saturday afternoon.

Recap | Box Score

The Game: Ninth-ranked Johns Hopkins (8-0, 7-0 Centennial) hits the road for the second straight week as the Blue Jays travel to Lancaster, Pennsylvania to take on Franklin & Marshall (6-2, 5-2 CC).

On This Date: Sam Matz rushed for 131 yards and two touchdowns to help Johns Hopkins to a 57-7 victory against Swarthmore on November 3, 1973.

The Teams: Johns Hopkins improved to 8-0 overall and 7-0 in the Centennial Conference with a 35-17 win at Ursinus last Saturday. F&M (6-2, 5-2 CC) slipped two games off the Blue Jays' pace with a 24-17 loss at Susquehanna.

Series History: Franklin & Marshall leads the all-time series, 34-27-2, although Johns Hopkins has won four straight and 14 of the last 15 against the Diplomats. A complete series history can be found on page 2.

Poll Position: Johns Hopkins is ranked ninth in this week's AFCA Division III Coaches Poll and 13th in the d3football.com Poll. The Blue Jays also check in at number four in this week's Lambert Meadowlands Poll. The number nine ranking is the second-highest AFCA ranking in school history and the highest in-season ranking ever for JHU (JHU was ranked eighth in the final 2009 poll).
Johns Hopkins has been ranked in the top 25 of the AFCA Poll for 17 consecutive weeks dating back to the first poll of the 2011 season. Johns Hopkins is one of just 10 teams in the nation that has been ranked in the AFCA's top 25 every week since the start of the 2011 season. The Johns Hopkins office of Athletic Communications uses the AFCA Poll to reflect JHU's official ranking at the time of a game. The AFCA, D3football.com and Lambert Meadowlands Polls can be found on page 6.

Margraff Ranks Second on State Victory Chart: Johns Hopkins head coach Jim Margraff improved his career record to 155-79-3 (.660) with the 35-17 win at Ursinus last week. He is just the second college football coach in Maryland state history to win 150 career games. Only Morgan State's Eddie Hurt, who won 174 games from 1929-59, has won more games as the head football coach at a college or university in the state of Maryland than Margraff.

Centennial Conference Champions: Johns Hopkins claimed at least a share of its eighth Centennial Conference title with last week's win at Ursinus - all eight championships have come since 2002. JHU is tied for second in league history with its eight titles. Only Dickinson (9) and Muhlenberg (8) have as many or more titles than the Blue Jays.

What's at Stake: With two weeks remaining in the regular season, Johns Hopkins has already clinched at least a share of the Centennial Conference title. The Blue Jays can clinch the outright title and the league's automatic bid to the upcoming NCAA Playoffs with a win in either of their last two games.
Franklin & Marshall can claim a share of the CC title and the league's automatic bid to the playoffs with two wins coupled with two Johns Hopkins losses.
F&M can only get the automatic bid in a two-way tie for the title. In the only three-way tie possible between JHU and F&M (Muhlenberg would be the third team involved in this three-way tie), JHU would claim the automatic bid.

Who Else is Alive: Muhlenberg and Gettysburg remain alive in the race for a share of the Centennial Conference title. Both need to go 2-0 in the final two weeks of the season and have JHU go 0-2. Johns Hopkins wins all tie-breakers with Gettysburg and Muhlenberg for the league's automatic bid to the playoffs.

Seniors Tie Record: The current seniors on the Johns Hopkins football team tied the record for most wins by one class in school history with last week's 35-17 win at Ursinus. This year's seniors are 36-7 since arriving at JHU - this ties the record set by the 2005 and 2011 JHU seniors.
In addition, the current seniors are tied for the second-most wins by any senior class in Centennial Conference history. Only the 2000 seniors at McDaniel, who compiled a 41-5 record during their career, have won more games than JHU's current seniors.

