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Live Stats | Live Audio | Ticket PreSale ($8 - Also available at the gate)WASHINGTON, Pa. -- Two of the three winningest programs in NCAA Division III Football history will meet in Alliance, Ohio on Saturday, Nov. 29 at 12:00 p.m. when No. 21/19 Washington & Jefferson (10-1, 7-1 Presidents' Athletic Conference) and No. 3 Mount Union (11-0, 9-0 Ohio Athletic Conference) meet in the second round of the 2014 playoffs.
The Series: A total of 1,446 college football wins will be on the field in Alliance, Ohio this weekend when Washington & Jefferson travels to Mount Union for the 2014 NCAA Division III second round. The two teams have met on the gridiron six times previously dating back to 1913. W&J won the first four meetings between the schools during home-and-home series in 1913-14 and 1940-41. The Raiders have won the last two games, both NCAA Division III playoff contests, including a snowy 34-20 win in the first round a season ago. The 2013 match-up was the first time in six meetings that the losing team was not shutout in the process.
The Head Coaches: Mike Sirianni (Mount Union, '94) owns a 111-25 (.816) record at W&J in his 12th season as head coach. The six-time PAC Coach of the Year and two-time South Region Coach of the Year (2004, 2012) entered the season fourth among all active NCAA coaches in winning percentage (minimum of 10 years) (101-24, .808). The Presidents are making their 11th postseason (9th NCAA) appearance under Sirianni. Vince Kehres (Mount Union, '98) is in his second year as the head coach at Mount Union but is no stranger to the program. He has been a part of the program his entire life as his father, Larry, was the previous coach and current athletic director for the Raiders. In his first season, he led Mount to an appearance in the Stagg Bowl for the 17th time in program history, picking up right where his father left off.
W&J vs. The OAC: W&J sports a 46-24 (.657) all-time record against current members of the Ohio Athletic Conference. Prior to the 2009 W&J-UMU game, the Presidents last played an OAC team on Sept. 24, 1988, when defeating John Carroll 20-13. Below is a breakdown of the all-time records versus OAC teams:
Baldwin-Wallace (0-0), Capital (0-0), Heidelberg (0-0), John Carroll (15-14),
Marietta (14-1), Mount Union (4-2), Muskingum (6-7), Ohio Northern (2-0),
Otterbein (4-0), Wilmington (1-0)
The Last Meeting (Nov. 23, 2013 - Mount Union 34, W&J 20): Alex Baroffio had a career day for W&J with 131 yards on 12 catches, three of which were for scores, to close his standout career with virtually every W&J school receiving record - 269 receptions, 3,204 yards, 30 touchdowns. In just his second-career start, QB
Pete Coughlin tossed for 216 yards and three scores in completing 20-of-44 passes. The Presidents' defense produced four turnovers (three fumbles, one INT) and three sacks in the 2013 NCAA Division III First Round playoff loss.
Scouting Mount Union: Mount Union has been locked in at No. 3 in both polls (AFCA and D3football.com) all season long. The Purple Raiders are 11-0 overall and won their 23rd-straight and 26th total Ohio Athletic Conference championship. Since 2000, Mount Union's win-loss record is 206-8 and the Purple Raiders have won 82 consecutive home games. The leader of the team is reigning Gagliardi award-winner  (nation's top all around player) QB Kevin Burke. Through 11 games, he has completed 66.1 percent of his passes for 2,975 yards and 32 TDs to 4 INT. Bradley Mitchell leads the team with 1,028 rushing yards and 18 TDs on 127 carries. Taurice Scott (51-758-8) and Roman Namdar (46-871-13) are the top two receivers. The Raiders lead the nation in scoring offense (61.0 ppg), total offense (601.8 ypg), scoring defense (7.4 ppg) and total defense (199.1 ypg). Alex Kocheff leads the team with 54 tackles and Tom Lally boasts 16.5 TFL. Tre Jones has four INT and Kocheff has three INT. Mike Furda has posted 6.5 sacks to pace the defense.
700 Club: The Presidents joined the illustrious NCAA 700 Win Club with a 48-30 win over Carnegie Mellon on Sept. 20. In this the 123rd season of varsity football, W&J has amassed a .643 winning percentage (707-384-40). Only two other NCAA Division III programs have reached 700 wins (Mount Union and Wittenberg). W&J became just the 25th program in all NCAA divisions to reach 700 all-time wins.
Complete list, updated Nov. 26:
915 - Michigan
884 - Yale
881 - Notre DameÂ
881 - Texas
873 - Nebraska
859 - Ohio State
850 - Oklahoma
848 - Alabama
848 - HarvardÂ
830 - PennÂ
809 - Tennessee
804 - Princeton
803 - Southern California
776 - Georgia
760 - LSU
739 - Mount Union 736 - Penn State
736 - WittenbergÂ
734 - Auburn
718 - West Virginia
709 - Georgia TechÂ
709 - Virginia TechÂ
708 - Texas A&M
707 - Syracuse
707 - Washington & Jefferson30 and Counting: At 10-1, W&J now boasts 31-consecutive winning seasons as a football program and 17 overall 10-win years. The Presidents' 31 winning seasons rank fourth among all divisions of NCAA football behind Linfield (58), Florida State (37) and Mount Union (35), all of whom have also clinched winning seasons. The last time W&J did not post a winning record was 1983 (3-5-1). That year, the top-grossing movie was Star Wars: Return of the Jedi, the top single was "Every Breath You Take" by The Police, a first-class stamp cost $0.20, and a gallon of regular gas cost $1.24.
