Gameday Week 10/15/2005 - Game #5 Cortland

Prof D Holds Red Dragon Offense in Check 24-16 Photos courtesy of Dan Padavona Cortlandfootball.com By Tom Wilson JT@rowanfootball.com Play WGLS-FM audio highlights Junior quarterback Mike Orihel completed 18-of-29 passes for 246 yards and a touchdown and rushed for a score as Rowan, ranked fourth nationally by D3football.com, defeated Cortland, 24-16, in a battle of the New Jersey Athletic Conference's (NJAC) top two teams. The Profs improved to 5-0 overall and 3-0 in NJAC play with the victory. Cortland is now 4-2 and 3-1. Orihel connected five times each with senior wide receivers Sakeen Wright and Phil Silva. Silva's catches included a 9-yard touchdown grab. Junior Ulysses Encarnacion ran for 53 yards on 13 carries. Junior defensive back Jabrill Joseph and sophomore linebacker Randy Tosh each made 10 tackles, with Tosh also recording a forced fumble. Cortland was led by sophomore quarterback Alex Smith, he completed 17-of-35 passes for 243 yards and a touchdown and ran for 30 yards on 10 carries. Junior Anthony Morat made five catches for 66 yards, including a 27-yard touchdown, and sophomore Dustin Bowser ran 18 times for 53 yards and a touchdown. Sophomore linebacker Bill Hauser recorded a game-high 16 tackles and junior safety Chuck Eich recorded 11 tackles.

Rowan Travels to Cortland, Battles for NJAC Lead By Tom Wilson JT@rowanfootball.com Cortland St. 2004 Highlights Play WGLS-FM audio highlights Both teams are coming off bye week and have had two week to prepare for each other. This has the potential for a great game, blowout, or sloppy contest. Sometimes having more time works against a team. I’m sure both teams were able to nurse some bumps and bruises during the bye. Last year and extra point block and a late touchdown by wide-receiver Joe D’Imperio gave the Profs a slim margin of victory 34-33. In 2003, D’Imperio capped an OT win with a sliding touchdown catch in the endzone for a 34-31 win. The Red Dragons are probably happy that this is the last time they will face the 5’ 7” receiver, as this is Joe’s senior season. First place is on the line, leaving only one undefeated team in league play. Although unranked, Cortland is a good club with a defense that is only giving up 54 yards rushing per game. Both the Red Dragon and Prof defense have put up similar numbers to date, their total defensive yards allowed per game are 235.2 and 243.5 respectively. Points allowed per game are 14.2 and 16.3 respectively. The big difference thus far is on the offensive side of the ball. Rowan averages almost 200 yards more than Cortland in total offense per game at 529.5 verses 331.2. The Profs have had trouble converting the yardage advantage/first down advantage to points in every game except the Western Connecticut game. Although it looks like the kicking game has become more reliable with Matias Spahn at the helm. He connected on 3-of-3 field goals and three extra points against TCNJ two weeks ago. Errors and penalties have hurt the Profs of late, ending drives and giving opponents easy scoring opportunities. Rowan has been able to overcome mistakes and calmly execute when they have had to put the game away three times (CNU, Robert Morris, TCNJ) in their four wins. This game against Cortland has typically been the turning point and the big playoff push in past years. Generally, the Profs either put everything together now and dominate Cortland or get jump started by a close contest. This is certainly not an easy away game. The big key will be to stop the running game and force long situations. Make Cortland try to win it in the air, which I don’t think they can do against Rowan. The Red Dragons are averaging 169.2 yards on the ground and 162.0 yards passing per game. They haven’t beaten a team with a winning record this year. All that doesn’t take away from the fact that every opponent usually brings their best when they play the Profs. So I expect it to be a spirited contest, but as long Rowan gets pressure on the quarterback, limits Red Dragon rushing to under 100 yards, and converts scoring opportunities, the Profs should win this one going away in the second half. I wish I could go to the game, but I will have to catch this one WGLS.