OCTOBER 18, 2008
KING’S FOOTBALL TEAM SET TO TAKE ON ALBRIGHT
COLLEGE
(Monarchs Look to Halt Four-Game Losing Streak)
WILKES-BARRE -- The
King’s College football team will look to get back on the winning track
when the Monarchs travel to Reading to face Albright College in a Middle
Atlantic Conference matchup Saturday at 1:30 p.m. at Shirk Stadium.
Tickets are listed
at $5 for adults and $3 for senior citizens and students. Children under
age six will be admitted free.
King’s enters the
game looking to snap a four-game losing streak. After winning their
first game of the season 34-13 against Randolph-Macon, the Monarchs fell
to then-nationally ranked (21st) Ithaca by a 38-28 count before dropped
a 22-6 verdict to unbeaten Hampden-Sydney (6-0), the defending Old
Dominion Athletic Conference champion currently ranked 20th nationally
by D3Football.com.
After a bye week,
the Monarchs dropped a 34-19 decision to Delaware Valley College in its
MAC opener on October 4. Last week, King’s fell 17-3 to defending MAC
champion Widener University.
Against King’s will
face another quality opponent as Albright was picked to finished second
in the MAC Pre-Season Coaches Poll. Albright enters the game with a
2-2 overall record and is 1-1 in the MAC after falling 23-13 to the
surprise team of the MAC, Lycoming College, last week.
KING’S
FOOTBALL ON THE AIR:
The game will be web cast live in the Internet by WRKC, 88.5
FM. The game can be accessed by going to the WRKC LIVE link at the
following page:
http://www.kings.edu/IITS/index.htm
A live statistical and play-by-play feed will be available on the
Internet at the following link:
http://www.albright.edu/athletics/livestats/xlive.htm
ABOUT THE GAME:
The game will stand as Hall of Fame Weekend at Albright. It
will mark King’s first trip to Shirk Stadium since the 2005 season when
the Monarchs played the very first game at the newly constructed
stadium, which includes a synthetic turf similar to the newly installed
turf at King’s Betzler Fields. This will mark only the second time
King’s has played away from home this season.
ABOUT THE
SERIES:
This is the 14th all-time meeting between the programs with
Albright holding a 7-5-1 advantage. In King’s last stop at Shirk
Stadium, the Monarchs dropped a heartbreaking 29-27 decision when
Albright scored the winning touchdown on the last play of the game when
a desperation pass thrown into the end zone was batted towards the
ground by a King’s defender as time expired. But a Widener receiver made
a diving catch, corralling the ball just before it hit the turf, for the
winning score. The following year King’s gained a measure of revenge by
wining the 2006 game 38-14 at Betzler Fields 38-14. The Lions posted a
24-21 win at King's last season en route to an Eastern College Athletic
Conference (ECAC) South Atlantic Bowl bid and an 8-3 overall record. The
teams return to Reading after two straight games in Wilkes-Barre.
THE
COACHES:
Monarch mentor Rich Mannello, the longest tenured head coach
in the MAC, is in his 16th year at King's and owns a current record of
65-94-1 with the Monarchs, including five post-season playoff
appearances since 2000, including the 2002 MAC title. Albright is
coached by second-year mentor John Marzka who is 11-5 with the
Pride.
LAST WEEK:
In the second week of second day of MAC play, King’s dropped
a 17-3 verdict to Widener at home. Albright, meanwhile, fell to
Lycoming College 23013 in Williamsport.
KING’S ON OFFENSE: I-FORMATION
King's is averaging 281.8 yards of total offense per-game,
including 88.6 rushing yards and 193.2 passing yards. Since gaining 212
yards on the ground opening week against Randolph-Macon, the Monarchs
have amassed only 231 yards over the past four games, averaging 57.8
rushing yards per-game during this. Sophomore quarterback Olayinka Soda
leads the team with 211.0 yards of total offense per-game. Soda has
completed 58.7 (88-150) percent of his passes for 966 yards with six
touchdowns and eight interceptions thus far this season. Junior wide
receiver Mike Verbitski tops the receivers with 26 catches for 396 yards
and five touchdowns.
