Sept. 17, 2002
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LAFAYETTE vs. PENNSYLVANIA
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2002 * 1:07 p.m. EDT
FISHER FIELD (13,750 / Natural Grass)
EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA
TV: Lafayette Sports Network (RCN 4 & WBPH 60) Live to more than 9.1 million viewers.
The Game
- Lafayette hosts Pennsylvania in the first of three Ivy League matchups for the Leopards in 2002. Kickoff at Fisher Field is set for 1:07 p.m., and the game will be broadcast live on television (Lafayette Sports Network - RCN-4 and WBPH-60), on radio (WEST-AM 1400, pre-game show starting at 12:30 p.m.), and on the internet (www.lafayette.edu).
- The Leopards are 2-0 for the first time since the 1993 season. A Lafayette victory over Penn would mark the Leopards' first 3-0 start since the Colonial League championship season of 1988 when the squad started the season 5-0.
- Lafayette's defense has held the opponents' offense scoreless in five of the eight quarters played in 2002. The Leopards posted 10 total shut-out quarters in 2001 and 11 in 2000.
- The Leopards are looking to avenge their worst defeat of the 2001 season - a 37-0 loss to Penn last September.
- Thanks to Circle Systems of Easton, the Leopards are wearing an American flag on the back of their helmets for the second straight season to honor those who died as a result of the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2001.
The Series
(82nd Meeting) Lafayette and Pennsylvania have met 80 times on the gridiron, dating back to the first encounter in the 1882 season, the Leopards' first season of intercollegiate football. In fact, Penn was Lafayette's second-ever opponent. The two teams have met in Easton 20 times, with the Quakers holding a 12-8 advantage. The largest margin of victory in the series was an 82-0 Penn win in Philadelphia during the 1893 season. The Quakers won last season's encounter, 37-0.
The Head Coaches
The current era in the proud history of Lafayette football began on Dec. 11, 1999, when Frank Tavani (Lebanon Valley '75) was named the 27th head football coach in the history of the program. Now in his third season as head coach, Tavani had been a top member of Lafayette's coaching staff for the previous 13 seasons. Tavani has a career record of 6-17. Tavani is 0-2 vs. Pennsylvania as head coach of the Leopards.
Al Bagnoli (Central Connecticut State '75) is in his 11th season at Pennsylvania and 21st as a collegiate head coach. His overall career record stands at 153-50, including a mark of 67-31 at Penn. Bagnoli is 4-0 vs. Lafayette and 2-0 vs. the Leopards in Easton.
This Week's Game Captain - Pat Brown '04
The Lafayette coaching staff is naming a game captain each week of the 2002 season. This student-athlete serves as a team captain the entire week of practice and at the game along with team captains Chris Partridge (Paramus, N.J./Paramus Catholic) and Chris Royle (Stockton, N.J./Hunterdon Central). Junior NT Pat Brown (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic), who made the move to NT this season and came through with one of the three sacks vs. Towson, has been named the Lafayette-Pennsylvania game week captain.
Lafayette vs. the Ivy League
The Leopards have played 205 games against the eight members of the Ivy League, and are 57-141-7 (.295) in those contests. Lafayette vs. the members of the Ivy League: Brown 3-8-0 Cornell 8-14-2 Harvard 2-5-0 Princeton 3-32-3 Columbia 21-11-2 Dartmouth 2-6-0 Pennsylvania 18-59-0 Yale 0-6-0
Defense Slams The Door!
The Leopards' defense, under the direction of defensive coordinator John Loose, shut out Monmouth's offense in the second half of Lafayette's season-opening victory, as the Hawks managed their only touchdown of the third and fourth quarters on a fumble return. The Leopards then shut out Towson for the final three quarters of the contest, giving Lafayette's defense five shut-out quarters of the eight played in 2002. To put that in perspective, Lafayette recorded 10 total shut-out quarters in 2001 and 11 in 2000.
100/200 Vision
In the combined careers of QB Marko Glavic (Pickering, Ontario/St. Mary Catholic) and Joe McCourt (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic), there have been three contests in which Glavic threw for more than 200 yards and McCourt rushed for more than 100 yards. The Leopards are 2-1 in those contests (10/27/2001 vs. Colgate - 20-16 L; 11/10/2001 at Georgetown - 37-17 W; 9/7/2002 vs. Monmouth - 30-29 W).
