GAME NOTES

(RV) Ursinus (3-1, 2-1) at #20 Susquehanna (4-0, 3-0)
When: Saturday, October 1st
Where: Selinsgrove, Pa.
Stadium: Amos Alonzo Stagg Field (3,500)
Kickoff: 1:30 p.m.
Live Video: VIDEO
Live Stats: STATS
Live Audio: AUDIO
 
 
SERIES BREAKDOWN
All-Time Series: Series Tied 17-17-1
First Meeting: `1923 – Ursinus won 17-6
Last Meeting: Oct. 2, 2021 @ Ursinus – Susquehanna won 62-23
Streak: Susquehanna +4
 
The Ursinus Bears heads on the road for the second-straight week, this time to 20th ranked Susquehanna for a big Centennial Conference showdown.
 
 
Last Saturday, the Bears took down Franklin & Marshall 22-7 on the road. Ursinus staved off a slow start on offense by scoring a touchdown at the end of the first quarter to take the early lead. The Bears held that lead until they scored 12 points in the final 4:23 of the first half to take a 19-0 lead at halftime. Ursinus continued to have their way with the Franklin & Marshall offense as they yielded just one touchdown in the second half. The Bears tacked on one last field goal to preserve the win. Ursinus held the Diplomats to under 200 yards of total offense on the afternoon while recording five sacks in the win.
 
 
Meanwhile, the River Hawks dominated Dickinson last Saturday by shutting out the Red Devils 45-0 on the road. Susquehanna scored late in the first quarter before putting the game out of reach with 31 points scored over the next two quarters of the game. Susquehanna out-gained the Red Devils 473-245 in the contest.
 
LAST MEETING: The River Hawks downed the Bears 62-23 at Patterson Field on this weekend last October. Ursinus was unable to overcome a 31-point onslaught from the Susquehanna offense in the second quarter as they led 45-14 at the half. From there, Susquehanna kept the Bears at distance to lock up the win.
 
ALL OVER THE PLACE: Senior linebacker Brett Gross led a dominant defensive effort by the Bears last Saturday at Franklin & Marshall.  He registered a season-high 13 tackles (seven solo), 1.5 tackles for loss, one sack, and had an interception as well. The 13 tackles were just one shy of his career-high he set last season at Dickinson with 14. Gross and the Bears defense held the Diplomats to just 176 yards of total offense on the afternoon. He paces the Bears with 30 total tackles which is tied for ninth-most in the Centennial Conference. Gross was named Centennial Conference Defensive Player of the Week for the first time in his career behind his showing.
 
 
KICKIN' IT: Senior kicker Dakota Wherrity was named Centennial Conference Special Teams Player of the Week after a perfect showing at Franklin & Marshall last Saturday. Wherrity was sharp for the Bears as he made both field goal attempts along with converting both of his extra points. He made a 31-yard field goal in the second quarter before converting a 22-yarder in the third quarter. Wherrity is 4-of-5 for field goal attempts so far this season and 15-of-16 in extra point attempts.
 
 
RECEIVING VOTES: The Bears have now received votes in both national Division III polls for the past two weeks. Ursinus received 18 votes in the latest American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Poll and 12 in the latest D3football.com polls. Ursinus received votes in two weeks last season as well which began after they upset then-ranked No. 8 Muhlenberg at the time. Ursinus once again started to begin receiving votes after taking down the Mules when they were ranked in the D3football.com poll.
 
 
MAYHEM PRODUCER: Senior defensive lineman Ethan Belville spent a decent amount of time causing disruption in the Franklin & Marshall backfield. Belville racked up a career-high 10 tackles (three solo) against the Diplomats, 2.0 TFL, and 1.5 sacks. He put the finishing touches on Bears win in Lancaster by forcing a fumble off a sack that he eventually recovered. Belville ranks fourth in the Centennial with 4.5 TFL and is second on the team to just junior Ryan Bodolus. He is also tied for fourth with 2.5 sacks which he has recorded in the last two Bears contests.
 
 
CONTROLLING THE CLOCK: Ursinus has been in control of time of possession in each of their first four games of the season. Their efforts have them leading the Centennial Conference at 35 minutes of possession per game. The Bears have held the ball for at least 30 minutes in all four games with a season-high 39:13 against Muhlenberg. The success with the clock has helped the Bears hold the second-highest yards per game total in the Centennial at 440.8 yards per game.
 
 
THAT'S TWO: The Bears recorded their first safety since the Susquehanna game of the 2021 season against Franklin & Marshall last Saturday. Following a punt from senior Billy Cook that pinned the Diplomats at the one yard line, sophomore linebacker Connor Carter tackled the Franklin & Marshall running back in the endzone in the second quarter. Carter had another strong showing for the Bears with nine tackles (five solo) and one TFL.
 
 
SCOUTING THE RIVER HAWKS: Susquehanna features a balanced offense that ranks third in total offense at 433.8 yards per game in the Centennial Conference which is just behind the Bears. Graduate student quarterback Michael Ruisch leads the Centennial in passing yards per game at 258.0 to pace a passing attack that ranks second to just Johns Hopkins in the Centennial in yards per game. He has two favorite targets in graduate student tight end Michael Lefever and sophomore wide receiver Kyle Howes. The duo rank third and fourth in the Centennial for receiving yards, respectively. Susquehanna is also strong on the ground as senior running back Frankie Negrini ranks sixth in the Centennial with 272 rushing yards and is tied for second with four rushing touchdowns. Negrini had a season-high 111 yards on the ground and two scores against Dickinson.
        
Susquehanna is equally as stout on defense as they have yielded just three points in the last eight quarters. The River Hawks have allowed the fewest yards per game in the Centennial at 219.3 behind a conference-low 131.5 passing yards per game and second-fewest rushing yards per game at 87.8. Leading the way on defense is the leading tackler in the Centennial, junior linebacker John Nicosia. Nicosia paces the conference with 37 tackles (12 solo) while tying for 10th with 3.5 TFL, and fourth with 2.5 sacks. Sophomore linebacker Garrett Carter compliments Nicosia by adding 20 tackles (five solo) and has tallied two sacks. Sophomore defensive back Andrew Wells leads the team with two interceptions.