Sophomore Bob Lane has 16 receptions for 172 yards while sophomore Rick
Ritter checks in with eight receptions for 119 yards. Junior tight end
Justin Dalton tallies seven catches for 58 yards. Sophomore Brandon
Murray is expected to return to the lineup after missing the Widener
game with an injury. Murray has rushed for 37 yards on 15 carries.
Senior tailback Jeramia Jones is expected to miss his second straight
game with an injury. Sophomore Corey Zalewski and freshman Richard
Maerten could also see action at tailback. Junior fullback Doug Mucha
chips in with 27 yards on five attempts while making four catches for 39
yards one touchdown catch.
ALBRIGHT ON
OFFENSE: MULTIPLE
The Albright offense enters the game averaging 309.0 yards
of total offense per-game, including 98.6 rushing yards and 210.8
passing yards. Junior quarterback Tanner Kelly leads the offense by
completing 64.6 (93-144) percent of his passes for 948 yards with eight
touchdowns and four interceptions. The 6-foot-4 Kelly has also added 162
rushing yards on 56 attempts. Freshman tailback Josan Holmes has a
team-high 285 rushing yards on 55 carries while adding 12 catches for
108 yards. Junior wide receiver Nate Romig has 29 catches for 381 yards
and five touchdowns. Senior A.J. Hill, a 6-foot-4 senior, follows with
25 catches for 287 yards and three scores.
KING’S ON
DEFENSE: MULTIPLE
King’s defense has yielded 339.0 yards of total offense
per-game, including 169.8 rushing yards and 169.2 passing yards each
contest. Senior linebacker Matt Rhodes tops the team with 39 total
tackles, including 5.0 tackles for loss. Senior linebacker Tom Tulaney
follows with 35 tackles, one interception, and one fumble recovery.
Sophomore defensive end Ryan Nelson adds 31 tackles and 3.5 tackles for
loss. Senior safety Shane McNamara contributes with 28 tackles has
broken up five passes. Sophomore defensive tackle Alex Watty has
registered 25 tackles with 3.0 tackles for loss. Senior defensive end
Mike Lovett has tallied 20 tackles with 4.0 sacks and 5.5 tackles for
loss. Junior cornerback Brian Mitros and sophomore defensive tackle
Craig Geibert have registered 19 tackles each. Junior safety Justin
Zlotek has 13 tackles while sophomore cornerback Edwyn Edwards chip in
with 10 tackles and one interception apiece. Senior Bob Cirko, who
played his first two years at cornerback before being moved to wide
receiver, is now back on defense playing safety. He made six tackles in
his first game on defense against Widener.
ALBRIGHT ON
DEFENSE: MULTIPLE
The Lion defense is allowing 362.0 yards of total offense
per-game, including 198.8 yards on the ground and 163.2 through the
air. The unit is led by junior rover David Harig who has posted a
team-high 38 tackles with an interception. Junior linebacker Robert
Harper follows with 32 tackles one interception and one fumble recovery.
Junior nose guard Nathanial Linn adds 30 tackles with 6.0 tackles for 31
yards in losses and two sacks. Senior safety Matt Chris contributes 28
tackles with three interceptions while junior linebacker Andrew Kibler
chips in with 25 tackles while breaking up three passes.
NEXT GAME:
The Monarchs will celebrate Homecoming on Saturday, October
25 when King’s hosts Lebanon Valley College at 1:30 p.m. at Betzler
Fields.
2008 Middle
Atlantic Conference Standings
School
MAC Overall
Delaware Valley
2-0 4-1
Lycoming
2-0 4-1
Albright
1-1 3-2
Lebanon Valley
1-1 3-2
Widener
1-1 3-2
Wilkes
1-1 1-4
FDU-Florham
0-2 2-3
King’s
0-2 1-4