Preseason All-America Honors For Royle
Senior center Chris Royle (Stockton, N.J./Hunterdon Central), an EXCEL Scholar at Lafayette, earned preseason All-America honors from two different sources. First, The Sports Network selected Royle to its All-America third team. A few days later, Lindy's chose Royle as a first-team All-American.
Leopard Injury Update
The current listing of Lafayette football injuries:
- Adam Bozick (Fr., DB) - out 4-6 weeks with a hip injury.
- Drew Buettner (So., OL) - out indefinitely with a knee injury.
- Joel Cesare (Jr., WR) - out 2-3 weeks with a pulled hamstring.
- Shane Davenport (Fr., FB) - out for the season with a foot injury.
- Anthony Jones (So., TE) - out indefinitely with a knee injury.
- Gus Ottoson (Fr., DL) - will have season-ending shoulder surgery after suffering injury in summer high school all-star game.
- Paul Ziska (So., DL) - out for the season following shoulder shoulder.
Local Ties
Lafayette has three players on its current roster who are from Philadelphia, and two are freshmen. Maurice Bennett (Philadelphia, Pa./George Washington) is a freshman linebacker, Romar Drake (Philadelphia, Pa./Bartram) is a freshman receiver, and Joe McCourt (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) is the Leopards' starting tailback.
Solid Protection
Lafayette's offensive line, coached by associate head coach Bob Heffner, led the Patriot League in sacks allowed with just 11 in the 2001 season. The Leopards also led the conference in passing yardage with an average of 265.1 yards per game.
The Leopards' offensive line has picked up right where it left off and is leading the conference with just three sacks allowed thus far in the 2002 season.
Lafayette Returns Four Academic All-Americans
Seven Leopards, the most ever for a Lafayette football team, earned a spot on the 2001 Verizon District II Academic All-America squad. Of those seven, four return to the 2002 squad. The quartet includes senior DB Jamie Anzalone (Shavertown, Pa./Wyoming Seminary), senior DL Matt Hinzpeter (Norwood, N.J./Northern Valley), senior DB Herb Kennedy (Troy, N.Y./Troy), and junior OL Curt Wilson (Northampton, Pa./Northampton).
Anzalone is a two-time honoree, having also earned a spot on the 2000 Verizon District II Academic All-America squad.
NCAA Division I-AA Leaders - Brecht #1
Through games of Sept. 14, 2002, Lafayette senior PK Martin Brecht (Jeannette, Pa./Greensburg Central Catholic) is ranked first among NCAA Division I-AA leaders in field goals per game with an average of 3.00 and 12th among leaders in scoring with an average of 11.50 points per game. The Leopards among the top-30 NCAA Division I-AA leaders:
INDIVIDUAL Field goals per game - Martin Brecht (3.00 avg.) -1st
Total offense - Marko Glavic (279.50 avg.) - 7th
Receptions per game - John Weyrauch (7.50 avg.) - 7th
Receiving yards per game - John Weyrauch (105.00 avg.) - 8th
Scoring - Martin Brecht (11.50 avg.) - 12th
Rushing - Joe McCourt (105.50 avg.) - 22nd
TEAM Passing offense - 12th (277.50 avg.)
Total offense - 13th (430.50 avg.)
Pass efficiency defense - 25th (94.05 rating)
Scoring defense - 25th (18.00 avg.)
Air Canada
Lafayette junior QB Marko Glavic (Pickering, Ontario/St. Mary Catholic) entered his junior season with a reputation for big numbers through the air. Glavic posted six 200-yard and three 300-yard passing performances in the Leopards' 2001 season and has thrown for more than 250 yards in each game this season. Glavic now has 18 career 200-yard games in just 20 career starts. He has recorded three 300-yard games and his career-high is 329 yards at Holy Cross in 2001.
Glavic Climbing The Charts
Leopard QB Marko Glavic (Pickering, Ontario/St. Mary Catholic) is the fifth all-time leader in career passing yards at Lafayette with 4,979 career yards. In his 22 career games, Glavic has completed 55.1 percent of his passes (407-of-739) and thrown 23 touchdowns.
