Game Preview - Kutztown

West Chester (3-1, 1-0) looks to remain undefeated in PSAC East play when they host Kutztown to take on the Golden Bears (3-1, 1-0). Kickoff at John A. Farrell Stadium is slated for noon.

Series History:
West Chester leads the overall series 50-10-1. Head coach Bill Zwaan is 10-4 against the Golden Bears in his 14 years at West Chester. In 2003 in Kutztown, West Chester shot out to a 16-0 first quarter lead, but the failed point after touchdown conversion came back to haunt West Chester when Kutztown made a 38-yard field goal with 50 seconds left in the game handing Zwaan his first Division II loss. Kutztown's notched two wins in 2010 and 2011, the two years in the past ten that West Chester was under .500 and Kutztown qualified for the NCAA playoffs. And last year's Kutztown win led to the Golden Bears capturing the PSAC East championship.

Kutztown head coach Jim Clements is in his fourth year with the Golden Bears which went 7-4 last season, including an undefeated 7-0 in the PSAC East. He's the reigning PSAC East Coach of the Year. Entering this season, Clements is 23-14 at Kutztown and 89-38 including his time at Delaware Valley.

Last 10 Meetings:

Year	H/A	W/L	Score	Year	H/A	W/L	Score
2007	Home	Win	21-0	2012	Away	Win	45-24
2008	Away	Win	49-8	2013	Home	Win	22-21
2009	Home	Win	31-17	2014	Away	Win	29-7
2010	Away	Loss	45-23	2015	Home	Win	44-14
2011	Home	Loss	24-0	2016	Away	Loss	20-14

Last Meeting:

10/01/2016 Kutztown 20 - West Chester 14

When a game is so even statistically, it's often just a couple of mistakes that make the difference between a win and a loss. West Chester was mired with three interceptions, two missed field goals and a one-for-three performance in the red zone. Yet with five seconds left in the game, the Golden Rams were just 24 yards away from a tie game.

The defense was led by Shaquille James with ten tackles and a forced fumble. Also making major contributions were Ch'aim Smith (7 tackles, 2 pass breakups), John Dubyk (7 tackles), Josh Ganzelli (6 tackles) and Kevin Duggan (6 tackles).

Offensively Jordan Banks (7 catches, 92 yards) and Tyler Karpinski (2 catches, 46 yards, 1 TD) excelled in the passing game while Jarel Elder (62 yards) and Mike Class (27 yards) led the ground game.

Scouting the Opponent:

Kutztown boasts the reigning PSAC East Freshman of the Year in quarterback Collin DiGalbo (63 of 97, 843 yards, 10 TD's, 1 int). Although he only throws for 211 yards/game, he's among the conference leaders in touchdowns, completion percentage and interceptions which makes him incredibly efficient. DiGalbo is also an effective runner (39 carries, 159 yards, 3 TD's). The Golden Bears' other offensive weapon is running back Craig Reynolds (74 carries, 359 yards, 4 TD's rushing, 20 catches, 303 yards, 5 TD's receiving). Reynolds leads Kutztown in both rushing and receiving and is the reigning PSAC East Special Teams Athlete of the Week, his second conference honor already this season. Two-time PSAC scholar-athlete Conor Sullivan (12 catches, 164 yards, 2 TD's) is also an effective receiver.

The Kutztown defense is led by All-PSAC East linebacker Tajier Jefferson (34 tackles, 1 int, 2 forced fumbles) who leads the team in tackles. Free safety Jake Perry (20 tackles, 1 int) was All-PSAC East last year while cornerback Ahkee Cox-Cowan (18 tackles, 9 passes defended) has made an impact in the secondary. All-PSAC East defensive end Ronny Tomasetti (9 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss) makes half of his tackles behind the line of scrimmage.

Reynolds is Kutztown's top return man for both punts and kickoffs. Kicker Alec Rosenfeld has been perfect on 20 PAT's this season and is 2 of 3 on field goals with a long of 37 yards. Redshirt freshman Dean Krcic (19 punts, 45.6 avg) has been very effective by dropping 10 punts inside the opponent's 20 and knocking six of them for more than 50 yards.

Analysis:

The Golden Ram defense will be hard-pressed to contain DiGalbo and Reynolds, but hopefully they can minimize their impact on the scoreboard. Kutztown doesn't put up huge offensive numbers in terms of yards, but they're third in the PSAC in touchdowns scored.

The West Chester offense will be tested in the passing game - the Golden Bears pass defense is more efficient that West Chester's, they have a total of six interceptions already this season and are third in the PSAC in sacks. Besides A.J. Long, the West Chester running game struggled to get going against Lock Haven. The biggest concern for West Chester, though, is in the special teams area.

Both Atomic Football and Massey Ratings favor the Golden Rams by double digits.

Game Coverage:

Live Stats   Audio   Video  

West Chester Athletic Site - Saturday's Football Game Set to be Pink Out and Coaches To Cure MD

PSAC Site - PSAC Football Notes Week - 5

Kutztown Athletic Site - Kutztown and West Chester Meet Saturday for Top Spot in PSAC East

Reading Eagle - West Chester With Critical Battle With Kutztown Saturday

D2football - National Columnist - Bob Eblen - National Columnist