Frostburg State Football (1-1)
vs.
Widener (1-1)
Saturday, Sept. 27 - 1:00 pm
Bobcat Stadium - Frostburg, Md.
Live Stats
http://www.sidearmstats.com/frostburg/football
Game Notes (attached and link below)
http://www.frostburgsports.com/custompages/football/widener%20game%20notes.pdf?path=football
Setting the Scene
The Bobcats are coming off their first win of the season after Bryan Brosnan passed for 242 yards in a 27-14 win over SUNY Brockport.
The Pride come into the game at 1-1. Widener won its opening game 7-6 over NC Wesleyan and began the season in the top 25. Last week, the Pride suffered a 41-9 defeat at the hands of ACFC member and No. 15 ranked Wesley.
FSU is looking for its first 2-1 start since 2001 and a win would match the win total of the last two seasons.
The Series
The Pride hold a 2-0 record over the Bobcats dating back to 2003. The last time the two teams met was a 22-0 shutout in Chester, Pa. in 2004. The first ever meeting came on Homecoming 2003 when Widener pulled out a 26-19 upset over the eventual ACFC Champions.
The Coaches
Tom Rogish is in his first season as head coach of the Frostburg State University Bobcats. The 12th coach in FSU's 47-year history, Rogish brings over 30 years of coaching experience to the sidelines at Frostburg including 29 years in the collegiate ranks.
Rogish began his collegiate coaching career at Juniata (Division III), but has spent the last 22 years at the Division II level at perennial powers Indiana (Pa.) and Shepherd (W.Va.).
Prior to his arrival in Frostburg, Rogish spent two years on the defensive staff at Shepherd College. The Rams made back-to-back trips to the NCAA Tournament in 2006 and 2007 including a run to the NCAA Division II Northeast Region championship (2007). Shepherd finished 2007 with one of the top defenses in the country. The Rams were 25th in scoring defense (19.9), 13th in turnover margin (1.2) and 41st in total defense (321.3).
David Wood is in his sixth year with the Widener football program. He has led the Pride to an 34-19 overall record, including two ECAC Championships and a MAC title last season.
What the Coaches are Saying
The Frostburg State football team was picked to finish fourth in the 2008 Atlantic Central Football Conference preseason coaches poll.
Three-time defending champion Wesley recieved five first-place votes to win the conference, while Salisbury picked up three. Both teams have been receiving votes in national preseason polls as the Wolverines have been as high as third and in the top six in all polls, while the Sea Gulls have been in the top 15 in all polls.
2008 ACFC Preseason Coaches Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses)
1. Wesley 6 (5)
2. Salisbury 9 (3)
3. Apprentice 14
4. Frostburg State 18
Frostburg State Football History
Frostburg State is 222-224-8 all-time in the programs 48-year history.
Home Grown Talent
FSU’s roster consists of 97 players from six different states. The largest number coming from Maryland (88) while neighboring Pennsylvania (4) comes in second.
Here is a breakdown of the FSU roster:
Maryland - 88
Pennsylvania - 4
Virginia - 3
Washington, D.C. - 1
Delaware - 1
A Win for Frostburg State would ...
- Lift FSU to a 223-224-8 record all-time
- Give the Bobcats their first 2-1 start since 2001
- Give Coach Rogish his first winning streak of head coaching career
- Give FSU their first win in the series
A Loss for Frostburg State would ...
- Drop FSU to a 222-225-8 overall record all-time
- Stretch the Bobcat losing streak to Widener to three games
- Hand FSU its second-straight 1-2 start.
A Hair Above ...
Frostburg State holds a slight 3-2 record over current Mid-Atlantic Conference opponents. The last contest for FSU against a MAC opponent was a 2004 loss at Widener. The Bobcats will look to improve the overall lead on the conference this week.
Leading the Bobcats ...
Junior Bryan Brosnan (Leesburg, Va./Heritage) steps into the spotlight and takes over the quarterback duties for the Bobcats this fall. He picked up his first career win last weekend against SUNY Brockport. In his first season as a starter Brosnan leads the conference in yards per game (191.5), total yards (383.0), completion percentage (76.5%), and is second in the conference in pass efficiency (200.2)
Brosnan also comes into this week ranked fourth in pass efficiency in the NCAA.