Glavic is just the fourth Lafayette QB to throw for more than 2,000 yards in a single season, joining former Leopard greats Frank Baur '90, Tom Kirchoff '93 and Frank Novak '84. In just 10 games last season, he recorded the third best single season passing yardage total with 2,460 yards.
On This Date
The Leopards have played five games in the history of the program on September 21, and are 0-5 in those contests. The ledger:
Year Result Opponent
1968 L, 37-7 Rutgers
1974 L, 17-13 King's Point
1985 L, 30-14 Colgate
1991 L, 42-41 VMI
1996 L, 36-6 Northeastern
Geography For $100 Alex . . .
The Leopards' 2002 roster is one of the most geographically diverse in the history of Lafayette football. There are 14 different states represented and two student-athletes hail from Ontario, Canada. A total of 37 players are home-grown Pennsylvania products, while New Jersey is second on the list with 24. Maryland comes in third with eight, and the surprise is at number four as seven Leopards hail from sunny Florida.
2002 Team Captains
The 2002 Lafayette football team captains, as chosen by their teammates and coaching staff, are senior linebacker Chris Partridge (Paramus, N.J./Paramus Catholic) and senior center Chris Royle (Stockton, N.J./Hunterdon Central).
Leopard Cubs
There are 17 freshmen and sophomores among the 44 spots on Lafayette's current offensive and defensive two-deep. Of those 17 freshmen and sophomores, seven are in the starting lineup.
Iron Leopards
As a team, Lafayette had its strongest off-season ever, literally. After having more than 30 Leopards remain around campus during the 2001 off-season, a record total of 45 stayed in the Easton area throughout the summer to strength train in preparation for the 2002 season.
Close Calls
Four of Lafayette's six Patriot League losses in 2001 were decided by 10 points or less. Those four contests included an overtime contest at Towson, a one-point game vs. Bucknell, a four-point contest vs. Colgate and a 10-point loss at Holy Cross.
Leopards Dominate the TV Airwaves ... Again!
The 2002 Lafayette College football season will see a record nine contests hit the television air waves via the Lafayette Sports Network to the entire Lehigh Valley and beyond. The Lafayette Sports Network, the most expansive television package in the Patriot League five years running, can be seen by more than 9.1 million viewers in the Lehigh Valley, Philadelphia, central New Jersey, New York City, and Boston. Locally, the telecasts are aired on RCN TV-4 and WBPH-TV 60, and can be seen on RCN Cable channels 4 and 60, Service Electric Cable channel 51, Suburban Cable channel 17, Blue Ridge Cable channel 5, and broadcast channel 60.
Renowned local sports broadcaster Gary Laubach handles all of the Leopards' play-by-play duties for the sixth season. In his fifth full season of football broadcasts is John Leone, Lafayette's Director of Alumni Affairs, who provides color analysis. In his second season of handling sideline reports on the Leopards is Dan Mowdy.
Home Sweet Home
Erected in 1926, Lafayette College's Fisher Field is in its 76th season as the home of the Leopards, having played host to 365 Lafayette football games. Lafayette has recorded 12 undefeated home seasons at Fisher Field. The Leopards are 218-134-13 (.615) overall at Fisher Field.
Another Rookie Of The Year Award?
Lafayette TB Joe McCourt (Philadelphia, Pa./Roman Catholic) became the eighth Lafayette football player to earn Patriot League Rookie of the Year honors in 2001, joining Tom Costello (1988), Art Dennis (1990), Erik Marsh (1991), Shawn McHale (1994), Leonard Moore (1995), Kenya Allen (1998), and teammate Marko Glavic (2000).
McCourt finished fifth in the league in rushing with an average of 73.1 yards per game in 2001, earning three rookie of the week accolades from the conference for his 160-yard rushing performance vs. Colgate, his three-touchdown effort at Holy Cross and his career-high 184 rushing yards at Georgetown. McCourt has started the last nine games for Lafayette and led the Leopards in rushing with an average of 5.0 yards per carry, totaling 731 yards and six touchdowns on 146 carries. Also a solid threat as a receiver and on special teams, he caught 22 passes for 167 yards and returned 19 kickoffs for 325 yards.