About the 8-0 Start: The Blue Jays improved to 8-0 with the 35-17 win at Ursinus last week. This marks the second consecutive year that Johns Hopkins has started 8-0. These represent the only two 8-0 starts in school history.

November Reign: Johns Hopkins is 9-1 in its last 10 games played in the month of November. The Blue Jays have also won 10 straight regular season games in the month of November since F&M topped the Blue Jays, 19-11, on November 3, 2006.

Dan Wodicka's 72-yard punt return vs. F&M last season is the longest in school history.

More November: Johns Hopkins has lost exactly one regular season road game in the month of November since 2000. The Blue Jays are 10-1 on the road in regular season games in the month of November in the last 12 seasons (2000-11).

Nine Straight in October: Johns Hopkins ran its winning streak in the month of October to nine games with last week's 35-17 win at Ursinus.

Regular Season Roll: The Blue Jays will put a 22-game regular-season winning streak on the line this week at F&M. The streak, the longest such run in school history and the second-longest in Centennial Conference history, began with a 49-24 win at Susquehanna on October 23, 2010. The Blue Jays have outscored the opposition 906-292 during the 22-game run.

More Regular Season Rolls: In addition to boasting the longest regular season winning streak in school history and the second longest in CC history, JHU's current 22-game regular season winning streak is also the sixth-longest active streak in the nation (all divisions). Mount Union has currently won 71 straight regular season games to lead the way.
There are only eight active regular season winning streaks of 18 games or more among the 651 schools playing football under the NCAA banner.

Centennial Roll: The Blue Jays will put a 20-game Centennial Conference winning streak on the line this week at F&M. The streak, the longest such run in school history and the second-longest in Centennial Conference history, began with a 49-24 win at Susquehanna on October 23, 2010.

Road Warriors: Johns Hopkins extended its school-record road winning streak to 11 games with the win at Ursinus last week. The previous record of nine consecutive road victories was set from 2003-05.
The Blue Jays last dropped a road game on October 16, 2010, when Ursinus took a 26-17 decision.

Best-Ever 20-Game Run: Dating back to late in the 2010 season, Johns Hopkins is 19-1 in its last 20 games. This is the best 20-game run in school history. JHU had posted an 18-2 record over a 20-game span on four different occassions.

Quick Starts: The Blue Jays have outscored the opposition 164-41 in the first and second quarters combined through eight games with a 63-20 mark in the first quarter and a 101-21 bulge in the second.

Move Those Chains: Johns Hopkins is 60-of-107 (.561) on third-down attempts through eight games. Johns Hopkins currently leads Division III and ranks fourth among the 651 schools in the NCAA that play football at the FBS, FCS, Division II and Division III levels in third-down efficiency.

That's a Record: Johns Hopkins tied an NCAA Division III record and set school and Centennial Conference records with 40 first downs in the win over Moravian on September 15. This is the third time in Division III history that a team has accumulated 40 first downs in a game.

That's a First: Johns Hopkins scored 35 points in the win at Ursinus and has scored at least 33 in each of its eight games thus far. This is the first time in school history that JHU has scored 33+ in eight straight games. The Blue Jays rank first in the Centennial Conference and 12th in the nation in scoring offense (40.6).

On Par: Johns Hopkins averaged a school-record 492.7 yards per game last season and is running just ahead of that mark at 497.4 yards per game thus far this year. The Blue Jays currently rank first in the Centennial Conference and 11th nationally in total offense (497.4). JHU has topped the 500-yard mark four times in eight games and only once, at Susquehanna (389), have the Blue Jays been held under 400 yards.

Balancing Act: Johns Hopkins is one of the most balanced teams in the nation as the Blue Jays are currently averaging 270.3 rushing yards and 227.1 passing yards per game. JHU is currently one of just two teams in the nation in all divisions averaging better than 270 yards rushing and 225 yards passing per game.

