Frostburg (4-5, 3-3)
vs.
No. 10 Salisbury (8-1, 6-0)
Saturday, November 12, 2011
4:00 pm
Sea Gull Stadium
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Frostburg Game Notes
Setting the Scene
The Bobcats enter the final game of the regular season with a chance to finish with a .500 record for the first time since 2005. They gave themselves that chance with a 35-28 Senior Day win over Hartwick. The Bobcats jumped out to a 28-7 lead but had to withstand a Hawks comeback attempt in the second half.
Freshman running back JD Hook rushed for 208 yards on 28 carries. It's the most yards rushing by a Bobcat since Mike Kitchen ran for 209 yards in November 2003.
The Series
Frostburg and Salisbury meet for the 38th time on Saturday. The Sea Gulls lead the series, 22-16. It's been a streaky series recently. Salisbury has won the past seven meetings, while Frostburg took seven of eight prior to that.
This Week in the Empire 8
Nov. 12
Springfield at Union 12:00 pm
Cortland at Ithaca 12:00 pm
Utica at Alfred 1:00 pm
Frostburg at Salisbury 4:00 pm
St. John Fisher at Hartwick 4:00 pm
Coaching the Cats
Tom Rogish is in his fourth season as head coach of the Bobcats and has FSU sitting at 4-5 this fall. Last season, Rogish guided FSU to a 2-8 overall record.
Rogish brought over 30 years of coaching experience to Frostburg State including 29 years in the collegiate ranks. He 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.
Frostburg State Football History
The Bobcats enter their contest with Salisbury with an overall record of 231-251-8. The Bobcats have reached the postseason eight times, including a trip to the NCAA Quarterfinals in 1993. The school's most recent postseason appearance occurred in 2005 when FSU lost the ECAC Southwest Championship to Moravian, 14-7.
Regents Cup: Round 13
Although the teams have met 37 times, the Regents Cup tradition began in 1999. Games have been played at the homes of the Baltimore Ravens, Washington Redskins, Towson Tigers and Navy Midshipmen. The series returned to a home-and-home format in 2009. The Bobcats are 4-8 in the first 12 Regents Cup games.
Airing It Out On The Birds
Quarterback Josh Volpe is making his fourth career start in the Regents Cup, and his numbers in the first three have fluctuated. He's passed for 156, 146, and 99 yards, respectively. Last year's 15-of-30, 99-yard performance also included three interceptions. For the Bobcats to hang with the No. 10 Sea Gulls on Saturday, Volpe will have to repeat some of his 2011 performances.
This season, Volpe has thrown for over 2,000 yards and is the first player to do so since 2002. Volpe has thrown for over 200 yards in seven of the team's nine games this season, including a career-best 441 yards and six touchdowns in an overtime win against Alfred.
Volpe is just 24 yards away from moving into third place on the all-time passing list. He's also just one touchdown pass from moving into a tie for second place for touchdown throws in a single season.
Hangin' With Mr. Cooper
Frostburg State junior wide receiver Anthony Young set a school mark by making 12 receptions last week in the win over Hartwick. Young becomes the first receiver in school history to make double-digit receptions in consecutive games. Former wideout Greg Cooper had double-digit catches in two of three games in 1999. Cooper has five double-digit reception games, while Young has three. Both receivers share the single-game reception mark with 16 catches.
Young's 12-catch, 116-yard performance moved him up the charts on both of those lists. He now ranks fourth in school history with 125 catches and seventh in yards with 1552. Young is also just six catches away from tying the school's single-season record of 70.
When Frostburg is...
Leading after First...2-0
Tied after First...2-1
Trailing After First...0-4
Leading at the Half...3-0
Tied at the Half...1-0
Trailing at the Half...0-5
Leading after Third...3-1
Tied after Third...0-1
Trailing after Third...1-3
A Win for Frostburg State Would ...
- Lift FSU to 232-251-8 overall since starting football in 1961
- Give Frostburg at least a .500 record for the first time since 2005 (6-5)
- End Salisbury's seven-game winning streak against the Bobcats (Last win for FSU - 2003)
- Give the Bobcats back-to-back wins for the first time since 2006 (10/21 and 10/28)
- Be Frostburg's first win at Salisbury since Sept. 27, 1997 (16-7)
Last Week
FROSTBURG, Md. – The game started with tears of sadness, but ended with tears of joy as the Frostburg State University football team held off a feisty Hartwick squad for a 35-28 victory in Empire 8 action, Saturday.
Prior to kickoff, a pair of celebrations brought everyone in the stadium to tears. Nine seniors suited up for their final football game at Bobcat Stadium. FSU then held a brief memorial celebration for former player Derek Sheely as his name was added to the "Rock of Honor" that sits next to the stadium field.
In the end, the Bobcats (4-5, 3-3) racked up 529 yards of offense and held the ball for 36:03. The final drive was key for FSU as it held the ball for the final 8:46 of regulation and kept Hartwick (2-7, 0-6) from attempting to tie the contest.
The Bobcats led in time of possession behind a season-high 280 yards on the ground. Freshman tailback JD Hook ran the ball 28 times for 208 yards and a touchdown that tied the game at 7-7 early in the first quarter. Senior Garfield Lampkin capped his playing career at Bobcat Stadium in fine fashion running for 49 yards (12 carries) and two touchdowns.
The Bobcat aerial attack was just as potent as senior quarterback Josh Volpe completed 25-of-29 attempts for 249 yards and one touchdown. He also ran for the Bobcats' final score early in the fourth quarter. Junior wide receiver Anthony Young led all players with 116 receiving yards on 12 catches.
Hartwick took the early 7-0 lead after scoring on the game's opening possession. The Hawks marched 60 yards on eight plays in just 3:23 and Anthony Casiman ran in from 11 yards out.
The Bobcats surged ahead for a 21-7 lead after finding the endzone on their next three possessions. Hook started things off with a five-yard scoring run that capped a 10-play 77-yard drive. Lampkin gave the hosts a 14-7 lead with a one-yard score early in the second quarter (14:31).
Volpe found freshman Antonio Wood for a nifty pitch and catch in the corner of the endzone for the third touchdown. He squeezed a 12-yard scoring pass between a couple of defenders to cap the third-straight 10-play scoring drive.
Lampkin added a two-yard scoring run early in the third quarter as the Bobcats surged to a 28-7 lead.
Hartwick gathered itself in the second half scoring touchdowns on its only three possessions. Dan Brainard tossed a pair of scoring passes in the third quarter. He found Tom Delahunty for a 60-yard touchdown and Jordan Wilkins for a 27-yard score late in the third as the Hawks closed the gap to 28-21.
Frostburg then collected its longest scoring drive of the afternoon, covering 80 yards in 13 plays in 6:28. Volpe pushed his way into the endzone from a yard out for a 35-21 edge.
The Hawks answered as Brainard tossed his third touchdown of the half, this time a 24 yarder to Chris Hoose to cut the deficit back to seven (35-28).
However, the Bobcats slowly chewed away at the clock as they methodically moved 61 yards on 16 plays covering the final 8:46 of regulation.
Hartwick, which entered the contest with the Empire 8's second-best passing offense, totaled 382 yards of offense, including 275 through the air. Brainard finished with all 275 yards on 20-of-30 attempts and three touchdowns. Anthony Casiman ran for a team-high 93 yards on 13 carries and the game's first touchdown.
