GETTYSBURG, Pa.  – Gettysburg College (0-5, 0-4 CC) will look to build some momentum heading into the Centennial Conference-wide bye week when it hosts Juniata College (0-5, 0-4 CC) at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium this Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
GAME COVERAGE
Saturday's game will feature live video and live stats courtesy of Wellspan Sports Medicine and Stretch Internet (https://portal.stretchinternet.com/gettysburg/).
 
THE SERIES
The Bullets hold a 22-10 edge in a series that began in 1923 and renewed in 2007 when Juniata joined the Centennial Conference. Since the two teams have been conference colleagues, Gettysburg has won nine of 11 meetings. The winning team has scored at least 28 points in each of the last nine contests.
 
LAST MEETING
The Bullets knocked off Juniata 42-35 in a high-scoring affair at Knox Stadium last fall. The two teams combined for 35 points in the fourth quarter alone with Gettysburg scoring the final three touchdowns to erase a 14-point deficit. Justin Davidov '18 fired off a pair of touchdown passes to Andrew Major '18 and Kevin Benavente '20 (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel) before first-year running back Reggie JeanCharles took advantage of some tremendous blocking by the offensive line to rip off a game-winning 47-yard touchdown run with 19 seconds remaining. The two teams combined for 1,014 yards of offense with 286 coming on the ground for the Bullets. JeanCharles gashed the Eagles' defense for 178 yards and two touchdowns, while Davidov piled up 256 yards and three scores through the air. Chase Fee '19(Spotswood, N.J./Spotswood) added 195 all-purpose yards. Justin Geisel '20 (Charlotte, N.C. Charlotte Country Day School) booted two field goals from 41 and 37 yards for the Bullets. Mike McKnight (West Chester, Pa./Bayard Rustin) racked up 13 tackles, a forced fumble, and two pass break-ups to lead the Gettysburg defense. For Juniata, quarterback Austin Montgomery finished with 380 yards passing and four touchdowns for Juniata. Two of his scores went to Daulton Snyder who posted 126 receiving yards, while another went to Justin Helsel who tallied 174 yards on six catches. Matt Lehr racked up 92 rush yards and a touchdown and Mitchell Shober led the defense with 11 tackles.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Bullets out-scored Moravian 20-0 in the fourth quarter, but it wasn't enough to erase an early deficit in a 59-23 setback last Saturday. Gettysburg piled up a season-high 381 yards of offense, including 197 on the ground, but six turnovers proved costly as the Greyhounds built a 45-0 lead by halftime. Junior Justin Geisel tied his personal high with three field goals covering 26, 37, and 38 yards in the game. Senior Nick Rella (Denville, N.J./Morristown-Beard) set personal bests with 18 carries for 85 yards, while junior Andrew Howard (Swansea, Mass./Moses Brown School) tallied career highs for rush attempts (13), rush yards (45), receptions (7), receiving yards (92), and all-purpose yards (137). Freshman Linwood Nicolas, Jr. (Baltimore, Md./Franklin) led the defense with seven tackles. Sophomore Jack Humphries (Lutherville, Md./Calvert Hall) recorded five tackles, a forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries, while senior Logan Aikey (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) posted two tackles for a loss.
 
McDaniel scored three times to start the second half and held on for a 24-21 win over Juniata last weekend. The Eagles jumped out to a 14-7 lead at the break thanks to a pair of touchdown heaves. Tim Graham found AJ Brocato for a 30-yard strike to open the scoring in the first quarter, while Jason Jones connected with Daulton Snyder for a 14-yard score late in the second period. Jones threw his second touchdown to Sean Owens to cap the day's scoring in the fourth quarter. Jones finished 9-of-22 for 152 yards, while Graham finished 10-of-14 for 123 yards. Brocato led the Eagle receiving corps with four catches for 94 yards. Zeb Fowler paced the defense with 10 tackles.
 
GETTYSBURG OVERVIEW
It's the start of a new era of Bullets football as former offensive coordinator Kevin Burke '90 takes on the mantle of head coach. Burke spent 14 seasons as an assistant coach under Barry Streeter, who retired as the program's all-time leader with 196 victories over 39 seasons. Burke is looking for his first win as a head coach since coaching Juniata College to a 20-7 victory over FDU-Florham in 2003. Gettysburg was picked sixth in the Centennial Conference Preseason Poll.
 
