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OPENING KICKOFF: Today's Centennial Conference (CC) game marks the 48th meeting between McDaniel (1-4, 1-3 CC) and Franklin & Marshall (4-1, 3-1 CC) in a series that dates back to 1904. The Diplomats lead the all-time series 31-16-2 and have won the last 12 meetings after the Green Terror took seven straight between 1997 and 2003.
WHEN LAST WE MET: Franklin & Marshall built a 23-7 halftime lead before holding on for a 30-28 victory over McDaniel last season. Will Koester (Purcellville, Va./Woodgrove) completed 22 of 32 passes for 267 yards in his first start for the Green Terror, throwing three touchdowns. Mike Oliveto did the yeoman's work, catching eight passes for 131 yards, including a career-long 75 yard touchdown reception. Andrew DeStefano caught eight passes to lead the Diplomats, amassing 130 yards.
LAST TIME OUT: McDaniel was idle last week. Two weeks ago, Gettysburg scored the first 21 points of the game before hanging on for a 38-23 victory over McDaniel. Will Koester led the Green Terror with 256 yards passing, completing 27 of 49 passes with three touchdowns. Danny Thompson paced the Bullets with 117 yards rushing and 95 yards passing.
WITH HONORS: Will Koester, Keegan Romanoff (Hanover, Pa./New Oxford) and Doug MacArthur (Roebling, N.J./Florence Twp. Memorial) were named to their respective CC Weekly Honor Rolls two weeks ago. Koester was named to the offensive ledger after throwing for 256 yards on 28 of 52 passing. He had three touchdown throws. Romanoff was tabbed to the defensive list after leading the defense with a career-best eight tackles – all solo stops. He also forced a fumble. MacArthur earned a spot on the special teams list after averaging 39.7 yards on three punts.
LEADING THE WAY: Tyler DeMent (Olney, Md./Northwest), Vince Gorgone (Clarksville, Md./Good Counsel) and Matt Quattrone (Carlisle, Pa./Carlisle Area) will captain the squad in 2016. This is the second straight year Quattrone has served as a captain while DeMent and Gorgone are first-time captains.
ON DE-ROAD: Tyler DeMent has caught a touchdown pass in each of the Green Terror's three road games this season. Two weeks ago at Gettysburg, the senior caught a five-yard score to get McDaniel on the board with 4:30 to play in the second quarter for his first score since a trip to Moravian on Sept. 10. He caught a 12-yard touchdown from Matthew Callahan (Germantown, Md./Northwest) in the second quarter of the opener at Catholic before grabbing a 10-yard pass from Will Koester in the second quarter against the Greyhounds. His three touchdown receptions is tops on the team this season. DeMent is currently fourth on the squad with 13 receptions.
200-LEVEL CLASS: Will Koester made his first collegiate start one year ago, coming out of the 2015 bye week as the starter against Franklin & Marshall. In his nine starts since, he has thrown for 200 or more yards seven times, including a career-best 314-yard showing in the win over Ursinus on Sept. 24. His seven 200-yard passing games ranks sixth in program history.
DOING HIS OWN WORK: Keegan Romanoff recorded a career-best eight tackles at Gettysburg. All eight of those stops were solo stops. He now has 20 tackles on the year and each one has been of the unassisted variety. He is the only player on the team with more than five tackles to not have an assisted tackle this season.
MOVING FORWARD: McDaniel enters this weekend ranked second in the conference in sacks and tackles for loss allowed. The Green Terror has allowed an average of just 1.40 sacks per game through the first half of the season. The offensive line went two straight games without allowing a sack. The line is allowing just 4.0 tackles for loss per game.
MOVING FORWARD, PART II: Individually, running backs Perry Stefanelli (Rockville, Md./Good Counsel) and John Chamberlin (Williamstown, N.J./Williamstown) have done well to not get stopped in the backfield. The duo combined for 28 carries last week without a negative play a week after the duo ran the ball 32 times without losing a yard. Through the first five games, Chamberlin has lost just two yards on rushing plays while Stefanelli has been dropped for just 16 yards worth of lost yardage.