W&J's NCAA Division III Playoff History:1984Â Â Â W&J 22, Randolph-Macon 21 at R-MC
      Central (Iowa) 20, W&J 0 at Central (Iowa) (Nat'l Semis)
1986Â Â Â Susquehanna 28, W&J 20 at W&J
1987Â Â Â W&J 23, Allegheny 20 (OT) at Allegheny
      Emory & Henry 23, W&J 16 at W&J
1989Â Â Â Ferrum 41, W&J 7 at Ferrum
1990Â Â Â W&J 10, Ferrum 7 at W&J
      Lycoming 24, W&J 0 at W&J
1991Â Â Â Lycoming 18, W&J 16 at Lycoming
1992Â Â Â W&J 33, Lycoming 0 at Lycoming
      W&J 51, Emory & Henry 15 at W&J
      W&J 18, Rowan 13 at Rowan
      Wisconsin-Lacrosse 16, W&J 12 (Stagg Bowl)
1993Â Â Â W&J 27, Moravian 7 at W&J
      W&J 28, Frostburg State 7 at Frostburg State
      Rowan 23, W&J 16 at W&J (National Semifinals)
1994Â Â Â W&J 28, Trinity (Texas) 0 at Trinity
      W&J 37, Widener 21 at W&J
      W&J 23, Ithaca 19 at Ithaca
      Albion 38, W&J 15 (Stagg Bowl)
1995Â Â Â W&J 35, Emory & Henry 16 at W&J
      W&J 48, Lycoming 0 at W&J
      Rowan 28, W&J 15 at W&J (National Semifinals)
1996Â Â Â Albright 31, W&J 17 at W&J
1999Â Â Â W&J 14, Lycoming 7 at Lycoming
      Hardin-Simmons 51, W&J 3 at H-SC
2000Â Â Â Bridgewater (Va.) 59, W&J 42 at W&J
2001Â Â Â W&J 24, Western Maryland 21 at W&J
      Widener 46, W&J 30 at Widener
2002Â Â Â W&J 24, Christopher Newport 10 at W&J
      Trinity (Texas) 45, W&J 10 at TU
2004Â Â Â W&J 55, Bridgewater (Va.) 48 (2OT) at W&J
      W&J 24, Christopher Newport 14 at W&J
      Mary Hardin-Baylor 52, W&J 16 at W&J
2005Â Â Â Bridgewater (Va.) 30, W&J 21 at Bridgewater
2006Â Â Â W&J 27, Christopher Newport 23 at CNU
      Mary Hardin-Baylor 30, W&J 27 at UMH-B
2007Â Â Â N.C. Wesleyan 35, W&J 34 (OT) at W&J
2008Â Â Â W&J 35, Christopher Newport 29 at W&J
      W&J 35, Millsaps 20 at Millsaps
      Mary Hardin-Baylor 63, W&J 7 at UMH-B
2009Â Â Â Mount Union 55, W&J 0 at UMU
2012Â Â Â Johns Hopkins 42, W&J 10 at JHU
2013Â Â Â Mount Union 34, W&J 20 at UMU
2014Â Â Â W&J 41, Wittenberg 25 at Wittenberg
Playoff Vets: W&J's 22 NCAA victories tie it for eighth in Division III history with Augustana (Ill.). W&J's 24 appearances in the NCAA championship field are second all-time behind Mount Union who is making its 26th trip this year and 23rd straight. Every class to come through W&J since 1984 has been to the NCAA playoffs at least once.
Break the Drought: W&J snapped a five-year playoff win drought with its 41-25 victory at Wittenberg in the first round. Prior to that, the Presidents last win came on Nov. 29, 2008 in Jackson, Miss. at Millsaps, 35-20.
Playoff Résumé: Washington & Jefferson owns a 22-23 record in the NCAA Division III playoffs and an 11-12 mark on the road. When led by Sirianni, W&J is 6-8 in the NCAA field. Mount Union is 83-14 in the postseason with 11 National Championships and 17 Stagg Bowl appearances.
Novembers to Remember: The Presidents own a 30-9 (.769) record under Sirianni in the month of November, including 15-6 (.714) on the road.
Ball Control: W&J is 22-3 when not committing a turnover under Sirianni. All three losses have come in the NCAA playoffs (2013, 2009 Mount Union; 2007 N.C. Wesleyan).
Poll Us: W&J is ranked 19th in the final D3football regular season Top 25 poll and 21st in the AFCA Coaches Poll.
Play with a Lead: W&J is 88-3 (.967) when leading at halftime during Sirianni's tenure. Oct. 25th's 34-24 win over Case Western Reserve (trailed, 9-6) and Nov. 20th's 31-28 overtime loss at Waynesburg (tied, 14-14) were the only games this season W&J did not lead at halftime.