GETTYSBURG OFFENSE
Gettysburg looks to continue to build momentum coming off its best offensive performance of the season. The Bullets posted a season-high 381 yards last week, including 197 on the ground. Senior tailback Nick Rella enjoyed a career day at Moravian with 85 rushing yards on 18 carries and he leads the team with 169 yards this season. Sophomore quarterback Mike Welsh (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) is emerging as a viable dual threat, ranking second on the team with 168 rushing yards and a pair of touchdowns, while throwing for 467 yards and two more touchdowns. Senior Johnny Davis (Mahwah, N.J./Mahwah) paces the offense with 194 receiving yards on 11 receptions. Junior Andrew Howard(Swansea, Mass./Moses Brown School) is coming off a breakout game that saw him post 45 yards rushing and 92 yards receiving. Howard leads the team with 13 receptions this season.
 
GETTYSBURG DEFENSE
All three Gettysburg linebackers rank among the top 10 in the conference in tackles. Senior Jake Skinner (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) ranks third with 47, sophomore Jack Humphries (Lutherville, Md./Calvert Hall) ranks ninth with 41, and junior Cole Keyes (Mount Laurel, N.J./Lenape) ranks 10th with 40. Senior defensive end Logan Aikey (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) leads the conference with 10.5 tackles for a loss this season. Aikey has posted at least 1.5 tackles for a loss in every game and has totaled 28 TFLs over his last 15 games. The senior is also third in the CC in sacks with 4.5. Sophomore Thomeir Richardson (Trenton, N.J./Trenton Central) is tied for the league lead with three interceptions and six pass break-ups this fall.
 
GETTYSBURG SPECIAL TEAMS
Junior Justin Geisel (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day School) has hit all four of his field goal attempts this season, three of which have gone for 36 or more yards. With his three makes last Saturday, Geisel became just the third Gettysburg kicker to reach 20 made field goals in a career. Sophomore punter Evan Tannenbaum (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) is averaging 37.5 yards per punt this season. Thomeir Richardson has totaled 376 yards on 25 kick and punt returns this season.
 
JUNIATA OVERVIEW
Juniata was picked to finish eighth in the Centennial Conference this season. The Eagles posted a 3-7 overall mark and 2-7 record in conference play in 2017. The squad ranks last in the CC in turnovers (16), scoring defense (39.8 ppg), rushing yards allowed per game (228.4), and total yards allowed per game (416.8). Head Coach Tim Launtz enters his eighth season at the helm and was an assistant coach at Juniata under Gettysburg Head Coach Kevin Burke from 1998-2003.
 
JUNIATA OFFENSE
Most of Juniata's offense this season has come through the air. The Eagles are averaging 225 yards passing per game, while posting 52.2 yards per game on the ground. Since losing returning starter Austin Montgomery, who threw for over 2,500 yards and 24 touchdowns in 2017, against F&M, senior Tim Graham has taken the majority of reps under center. Graham has completed 58.4 percent of his passes for 460 yards, four touchdowns, and four interceptions. Shaheed Ross and Daulton Snyder have each hauled in 20 catches this season, the former posting 269 yards and three touchdowns and the former logging 254 yards and two scores. Sophomore Sean Owens leads the team with four receiving touchdowns.
 
JUNIATA DEFENSE
The Eagles have picked off seven passes this season, which ranks second behind Muhlenberg in the CC. Sophomore defensive back Joshua Singleton has accounted for three of those picks and is tied for the team lead with four pass break-ups with senior Joel Reighard. Reighard, who leads the team with 43 tackles, was named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy last week. The Campbell Trophy recognizes the best football scholar-athlete in the nation. Sophomore linebacker Dan Drop, Jr. leads the team with three sacks and has 29 tackles and an interception.
 
JUNIATA SPECIAL TEAMS
Sophomore Sam Craig is 2-of-4 on field goals and 10-of-11 on extra points this season. Craig's longest field goal this season is from 29 yards. Sophomore Brenden Gardner has taken the majority of punts this season and is averaging 33 yards per attempt. Shaheed Ross and freshman Clay Spencer have split kickoff returns with Ross taking 14 kicks back for an average of 16.3 yards and Spencer grabbing 13 kicks and averaging 17.7 yards.
 
STEVE HAYES MEMORIAL AWARD
Starting in 2018 and in conjunction with the Gettysburg and Juniata football game each year, one player from each team will be selected to receive the "Steve Hayes Memorial Big Skill Award." Steve Hayes, a beloved long term offensive line coach, coined the phrase "Big Skill" to show his love and admiration for the men who toil in relative anonymity along the offensive and defensive front lines.  This award recognizes players that show a love for their craft who work hard every day to improve their skill set and who have earned the respect of their teammates and coaches buy being "all-in" for the team. This year's recipients will be announced prior to Saturday's coin toss.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Gettysburg will enjoy the conference-wide bye next week before the start of the final month of the season. The Bullets return to action at home against Johns Hopkins University (4-1, 3-1 CC) on Oct. 20 at 1 p.m. The Blue Jays have won the last 10 meetings and lead the series 23-20-2.