Game Preview - East Stroudsburg

The Golden Rams (5-3, 4-1) travel to the Poconos to take on the East Stroudsburg Warriors (4-4, 2-3). Kickoff in Eiler-Martin Stadium is scheduled for 12:00 pm on Saturday. The game will be televised by SPORTSfever Television Network and be broadcast live on ESPN3.

Series History:
West Chester leads the overall series 59-22 and Golden Ram head coach Bill Zwaan is 11-3 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. It's the only time that East Stroudsburg has won at West Chester in the past dozen years. The Warriors are led by head coach Denny Douds who is in his 43rd season at the helm.

Last 10 Meetings:

Year	H/A	W/L	Score	Year	H/A	W/L	Score
2006	Away	Win	49-28	2011	Home	Win	37-26
2007	Home	Win	30-15	2012	Away	Loss	35-28
2008	Away	Win	34-24	2013	Home	Win	34-20
2009	Home	Loss	21-20	2014	Away	Win	35-24
2010	Away	Win	35-31	2015	Home	Win	41-27

Last Meeting:

11/07/2015 West Chester 41 - East Stroudsburg 27

Despite being outgained in the contest, West Chester rode a +4 advantage in turnovers to a 41-27 win. The Golden Rams had a 31-7 halftime lead, before the Warriors narrowed the score to 34-27 midway through the fourth quarter. But West Chester took four minutes off the clock on a 77-yard touchdown drive to extend the lead to 41-27. On East Stroudsburg's next play from scrimmage, Pete Galiano landed on a fumble to seal the game.

Linebacker Kevin Duggan had a game-high seven tackles and Shaquille James had five tackles while covering East Stroudsburg's top receiver. Galiano also had an interception as did Nydair Rouse.

Pat Moriarty threw for 187 yards and three touchdowns with Tyler Karpinski making five catches for 48 yards and a score. Brendan Paulison converted all his kicks (five PAT's and two field goals) and punted four times for a 43-yard average.

Scouting the Opponent:

One of the best players in the PSAC is running back Robert Healy (181 carries, 1,103 yards, 17 TD's). He was All-PSAC East last season and is expected to repeat that accomplishment this season. Like a lot of teams in the conference this season, East Stroudsburg has used multiple quarterbacks. Fifth-year senior Bruce Campbell (82 of 162, 1,280 yards, 9 TD's, 8 interceptions) has given way to junior Tim DiGiorgio (38 of 70, 500 yards, 4 TD's, 2 interceptions). Wide receivers Tim Wilson (36 catches, 574 yards, 4 TD's) and Tommy House (12 catches, 161 yards, 3 TD's) are primary targets regardless who is behind center. But Healy is the Warriors' second leading receiver (30 catches, 385 yards, 1 TD) and tight end Anthony Castillo (7 catches, 195 yards, 2 TD's) also gets some looks. True freshman Javier Buffalo (8 catches, 160 yards, 2 TD's) is small but provides a lot of speed. The action up front is supported by All-PSAC East left tackle Michael Fleming.

In the area of special teams Marquis Fells (9 punt returns, 10.1 yard avg, 22 kick returns, 18.5 yard avg) is the primary return man for both punts and kicks. Kicker Nicolas Ruiz (5 of 9 on field goals, 36 of 37 on PAT's) has missed four field goals, but none of those misses were closer than 45 yards. Punter Sam O'Brien (37 punts, 39.4 avg, 11 fair catches) has had one blocked this season.

East Stroudsburg's 3-3-5 defense is led up front by All-PSAC East defensive end Ahmad McFarland (23 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss) and nose guard Marc Ranaudo (41 total tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss). It appears that All-PSAC East linebacker Sekou Jones (49 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss) will miss his third straight game due to injury and East Stroudburg has been moving guys around to figure how to best fill that void. There's no question at the other outside linebacker position though with Mike Wiand (56 total tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss, 2 interceptions). The active secondary is led by safety Justin Johnson (59 tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss, 3 pass breakups), free safety Jimmy Verzicco (45 total tackles, 1 interception, 3 pass breakups), safety Maurice Jackson (33 total tackles, 5.0 tackles for loss) and freshman cornerback Andre' Gray (19 total tackles, 1 interception, 7 pass breakups).

Analysis:

Although East Stroudsburg's overall record is only one game behind West Chester, their four wins have come against opponents that are a combined 5-27 (Brevard, Mercyhurst, Cheyney and Millersville) and the Warriors lost to Shippensburg and Bloomsburg, two teams that the Golden Rams have defeated this season. Gone are the days of Harlon Hill finalist quarterback Matt Soltes (12,544 yards and 126 touchdowns in his four-year career) and wide receiver Jon Schnaars (239 catches, 3,447 yards, 45 touchdowns in his college career). So the Warrior offense leans heavily on Healy, both on the ground and through the air, so he deserves all the attention that the Golden Ram defense can afford. Last season, Shaquille James handled 6'3" Schnaars by himself, so it will be interesting so see if he lines up against 6'2" House or 5'9" Wilson who has more catches. Buffalo's speed can pose some problems for the Golden Ram secondary if he gets loose. The one area to watch is third down conversions where West Chester's defense is one of the best at 25% and East Stroudsburg's offense is quite successful at 46%.

Defensively, East Stroudburg ranks 14th in the conference in total defense and dead last against the run, allowing 257 yards per game. Maybe it was more than coincidence that West Chester warmed up their entire stable of running backs last week against Cheyney. With East Stroudsburg's safeties having so many tackles for loss, the biggest challenge for the offensive line will be identifying and picking up the blitz.

East Stroudsburg is well known for scoring a lot of points, but they are equally known for allowing a lot of points. Atomic Football projects a 39-28 Golden Ram win while Massey Ratings shows a similar 38-27 score.

Game Coverage:

Live Stats   Audio   Video (also WPHL17)  

West Chester Athletic Site - Football Game At ESU Saturday To Be Aired Live On ESPN3 AND WPHL 17

PSAC Site - PSAC Football Notes - Week 9

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

philly.com - Ex-Marine follows heart, plays football at East Stroudsburg

KYW Newsradio - West Chester On The Road Saturday At East Stroudsburg

D2football - PSAC Columnist - PSAC Week 9 Preview