Game Report - West Chester 37 - California 34

The Golden Rams (4-1) posted their most significant win in almost four years as they hung on to defeat #6 California (4-1) by a score of 37-34 at California's Adamson Stadium. Rondell White rushed for 200 yards and the defense forced three key turnovers to keep the West Chester undefeated in Division II play this season.

West Chester dominated the first quarter of play. On the fourth play of the game, Shawn Krautzel forced a fumble that was snatched up by John O'Donnell and returned 48 yards for a touchdown. After the WCU defense forced a three-and-out, the offense went on a 12-play drive that consumed almost six minutes and ended in a quick Mike Mattei to Jim Kelly 7-yard touchdown pass.

LB Anthony McCloskey

Ahead 14-0, the Rams were poised for more as Anthony McCloskey dropped into coverage from his nose guard position and picked off a Peter Lalich pass, setting up the offense at the Cal 36. But after moving the ball just eight yards, kicker Shawn Leo's 45-yard field goal attempt banged off the right upright.

Although Cal failed to score on the ensuing possession, they pinned the Rams at the five-yard line after a punt and a penalty. After a sack pushed the Rams back to the one-yard line, punter Rich Bruno did a great job to get a 38-yard punt away. But the short field was too much for the defense to overcome and Cal got into the end zone to make the score 14-7.

The teams continued to trade touchdowns on their next three possessions and the yards and points began to mount. West Chester's 22-yard Mattei to White touchdown pass was answered by Cal's 44-yard Lalich to Kawon Scott touchdown strike which was answered by Mattei's 51-yard catch-and-run touchdown to Kelly.

The Golden Ram defense forced another three-and-out and after the Cal punt went into the end zone with 35 seconds left, West Chester seemed content to run the half out. But when White went up the middle for 16 yards on the first play of the drive, they decided to try to score once again. But the field was too long and the clock was too short and the score would remain at 27-13 in West Chester's favor at the half.

If the first quarter was all West Chester and the second was even, the third quarter was all California. Cal converted two rare West Chester turnovers - a Mattei interception and a White fumble - into 14 points to tie the contest at 27. The momentum was clearly in California's favor as the quarter came to a close.

Earlier in the game, the teams exchanged touchdowns on four consecutive possessions. At this point in the game, they exchanged punts on four possessions. Finally the Rams broke through as Mattei again found Kelly, this time for 31 yards. The drive stalled at the 26 and the field goal unit was sent on again. This time, Leo was true on the 43-yard attempt and West Chester took the lead for good, 30-27.

The defense forced yet another Cal three-and-out and West Chester, with the lead and the ball at their own 40 and six and a half minutes left, looked to consume some clock. White picked up 31 yards over four consecutive rushing attempts and then Mattei completed a 28-yard pass to LaRonn Lee who made a great diving catch at the one. It was Lee's only reception of the game, but it was a big one. On the next play, White stretched over the goal line to extend West Chester's lead to 37-27.

But the game was far from over. Lalich engineered an incredible comeback for Cal last week against IUP and he looked to do it again. He completed four straight passes to take the Vulcans 78 yards in less than a minute to make it a three-point game.

LB Ronell Williams

O'Donnell covered the ensuing onside kick at the Cal 44-yard line. Although West Chester was unable to get a first down, they forced Cal to burn all of their timeouts. After the West Chester punt, Cal started at their own 17. Lalich's second pass attempt was batted high in the air and picked off by Ronell Williams to effectively end the game.

Notes - Returning from last week's neck injury, Eric Edwers played an inspiring game, registering five tackles and a sack...This is West Chester's biggest win since a 24-21 win at #4 Bloomsburg in 2008...Mike Labor left the game early in the third quarter with an apparent ankle injury and did not return...Mattei was tagged with two interceptions, but one was on a Hail Mary in the end zone to end the first half and the other bounced off his intended receiver's hands...After having a punt partially blocked against Kutztown, Bruno had a great game - he punted one from the back of his own end zone, he booted one 51 yards and he had one downed at the Vulcan one-yard line with under two minutes left, but it was negated by a penalty...Kelly had 8 catches for 123 yards and 2 TD's...Bob Sabol and Nate Pagan were the primary kick return men in the game...Carl Barnes led the defense with seven tackles...Sabol was credited with six tackles and two pass breakups...Kelly finished with eight catches for 123 yards and two touchdowns.

