November 11, 2023
12:00 p.m.
Rocco Calvo Field – Bethlehem, Pa.
 
Live Stats
Live Video
Live Audio (Wilkes Radio)
 
The Wilkes University football team gets set for their final regular season game of the year as they travel to Rocco Calvo Field to take on the Moravian University Greyhounds with bowl game implications on the line for both teams.

The Colonels last contest was a narrow 40-35 loss to Catholic University on Senior Day. Isaiah Rodriguez (Lebanon, PA/Lebanon) threw for just under 300 yards passing, connecting with Zane Grover (East Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg) for a late touchdown to keep Wilkes within a touchdown, but couldn't find the endzone again before time expired.

Rodriguez and the Colonel passing attack led the offense against Catholic with 298 passing yards, his first 200+ yard passing game since the contest at Lycoming. The junior signal-caller has thrown for 1,486 yards on 118 completions with 14 touchdowns through the air and two on the ground. He also sits fifth in the conference in total offense at 1,522 yards. Junior wideout Devin Higgins (Pennington, NJ/Hopewell Valley) leads the Colonels in receiving with 29 catches for 408 yards and two touchdowns.

The Wilkes run game was held to only 82 yards against the Cardinals, but still contains some of the team's most explosive playmakers. The Colonels have the best yards per carry average in the conference at 5.7, and sit second averaging 175.8 yards per game. Elijah Jules (Red Bank, NJ/Red Bank Catholic) continues to lead the way with 695 yards this season, the third-most in the Landmark Conference, with two touchdowns. He is followed by JayJay Jordan (Reading, PA/Berks Catholic) with 397 yards and six touchdowns on the year. The first-year running back has showcased his game-changing speed in Landmark Conference play, averaging a team-best 10.4 yards per carry.

On defense, Linebacker Tallen Murray (Vineland, NJ/Saint Joseph Academy) continues to be a leader for the Colonels at the second level. The sophomore linebacker leads the team in tackles and interceptions with 84 and two respectively. Murray's impressive tackling totals not only lead the team, but put him at the top of the Landmark Conference. Junior Jesse Addesso (Staten Island, NY/St. Joseph's by the Sea) and senior John Washington (Brooklyn, NY/Eagle Academy) lead the secondary with 41 tackles each, and Addesso leads the team with five pass breakups. Angel Ramos (Allentown, PA/Parkland) continues to spearhead the Colonel pass rush, leading the team and conference with 8.5 sacks. He also leads the team with 10 tackles for loss.

On special teams, Jordan leads the team in kick return yards with 679 yards on 32 returns, and sits second in the Landmark Conference in that category. Grover leads the Colonels in punt return yards with 94 yards on 14 returns. Punter Alex Orlando (Allentown, PA/Emmaus) leads the conference with an average punt distance of 41.8 yards on 37 kicks, and is tied for second in the conference in punts over 50 yards with seven.

Moravian comes into this game off of a 31-20 loss on the road against Lycoming College, putting them at 3-2 in conference play much like the Colonels.

Junior quarterback Jared Jenkins leads the Greyhounds under center with 2,561 yards passing and 25 touchdowns on 225 completions, overtaking Catholic's Madden Lowe for the top marks in the conference in passing. His target of choice this season has been Jordan Bingham, who leads the conference with 830 receiving yards on 69 catches with nine touchdowns. The Greyhounds have another receiver that sits top five in the conference in senior wideout Brad Bryan, who is fourth in the Landmark with 656 yards on 47 catches with eight touchdowns. On the ground, Nate Boyle has been the bell cow back with 748 yards and eight touchdowns on 188 carries, the second most rushing yards in the conference.

The Greyhound defense is led by sophomore linebacker Clay Basile, sitting top of the team in tackles and tackles for loss with 69 and five respectively, with 2.5 sacks as well. Jeremy McGuigan leads the defensive line with a team-best three sacks. Isaiah Johnson leads the secondary with 40 total tackles and six pass breakups.

If the Colonels win this game, they will clinch the second seed in the Landmark Conference and host a bowl game in the Chesapeake Bowl Challenge on Saturday, November 18, taking on a team yet to be announced from the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC).