2012 Siena Heights University Football
Siena Heights Saints (3-3, 2-1 MSFA Mideast) vs
#6 Saint Xavier Cougars (4-1, 0-1 MSFA Mideast)
Saturday, Oct. 13, 2012 - 6 p.m. - Adrian, Mich.

Live Coverage: Jerry Hayes (play-by-play), Doug Goodnough (color commentary), Siena Heights Sports Network (www.shusaints.com), WLEN 103.9 FM

For a complete PDF version of game notes, click HERE.

THE GAME
The Siena Heights football team will close out its regular season home schedule when defending national champ -- and sixth-ranked team in the NAIA -- Saint Xavier (Ill.) visits O'Laughlin Stadium on Oct. 13 for a Mid-States Football Association Mideast League contest. The Saints will honor their lone senior before the game: wide receiver Ian Thornton. SHU is also hosting "Band Day," for local high school bands. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. on Dr. Mike and Lynne Dawson Field.

The Saints are coming off last week's tough triple-overtime loss to Olivet Nazarene (Ill.). SHU is now 1-2 in overtime games this season after falling, 20-14. Running back Calebb Goings rushed 36 times for 137 yards and one touchdown while tight end Donovan Campbell had a 57-yard touchdown reception from quarterback Matt King.

For the Siena Heights defense, defensive back Sederick Dunbar II, linebacker Tyler Karcher and linebacker Trent Bragg had nine, eight and seven tackles, respectively. Defensive linemen Joseph Mravec and Cecil Marious added sacks, defensive lineman Robert Becker and linebacker Chris Vann had forced fumbles, and Mravec and defensive back DeShawn Gilbert made fumble recoveries. Defensive back Fred Butler contributed an interception. Bragg and Butler also had two pass breakups apiece.

In their last contest, the then-top-ranked Cougars had their nine-game winning streak snapped by Saint Francis (Ind.), 25-13. The run dated back to Nov. 5, 2011 and included an NAIA championship.

SXU was unable to recover from a 19-0 deficit as quarterback Joe Gill finished 28 of 59 for 301 yards and two interceptions. He spread the ball around well as wide receivers Wes Gastel and Shane Zackery had six receptions each for 54 and 53 yards, respectively, while both Corey Wennmacher and Chase Catton made five catches for 68 and 61 yards, respectively. Running back Nick Pesek added 18 carries for 99 yards and one touchdown.

For the Cougar defense, linebacker Dave Marciano led the way with 9 1/2 tackles, a forced fumble and blocked extra point. Fellow linebacker Mike Bushnell added an interception while defensive llineman Greg Hayward recorded a sack.

FOLLOW THE MARCH
All Siena Heights football games will be broadcast on the radio on WLEN 103.9 FM and on the Siena Heights Sports Network, which can be accessed via the Stretch Internet link on WWW.SHUSAINTS.COM. Live stats can be followed online at WWW.SHUSAINTS.COM.

SHSN will provide live video for each Saint home game. Play-by-play will be called by Jerry Hayes while Doug Goodnough will provide color commentary. Jay Nicols is the producer. Games will be archived in Stretch's on-demand feature.

THE COACHES
Jim Lyall (Michigan '74) is in his second season as head coach for Siena Heights, where he now has a 3-3 varsity record. He is 105-94-1 all-time as a collegiate varsity football coach. During SHU's 2011 club season, Lyall went 8-1. He was previously the head coach at Adrian, where he compiled a 102-91-1 varsity slate.

Mike Feminis (Saint Francis, Ill. '90) is in his 14th year as head coach for Saint Xavier. He is 120-42 all-time as a collegiate varsity football coach. Prior to becoming SXU's head coach, he was a linebacker coach and defensive coordinator for his alma mater, Saint Francis (Ill.). Feminis was named 2011 NAIA Coach of the Year and, as a player, was the 1989 NAIA Defensive Player of the Year.

UP NEXT ...
The Saints will begin a three-game road stretch, starting with a visit to Grand View (Iowa) in Des Moines.

Fourteenth-ranked Grand View is currently 5-2 with a 4-0 record in the MSFA Midwest League. The Vikings have won their last two contests: a 29-26 double-overtime victory at then-ninth-ranked Saint Ambrose (Iowa) and then a 51-0 victory over Waldorf (Iowa). Grand View is on a bye this week.

SCOUTING THE COUGARS
After having its nine-game winning streak snapped in a 25-13 loss to Saint Francis (Ind.), Saint Xavier had a bye week and will be well-rested coming into Adrian. The defending national champions have brought back 10 All-Mid-States Football Association Mideast League performers from a year ago and look poised to compete for another national title.

The Cougars, who are ranked sixth in the NAIA, returned three All-MSFA First Team players, including senior quarterback Jimmy Coy. In 2012, Coy has gone 82 of 126 for 975 yards, 12 touchdowns and two interceptions, although he missed SXU's game against Saint Francis (Ind.) due to injury. Junior quarterback Joe Gill stepped in during Coy's absence; he has completed 55 of 107 passes for 724 yards, four touchdowns and three interceptions so far in 2012. Coy is currently atop the Saint Xavier depth chart.

Others to look out for on the SXU offense include a plethora of wide receivers, including seniors Shane Zackery, Wes Gastel, Corey Wennmacher and Chase Catton. Zackery was an All-MSFA First Team honoree last year while Gastel was named to the Second Team and Wennmacher received an Honorable Mention. Zackery leads the crew with 39 catches for 571 yards and six scores, ranking seventh and ninth, respectively, in the NAIA.