Lafayette vs. the Patriot League
The Leopards have played 308 games all-time against the seven fellow members of the Patriot League, and are 150-142-16 (.513) in those contests. Since the Patriot League began play in 1986, the Leopards are 42-40-1 (.512) vs. member schools and have won league titles in 1988, 1992, and 1994. Lafayette vs. the Patriot League:
Bucknell 41-32-6 Fordham 15-4-1 Holy Cross 9-7-0 Towson 2-4-0
Colgate 9-32-4 Georgetown 3-2-0 Lehigh 71-61-5
Weekly Radio Shows
Lafayette Sports Weekly, a comprehensive half-hour radio show, airs live each Thursday at 7 p.m. from September through March on the Lafayette Sports Network's flagship radio station, WEST AM Stereo 1400, and online at www.lafayette.edu. WEST-AM sports director Dick Hammer will be joined each week by either Gary Laubach or John Leone, Lafayette Sports Network's television commentators, for an exciting half-hour exclusively devoted to Lafayette sports. Head football coach Frank Tavani will be a featured guest during the football season, while head men's basketball coach Fran O'Hanlon and head women's basketball coach Tammy Smith will be regulars during their teams' winter campaigns.
Lafayette Sports Night, a weekly one-hour radio show, airs each Tuesday from late August through May on The Sports Monster 1230 AM, the Lehigh Valley's ESPN Radio affiliate, and online at www.lafayette.edu. Sports Director Tom Fallon hosts a broad-based show from 5-6 p.m. and head football coach Frank Tavani is a regular guest during the season.
Local Flavor - 10 Lehigh Valley Leopards
The 2002 Lafayette College football team boasts 10 members from the Lehigh Valley. Consistently a prominent recruiter of top talent in the Lehigh Valley, Lafayette brought in two local freshmen this past recruiting year. The Lehigh Valley Leopards:
90 Tauren Barker (Fr./DL/Whitehall, Pa./Whitehall)
5 Vince Boyer (Sr./SE/Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua Area)
98 Pat Brown (Jr./DL/Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic)
7 Joel Cesare (Jr./WR/Whitehall, Pa./Whitehall)
46 Greg Gibbs (So./DL/Allentown, Pa./Salisbury)
34 Bill Stocker (Sr./DB/Easton, Pa./Wilson)
78 Robert Stroble (Fr./OL/Easton, Pa./Easton)
18 John-Frank Stubits (So./LB/Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth)
29 Dave Walters (So./TB/Easton, Pa./Freedom/Wyoming Seminary)
62 Curt Wilson (Jr./OL/Northampton, Pa./Northampton)
All-Time Record
The Leopards are in their 121st football season, having played 1,140 games. Lafayette boasts an impressive all-time record of 594-507-39 (.538) and ranks 32nd on the nation's all-time victories list. Lafayette leads the Patriot League in all-time wins, with Lehigh the closest at 578.
In Overtime Games ...
Lafayette has now played five overtime games and is 1-4 in those contests. After winning the first overtime affair in 1995 over Fordham (24-21 on 11/11/95), the Leopards have lost their last four OT games.
A History of Championships
The Lafayette football program has claimed three national championships -- 1896, 1921 and 1926 -- and recorded five undefeated seasons -- 1896 (11-0-1), 1921 (9-0-0), 1926 (9-0-0), 1937(8-0-0) and 1940 (9-0-0). Of recent note, the Leopards have won Patriot League championships in 1988, 1992 and 1994.
Lafayette's Football Inventors
Two primary elements of the game of football -- the helmet and the huddle -- were invented by former members of the Lafayette football program. George "The Rose" Barclay from the class of 1898, one of Lafayette's all-time great running backs, invented the helmet when the "threat of cultivating cauliflower ears" led him to piece three thick leather straps around his head for the 1896 game against Penn. Former Lafayette coach Herb McCracken (1924-35; 59-40-6) devised the first huddle system during the 1924 season after learning the Pennsylvania football team had stolen Lafayette's signals. Lafayette became the first team to huddle before each play and this system was immediately adopted by other teams.
