Game Preview - Bentley

The Golden Rams travel to Waltham, MA to open the 2018 season when they take on the Bentley Falcons on Thursday evening. This will mark the third year in a row that these two teams have faced each other to open the season. Kickoff in Bentley University Football Stadium is scheduled for 6:00 pm.

Series History:
West Chester holds a 2-0 lead in the series against the Falcons with the Golden Rams winning in Waltham in 2016 by a score of 31-24 before last season's 51-9 throttling at John A. Farrell Stadium. Bentley head coach Bill Kavanaugh enters his fifth season at the helm with a record of 21-22. Meanwhile, Golden Ram head coach Bill Zwaan starts his 16th season with an overall record of 125-58, including 9-2 against Northeast-10 opponents and 2-0 against Bentley.

Last Meeting:

08/31/2017 West Chester 51 - Bentley 9

The final score reflected exactly how the Golden Rams dominated in all facets of the game in the season opener. The West Chester defense kept the Falcons out of the endzone until the very last play of the game. Meanwhile, the Golden Ram offense scored on seven of its first nine possessions in rolling up almost 500 yards of offense.

Tyler Morrissey had two sacks among his four solo tackles while Jordan Burney led the team with five total tackles. Quarterback Paul Dooley paced the offense with 183 yards and three touchdowns passing, plus 42 yards rushing. Running back Mark Dukes had 82 yards and a score rushing, while Rasheem James had two catches including one for a touchdown.

Scouting the Opponent:

After falling to West Chester in the season opener last year, Bentley went 6-3 in the Northeast 10 finishing in third place in their conference. The Falcons were picked to finish third in their conference again this season.

Despite playing in only seven games last season, sophomore quarterback Stephen Sturm (95 of 130 for 1,375 yards, 12 TD's, 2 int's) led the team in almost all passing categories. His top target will likely be classmate Austin Ryan (49 catches, 1,237 yards, 16 TD's). Besides being named first team All-NE10 last season, Ryan was also named NE10 Rookie of the Year and Football Gazette Division II Freshman of the Year. Prior to this season, he has received multiple Division II All-American recognitions. All five of the Falcons' top receivers from a year ago return, including Drew Mahoney (51 catches, 485 yards, 6 TD's in 7 games), Jordan Zlogar (18 catches, 241 yards, 1 TD in 7 games), Michael Correia (19 catches, 228 yards), and Ryan McCarthy (17 catches, 158 yards). Sophomore Andrew Brazicki (99 carries, 481 yards, 6 TD's) returns as the team's leading rusher while Mahoney also chipped in 123 yards last year. Returning offensive linemen that received NE10 All-Rookie honors are Tim Leonard and Sean Mitchell.

Cornerbacks Nick Athy (76 tackles, 3 interceptions) and Pete Thorbahn (52 tackles, 3 interceptions) were the Falcons' top two tacklers and both received All-NE10 honors. Linebackers Andrew Carmichael (34 tackles, 4 tackles for loss) and Travis McGee (19 tackles) return in the middle while Frank Damata (15 tackles, 1 sack) and Matt Yanes (10 tackles) are part of the Falcon three-man front.

Junior kicker Grant Buchanan connected on 7 of his 12 field goal attempts with a long of 39, but converted 37 of 39 PAT's.

Analysis:

The Bentley offense is young, but the skill players are all very talented. The Golden Ram front six needs to get some pressure to disrupt the Falcon passing game. Meanwhile, Bentley's defense was 106th in the country in sacks and 130th in rushing in 2017, so West Chester should use the running game and attacking underneath which should open the downfield passing game. This is likely to be a tougher game than last year's whitewashing at Farrell Stadium.

Atomic Football is predicting a ten-point win for West Chester while Massey Ratings projects a five-point margin.

Game Coverage:

Live Stats   Audio   Video  

West Chester Athletic Site - Depth Chart - West Chester vs. Bentley

West Chester Athletic Site - Football Kicks Off 97th Season Thursday Night At Bentley

PSAC Site - PSAC Football Notes: Week 1

Bentley Athletic Site - Bentley Football Returns to Campus Sunday for Preseason Camp

Bentley Athletic Site - Bentley Set to Kick Off the 2018 Season under the Thursday Night Lights

Bentley Athletic Site - Bentley Football Parking Information

KYW Newsradio - College football preview: West Chester University Golden Rams

Wicked Local Waltham - Bentley University football team returns to the field

The Sun Chronicle - Foxboro's Ryan earns preseason honors

D2football - PSAC Columnist - PSAC Preseason Story Lines / Power Rankings

D2football - PSAC Columnist - PSAC Week 1 Preview

D2football - Northeast-10 Columnist - Week 1 in the NE-10