Rigaud Rolling: Senior RB Jonathan Rigaud continues to leave his mark on the Johns Hopkins record book as he enjoyed another strong outing last week at Ursinus. He was named the Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts.
Rigaud rushed for a career-high 238 yards and tied a Johns Hopkins single-game record with four rushing touchdowns to fuel the victory. Rigaud's 238 yards are the fourth-highest single-game total in school history and marked his second consecutive 200-yard game. It was also the second time in three games that he has tied the JHU record for rushing touchdowns in a game. He also set a school record for yards per carry in a game (20 or more carries) with his 11.3 average. His 70-yard touchdown run in the second quarter is the fifth-longest run in school history and the longest by a JHU player since Hari Lymon went 79 yards against McDaniel on November 14, 1992.
With his effort at Ursinus, Rigaud now leads the Centennial Conference in rushing yards (1,059), yards per game (132.4), rushing and overall touchdowns (17) and points per game (12.8). In addition, he ranks second in all-purpose yards per game (140.1). His 1,059 yards are the third-highest single-season total in school history and his 17 rushing TDs are tied for the second best mark in JHU history. He also currently ranks 11th in the nation in rushing yards per game and seventh in points per game.
In the Johns Hopkins career record book, Rigaud jumped to fourth in school history in career rushing yards (2,639) with his effort at Ursinus and his 32 rushing touchdowns are second best in school history. He ranks third in career overall touchdowns with his 32 as well.

Two Jays 2K: Johns Hopkins had a rare double in the win against Muhlenberg as senior running back Jonathan Rigaud topped 2,000 career rushing yards and junior wide receiver Dan Wodicka topped 2,000 career receiving yards in the 33-21 win against the Mules.

Abbott Provides Strong Second Punch: Senior Jonathan Rigaud grabs most of the headlines when it comes to the Johns Hopkins rushing attack, but the Blue Jays actually have two of the top six rushers in the Centennial Conference. Junior JD Abbott enters this week's game at F&M averaging 74.3 yards per game and has eight touchdowns on the year as well. He rushed for 107 yards and two TDs in the win vs. Gettysburg.
Abbott's 520 rushing yards this season are nearly three times his career total entering this season (188). Combined with Rigaud's 132.4 yards per game, the duo is the top rushing tandem in the Centennial Conference at 206.7 yards per game.

Double Your Pleasure: Jonathan Rigaud (210 rushing yards) and JD Abbott (107) both topped the 100-yard rushing mark vs. Gettysburg. They are the first Johns Hopkins tandem to turn the trick since Adam Cook (149) and Mark Nesbitt (103) against F&M on October 11, 2003. JHU is 16-0 all-time when it has two players top the 100-yard rushing mark in the same game.

Wodicka Among National Leaders: Junior Dan Wodicka totaled four receptions for 43 yards in the win at Ursinus and pushed his season totals to 58 receptions for 544 yards and two touchdowns. His effort vs. UC also boosted his career totals to 180 receptions for 2,319 yards and 10 touchdowns. He ranks seventh in school history in career receptions and sixth in career receiving yards.
Wodicka's 180 career receptions are the second most by any active Division III junior in the nation and his total is the eighth-highest total among all junior receivers in the nation (all divisions).

Cremens Among Career Leaders: Senior WR Scott Cremens entered the game vs. Juniata with nine receptions on the year (he missed the first game of the season). He matched that with nine catches for 178 yards and three TDs against the Eagles to earn Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors. He now has 23 receptions for 281 yards and three TDs on the year.
Cremens has continued his climb in the JHU record book this season. He now ranks ninth in TD receptions (15), 10th in receptions (118) and 12th in receiving yards (1,395).

Junior Andy Laychur leads the Blue Jays with 5.5 sacks on the year.

D'Orazio Emerging: Junior Bob D'Orazio entered the game at Susquehanna with career totals of seven receptions for 116 yards in 14 career games played. Against the Crusaders he had a then career-high five receptions for a personal-best 122 yards and one touchdown and has continued to excel since then as he has totaled 38 receptions for 476 yards and three TDs in the last seven games (includes the game at Susquehanna). He had six receptions for 78 yards at Dickinson, came back with eight receptions vs. Gettysburg and ranks second on the team in receptions and receiving yards. He is tied for seventh in the Centennial in receptions per game (4.75) and ranks 11th in receiving yards per game (59.5).

