Football Visits Southern Connecticut For NCAA Playoff Game
November 13, 2007
BRYANT FOOTBALL BACK IN NCAA TOURNAMENT
Bulldogs Travel to Southern Connecticut Saturday
GAME NOTES (PDF)
Game 11 - #5 Bryant (8-2) at #4 Southern
Connecticut (8-3)
Date: Saturday, November 17, 2007 / 12 pm kickoff
Location: Jess Dow Field (6,000), New Haven, CT
Radio/TV: www.bryantbulldogs.com (John McCarthy play by play)
UPDATE:
The Bryant University football team will make its second appearance
in the NCAA Division II playoffs and second in as many years when
the Bulldogs travel to New Haven, CT this Saturday afternoon.
Kickoff is set for 12 noon at Jess Dow Field. The game can be
heard live online at www.bryantbulldogs.com. This will be the
second meeting of the year between the two teams, the second in 12
days as the Owls rolled to a 56-28 win back on Nov. 2, a game also
played at Jess Dow Field. Bryant rallied to tie the game
28-28 in the third quarter but Southern Connecticut reeled off 28
unanswered points, handing Bryant is first Division II loss of the
season and first loss in conference play. The winner of
Saturday's game will face the region's top seed, California (Pa.)
in next Saturday.
FEW TIDBITS
* Bryant is making its second consecutive NCAA appearance, falling
to West Chester, 31-29 in Bulldog Stadium.
* Bryant was the No. 4 seed last year and fell to the fifth seeded
Golden Rams at home. This year, Bryant is the No. 5 seed and will
be looking for similar results visiting the No. 4 seed Owls on
their home field.
* Bryant is 23-8 in its last 31 games - including last year's NCAA
playoff loss.
* The Bulldogs are 4-2 on the road this year
* Bryant is 2-5 in seven meetings with Southern Connecticut
* The Bulldogs 0-4 all-time against the Owls at Jess Dow Field
SERIES:
This will be the eighth meeting all-time between Bryant and
Southern Connecticut with the Owls holding a 5-2 series lead.
The last three meetings between these two schools produced a
combined total of 265 points. Bryant defeated Southern Connecticut
49-20 in the season opener last season, rebounding from a 77-35
shellacking in the season finale to the 2005 season. But the
Owls got the better of the Bulldogs with a 56-28 win this year on
Nov. 2. Bryant is 0-4 all-time at Southern Connecticut.
LAST MEETING - SCSU 56, BRYANT 28 (Nov. 2,
2007)
Southern Connecticut redshirt sophomore Jerom Freeman rushed for an
NCAA Division II record 418 yards on 34 carries to lead the host
Owls to a 56-28 win over the Bulldogs at Jess Dow Field. Southern
Connecticut the preseason favorite to win the Northeast-10, rode
the back of the conference's top tailback, scoring on its first two
possessions on touchdown runs of 12 and 48 by Freeman to jump out
to a 14-0 lead. Lindsey Gamble (Roxbury, Mass.) would
add two touchdown runs of his own to keep the Bulldogs within
striking distance. Down 28-14 at the half, the Bulldogs would
come out the locker room with all of the momentum on their side to
start the third. A Gamble 25 yard touchdown run followed by a
Charlie Granatell (Franklin Lakes, NJ) 13 yard touchdown pass to
Chris Arnold in the back of the end zone tied the game 28-28 with
9:17 left to go in the third. But that would be all of the
scoring for the Bulldogs as Southern Connecticut's Chris Bergeski
hauled in a 39 yard touchdown pass and Robert Felder followed with
a 68-yard touchdown reception and the Owls would cruise from
there. Freeman broke the previous NCAA record of 410
yards held by Andrew Terry of Ferris State in 2004. The Southern
Connecticut running back had 131 yards after one quarter and 246
yards on 15 carries at the half. He would finish averaging
12.3 yards per carry and five touchdowns including a 70-yarder in
the second quarter. Gamble finished with 90 yards on 20
carries and three touchdowns in the game while Granatell completed
24 of 41 passes for 275 yards with six passes going to senior Sean
Bergin (New Windsor, NY) who had 68 yards in the game. The
two teams combined for 1,041 yards of total offense with Southern
totaling 635 yards on 61 plays.
LOOKING AT THE BULLDOGS
The Bryant University Bulldogs have enjoyed a tremendous season.
Despite graduating all but two offensive starters, including NE-10
Player of the Year Lorenzo Perry, the Bulldogs raced out to its
best start in school history by winning their first seven
games. The team was handed its first loss of the year, 30-0
in a non-conference game at Stony Brook on Oct. 27. The team would
fall to Southern Connecticut, 56-28 a week later, but managed to
regain its momentum by taking care of Bentley with a solid 29-3 win
before 4,748 at Bulldog Stadium last week. The win gave Bryant its
first out-right conference championship. The Bulldogs were
co-champions in 2006.
Offense:
The Bulldogs are led by the three-headed monster backfield of
sophomores Lindsey Gamble (Roxbury, Mass.), Jerell Smith (Brooklyn,
NY) and Chris Peaks (Silver Spring, Md.). The three have all had
their share of the spotlight this year and bring a different
dimension to the rushing game. Gamble, who leads the team
with 85.8 yards per game and 13 rushing touchdowns, is a finesse
runner with excellent speed through the line. Smith is
another speedster who is hard to bring down. The Howard
University transfer has been excellent on kick returns throughout
the year (23.2 yards per return average). Peaks is a four-year
veteran who is brings a hard-nosed running game and can provide a
much needed boost either picking up a first down in short yardage
situation or giving the team a little inspiration.
