FULL GAME NOTES 
 
Albright (0-3, 0-1) vs. FDU-Florham (1-3, 0-2)
• When: Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019
• Where: Madison, N.J.
• Stadium: Robert T. Shields Field (1,000)
• Kickoff: 12 p.m.
• Live Video: VIDEO
• Live Stats: STATS
 
 
SERIES BREAKDOWN
• All-Time Series: Albright leads 21-7
• First Meeting: 1979 – Albright won 10-3
• Last Meeting: Sept. 29, 2018 @ Albright – FDU-Florham won 48-34
• Streak: FDU-Florham +1
 
The Albright Lions football team will head into New Jersey on Saturday to face FDU-Florham in MAC play at 12 p.m.
 
Albright is coming off a 55-7 loss to #15 Delaware Valley on Homecoming Saturday last week. The Lions struggled to get many yards on offense against a stout Aggie defense that leads the conference in fewest points and yards allowed. Sophomore running back Malik Bootman scored the Lions lone touchdown in the fourth quarter on a touchdown pass from classmate Todd Shelley.
 
FDU-Florham dropped its third-straight contest last Saturday against Stevenson at home, 49-15. The Devils held an early 9-7 lead over the Mustangs in the first quarter before being just down 21-15 just past midway through the second quarter. Stevenson pulled away with 28 unanswered points over the final three quarters.
 
LAST SEASON'S MATCHUP
The Devils snapped an 11-game losing streak to the Lions last season as they earned a come-from-behind 48-34 win at Shirk Stadium. The game started with fireworks with both teams each hitting on a pair of long touchdown passes to leave the score at 14-13 just under six minutes into the game following a missed extra point from the Lions. Albright closed the half on a 21-7 run to take a 34-21 lead into halftime, which was their first halftime lead of the 2018 season. However, the Devils shut the Lions out in the second half and scored 27 unanswered points to steal the win. The key play was a 45-yard pick-6 from the Devils in the first minute of the fourth quarter that broke a 34-34 tie.
 
MATCHING A RECORD
Senior linebacker Ya'Meer Lowery matched a Lions program single-game record for fumble recoveries last Saturday against Delaware Valley. Lowery recovered two fumbles which puts him on the list in an 18-way tie, and became the first Lion to recover two fumbles in a game since Steve Barroso did against Salisbury in 2015.
 
He now is tied for the conference lead in fumble recoveries with Jaret Horn of King's. Lowery made six tackles (four solo) against the Aggies, and also forced one fumble as well. The six tackles matched a career-high from a season ago against Widener. The Lions forced and recovered three Aggie fumbles on Saturday.
 
A LITTLE OF EVERYTHING
Sophomore running back Malik Bootman had an eventful day last Saturday against Delaware Valley. In addition to scoring the Lions only touchdown of the game, Bootman made three tackles and forced a fumble that prevented an Aggie touchdown. Bootman stripped Jamir Prevard of the ball on an interception return just before he crossed the goal line to allow the Lions get the ball back on a touchback. Bootman has scored a pair of touchdowns for the Lions this season through the air after having just one touchdown last season on the ground.
 
DEVILISH
Last season against the Devils, senior quarterback Jimmy Lahay threw a career-high 387 passing yards and four touchdowns. Lahay is no stranger to success against FDU-Florham as he threw for 81 yards and one touchdown during his first collegiate start back in 2017 in Madison. The four touchdowns from last season is the second-most he has thrown in a single-game after throwing five against Wilkes the following week in 2018. He also established career-highs with 50 attempts and an 84-yard completion for a touchdown.
 
ON THE RISE
First-year safety Kyle Komanitsky has made an early impact in the Lions secondary. Komanitsky has started at strong safety for all three games in 2019, and ranks third on the team with 17 tackles. He matched teammate Sam Viera with nine tackles against the Aggies last Saturday, and added one tackle for loss. The nine tackles were a new season-high for the Point Pleasant, N.J. native after making eight against Mary Hardin-Baylor in mid-September along with two pass break-ups.
 
NEW MARK
Junior running back Will Dogba established a new career-high in rushing yards with 39 against Delaware Valley. Dogba started behind sophomore Tony Thorpe and became the Lions leading rusher after getting the majority of the carries in the second half. Dogba started the first five games at running back during the 2018 season, and had a previous career-high of 21 yards.
 
MAKING TIME
Albright currently ranks fourth in the MAC in time of possession per game at 34:01. The Lions have out-possessed all three opponents so far this season with a season-high 36:24 coming against Mary Hardin-Baylor. On the other side, the Devils are last in the MAC in average time of possession at 25:18.
 
ABOUT FDU-FLORHAM
Following a 56-point outburst in the season opener against Merchant Marine, the Devils have averaged 16.0 points per game since. They rank seventh in the MAC in scoring offense at 26.0 PPG, and are just ahead of the Lions in 10^th for scoring defense at 43.3. FDU-Florham does rank third in the conference at 273.8 in passing offense, but have also allowed 263.5 passing yards per game which ranks 10^th in the conference.
 
Junior quarterback Anthony Caserta has got off to a solid start in his first full year under center. Caserta ranks second in the conference in total passing yards with 1,059, and is third with 10 touchdown passes. Caserta broke the program record for touchdown passes in a single-game with seven against Merchant Marine. Senior wide receiver Damarquis Price leads the team and ranks seventh in the MAC with 327 receiving yards along with three touchdown receptions. Price earned D3football.com team of the week honors after hauling in 10 catches for 223 yards and three touchdowns against Merchant Marine in the season opener. On defense, senior Mihajlo Simakoski leads the team with 3.0 tackles for loss along with classmate Shyheim Outland. Sophomore defensive back Jake Swindasz leads the team with 28 tackles and one interception. Senior kicker/punter Nick Maciejewski continues to be one of the most consistent kickers in the MAC as he ranks third in the conference in punting average. He earned MAC special team player of the week honors following the Merchant Marine game where he converted all eight extra point attempts.