SEPTEMBER 10, 2010
MONARCH FOOTBALL SQUAD SET TO MAKE HOME DEBUT VERSUS BETHANY COLLEGE
WILKES-BARRE -- The King's College football team will make its 2010 home debut on Saturday when the Monarchs host Bethany College of West Virginia at 1:00 p.m. at McCarthy Stadium in the Robert L. Betzler Athletic Complex.
The game will mark the first time the two teams will meet on the gridiron. The matchup came about as a result of the MAC-PAC Football Challenge Series. The contest will also represent the home debut of first-year head coach Jeff Knarr who took over at King's in February after an 11-year stint as an assistant coach at fellow NCAA Division III member Muhlenberg College.
Both teams enter the contest with 0-1 records, dropping non-conference games to start the season. The Monarchs fell on the road 31-7 to Springfield College Friday night while Bethany lost its season-opener at home 28-0 to Allegheny College. King's comes off a 3-7 campaign in 2009 while Bethany was 4-6 a year ago.
ON THE AIR:
The game will be broadcast locally over the radio by WRKC, 88.5 FM. An Internet voice stream of the broadcast will be available on the WRKC LIVE link at: http://www.kings.edu/IITS/index.htm
ABOUT THE GAME:
Today's home opener for King's stands as the first home contest for rookie head coach Jeff Knarr. The game is also the first of a two-year agreement made between the Middle Atlantic Conference and the President's Athletic Conference to compete in the MACPAC Football Challenge Series. This week, teams from the MAC will square off against teams from the PAC, matching up with an opponent that finished in the same conference finishing position last season. The series is similar to the ACC vs. Big 10 Basketball Challenge in that the first place MAC team from 2009 will play the first-place team from the PAC. The second-place teams will then square off against one another as the matchups continue through the entire place standings. Both King's and Bethany were tied for sixth in their respective conferences last season.
ABOUT THE SERIES:
This is the first-ever meeting between the two programs. As part of the two-year agreement in the MAC-PAC Football Challenge Series, the teams will also square off next season in Bethany, West Virginia.
THE COACHES:
Monarch mentor Jeff Knarr is in his first season at King's after spending the past 11 years as an assist at Muhlenberg College. Bethany coach Tim Weaver is in his fifth year with the Bison and owns a combined 14-27 record.
LAST WEEK:
King's traveled to Springfield, Mass. where the Monarchs dropped a 31-7 verdict to 2009 ECAC Northeast Bowl champion Springfield College. Bethany also opened its season a week ago where the Bison fell 28-0 to Allegheny College.
KING'S ON OFFENSE: MULTIPLE - I
The Monarch offense managed 262 yards of total offense against Springfield, including 161 rushing yards and 101 passing yards. After a sluggish first half, King's improved over the second stanza by producing 173 yards, compared to just 89 total yards in the first half. Sophomore tailback Eric Ofcharsky had a fine day, rushing for 136 yards on 26 carries while catching three passes for 47 yards, earning MAC “Offensive Player of the Week” honors. Senior quarterback Corey Lavin completed 11-of-28 passes for 101 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions. David Abdalla led the receiving corp. with three catches for 27 yards while junior Glenn Ford followed with two receptions for 12 yards and one touchdown. Senior tailback Brandon Murray chipped in with 22 rushing yards.
BETHANY ON OFFENSE: MULTIPLE - I
In its opener against Allegheny last week, Bethany posted a combined 202 yards of total offense in the game, including 92 rushing yards and 110 passing yards. The Bison hurt themselves with two interceptions on their first three possessions of the game, leading to two Allegheny touchdowns. Running the Bison offense is 6-4, 240-pound freshman quarterback Matt Grimard who completed 13-of-24 passes for 104 yards with three interceptions and 16 rushing yards in his collegiate debut. The running game was led by junior tailback Eric Walker who posted 73 yards on 18 carries while making a team-high six catches out of the backfield for an additional 42 yards. Sophomore wide receiver C.J. Thomas made three catches for 17 yards while Ed Holmes and Johnathan Foster added two receptions apiece.
KING'S ON DEFENSE: MULTIPLE 3-4
King's allowed 339 yards of total offense against Springfield, including 189 rushing yards and 150 passing yards. The Monarchs defense did a much better job against the run in the second half, allowing Springfield just 38 rushing yards on 19 carries. Senior safety Denzel Smith topped the unit with nine tackles while sophomore linebacker Ryan Cordingly tallied seven tackles, 2.0 tackles for loss, 1.0 sacks, a forced fumble, and one fumble recovery. Additionally, sophomore linebackers Matt Henry and Ryan Kelly also followed with seven stops apiece. Senior defensive end Ryan Nelson registered six tackles while junior safety Edwyn Edwards and sophomore linebacker Nick Goffredo chipped in with five tackles each.
BETHANY ON DEFENSE: 4-3
The Bethany defense played well in the game, yielding 288 yards of total offense, allowing 207 passing yards but just 81 rushing yards. Four offensive turnovers, however, had the Bison defense playing on their heels. Junior safety Jeff Joyce and sophomore middle linebacker Kyle Arrington topped the unit with 11 total tackles each. Freshman safety Jordan Joyce followed with nine tackles while junior defensive end Kalib Taalib-Din added eight tackles. Sophomore linebacker Willis Powell contributed seven tackles while freshman cornerback Jamaan Webb chipped in with six stops.
NEXT WEEK:
King's will play its third straight non-conference game when the Monarchs travel to Wayne, N.J. to face New Jersey Athletic Conference member William Paterson College at 1:00 p.m. in Wightman Stadium.