Quarterback Charlie Granatell runs the show. The senior has been
the starting quarterback since stepping onto campus 40 games ago
and is averaging 178.9 yards per game this year. His main
target has been senior Sean Bergin who has 39 receptions for a
school record 644 yards and four touchdowns this year. The
offensive line is rather young but anchored by seniors Ralph
Squitieri (Orangeburg, NY) and Barrington Little (Washington, DC),
both captains.
Defense:
The heart and soul of the Bulldogs coming in, the Bulldog defense
held a solid Bentley team to just one field goal in Saturday's 29-3
Bryant win. The team is allowing 167 yards passing and 161
yards rushing per game this season. The secondary is the most
experienced, with all of its starters back from a year ago and
healthy all season long. Marcus Lindsey (Bridgeport, Mass.) (team
high 70 tackles) and safety Chris Wohlheter (second with 67
tackles) are hard-hitters who are in on just about every
play. The linebackers led by Dan Curci (Hasbrouck Heights,
NJ) and Paul Polomski (Franklin, Mass.) are solid while the
defensive line consisting of Jay Stahl (Methuen, Mass.), Mark
Gunther (Clarksburg, NJ), and James Lewis (New Haven, CT) made a
big statement in the win over Bentley Saturday. Stahl had two
sacks and three tackles for a loss against the Falcons.
Special Teams:
Freshman Chris Bird has been consistent on field goals this year,
making 7 of 9 attempts with a long of 36 against Bentley. He
is 3-for-4 between the 30-39 yard line with just two attempts
beyond 40 yards. Junior punter Brian Donnelly (East Dennis, Mass.)
is averaging 38.1 yards per punt with a long of 57 yards.
Jerell Smith (Brooklyn, NY) has been dangerous on kick returns,
getting solid returns to set up the Bulldog offense for most of the
season (23.2 yards per return) while Chris Wohlheter (Newark, OH)
is one of the league's best punt return specialist with 14.7 yards
per return. The Bryant coverage teams have not allowed a kick or
punt return go for a touchdown this season. Kicker Chris Bird
(Monument Beach, Mass.) is 7-for-11 on FG's with a long of 36 yards
vs. Bentley. He is 0-for-2 from beyond 40 yards.
THE COACHES:
Bryant coach Marty Fine is currently in his fourth season coaching
the Bulldogs. Since his first year in Smithfield in 2004,
Fine owns a coaching record of 27-13. He is 1-3
all-time against Southern Connecticut. Southern
Connecticut coach Rich Cavanaugh is in his 22nd year at Southern
and owns a 129-96-1 career coaching record at the school.
TEAM RECORDS
* The Bulldogs are eight completions shy of the school record of
159 set in 2005
* Bryant needs two field goals to tie the school mark of nine in a
season set in the first year of football at Bryant in 1999.
* Bryant has set a new season mark with 282 punt return yards and
record 14.8 yards per return average.
INDIVIDUAL SEASON MARKS
* Lindsey Gamble's 13 rushing touchdowns is third most (20 by
Lorenzo Perry in 2006)
* Charlie Granatell's 148 completions is a new school record,
passing his old mark of 145 (2005)
* With 1736 yards passing, Granatell needs 186 yards to pass his
old record of 1975 in 2006.
* WR Sean Bergin(New Windsor, NY) set the school single season
receiving yards mark with 644 this year.
* Bergin needs three catches (39) to pass Justin Kix' record of 41
in a season (2005)
* Freshman Chris Bird of Monument Beach, Mass. needs two field
goals to tie the school single season record of nine in a season
held by Peter DiMartino in 1999.
GRANATELL SOLID IN THE POCKET
Senior quarterback Charlie Granatell (Franklin Lakes, NJ / Ramapo)
has started every game (40) since coming to campus as a freshman in
2004. Granatell's junior year was his best yet, passing for a
career-best 1,975 yards and 21 touchdowns. Granatell finished the
season ranked second nationally with a 167.5 efficiency rating.
Career-wise, Granatell holds all of Bryant's passing records
including: attempts (932), completions (529), yards (6,816)
and passing TDs (56).
GRANATELL ON THE SEASON
Granatell has enjoyed a tremendous senior season running
the Bulldog offense. This year he has completed 60.9 percent of his
passes (148 of 243) for 1,789 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Granatell has thrown just six interceptions all year and has
completed a pass to 15 different players this year. He comes
into today's game averaging 178.9 yards passing per game.
NE-10 DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sophomore LB Paul Polomski (Franklin, Mass.) was named the
Northeast-10 Conference Defensive Player of the Week after
recording six tackles, a fumble recovery, and intercepting two
passes, one of which was returned 44 yards for a touchdown in the
fourth in Saturday's win over AIC. Polomski earned his first
start at linebacker last year as a freshman in Week 2, playing
against of all teams AIC. Incidentally, Polomski had a
goal-line interception in the first half of that game as
well.
