Pioneers look to snap slide at home against rival Muskies
Muskingum (1-3, 0-3 OAC) at Marietta (2-2, 1-2 OAC)
6 p.m. • Saturday, Oct. 7 • Don Drumm Stadium

Game Notes (.pdf)
Oct. 3, 2006
MARIETTA, Ohio - The Pioneers return home to take on rival Muskingum Saturday (Oct. 7) in a 6 p.m. kickoff at Don Drumm Stadium. Saturday is Marietta’s annual Shrine Game; the Shrine Club will be working all of the ticket gates and the concession stand. They will also select a Player of the Game from each team and have a short awards presentation immediately after the game.

Here is a look at both teams:

Muskingum College: The Muskies, who opened the year with a win over Bethany (W.Va.), have lost three straight, including the last two by shutout. After four games, Muskingum ranks eighth in the League in scoring, averaging 13.0 points. The Muskies rank ninth in total offense (194.8) — tenth in passing (130.2) and sixth in rushing (64.5). Muskingum is the second-least penalized team in the OAC, giving up an average of 45.2 penalty yards in its first four games. The Muskies have converted 6-of-6 red-zone chances and 16-of-58 third down opportunities this season.

Senior running back Steve Howard, who is averaging 32.0 yards, leads the team in rushing. Sophomore Andre Nash controls the team from under center. In four games, Nash has completed 43-of-72 passes for 415 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions. Howard also leads the team in receptions with 12 for 96 yards, while sophomore Jack Murray has added 11 catches for 151 yards and two scores. Overall, eight different players have caught a pass this season for Muskingum.

The Muskies’ defense has allowed 34.5 points per game this season, which ranks ninth in the OAC. Muskingum has surrendered an average of 138.2 yards on the ground and 210.2 yards through the air. The Muskies, who have +1 turnover margin, have recorded four sacks and three interceptions on the year. 10 players have at least 10 tackles in 2006.

Senior Jack Junker has a team-high 30 stops, while Sam Miller has added 29 tackles. Junior punter Bryan Gulley has averaged 35.3 yards on 26 punts, which ranks eighth in the OAC. Muskingum is averaging 19.8 yards in kick returns.

The Muskies have collected 39 first downs, while its defense has allowed 73 first downs.

Marietta College: The Pioneers are looking to bounce back from two straight losses, which have been cluttered with turnovers and mistakes. Marietta’s offense has averaged 24.8 points and 428.8 yards this season, which fourth and third, respectively in the OAC. Of those yards, 54.2 come on the ground, while 374.5 are through the air. The Pioneers lead the Conference in passing offense and are ranked seventh in rushing offense. Marietta has converted 28-of-59 third downs and 12-of-16 red-zone chances in 2006. The Pioneers have a -8 turnover margin.

Individually, senior quarterback Jason Vrable has completed 105-of-177 passes for an OAC-high 1498 yards with nine touchdowns this season. Junior Chad McDaniel, the school record holder in reception yards in a game, leads the team and Conference with 31 grabs for 396 yards and two scores. Senior Jason Curry has added 22 receptions for 427 yards with four touchdowns, while senior Nic North has grabbed 23 passes for 306 yards and one TD.

Sophomore Garrett Banks is the team’s leading rusher, averaging 24.5 yards per game and 2.1 yards per carry. Vrable is contributing 1.6 yards per carry and 13.2 yards per game with his legs.

Sophomore Pat Lane is 3-for-4 in field goals with a long of 26 yards and 8-for-10 in PATs. Curry is averaging 34.7 yards per punt.

Marietta’s defense enters the week ranked seventh in total defense. It is allowing 335.0 yards per game. The Pioneers rank eighth against the pass (237.8) and fifth against the run (97.2). Marietta has recorded six sacks, 23 tackles for loss and three interceptions this season. The Pioneers have allowed their opponents to convert 15-of-19 red zone chances, including 11 touchdowns. Offenses are converting 38% (20-of-53) of their third-down opportunities against Marietta.

Junior middle linebacker Brian Hahn leads the team with 31 tackles, while sophomore middle linebacker Grant Cowell and senior safety Lonnie Meyers have added 24 and 23 stops, respectively. Hahn (5.5) and junior nose tackle Clay Ream (4.5) lead the team in tackles for loss.

Marietta is averaging just 13.5 yards on kick returns and 5.7 yards on punt returns this year. Penalties have been a factor, as the Pioneers have committed 28 penalties for 214 yards. Marietta is trailing slightly in time of possession, holding onto the ball from an average of 29:15, while on defense for 30:22.

THE RECORDS: Saturday marks the midway point of the 2006 season for both teams. Marietta opened the year with victories over Emory & Henry (28-20) and Baldwin-Wallace (37-31) before falling at Otterbein (27-24) and at Capital (52-10). Muskingum defeated Bethany (45-20) to begin the year, but has fallen to Ohio Northern (36-7), Mount Union (62-0) and Wilmington (20-0) in the last three weeks.

GAME TIME: 6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 7, Don Drumm Stadium.

THE COACHES: Marietta’s Curt Wiese is in his first season as the leader of the Pioneers. Wiese, the offensive coordinator of the Pioneers for the last three years, earned his bachelor’s degree from Minnesota State-Mankato in 1999. Muskingum’s Jeff Heacock is in his 26th year as the Muskies’ head football coach. The 1976 graduate of Muskingum had a 107-136-4 record in his first 25 years. Heacock is 12-14 all-time against Marietta.