Catton has been the Cougars' second-leading receiver with 27 snags for 290 yards and two touchdowns. Gastel has 17 grabs for 208 yards and four touchdowns while Wennmacher has 17 receptions for 176 yards and one score.

Saint Xavier will also rely on junior running back Nick Pesek, who was an All-MSFA Second Teamer. Pesek had 59 carries for 363 yards, 11 catches for 178 yards and four total touchdowns.

On defense, the Cougars start a trio of all-conference linebackers: senior Mike Bushnell and juniors Zach Dolph and Dave Marciano. In 2012, Bushnell has 22 1/2 tackles and an interception whiel Marciano has compiled 20 1/2 tackles. Dolph leads the entire defense with 43 tackles, including 11 for loss, 3 1/2 sacks, three pass breakups and a forced fumble. Bushnell was an All-MSFA First Team player while the other two were named to the Second Team.

Also, senior cornerback Jeremy Rhodes and junior free safety Jacob Ghinazzi -- both All-MSFA Second Team players in 2011 -- will be on the field for SXU. Rhodes has three interceptions while Ghinazzi has 28 1/2 tackles and two picks. Sophomore defenive lineman Greg Hayward is tied for the team lead with 3 1/2 sacks.

In the NAIA rankings, the Cougars rate second in passing yards per game (339.8), offensive yards per game (488.0), first downs per game (25.8), points allowed per game (14.6), punt average (41.5) and sacks per game (3.2).

RECORDS ARE MADE TO BE BROKEN
As a varsity football program, the Saints are only six games old, which means records get set week-in and week-out. Several records were set last game against Olivet Nazarene, including the longest pass play in Saint history -- a 57-yard touchdown hookup from junior quarterback Matt King to sophomore tight end Donovan Campbell.

Sophomore running back Calebb Goings had 36 rushes in one game, sophomore linebacker Derek Head made three tackles-for-loss and freshman punter Jacob Venable had nine points -- all of which were SHU single-game records.

STOLEN GOODS
The Siena Heights defense has certainly shown the ability to cause turnovers as it has accumulated eight interceptions and eight fumble recoveries, but the SHU 'D' has barely turned those takeaways into yardage. As a matter of fact, junior defensive back Fred Butler recorded the defense's first yards gained with a two-yard interception against Olivet Nazarene. That's 16 occasions on which the SHU defense took the ball away with only two yards gained.

With that said, the Siena Heights defenders have had good timing with their takeaways. Twelve of 16 have occurred on SHU's half of the field, including three in the end zone and a fourth inside the five-yard line. Of the four that happened on the opponent's half of the field, two have led to touchdowns by the Siena Heights offense.

The Saints' leading tackler is sophomore linebacker Trent Bragg, who has 40 1/2 stops.  Sophomore linebacker Tyler Karcher has contributed 35 1/2 tackles, two interceptions, two fumble recoveries, one forced fumble and two pass breakups while junior defensive back Sederick Dunbar II has 35 tackles, two interceptions and one forced fumble.

A total of five Saint defenders have hit the double-digit mark for tackles; the others include sophomore linebacker Chris Vann (30) and sophomore defensive lineman Jordan Martin (21). Meanwhile, Robert Becker ranks third in the NAIA with 0.5 forced fumbles per game.

KEEPS GOINGS AND GOINGS AND GOINGS ...
Sophomore running back Calebb Goings took over for fellow sophomore Julius Taylor Jr. two weeks ago and had quite a day: twenty-nine carries for 196 yards and a touchdown during the Saints' 28-14 win over Taylor. Last week, Goings followed it up with a 36-carry, 137-yard day, including one touchdown, against Olivet Nazarene. He has now totaled 65 runs for 333 yards and two scored over the past two SHU contests. On the season, he has 85 carries for 385 yards.

MY TURN, YOUR TURN
Shortly before the season opener, King earned the top spot on Siena Heights' depth chart. Since then, he has compiled a 115.85 efficiency rating, completing 48 of 89 passes for 531 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions, but is still being pushed for time by Zajkowski.

Zajkowski has made appearances in the past four SHU contests and was a key factor in the past two victories. During the past three weeks, in which the QBs have split time, King is 13 of 31 for 220 yards, three touchdowns and one interception while Zajkowski is 15 of 27 for 203 yards and three touchdowns.

CAMPBELL'S MMM MMM GOOD
Campbell continues to set himself apart as the Saints' top receiving threat. Through six games, he has 24 receptions for 333 yards and five touchdowns. Last week, he was limited to only one catch, but the grab was a 57-yard touchdown reception.

Fellow sophomore tight end Lyle VanFleteren is also an established threat in the passing game. He now has seven catches for 93 yards. VanFleteren ranks second on the squad in passing yards while sophomore running back Julius Taylor Jr. ranks second in catches with nine grabs for 55 yards.

RANKING THEM HIGH
Among the NAIA rankings, Siena Heights is ranked among the Top 25 in five categories, including seventh in kickoff return average (25.8), 12th in opponents' third-down conversion percentage (29.6 percent), 17th in opponents' fourth-down conversion precentage (53.8 percent), 24th in total rushing (1,105) and 25th in rushing defense per game (130.7).

Along with Becker, punt returner Austin Lake holds a spot in the individual Top 25 rankings. He is 24th with 8.1 return yards per attempt.