Albright College Lions (5-3, 4-3) vs. Misericordia University Cougars (0-8, 0-7)

With two games left in the regular season, the Lions head to Dallas, Pa. to face second-year program Misericordia University.

When: Saturday, November 9
Where:  Mangelsdorf Field
Start Time: 1:00 p.m.

Gameday Media:
Live Stats: http://www.sidearmstats.com/misericordia/football/xlive.htm
Live Video: http://mac.ezstream.com/
Live Audio (Albright): http://www.teamline.cc/sportpage?teamcode=5466&eventcode=20
Live Audio (Misericordia): http://player.streamtheworld.com/liveplayer.php?callsign=MISERICORDIA

Albright Stats
Albright Roster
Albright Depth Chart
Misericordia Stats
Misericordia Roster
Misericordia Depth Chart

LAST TIME OUT:

Outstanding special teams play and 10 sacks by the defense carried the Albright College football team to a 33-19 victory last Saturday, over 2012 NCAA quarterfinalist Widener University in Shirk Stadium.

Redshirt-senior Matt Pattison led the way with four sacks for a total loss of 33 yards. Don Gould had 2.5 sacks and three tackles for loss, while Tyler Hamlet had 2.5 sacks and a game-high 10 tackles.

Senior Sean Cunningham blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown in the second half. Kicker Daniel Sobolewski was 4-of-5 on field goals with a long of 49 yards, the second-best in school history (he now holds the three top marks). Senior punter TJ Luddy kicked four times for an average of 49.5 yards and a long of 67.

PREVIOUS MEETING:

Several seniors, playing in their final home game, led Albright College to victory over the Cougars of Misericordia, 48-0 last November.

Senior quarterback Adam Galczynski completed 15-of-21 passes, throwing touchdowns to seniors Scott Pillar and Caleb Shilko as the Lions cruised to victory. It was a strong day for the offense as they compiled 380 yards and scored six touchdowns.

Seniors Ryan Ott and Tim McCaffrey recorded seven and six tackles, respectively. Nick Gjoni and Mark Capetola each had four tackles for loss, and Drew Peterson returned a punt for a touchdown.

NATIONAL WEEKLY HONORS:

Albright College's Matt Pattison, Daniel Sobolewski and TJ Luddy were all named to the D3football.com Team of the Week and to the BSN National Athletes of the Week list on Tuesday. The trio helped Albright to a 33-19 win over defending MAC champion and NCAA quarterfinalist Widener University. It is the most selections Albright has ever earned on the BSN Players of the Week (which began in 2011) or the D3football.com Team of the Week (since 1999).

After a week one victory over Kean University, Sobolewski (three FGs, 3-3 PATs, 2 touchbacks) was named a BSN National Special Teams Player of the Week, the USA College Football National Special Teams Player of the Week, and was listed on the D3football.com Team of the Week. Safety Drew Peterson (two interceptions) was also named to the D3football.com Team of the Week, and earned honorable mention honors from USA College Football.

PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS:

The Lions were well-represented on 2013 Preseason All-American teams, with three players receiving a total of six selections. Senior safety Drew Peterson was a first team USA College Football, second team D3 Senior Classic and third team BSN Preseason All-American. Fifth-year senior Matt Pattison earned second team USA College Football and honorable mention D3 Senior Classic honors, and senior tight end Eric Wade was a fourth team USA College Football selection.

SERIES:

Albright leads the series 1-0 after a 48-0 shutout win last year, in Misericordia's inaugural season.

HEAD COACHES:

John Marzka, in his seventh season at Albright, earned his 50th career victory last weekend. He has won two-thirds of his games with a career mark of 50-25. Mark Ross is in his second season as Misericordia's first-ever head coach, after previously serving as the defensive coordinator at Ithaca College.

ALBRIGHT OFFENSE:

The Lions now hold the MAC's top scoring offense, with 30.6 points per game. Seniors Ty Hughes (686 rushing yards), Daniel McNair (666 receiving yards) and Devron Clark (665 receiving yards) are each averaging over 80 yards per contest.

ALBRIGHT DEFENSE:

Safety Drew Peterson is still the national leader in interceptions, with seven on the year. For his career he has 15 picks and four touchdowns on INT/punt returns, including a TD against the Cougars last season.

The Lion defense is also tied for eighth in the nation with 3.75 sacks per contest. Leading a fearsome defensive line is Don Gould (eight sacks), Matt Pattison and Tyler Hamlet (6.5 sacks each).