ALL-TIME SERIES: The Muskies and the Pioneers renew their bitter rivalry for the 84th time on the gridiron in 2006. Muskingum leads the all-time series 37-45-2. Marietta, who won the first meeting 36-0 in 1897, has pulled out five straight victories, all by less than a touchdown. The last six years have all come down to the final possession

LAST MEETING: A one-yard touchdown pass from Jason Vrable to tight end John Bokat on the final play of the last year’s game gave Marietta an 18-17 victory on Homecoming. Vrable attempted a school-record 58 passes and threw for a then career high 376 yards. Nic North set a school record with 14 receptions in the game. Brian Hahn had a game-high 14 tackles. Muskingum, who did not complete a single pass, had 126 rushing yards in the loss.

LAST GAME FOR MARIETTA: Pioneer turnovers combined with a high-powered Crusader offense to send Marietta to its second straight loss, a 52-10 defeat. Vrable, who broke the school’s career completion record in the loss, finished 32-of-57 and threw for 338 yards. Chad McDaniel pulled in 13 receptions for 121 yards and Hahn had a team-high eight tackles.

LAST GAME FOR MUSKINGUM: The Muskies were shutout 20-0 on the road by Wilmington, who was entered the week winless. Andre Nash completed 10-of-19 passes for 78 yards. Defensively, Sam Miller had 12 tackles, one interception, a sack and a fumble recovery.

GREAT COVERAGE: Saturday’s football game is being broadcast live by WMRT-FM 88.3, Marietta College’s campus radio station, and by WMOA-AM 1490. Muskingum will also carry the game locally in New Concord on WMCO-FM 90.7.

LISTEN ONLINE: Marietta College is now proud to offer its fans on the World Wide Web the opportunity to listen to all 10 Pioneer football games through a partnership with Stretch Internet. All you need is QuickTime. For more information visit Marietta’s athletic web site: http://pioneers.marietta.edu. Archives are also available to listen to or to purchase.

SPECIAL WELCOME: The Pioneers would like to extend a special welcome to the Akron Springfield High School Band, who will be performing both before the game and at halftime.

ANNUAL SHRINE GAME: Saturday is Marietta College’s annual Shrine Game. Local Shrine Club members will be working all of the ticket gates and the concession stand. A portion of all the proceeds will be given to the organization. The Shrine Club will also name a Player of the Game from each team after the game.

NEXT GAME: On Saturday, Oct. 14, Marietta will host John Carroll on Homecoming, while Muskingum will host Baldwin-Wallace. Both games will begin at 1:30 p.m.

PIONEER PASSING: The 2006 Marietta team is currently ranked second in the nation in passing offense, averaging 374.5 yards. Of the 229 teams in NCAA D-III, only Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C. (396.4) is averaging more yards passing this season.

MAKING HISTORY: Vrable became the top passer in Marietta history in terms of completions Saturday at Capital. Vrable has now completed a school record 398 passes, breaking Shawn Taylor’s record of 385, which was set in 2001.

CLIMBING UP THE CAREER CHARTS: Following his week five performance, Vrable is now closing in on Marietta’s all-time passing records. The senior needs to throw for 65 yards and one touchdown to tie the Pioneers’ career records. He is also 71 passing attempts shy of matching that record.

CLIMBING UP THE CAREER CHARTS PART II: Pioneer senior receiver Jason Curry, who is ranked third on MC’s career receiving-yards list with 1,411 yards, has 15 career touchdown receptions and needs five more to break the record set by Antonio Hutton ‘97. Curry is also ranked second all-time in punts (179) and punt yards (6,552).

GETTING OFF TO A QUICK START: Marietta will look to get off to a fast start out of the locker room this season after struggling in the first and third quarters in 2005. The Pioneers were outscored 60-37 in the first quarter and 69-14 in the third quarter last year. So far in 2006, Marietta has been outscored 45-7 in the first quarter, but has a 28-3 advantage in the third frame.

RED-ZONE STAND: Marietta will look build upon its success in the red zone last year, when it converted 24-of-33 (72.7%) of its chances. 18 of its 24 scores were touchdowns. On the other hand, the Pioneers must improve on the defensive side of the ball, as they allowed scores in 36-of-43 chances, including 32 touchdowns. This year MC has converted 12-of-16 chances on offense and allowed teams to score on 15-of-19 trips.

NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT: The OAC has a large presence in the top of the national polls this week. In the second AFCA poll of the year, Mount Union was ranked first, Capital fourth and Ohio Northern 10th. The d3football.com poll also had Mount Union at No. 1, with Capital at No. 3 and Ohio Northern at No. 10.

THIS WEEK IN THE OAC: Other OAC games on tap this weekend include Heidelberg (0-4, 0-3 OAC) at Baldwin-Wallace (3-1, 2-1 OAC), Wilmington (1-3, 1-2 OAC) at Otterbein (2-2, 1-2 OAC), Capital (4-0, 3-0 OAC) at John Carroll (1-3, 1-2 OAC) and Mount Union (4-0, 3-0 OAC) at Wilmington (1-3, 1-2 OAC).