Box Score Box Score

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Upsets No. 6 Cal, 37-34

California Athletic Site - No. 6 Vulcans edged by West Chester, 37-34

Daily Local News - Late splurge helps WCU pull off upset of No. 6 Cal

Observer-Reporter.com - Vulcans short in comeback - West Chester deals first loss to California

HeraldStandard.com - Cal rally falls short in loss to West Chester

Video Highlights

D2football - PSAC Columnist - West Chester upsets #6 California

Club News - September 27 Meeting

The Golden Ram Football Club will be meeting on Thursday at 7:45 pm at Timothy's in the Parkway Shopping Center in West Chester. Special guest at the meeting will be West Chester University Director of Atheltics Dr. Edward Matejkovic. Dr. Matejkovic will review the state of Golden Ram athletics, the PSAC and answer Golden Rams fans' questions. The meeting will begin immediately following the Bill Zwaan Football Show which is also held at Timothy's starting at 7:00 pm. Golden Ram fans unable to attend the show can listen to it live on WCHE 1520AM. The meeting will not be broadcast.

Ronell Williams (Photo Ray Doyle)

According to the Bill Zwaan Football Show facebook page, linebacker Ronell Williams will be the special guest on Coach Zwaan's show. Williams ranks second in the PSAC with 40 total tackles and has led the Golden Rams in that category in three of this year's four games. Last week against Kutztown, Williams picked up a sack and his second interception of 2012.

Come out to Timothy's at 7:00pm to participate in the show live.

Game Preview - California

West Chester (3-1) continues their road trip when it travels to #6 California (4-0) Saturday. Kickoff at Adamson Stadium is set for 3:30 pm.

The Vulcans are coming off a wild 26-24 victory over IUP in which California quarterback Peter Lalich was 27-of-40 for 438 yards and 3 TD's. For that effort, the 6'6" Virginia transfer was named PSAC West Offensive Player of the Week. They've also defeated Hillsdale 30-22, Kutztown 48-45 and Edinboro 24-14.

California's offense is definitely pass oriented as they rank third in the conference with 358 yards per game. Lalich is protected well as he's been sacked only 3 times this season. Although he has 11 TD's on the season, he's also been intercepted 7 times. His primary targets are Mike Williams (30 catches, 484 yards, 4 TD's), Blake Williamson (18 catches, 154 yards), tight end Nadir Brown (14 catches, 278 yards, 3 TD's), and Trey Johnson (13 catches, 173 yards, 2 TD's). All four of them rank in the top 20 in the conference in receptions. Leading the Vulcans' ground attack is Lamont Smith (66 carries, 308 yards, 2 TD's, 12 catches, 108 yards) and Cody Cook (32 carries, 135 yards, 1 TD).

Punter Andrew Cerett leads the PSAC with a 45.2 average. Kicker Cody Nuzzo is 4 of 5 on field goals with a long of 33 yards. Trey Johnson also serves as their primary punt and kick return man.

Defensively, California likes to spend time in their opponents' backfield as they're tops in the PSAC in sacks with 16 led by linemen BJ Stevens (21 total tackles, 4.5 sacks) and Darnell Harding (28 total tackles, 3.5 sacks). The secondary is led by consensus first-team All-American Rontez Miles (34 total tackles, 1 sack, 1 pass breakup). Linebacker Brett Diamond (30 total tackles) is among the conference leaders in tackles.

Notes - West Chester concludes its road trip next week at division foe East Stroudsburg...California is the most penalized team in the PSAC...West Chester last defeated California in 1995 by a score of 25-24...Since then, California has won four straight (30-14 in 2007, 44-32 in 2008, 47-36 in the 2008 PSAC championship game, 30-23 in 2009).