Can't Stop, Won't Stop: The Presidents have scored points in 42-of-44 (.955) quarters through 10 games and have been shutout in a half zero times. The only periods that W&J has failed to light the scoreboard were the opening quarter of the season against Wooster and the second quarter against Case Western Reserve.
Never Slow Down: W&J boasts the No. 5 offense in the nation according to total offense (527.2 yards per game). W&J is also seventh in NCAA Division III at 45.3 points per game. The Presidents rank third in Division III, running 86.5 plays per game. On its fifth play from scrimmage on Saturday, W&J will break the single-season school record for plays in a season of 955 set in 1992. W&J needs 319 yards of total offense to break the single-season record of 6,118 in 2008 and 426 yards to post a new yards per game average (518.7 in 2007).
End Zone Dance: W&J has scored 65 offensive touchdowns through 11 games this season, the most since the 2010 squad produced 75 touchdowns in 12 games.
Just Win, Baby: Saturday's game pits two of the winningest programs all-time in NCAA football as Mount Union enters with 739 wins (first DIII, 16th all divisions) and W&J possesses 707 wins (third DIII, T-24th all divisions). The two teams have combined for 1,446 wins.
Workhorse: Ruffing has topped 100 yards rushing in 10 games this season and is just the third running back in W&J history to go over 1,500 yards in a season (Babirad 91, 92; Nichols 01). The junior needs 34 yards to move into a tie for third place on the single-season rushing yards list, matching Joey Nichols' 1,577 in 2001.
One of a Kind: W&J is the only program in Division III with a 3,000-yard passer (
Pete Coughlin, 3,159) and a 1,500-yard rusher (
Ryan Ruffing, 1,543).
Home Run Hitters: W&J has 65 plays from scrimmage of 20-or-more yards and 89 total. 12 plays have gone for 50 yards or more.Â
He Gone: Senior WR
Max Creighan's 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown at Wittenberg was the longest in W&J history surpassing the 92-yard record held by DeWayne Jeter (1986 vs Case Western Reserve) and
Dion Wiegand (2013 vs Thomas More).
Targets Acquired: W&J has three wide receivers with 50 or more catches, 600-plus yards and six-plus TDs (
Daniel Lis, 76-837-8;
Max Creighan, 63-685-6;
Jesse Zubik, 54-879-10). The last time W&J had three receivers with 50-plus catches, 600-plus yards and six-plus TDs was 2008 when David Ravida (86-956-8), Craig Besong (75-1186-16) and Luke Espe (67-803-8) accomplished the feat in 13 games when the season ended with an NCAA Quarterfinals loss at Mary Hardin-Baylor.
Give the Rook' a Look: Freshman WR
Jesse Zubik has been named ECAC Division III Southwest Rookie of the Week four times on the season. His rookie numbers (54-879-10) have already surpassed all-time leading receiver
Alex Baroffio's numbers in 11 games during his freshman year in 2010 (30 rec., 372 yards, 4 TD).
Three Bills: Sophomore QB
Pete Coughlin has topped 300 yards passing five times this season, matching the most since W&J Hall of Famer Bobby Swallow did it five times in 2008. Chris Edwards has the most in a single-season during Sirianni's tenure with seven games of 300-plus yards passing in 2005. Coughlin's 258 completions this year are second on the W&J single-season list behind Swallow's 295 in 2008. Coughlin currently sits fifth on the single-season passing list with 3,159 yards, 48 shy of fourth (Brian Dawson, 2001, 3,207), 148 behind third (Edwards, 2004, 3,307) and 291 behind second (Edwards, 2005, 3,450). With 301 yards of total offense, Coughlin will move into the top spot for a single season at W&J as he enters with 3,460 yards behind Swallow's 3,760 in 2008.
Catch This: Daniel Lis is three receptions from breaking into the top five in a single season at W&J as Jordan Roycroft caught 79 passes in 2010. With 10 catches Lis would move into a tie for fourth with David Ravida at 86 in 2008.
I'll Take That: W&J forced nine takeaways against Wittenberg thanks to a school-record eight interceptions. Junior
Billy Kelley and senior
Alec Schram each recorded three interceptions to apiece to tie them on the W&J single-game list and (done seven times) and add them to the list of players that have done it three times in an NCAA Division III playoff game.
Run Away: Senior LB
Jared Pratt leads W&J and the PAC with 114 tackles, making him just the third President in the last 10 years to record 100 stops in a season (Gitlitz, 07, 08; Sedunov 08). With four stops on Saturday he can move into a three-way tie for fourth place on the single-season list with Andy Shook (118 in 2004) and Eric Field (118 in 2003). Shawn Prendergast is third at 124 in 1992 and John Glusica is second at 127 in 1982. 17 tackles would tie Pratt with Jim Meyer (131 in 1987) for first all-time.
Pick Another: Junior DB
Billy Kelley needs one interception for seven to make his way onto the single-season list at W&J to move into a tie for fourth with Frank Pilato (2004) and Owen George (1999).