Tackle Tale...
The Bobcats defense brings four of the top five tacklers from the ACFC conference.
2.) Terryl Monroe - 18
3.) Mike Iheakanwa - 17
4.) Brendan Clancy - 16
5.) George Fieser - 15
The FSU offense will have to deal with a tackling duo itself as Widener brings with them two of the top three defeners from the MAC.
1.) Zach Smith - 25
3.) Joe Favinger - 20
Pass-R-US
Frostburg State will try to continue its fly-by air attack this week as the FSU offense has the ACFC's best pass efficiency (200.2) and second best pass offense (191.5).
This week's contest should provide opportunity for the Bobcats to continue to own the air above Bobcat Stadium as Widener brings the second worst pass defense in the MAC.
Last Time Out...
FROSTBURG, Md. - Junior Bryan Brosnan (Leesburg, Va./Heritage) threw for 242 yards and a pair of touchdowns to lead the Frostburg State football team to a 27-14 win over SUNY Brockport in its home opener on a sunny Saturday afternoon at Bobcat Stadium.
The win not only handed FSU its first win of the season (1-1) but first year head coach Tom Rogish his first career victory at the helm of the Bobcat program. The win is also the first in the series for FSU since its captured a 35-18 win in 1999 in Brockport, N.Y.
The Bobcats trailed 14-7 early in the fourth but three touchdowns in the final quarter handed FSU the win.
Brosnan finished 15-for-20 with both touchdown tosses coming early in the final quarter. Sophomore tailback Anton Wade (Baltimore, Md./Patterson) capped the afternoon's scoring with his second touchdown of the season late in the game to help seal the victory.
FSU got on the board first when sophomore Anthony King (Germantown, Md./Northwest) found the endzone from four yards out capping an 11-play 80-yard opening drive for the Bobcats.
The Golden Eagles (1-1) answered midway through the second quarter when Tamere Shannon hauled in a 25-yard scoring pass from Zack Luke as the visitors tied the game at 7-7.
The game remained tied at the half before Brockport took the lead on its second drive of the third quarter. Garet Lynch, who led all players with 155 yards on the ground, broke into the secondary and scored from 17 yards out as the Golden Eagles moved ahead 14-7.
From there on, FSU settled down and dominated on both sides of the ball. The defense did its part forcing two punts and picking off two Luke passes over Brockports final four possessions. Meanwhile, the offense scored three touchdowns in the final five possessions of the game.
After a freshman Kevin Mathews (Temple Hills, Md./Oxon Hill) interception at the Brockport 48, the Bobcats needed just four plays to cover 48 yards for the game tying score. Brosnan rolled to his right a bought enough time to find junior wideout Ali Konteh (Hyattsville, Md./Northwestern Hyattsville) for a six-yard touchdown with 14:54 showing in the fourth quarter.
Frostburg State took the lead for good on its ensuing drive when it needed just four plays to score another touchdown. This time FSU needed 71 yards to find the endzone and Brosnan fired his second scoring pass of the ballgame. He found junior Avery Willie (Aberdeen, Md./Aberdeen/Salisbury) up the right sideline for a 25-yard pitch and catch as the Bobcats took a 21-14 advantage.
Wade capped the afternoon when he crossed the goaline from nine yards out, capping an eight-play 56-yard drive. The extra point failed but FSU led 27-14 with 5:26 left in the game.
Brockport quickly moved the ball into FSU territory on its next drive. Luke found John Durkin for a 67-yard pass to the FSU 14-yardline. However on the next play, Luke was intercepted in the endzone by sophomore Terryl Monroe (Temple Hills, Md./Dematha) with just 1:33 showing on the clock to seal the win.
The one-two punch of King and Wade powered the FSU ground game. Both scored a touchdown as King led with 80 yards and Wade added 79 of his own. Junior Makiha Cooper (Baltimore, Md./Forest Park) paced all players with a game-high 91 yards on six receptions.
Senior Brendan Clancy (Ellicot City, Md./Mt. Hebron) had his name called several times on the afternoon as he made 10 tackles to lead the defense. Junior George Feiser (Hagerstown, Md./Smithsburg/Salisbury) made eight stops with a sack while senior Collin Clifford (Rockville, Md./Richard Montgomery) made eight tackles in 0.5 TFL.
