Saturday, October 11

1:00 p.m.

Bethlehem, PA

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WILKES-BARRE - The Wilkes University football team goes back on the road this Saturday for a Landmark Conference clash against the Moravian University Greyhounds, looking for their third-straight victory.

The Colonels enter the game with a 3-2 record and 1-0 in the Landmark after their 15-13 win over Catholic University on Homecoming.

Points were at a premium in that game as Wilkes' offense found the endzone just once in the early second quarter on a 14-yard touchdown run from Ben Contella (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills). Kicker Nick Volpone (Delco, PA/Ridley) accounted for the rest of the Colonel points with three made field goals. The defense did the heavy lifting as they held the Cardinals to just 13 points on 11 drives all game, and forced a turnover.

Cooper King (Northampton, PA/Northampton) had a solid outing under center for the Colonels last week, finishing 18-25 for 211 passing yards and committed zero turnovers to bring his total to 776 yards, four touchdowns, and four interceptions. 

The ground game enters this week coming off its most productive outing as the Colonels rushed for 124 yards on 38 carries. Chibugo Chigozie-Nwosu (Hillside, NJ/Hillside) continues to lead the team in rushing with 125 yards this season, but Contella is right behind him with 120 rushing yards and two rushing touchdowns.

Wide receiver Justin Moore (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern Regional) still leads the team in receiving yards with 205 on twelve receptions, but both Juju Fears (Easton, PA/Easton Area) and Janas Simms (York, PA/William Penn) have increased their production over the past two games. Fears has 13 receptions for 162 yards and two touchdowns, and Simms has 12 receptions for 149 yards and one touchdown this season.

Defensively, Wilkes is firing on all cylinders. Entering this game, the defense ranks second in the Landmark in yards allowed (330.6) and turnovers forced (7), as well as third in rushing yards allowed (131.4) and opponent third down percentage (31.3%).

Currently, the Colonels have three of the top five tacklers in the Landmark. Tyler Wetzel (Sellersville, PA/Pennridge) leads the conference with 48 tackles in addition to 4.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, and a forced fumble. Tallen Murray (Vineland, NJ/Saint Joseph Academy) is second in the conference with 45 tackles along with two pass breakups and two quarterback hurries. Lastly, Cohen Creswell (Winchester, VA/Millbrook) is fifth in the conference with 41 tackles, while also leading the conference in tackles for loss with 10.5. Creswell also leads the team in sacks (2.5), quarterback hurries (3), and forced fumbles (2). Ryan Opperman (Lewisburg, PA/Lewisburg), J'Vier Johnson (Easton, PA/Easton Area), and Rob Barbieri (Avoca, PA/Pittston Area) lead the secondary. Opperman leads the Landmark in pass breakups with five, and Johnson is fourth with three pass breakups. Johnson is also tied for the conference lead with two interceptions.

On special teams, Volpone remains perfect on field goals (9/9) and extra points (5/5), and enters this week as the Landmark Conference's Special Teams Athlete of the Week for the second week in a row. During that two game span he's 3/3 on extra points and 4/4 on field goals, including a game-winner against Montclair State. Daniel Pigga (Dunmore, PA/Dunmore) continues to be a threat in the return game. This season Pigga has averaged 29.7 yards per return, good enough for second in the Landmark Conference.

Moravian enters this game with an 0-5 record and 0-1 in the Landmark Conference after falling to Lycoming 17-0 on the road last week.

Sophomore quarterback RJ Hart leads the Greyhound offense with 209 passing yards, two touchdown passes, and four interceptions. Leading the running game is sophomore Jed Bendekovits with 108 rushing yards, and behind him is Joey Richmond with 99 rushing yards. Morvian's leading receiver is Avery Koser with 16 catches for 221 yards and four touchdowns. Their second option is Josh Ludlow with 14 catches for 124 yards.

On the defense, junior defensive back Aidan Lane leads the team with 35 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss. With him in the secondary is Shea Endean, who leads the team with four pass breakups to go along with his 15 tackles. On the defensive line, Nathan Carr controls the middle with 19 tackles, and a team-leading 3.5 tackles for loss.

On special teams, Jack Corrigan is responsible for both field goals and punts. Corrigan hasn't attempted a field goal this year, but he averages 43.6 yards per punt, including a long of 75 yards. In charge of the return game is Dorian Thomas, who has 16 returns for 344 yards. His 21.5 yards per return makes him fifth in the Landmark Conference in that category. 

After this game, the Colonels go on their bye week before returning to the gridiron against Lycoming College on the road. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.