SHIPPENSBURG
UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL
RED RAIDERS HOST
BLOOMSBURG IN NATIONALLY RANKED MATCHUP
Game Storyline
* The Shippensburg
University football team plays the final of three-straight home games to open
the 2004 season on Saturday, September 11 at Seth Grove Stadium against
Bloomsburg University. The Red
Raiders enter the game having won their last four-straight and are 2-0 this
year with wins over Kutztown University and Shepherd University. Shippensburg has also won the last five
consecutive games at Seth Grove Stadium, dating back to last season on
September 27, 2003 when West Chester University defeated the Red Raiders 33-20.
* Bloomsburg comes
into the game with a record of 1-0 this season after a season-opening 20-17
victory over Slippery Rock University on August 28. The Huskies had a bye last week and will be playing their
second-straight road game.
* Entering the 2004
season, Shippensburg and Bloomsburg were both picked to finish first in their
respective divisions in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC). The Huskies were chosen to finish atop
the East Division by the coaches in the preseason poll while the Red Raiders
were tabbed first in the West Division.
* The Red Raiders
lead the overall series with the Huskies, 40-27-1. The two teams first met on October 6, 1917 at Bloomsburg
with the home team prevailing 26-0.
Shippensburg head coach Rocky Rees has a 9-5 record against the Huskies,
but Bloomsburg has won five of the last nine meetings.
* Shippensburg and
Bloomsburg have met every year since 1972 with the Red Raiders winning 21 of
those 32 meetings. Last year's
victory 21-0 victory by Shippensburg ended a two-game losing streak for the Red
Raiders against the Huskies.
* Seth Grove
Stadium opened on September 9, 1972 with Shippensburg and Bloomsburg facing
each other in the inaugural game.
The Red Raiders won the game, 28-14, behind three rushing touchdowns
from fullback Johnny Seigle. He
scored the first touchdown in the stadium, a 2-yard run in the first quarter.
* Red Raiders head
coach Rocky Rees enters the game with a record of 85-71-1 in 15 years at
Shippensburg and a mark of 121-86-2 in 21 overall seasons. He has twice been named PSAC Western
Division Coach of the Year (1991, 2001) and has led the Red Raiders to the NCAA
Division II Football Championship two times. Last year's team compiled an 8-3 record and produced the
sixth winning season in seven years and led the PSAC in 12 statistics
categories. This year, Rees is looking
to lead Shippensburg to its first PSAC Western Division championship since
1988.
* Danny Hale is in
his 12th season at Bloomsburg following five seasons as the head
coach at West Chester. He has a
record of 89-35-1 with the Huskies and is ranked in the top 10 among active
coaches on the all-time NCAA Division II winning percentage list with a career
record of 129-48-1. Hale was named
the 2001 PSAC East Coach of the Year for the eighth time in his career along
with picking up the American Football Coaches' Association (AFCA) Division II
District I Coach of the Year for the seventh time.
*
Bloomsburg posted a record of 7-4 last season with three losses coming by a
combined total of five points.
However, in the team's loss to Shippensburg, the Red Raiders' strong defense
resulted in a 21-0 victory.
* Mike
Ceroli was the team's top rusher last season, gaining over 1,000 yards which
was only the eighth time in school history. In week one at Slippery Rock, he totaled 63 yards on
11 carries, but it was Jamar Brittingham's two touchdowns, including a two-yard
touchdown run with 1:29 left in the game that gave Bloomsburg a 20-17
come-from-behind win over the Pride.
*
All-American candidate Jahri Evans anchors the offensive line that surrendered
five sacks against Slippery Rock and totaled only 83 yards rushing. Defensively, the Huskies lost several
key players, especially at linebacker, but senior Paul Linn stepped up the
Huskies effort in week one with 11 tackles. Defensive back Tyler Trettin added 10 tackles in the win.
*
Shippensburg continued its climb up the national rankings this week as the Red
Raiders are ranked No. 16 in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA)
Division II Coaches' Poll and No. 18 in the d2football.com poll. The team began
the season ranked No. 20 in the first AFCA poll and moved up to No. 19
following its season opening 35-0 victory over Kutztown Unibersity. In the
d2football.com poll, Shippensburg moved up one spot after being placed at No.
19 in the preseason poll.
* This
week, the Red Raiders will face their first ranked opponent this season as they
welcome Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) crossover rival
Bloomsburg University on Saturday. Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m., at Seth Grove
Stadium. The Huskies enter the game currently ranked No. 20 in the AFCA poll
and No. 24 in the d2football.com poll.
*
Bloomsburg won its season-opener on August 28, 20-17, on the road at Slippery
Rock University and were idle last week. Both the Huskies and Red Raiders were
picked to finish atop their respective PSAC divisions in the preseason coaches'
poll.
* To
view this week's national polls, go to afca.org and d2football.com.
* The Red Raider
defense limited Shepherd to only 48 yards rushing last week, marking the sixth
time in the last eight games that Shippensburg has held their opponents under
100 yards rushing. As a unit, the
Red Raiders forced nine punts, held the Rams to seven first downs and held them
to only 2-of-14 on third-down conversions.
* Shepherd's
67-yard touchdown early in the third quarter ended Shippensburg's streak of 10
consecutive quarters without allowing a score of any kind. The streak dated back to week 10 of
last season, a 40-14 victory over East Stroudsburg on November 8.
*
Senior defensive end Ryan Hoffman (Phoenixville, Pa./St. Pius X) helped a Shippensburg defense
that limited the Rams to 229 yards in total offense last week. He totaled six
tackles, two sacks and one pass deflection. For the season, Hoffman has nine tackles and two pass
deflections.
Sophomore
quarterback Tony Gomez (Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville) helped Shippensburg to its
fourth-straight victory Saturday afternoon, leading a Red Raider offense that
accounted for 527 yards in total offense. In his third career start, he had
another strong performance as he led the offense on four of its five scoring
drives, including the longest of the season; a 13-play, 61-yard march that used
7:13, capped off by his 8-yard run with 13:22 left in the game to give
Shippensburg a 28-7 lead. Gomez completed 7-of-13 passes for 145 yards and one touchdown
in addition to his rushing score.
* Former
Shippensburg defensive lineman Ron Johnson ('03), a member of the Philadelphia
Eagles the last two seasons, started at defensive end in the team's preseason
finale against the New York Jets on September 3. A two-time Second-Team All-PSAC Western Division selection,
he made one tackle last Friday night, a sack of quarterback Quincy Carter for a
four-yard loss in the third quarter.
* Johnson was
signed by the Eagles as an undrafted free agent in 2003, joining nine-year
National Football League (NFL) veteran Rob Davis, a 1992 graduate of
Shippensburg who has spent the last nine seasons with the Green Bay
Packers. In 1996, Davis became the
first Red Raider to play in a regular season game in the NFL. Johnson played three games with
Philadelphia last season.
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