Game Preview - East Stroudsburg

The #17 Golden Rams (5-0, 2-0) welcome East Stroudsburg (4-1, 1-1) to Farrell Stadium for homecoming. Kickoff is set for 2:00 pm.

Series History:
West Chester leads the overall series 54-22. Golden Ram head coach Bill Zwaan is 8-3 against the Warriors, including two wins in the Poconos in 2004. In the first matchup that season, the Golden Rams blocked a PAT in overtime, then scored a touchdown and won the game on Dan Wilbourne’s converted PAT to hand then #7 East Stroudsburg their first loss of the season in front of a homecoming crowd of almost 6,000. The second game came on a frigid and blustery November afternoon in the NCAA regional finals. With a crowd of over 7,200 on hand, current West Chester running backs coach Osagie Osunde ran for 144 yards and three touchdowns as the Golden Rams handed East Stroudsburg their second loss of the season.

The following year, West Chester tipped the #6 ranked Warriors, 18-17, in muddy Farrell Stadium. 2005 was the last season that Farrell Stadium had natural grass. In 2009, East Stroudsburg ruined West Chester’s homecoming 21-20. The Golden Rams failed to convert a PAT early in the game and a 35-yard field goal late in the game. The Warriors are led by head coach Denny Douds who is in his 40th at the helm.

Last 10 Meetings:

Year	H/A	W/L	Score	Year	H/A	W/L	Score
2004	Away	Win	38-37 (OT)	2008	Away	Win	34-24
2004	Away	Win	48-38	2009	Home	Loss	21-20
2005	Home	Win	18-17	2010	Away	Win	35-31
2006	Away	Win	49-28	2011	Home	Win	37-26
2007	Home	Win	30-15	2012	Away	Loss	35-28

Last Meeting:

10/06/2012 East Stroudsburg 35 - West Chester 28

The Golden Rams battled through a lackluster performance, including an early fourth quarter 14-point deficit, to tie the game with 1:10 left in the game. But then East Stroudsburg quarterback Matt Soltes went 5-5 for 68 yards in 66 seconds to lead the Warriors to a 35-28 victory at Eiler-Martin Stadium.

For the game, West Chester's five turnovers combined with East Stroudsburg going 12 of 17 on third down conversions gave the Warriors a 25 minute advantage in time of possession. The Golden Rams were paced offensively by quarterback Mike Mattei (17-28, 256 yards, 2 TD’s) and Sean Beahan (5 catches, 129 yards, 1 TD). The defense was led by Ronell Williams (17 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss) while safeties Carl Barnes and John O'Donnell combined for 24 total tackles.

Scouting the Opponent:

It’s no secret that the Warriors are led by quarterback Matt Soltes (103-178, 1,493 yards, 15 TD’s, 1 interception; 257 yards and 2 TD’s rushing). He earned PSAC East Freshman of the Year last season, is the reigning PSAC East Offensive Player of the Week, and hasn’t thrown an interception since the first quarter of week one. And remember the last minute of last year’s game against West Chester. While eleven different players have caught passes, his top targets are wide receivers senior Robert Bleiler (33 catches, 514 yards and 5 TD’s) and sophomore Jon Schnaars (25 catches, 278 yards, 2 TD’s). After that, their big tight end Steven Jones (6'6", 250 lbs, 15 catches, 338 yards, 6 TD’s) and fullback Thomas Tippett (9 catches, 107 yards, 1 TD) pick up the tough yards.

What makes East Stroudsburg's offense more effective this season is the emergence of a running game. Freshman tailback Robert Healy already has 559 yards and 4 TD’s on 83 carries. Consider that the Warriors’ leading ball carrier last year had 551 yards for the entire season. This balanced offensive approach makes East Stroudsburg more dangerous than usual.

Kicker Taylor Groff was All PSAC last year, but is struggling this year as he’s 2 for 8 on field goals with a long of 33 and 26 of 29 on PAT’s. He is second in the PSAC with ten touchbacks on kickoffs.

Defensively, the Warriors are giving up on average only 195 yards passing and 318 yards total which is good for fourth and second respectively in the PSAC. The attack is led by linebacker Cody Simcox (36 total tackles, 4 tackles for loss) and free safety Dean Vitale (30 total tackles, 3 interceptions for 77 yards, 3 passes defended). Defensive tackle Bryan Thomson (21 total tackles, 1.5 sacks, 2 blocked kicks) was All-PSAC and PSAC East Defensive Player of the Year last season.

Analysis:

There's certainly no love lost between these two teams. They often play in front of big crowds regardless of which school is hosting the game. With Saturday being West Chester's homecoming, the stadium should be filled once again. However, homecoming hasn't been a friend to the Golden Rams recently as they've lost their last four:

• 2009 East Stroudsburg 21-20 - WCU missed 35-yard field goal with 3:30 left to play
  
• 2010 C.W.Post 39-37 - Game took three overtimes to settle
  
• 2011 Bloomsburg 55-42 - WCU led 35-0 in the second quarter
  
• 2012 Shippensburg 42-24 - WCU led 21-0 early in the second quarter
  

This game is as big as California if not bigger and the Golden Rams need to treat it as such. Offensively, similar play as the performance against the Vulcans is necessary which means no turnovers, no sacks and balanced, ball control offense. The defense will have to play better than it did against California. East Stroudsburg has the ability to strike quickly as well as hold the ball. They're second in the PSAC on third down conversions (50%), lead the conference in time of possession (34:30) and lead the conference in fewest turnovers (3). WCU's linebackers need to give the tight end and fullback a lot of attention. Al-Hajj Shabazz might be asked to play a lot of one-on-one coverage while the safeties provide the other corner some support.

Game Coverage:

Live Stats   Audio  

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester University Officials Announce Pre-Game Preparations For Homecoming

PSAC Site - Football - Week 6 Notes

East Stroudsburg Athletic Site - ESU Football Game Notes vs. West Chester

KYW Newsradio - Undefeated West Chester Set To Battle East Stroudsburg

Morning Call - Defense Stepping Up For ESU

Pocono Record - ESU at West Chester

Daily Local News - Zwaan cautions WCU heading into homecoming game

D2football - PSAC Columnist - Breaking Down Week 6 in the PSAC