Matey Rolling: Junior Robbie Matey is completing a Centennial-high 70.4% of his pass attempts (157-of-223) for 1,732 yards with nine TDs against 11 INTs. He ranks second in the Centennial in pass efficiency (139.1), fourth in passing yards per game (216.5) and fifth in total offense (245.2).
Matey rushed for 59 yards and three touchdowns and was 22-of-33 for 127 yards and one INT to help the Blue Jays to the 49-35 win over Gettysburg. He is the first Johns Hopkins quarterback to rush for more than one touchdown in game since November 16, 2002, when George Merrell rushed for two against McDaniel.

Defense Continues Run: With all the talk about the Johns Hopkins offense, the Blue Jay defense continues to excel. Johns Hopkins currently ranks first in the Centennial Conference in total defense (260.2) and rushing defense (87.3) and second in scoring defense (16.0) and pass defense (174.1). JHU ranks 17th in the nation in total defense, 16th in rushing defense and 26th in scoring defense. The Blue Jays also rank eighth in the nation in sacks per game (3.50).
Other notes of interest about the Johns Hopkins defense ...
• JHU posted its first shutout of the season with the recent 49-0 win at Dickinson.
• The opposition is averaging just 2.5 yards per rushing attempt and 3.8 yards per play.
• JHU has surrendered exactly five offensive touchdowns in the first half this season.
• JHU has accumulated 28 sacks in eight games. Thirteen different players have been in on at least one sack thus far.

Maciow Reaches 200, Schweyer Closing: The two most experienced players on the Blue Jay defense - seniors Adam Schweyer and Taylor Maciow - both figured to reach the 200-tackle mark late this season. Maciow got there in last week's win at Ursinus, while Schweyer could get there as soon as this week's game at F&M.
Maciow recorded five tackles against the Bears to run his career total to an even 200. He took over the team-lead in tackles (55) with his five at UC and has five TFLs, three sacks and two pass breakups. His 42-yard fumble return for a touchdown with just under five minutes remaining sealed the 49-35 win vs. Gettysburg.
Schweyer enters this week's game at F&M with 194 career tackles. He notched his third career touchdown with an 18-yard interception return against Juniata earlier this season. All three of his career TDs have come against the Eagles. He also has 14 career TFLs, six sacks, four interceptions, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He ranks second on the team in tackles (52) this season and has six TFLs and two interceptions.

Youth Shall Be Served: While seniors Adam Schweyer and Taylor Maciow rank as the team's top two tacklers, the defense as a whole is one of the youngest in the Centennial Conference. In fact, there is only one senior among JHU's eight-man rotation on the defensive line and just one senior among JHU's top six defensive backs. Three of the top six players in the secondary are freshmen and three of the four starters on the defensive line are sophomores.
Consider also that of the 21 players with 10 or more tackles on the year, only five are seniors; six are juniors, six are sophomores and four are freshmen.

Defensive Line Applies the Pressure: Junior Joe DiTrolio and sophomores Matthew Connery and Michael Longo have started all eight games on the defensive line and have combined for 84 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks thus far.
DiTrolio's 32 tackles lead all JHU defensive linemen, while he is tied for third on the team in sacks (3.0) and tackles for losses (5.0).
Connery counts a team-high 8.0 tackles for losses among his 25 stops on the year and he ranks second with 3.5 sacks, while Longo has 27 tackles, including 4.5 for losses and three sacks to his credit.
Other key contributors on the defensive line include juniors Mike Zikoski (22 tackles, one sack), Andy Laychur (16 tackles, team-high 5.5 sacks) and Wesley Shoap (six tackles, 2.5 TFLs, 2.0 sacks), senior Jordan Randolph (18 tackles) and sophomore Michael Rocca (15 tackles, 1.5 TFLs and one sack).