CATCHING ON: Bamasa Bailor (Carlisle, Pa./Carlisle Area) grabbed eight passes for 85 yards at Gettysburg – both career high totals for the junior wide receiver. His eight grabs are a high for anyone on the Green Terror active roster. Andre Henry Jr. (Frederick, Md./Urbana) also hauled in six passes, amassing a career-high 86 yards. Among his grabs was a 31-yard touchdown on McDaniel's first possession of the second half two weeks ago. It was the junior first career touchdown reception.
FOURTH AND GO: The Green Terror is 10-for-15 on fourth-down conversions this season. The 66.7-percent conversion rate is tied for second in the conference while the 10 first downs is the most of any team in the league. John Chamberlin has been the favorite target on fourth downs, getting the call five times. He has converted four of those touches into first downs.
TERROR TIDBITS: Today is McDaniel's second of three straight games playing in a Homecoming game. The Green Terror was Gettysburg's Homecoming foe two weeks ago and will host its own Homecoming against Dickinson next Saturday… McDaniel leads the league in time of possession, holding the ball for an average of 33:03 each game. The Green Terror has held the advantage in time of possession in four of the first five games… McDaniel has had 16 different players catch a pass this season… The Green Terror is looking to snap another double-digit streak today and win on the road for the first time in 13 games.
COACHES' CORNER: Mike Dailey is in his first season at the helm of the Green Terror after seven seasons as an assistant on the staff. He enters today's game with an overall record of 1-4 after registering his first win on Sept. 24 with a 30-27 victory over Ursinus. Dailey joined the Green Terror staff in 2009 with a pedigree of success at all levels of football that included compiling a record of 115-83 and two championships in 12 years as a head coach in the Arena Football League (AFL), leading the Albany Firebirds and Colorado Crush that included winning league titles in 1999 and 2005. For his first six seasons on the McDaniel sidelines, he served as defensive coordinator. His scheme put pressure on opposing quarterbacks game-in and game-out, recording 101 sacks and 55 interceptions. He helped produce 12 All-Centennial Conference selections, including four first-team nods. In 2015, Dailey shifted responsibilities to the offensive side of the ball – something he is renowned for from his days in the AFL. He spent last season coordinating the pass game and working specifically with the wide receivers… John Troxell is in his 11th season at Franklin & Marshall. He is 58-51, guiding the Diplomats to a 9-2 record and ECAC South Atlantic title in 2009 after back-to-back 4-6 records and a 3-7 inaugural season at the helm. He added three ECAC Bowl games over the next four seasons, including a 38-14 win over Delaware Valley in the Southeast Bowl in 2013. Troxell took the reins following five seasons as an assistant coach at Lafayette, serving as video coordinator, running backs coach, recruiting coordinator and special teams coach for the 2004 and 2005 Patriot League champions.
THE WORD ON FRANKLIN & MARSHALL: The Diplomats enter today's game off the bye. Prior to the bye week, Franklin & Marshall reclaimed the Conestoga Wagon Trophy with a 20-10 win over Dickinson. Two weeks ago in Carlisle, the Diplomats scored all 10 second-half points to take the trophy back to Lancaster for the first time since 2013… Billy Zwicharowski hit a 19-yard field goal with 9:00 on the fourth-quarter clock and Taalib Gerald sealed the win, scoring on a four-yard run with 1:19 to play… The teams combined for just 361 yards of total offense. Franklin & Marshall had just 86 yards passing and 102 yards rushing. Dave Shellhammer led the offense with 65 yards on 17 carries… The Diplomats enter this weekend with the conference's best defense, allowing an average of just 17.0 points and 294.8 yards per game… Franklin & Marshall is second in the CC in turnover margin at plus-5. The Diplomats have forced 12 turnovers this season while turning it over just seven times… Gerald leads the offense with 409 yards on 88 carries with six touchdowns. Shellhammer has 62 carries for 366 yards with four scores… Brendan Daly and Joe Granahan pace the defense with 31 and 30 tackles, respectively. Granahan leads the conference with 7.0 sacks… Franklin & Marshall has the worst passing offense in the conference, averaging just 122.0 yards through the air. The Diplomats, however, are third in rushing offense (190.8 ypg) but ninth overall (312.8 ypg).
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