Washington and Lee University
SERIES INFO:
Time: 1:00 pm
Site: Wilson Field (7,000)
Series: W&L leads 4-3
Last Meeting: 9/9/06 at F&M (F&M won 21-7)
First Meeting: 10/11/58 at W&L (F&M won 14-12)
Last W&L Win: 11/2/63 at F&M (28-6)
Last F&M Win: 9/9/06 at F&M (21-7)
Current Series Streak: F&M +1
W&L vs. F&M at W&L: 2-1
W&L vs. F&M at F&M: 2-2
THE SERIES:
W&L and Franklin & Marshall will be meeting for the eighth time, with the Generals holding a 4-3 advantage in the all-time series, which began during the 1958 season. The teams re-kindled the series last season after a 43-year hiatus and F&M emerged with a 21-7 victory in Lancaster, Pa. W&L had won each of the previous four meetings by a combined score of 161-28.
THE HEAD COACHES:
Frank Miriello (East Stroudsburg '67) is in his 13th season as the head coach at W&L and his 40th year of coaching. He claims a 61-58-1 (.513) overall record and ranks second all-time at W&L in career victories. The Diplomats are led by second-year Head Coach John Troxell (Lafayette '94). Troxell posted a 3-7 (.300) overall record in his first season at F&M, including a 21-7 victory over W&L. Troxell came to F&M from Lafayette College, where he served as assistant coach from 2001-05.
ALL-TIME RECORD:
W&L has compiled a 448-484-39 (.482) all-time record over 113 seasons of football. The Generals have been linked to the first intercollegiate football game played in the South, an 1873 matchup with neighboring VMI, though the University officially recognized football as a varsity sport beginning in 1890.
LAST TIME OUT:
(Wilkes 42, W&L 0; November 18, 2006 - Wilkes-Barre, Pa.)
Wilkes University jumped out to a 21-0 first-quarter lead and cruised to a 42-0 victory over Washington and Lee in the first round of the Division III football playoffs in Wilkes-Barre, Pa. The Colonels scored on the third play of the game as safety Bryan Vivaldo intercepted a pass by W&L quarterback R.J. Varner and returned it 34 yards for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead just 1:40 into the game. A W&L fumble on its next possession gave Wilkes another short field as running back Jason Nabba capped off a 7-play, 30-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run for a 14-0 lead just 5:42 into the first quarter. Tight end Matt Pizarro hauled in a 21-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Al Karaffa with 3:00 left in the opening period for a 21-0 lead and running back Tom Andreopoulos gave the Colonels a 28-0 halftime lead with an 82-yard touchdown run with 11:21 left in the first half. Andreopoulos led the Wilkes offense with 169 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries, while Karaffa completed 8-of-14 passes for 82 yards and two touchdowns. Linebacker Kyle Follweiler led the defense with eight tackles. W&L was limited to just 141 yards of total offense, led by running back Stuart Sitterson, who tallied 10 catches for 82 yards and rushed six times for 12 yards. Varner completed 22-of-32 passes for 151 yards and one interception, while senior wide receiver Colton Ward caught nine passes for 13 yards. Safety Kyle Luby paced the W&L defense with nine tackles. Cornerback Jimmy Gift added six tackles and a pair of sacks.
LAST MEETING WITH FRANKLIN & MARSHALL:
(F&M 21, W&L 7; September 9, 2006 - Lancaster, Pa.)
Franklin & Marshall jumped out to a 14-0 first quarter lead and controlled the ball for 42:21 of the game's 60 minutes to defeat Washington and Lee, 21-7, in Lancaster, Pa. The Diplomats dented the scoreboard early in the first quarter when Rob Donofrio caught a 34-yard touchdown pass from Kyle Turner at 10:37. Turner followed that score with a five-yard keeper, entering the end zone with 4:12 remaining in the first quarter. F&M notched its final points of the contest at the 1:19 mark of the third quarter when Matt Mondonedo hauled in a 9-yard TD reception. The Generals responded with their only score of the contest at 5:11 of the fourth quarter. Senior quarterback Hunter Dawkins hooked up with senior wide receiver D.J. Hackett for a 19-yard touchdown reception. Franklin & Marshall out-gained W&L 310-128 and was led by Turner, who completed 11-of-19 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 26 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. Donofrio snared three passes for 56 yards and a score, while Curtis Varner carried the ball 33 times for 107 yards. James Gregory had nine tackles for the Dips' defense. W&L was paced by Dawkins, who was 11-of-20 for 59 yards and a touchdown. Running back Stuart Sitterson gained 47 yards on 16 carries, while wide receiver Jack Martin caught 3 passes for 22 yards. Linebacker Bryant Fulk registered 12 tackles and one sack, while linebacker Ryan MacPhee also notched 12 tackles for the Generals.