9/28 Update LB Eric Edwers who was injured in the Kutztown is not listed on the depth chart for the California game.

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Travels To No. 6 Cal For A Saturday Afternoon Showdown

PSAC Site - Football - Week 5 Notes

California Athletic Site - Game Notes: Cal U vs. West Chester

KYW Newsradio - West Chester With Key Match-Up At Cal (PA)

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - High-powered offenses dominate in PSAC

Observer-Reporter.com - West Chester at California

Daily Local News - WCU out to make statement against No. 6 Cal

D2football - PSAC Columnist - Back to East v. West for the PSAC

D2football - National Columnist - Top Games this Week

Game Report - West Chester 45 - Kutztown 24

The Golden Ram defense overcame a sluggish start to post a dominating performance and quarterback Mike Mattei had another solid performance as West Chester defeated Kutztown 45-24 at packed University Field in glorious weather.

Kutztown took their first possession and drove 71 yards in 12 plays to take an early 7-0 lead. Running back Curtis Wortham accounted for 57 of those yards including the 11-yard scoring run.

West Chester responded with a 75-yard scoring drive keyed by two Mattei to Jim Kelly passes. On a third and 10, they connected for a 24-yard gain and then after a WCU holding penalty, Mattei scrambled and found a wide open Kelly for the 29-yard touchdown.

Both defenses tightened - West Chester forced a Kutztown punt and Kutztown forced West Chester into Shawn Leo 48-yard field goal. The Rams stopped the next Kutztown drive when linebacker Ronell Williams picked off a pass and returned it 29 yards to midfield. Coach Bill Zwaan picked up a 15-yard penalty, which seemed to ignite the Rams' offense. Mattei completed passes to Rondell White, Kelly, LaRonn Lee and Erick Brundidge to move the ball to the one where White plunged into the end zone to extend West Chester's lead to ten. Kutztown moved the ball 50 yards, but their 43-yard field goal attempt went wide left and the score remained 17-7 at the half.

For the second consecutive week, West Chester's opponent took the opening kickoff of the second half and returned it up the right sideline for a touchdown, closing the game to 17-14. After a West Chester punt, momentum really seemed to flow Kutztown's way when they converted a gutsy fake punt call from their own 29-yard line. But the Ram defense stiffened again and West Chester got the ball on their own 21.

Much like last week, Mattei connected with Brundidge a long pass, this one 47 yards to the Kutztown 32. A few plays later, Mattei found Adam Dempsey who bounced off three Kutztown defenders and picked up a huge block from Kelly as he scampered 38 yards into the end zone.

Adam Dempsey bounces off tacklers for his first collegiate touchdown (Photo Geoff Ruth)

On Kutztown's next possession, deep in their own territory, defensive end Eric Edwers batted down a Kutztown pass, but landed on his head. After several minutes of laying on his back motionless, he was removed on a gurney by medical personnel. Two plays later, Matt Carroll sacked the Kutztown quarterback and forced a fumble which freshman defensive tackle Andrew Cohen picked up and strolled into the endzone.

Andrew Cohen celebrates his fumble return for touchdown (Photo Geoff Ruth)

Down 31-14 late in the third quarter, Kutztown abandoned their run game and marched down the field with several short passes. The drive ended with a 41-yard Golden Bear field goal. Mattei went back to work, hooking up with Lee for 20 and 23 yards and Sean Beahan for 7 yards before White got his second rushing touchdown of the game. The Golden Ram defense forced a three-and-out and Brandon Monk showed once again how electric he can be with a 47-yard punt return during which he made several Kutztown would be tacklers miss. White's third touchdown run extended the lead to 45-17. Al-Haj Shabazz intercepted a Kutztown pass in the end zone, ending any chance of a comeback by the Bears.

