Geneva College (1-0) @ Washington & Jefferson College (0-0)
Saturday, September 8, 2007
7:00 pm - Cameron Stadium
All-Time Series: W & J 33-19-2
Last Meeting: W & J 24-17 (1985)
Another local rivalry will be renewed this weekend as the Golden Tornadoes travel to Washington & Jefferson to take on the Presidents′ for the first time since 1985. W & J leads the all-time series 33-19-2, including a 24-17 victory over Geneva in the last meeting, which took place 22 years ago.
Geneva opened the 2007 season with an impressive 20-3 victory over Thiel College last Saturday. Meanwhile, the President′s were at home preparing for the Golden Tornadoes and their 2007 season opener. The pre-season favorite in the PAC, W & J advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III play-offs in 2006 and finished the year with an overall record of 10-2.
Last year, W & J averaged almost 33 points per game, while allowing just over two touchdowns per contest. Junior quarterback Bobby Swallow will once again lead the offense after completing almost 70% of his passes in 2006 for over 2000 yards and 20 touchdowns. On the ground, leading rusher Ryan Mendel is gone, but junior Kevin Mathews is waiting in the wings to take over the reigns. Mendel rushed for 388 yards and a touchdown, while averaging 5.5 yards per carry in his sophomore season. Leading receivers Tom McCafferty (39 rec, 529 yds, 7 TD′s) and David Ravida (36 rec, 461 yds, 4 TD′s) are both back for the 2007 campaign.
On defense, W & J lost its top two tacklers, but linebacker David Gitlitz is back after compiling 66.5 tackles a year ago.
Geneva got off to a great start to the new season last week against Thiel. Senior quarterback Bobby Bondi completed 14-24 passes for 165 yards in a touchdown in the season opener. The offensive star, however, turned out to be quite a surprise in freshman running back Gerard Muschette. Muschette took over in the first quarter when Javon Moody left the game with an injury. The freshman took advantage of his opportunity with a pair of touchdowns to put Geneva on top. Meanwhile, Geneva′s defense was nothing short of spectacular. Led by Brian Wilson′s seven tackles for loss and three sacks, Geneva held Thiel to just 150 yards of total offense, which included -25 yards rushing.
Geneva will continue its three-game road to start the season when it travels to New Wilmington next week to renew its greatest rivalry in school history. The Golden Tornadoes will meet Westminster for the 110th time next week, but it will be the first time since 2001 that the two schools will hook up. Meanwhile, W & J will play host to Hanover College next Saturday.
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