SCOUTING FRANKLIN & MARSHALL:
Franklin & Marshall is coming off a 3-7 campaign last fall. The Diplomats dropped five of their last six contests and finshed 2-4 in the Centennial Conference. F&M returns five starters from last season's offense that averaged 347.2 yards per game, including senior quarterback Kyle Turner. Turner earned Second Team All-Centennial Conference honors after passing for 2,171 yards and 16 touchdowns (15 INT's) last season. His main target in 2006 was current junior wide receiver Paul Sousa, who snared 48 passes for 801 yards and one touchdown. Senior All-Centennial Conference guard Brian Rice anchors an offensive line that returns three starters. The Diplomats will be searching for a running back, however, as Curtis Varner graduated, taking his 629 yards and three touchdowns with him. On defense, F&M returns nine starters from a squad that allowed an average of 326.0 yards and 22.9 points per game. The squad is paced by a pair of returning Second Team All-Centennial selections in senior defensive end George Farrell and junior linebacker James Gregory. Farrell totaled 35 tackles and 2.5 sacks, while Gregory notched 54 tackles.
PUNDITS AND POLLS:
The preseason pundits have had a favorable opinion of Washington and Lee following the Generals' first conference title since 1985. W&L appears in the Street & Smith's Preseason Division III poll at No. 25, the program's first-ever preseason ranking. The Generals are also picked to finish second in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Coaches Poll, just behind Bridgewater College. W&L went 5-1 in the ODAC last season, with the lone loss occurring at Bridgewater (27-8).
IS FOUR IN STORE?:
The season-opener against Franklin & Marshall is the beginning of what the Generals hope to be their fourth-straight winning season. After going 3-7 in 2003, W&L has posted a 20-11 overall record and three winning campaigns. W&L has not posted four-straight winning seasons since a string of six-straight from 1980-1985.
FOR OPENERS:
Since 1900, W&L is 56-50-1 (.528) in season opening games. The Generals won their last season-opener at home, a 36-22 win over Alfred in 2005. However, W&L is 0-18 in opening games on the road since the 1969 season.
OFFENSIVE BREAKDOWN:
The Generals' offense returns only six starters from a year ago, but appears to be better on paper than the offense that averaged just 233.7 yards per game last season. Sophomore quarterback R.J. Varner earned the ODAC Rookie of the Year Award last fall and should only get better with a year under his belt. He completed 61.0 percent of his passes for 1,101 yards and eight touchdowns in his initial campaign. Senior wide receiver Jack Martin also returns after tallying 32 catches for 583 yards and nine touchdowns. A captain and two-time Preseason All-America selection, Martin has posted 111 catches for 2,060 yards and 25 touchdowns over his first three seasons. Junior Stuart Sitterson also returns after totaling 965 all-purpose yards last season as a tailback. He moves to V-Back this season, where he should have an even greater impact on the offense. Junior Tom Pacicco will step in for Sitterson at tailback, where he notched 181 yards and one touchdown last season as a reserve. The offensive line returns three starters, including Second Team All-ODAC left tackle Bobby Hetherington. Senior captain Dan Felezzola is back at left guard, while senior Alex Skotnicki returns as the starter at right tackle.
DEFENSIVE BREAKDOWN:
The defense helped carry the Generals to an ODAC title in 2006 and nine starters return from that group that allowed an average of just 261.6 yards and 15.7 points per game. Senior captains Bryant Fulk and Mark Snoddy headline the group after earning First Team All-ODAC honors a year ago. The duo also received greater reconition state-wide, with Fulk being tabbed the Virginia Division II-III Defensive Lineman of the Year and Snoddy being named the Roanoke Times Division II-III Defensive Player of the Year and a runner-up for the Dudley Award. As a linebacker/defensive end, Fulk posted 72 tackles and 6.0 sacks, while Snoddy notched 32 tackles and a school-record nine interceptions. He enters his senior season already holding the W&L career interception record (17). Snoddy is just one member of an entire defensive secondary that returns after registering 18 interceptions. Senior safety Kyle Luby led the team with 73 tackles, while senior cornerback Jimmy Gift notched 67 tackles, 3.5 sacks and three interceptions. Junior Chris Prugar and senior Aaron Fulk both return after splitting time at safety and totaling 58 tackles and two interceptions between them. Senior linebackers Kyle Harvey and Ryan MacPhee also return this fall, as do junior defensive linemen Tommy Matteo and Scott Russell. Harvey notched 70 tackles last year, while MacPhee logged 68 stops and 3.0 sacks. Matteo had 54 tackles and 5.5 sacks and Russell tallied 26 tackles and 1.5 sacks.
WHAT'S GONE:
The Generals do return plenty of experienced talent for the 2007 season, but that doesn't mean they don't have some tough shoes to fill. Among the key players that graduated were placekicker Ben Long, wide receiver Colton Ward, offensive linemen Hunter Whitfield and Chas Collins, defensive end Walker Williams and linebacker Robert Foster. Long was a First Team All-ODAC pick and he finished his career as the program's all-time leader in field goals (32) and fourth all-time leading scorer (178). Ward was a three-time All-ODAC selection and completed his career as the program's all-time leading receiver with 161 receptions. Whitfield and Collins were both All-ODAC selections and multi-year starters on the offensive line, while Williams and Foster both started multiple seasons on the defense.
TURNOVER TALK:
Washington and Lee ranked 15th in Division III with 31 turnovers forced last season. The returning players on W&L's 2007 roster accounted for 30 of those 31 turnovers.
-- GENERALS --