Trumbetti Picks a Pair: Freshman safety Joe Trumbetti enjoyed a solid game at Dickinson as he posted three tackles and came up with a pair of interceptions. His second INT was originally ruled a forced fumble, but a review of the play actually indicates the ball never hit the ground and he caught it while falling. His first INT stopped a Dickinson drive deep in Blue Jay territory midway through the first quarter.
Trumbetti now has 13 tackles and the two interceptions on the year. His two-interception game vs. the Red Devils is the first for a Johns Hopkins player since Ryan Piatek had two against Susquehanna on September 10, 2011.

Reeves, Corliss Make Sudden Impact: Freshmen TJ Reeves and Keith Corliss have made an immediate impact on the Blue Jay defense and special teams. The two are tied for the team-lead among freshmen wth 22 tackles each - a mark that ties them for eighth on the team overall. Corliss currently leads the team with 10 special teams tackles, while Reeves counts four special teams tackles to his credit.

Carbone Honored: Junior kicker Richie Carbone entered the game at Muhlenberg with exactly two career field goals to his credit. He matched that total in a 10-minute span in the second quarter that turned a 7-7 tie into a 13-7 lead that the Blue Jays would never relinquish. He was good from 23 yards and a career-best 42 yards and hit all three of his extra point attempts to earn Centennial Conference Special Teams Player of the Week. This is the first time in his career he has earned the honor. For the year, Carbone is 40-of-43 on extra points and 2-for-2 on field goals. He notched the 100th point of his career vs. Gettysburg as he was 7-of-7 on extra points. He is also averaging 36.4 yards per punt.

Centennial Favorites: For the fourth consecutive year and the seventh time in the last nine years Johns Hopkins was selected as the favorite in the league's preseason poll of coaches and SIDs. The Blue Jays received 14 of 20 first-place votes and totaled 153 points to easily out-distance Ursinus, which checked in at number two in the poll.

JHU Ties Victory Record: Johns Hopkins posted a 10-1 record in 2011 and tied the school record for victories in a season. Only twice previously - 2003 & 2009 - had Hopkins won 10 games in a season. Johns Hopkins had never won more than seven games in a season prior to 2002, but the Blue Jays have posted eight or more wins nine times in the last 11 years.

NCAA History: Johns Hopkins made its third trip to the NCAA Playoffs last season with all three appearances coming since 2005 under the direction of Jim Margraff, the all-time winningest coach in school history. The Blue Jays are 2-3 all-time in the NCAAs with a run to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 2009 highlighting JHU's NCAA history. Unlike the previous four NCAA games in school history, the Blue Jays hosted the first round game last season. JHU dropped a 23-12 decision to St. John Fisher, which advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals before being eliminated.

Post-Season Regulars: JHU's appearance in the NCAAs last season was the third in school history and also the eighth time Johns Hopkins has advanced to the post-season as JHU has played in five ECAC Bowl Games since 2002. Including the 2-3 record in NCAA action, JHU sports a 6-4 all-time post-season record as the Blue Jays are 4-1 all-time in ECAC Bowl Games.

Sustained Success: Since the start of the 2002 season the Blue Jays sport an 89-29 (.754) record. Taking it back farther the Blue Jays are 95-32 (.748) since the start of the 2001 season and 100-37 (.730) since the beginning of the 2000 season. The 74 wins the Blue Jays amassed from 2000-09 are the most wins in a decade in school history. Johns Hopkins had never won more than seven games in a season prior to this decade. In the decade completed in 2009, the Blue Jays averaged more than seven wins per season (7.4).

Seven's Heaven: Since the beginning of the 2003 season the Blue Jays are 80-20 (.800) when scoring more than seven points and 0-7 when they have been held to seven points or less.

- 30 -