ALBRIGHT SPECIAL TEAMS:

The Lions turned in a fantastic special teams performance last weekend vs. Widener. Senior Sean Cunningham blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown in the second half. Kicker Daniel Sobolewski was 4-of-5 on field goals with a long of 49 yards, and now holds two of the 13 longest kicks in Division III this season. Senior punter TJ Luddy kicked four times for an average of 49.5 yards and a long of 67, and his position as starting quarterback allowed him to pooch punt and stay away from Widener All-American returner Anthony Davis (0 return yards in the game).

MISERICORDIA OFFENSE:

The Cougars have given several teams a scare this season behind their improved rushing offense, including taking second-place King's to double-overtime last month. Quarterback Jeff Puckett was the top rusher in the nation early in the season and totaled 999 yards and 11 touchdowns (both totals rank in the top-30 nationally). The team still ranks 21st in the nation in rushing offense (257.1 ypg).

MISERICORDIA DEFENSE:

Sophomore safety Ben Camacho leads the team with 56 tackles (35 solo), and is one of three Cougars to record multiple interceptions on the year. Linebacker Hunter Pates has 55 total tackles, including four in the backfield.

MISERICORDIA SPECIAL TEAMS:

Freshman kicker Patrick Newins has made 2-of-4 field goals this season, and 18-of-21 PATs. Interestingly, the Cougars have not returned a punt yet this season despite 15 opposing attempts in eight games.

ECAC SOUTH-EAST CHAMPIONS:

In a crazy first minute of the fourth quarter, Albright erased a 14-point deficit in 14 seconds and went on to win the 2012 ECAC South-East Bowl, 38-34 over Franklin & Marshall.

After F&M punched it in for a 28-14 lead on the opening play of the fourth quarter, junior Daniel McNair took the ensuing kickoff back 88 yards for the touchdown. The Diplomats then fumbled Albright's kickoff on their own four-yard line, where it was recovered by Sean Cunningham on the one. Ty Hughes carried it in on the next play, giving the Lions two touchdowns in 14 seconds (and a combined three touchdowns for the two squads in a 28-second span).

The action was far from over, as F&M's Paul McGann got behind the Lion defense on the next play from scrimmage but was stripped. Cunningham came up with the ball for his second fumble recovery in a span of 18 seconds. Albright quarterback TJ Luddy completed a tough third down pass to Caleb Shilko to the four-yard line, and then snuck it in with 8:33 left to put the Lions ahead 35-28.

JT HARDING HONORED BY NFF/NCSA:

Albright fifth-year senior JT Harding has been selected as a national semifinalist for the National Football Foundation Campbell Trophy, the most pretigious Scholar-Athlete award in college football. Selected as the best and brightest from the college gridiron, The National Football Foundation (NFF) announced this week the 170 semifinalists for the 2013 William V. Campbell Trophy, endowed by HealthSouth, which recognizes an individual as the absolute best scholar-athlete in the nation.

This is actually the second straight year Harding was selected as a national semifinalist. By the time he was chosen in 2012, he had already taken a medical redshirt following a serious injury in the Lions' second game of the season. Albright then withdrew him from consideration, since candidates must be in their final year of eligibility.

This summer, Harding was also the only NCAA football player named to the Inaugural NCSA Athleader All-American team. A business and marketing major, Harding has maintained a 3.75 GPA at Albright. He was also named to the Dean's List five times and had a perfect 4.0 GPA in the spring 2012 and spring 2013 semesters. He is a two-time team captain, starts on the defensive line, and is considered one of the top Division III long snappers in the nation.

SENIOR DAY:

Albright will wrap up the regular season next Saturday, at home against rival Lebanon Valley. The Lions will celebrate Senior Day and recognize a class of 31 graduating athletes, including seven redshirt-seniors.

MAC STANDINGS:

Amazingly, the Lions (4-3 MAC) are still not mathematically eliminated from earning a share of the Middle Atlantic Conference championship despite their three losses. They will need Stevenson to defeat leaders Lebanon Valley (6-1 MAC) this weekend to stay in the mix. If that happens Albright could still grab a share of the title by beating LVC on the final weekend, and hoping that Stevenson beats Lycoming (currently 5-2) while the winner of this weekend's King's-Widener (both 5-2) showdown also drops their final game.