Notes - Statistically this was a very even game with three notable exceptions 1. Kutztown turned the ball over three times and West Chester didn't turn it over at all. 2. West Chester was 9 of 14 on third down while West Chester's defense held Kutztown to 4 of 17 in that category. 3. West Chester was 4 of 4 in the red zone, with all four conversions being touchdowns while Kutztown was 1 of 3...former quarterback now rover Matt Carroll saw action in the wildcat...late in the fourth quarter, punter Rich Bruno had his kick partially blocked although it rolled forward for a 15-yard punt...in addition to his 29-yard interception return, Williams also has 12 total tackles...Kelly had a total of five catches for his first 100-yard receiving game... Anthony McCloskey had five total tackles including 2.5 for loss and a QB hurry... Mike Labor had 10 total tackles...Leo remains perfect on his 20 PAT attempts this season.

Box Score Box Score

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Topples Kutztown On The Road, 45-24

Kutztown Athletic Site - Golden Rams Oust Kutztown, 45-24

Daily Local News - Despite anxious moment, West Chester rolls

Reading Eagle - West Chester adds insult to injury for struggling Golden Bears

Bert Garbutt - Photo Collage

9/24 Update Mike Kern sites QB Mike Mattei as Local Player of the Weekend

Mike Kern: Daily News Sports Writer - College Football Wrapup

Alumni News - DePalma Working With Youth

Since being released by the New York Giants, former West Chester University wide receiver Dan DePalma has time to work with a local youth football program and talks about continuing his dream of one day playing in the NFL.

(Photo Mark Kitchin)

Hopatcong.com - Former NFL Receiver Delights Youth Squad

Alumni News - Girardi receives Distinguished Alumni Award

Former Golden Ram football player Frank Girardi has been named as the first recipient of the Williamsport Area School District Distinguished Alumni Award. Girardi grew up in Willilamsport and graduated in 1957 from Williamsport High School where he was a star running back. He continued his playing career as a running back for the Golden Rams.

After graduating from West Chester in 1961, Girardi went on to coach at Jersey Shore High School from 1961-1968. In 1969, he started coaching at Lycoming College where he became head coach three years later. In 36 years as head coach at Lycoming, Girardi compiled a record of 257-97-4 and racked up 13 Middle Atlantic Conference titles and qualified for the NCAA Division III playoffs 11 times, reaching the championship game in 1990 and 1997. At the time that he retired in 2007, he was the fifth winningest college football coach.

Girardi has been inducted into the Killinger Hall of Fame, Lycoming Athletics Hall of Fame, West Branch Valley Hall of Fame, and the Pennsylvania State Sports Hall of Fame.

SunGazette.com - District selects 1st-ever alumni award winner

LycomingFootball.com - The Girardi Legacy

Club News - September 20 Meeting

The Golden Ram Football Club will be meeting on Thursday at 7:45 pm at Timothy's in the Parkway Shopping Center in West Chester. The meeting will begin immediately following the Bill Zwaan Football Show which is also held at Timothy's starting at 7:00 pm. Golden Ram fans unable to attend the show can listen to it live on WCHE 1520AM. The meeting will not be broadcast.

Mike Mattei

According to the Bill Zwaan Football Show facebook page, reigning PSAC East Offensive Player of the Week quarterback Mike Mattei will be the special guest on Coach Zwaan's show. Come out to Timothy's at 7:00pm to participate in the show live.

Player News - Mattei Named ECAC Player of the Week

Mattei

For his efforts against Millersville, quarterback Mike Mattei has been named ECAC Division II Offensive Player of the Week. The senior co-captain was 16-for-20 for 358 yards and six touchdowns. He also rushed five times for 31 yards. In only two and half quarters of work, Mattei garnered a quarterback rating of 329.

ECAC Site - ECAC Football Players of the Week - September 18, 2012

Game Preview - Kutztown

West Chester (2-1) opens up the first of three straight road games when it travels to Kutztown (1-2) Saturday. Kickoff at University Field is set for 1:00 pm.

Kutztown QB Kevin Morton

The Golden Bears have a high octane offense, but the state of their team is unknown. Kevin Morton, the 2011 PSAC East Offensive Player of the Year, separated his non-throwing shoulder in the Bloomsburg game. Kutztown opened 2012 with a 58-6 win over St Anselm. In that game, Morton was 31-of 45 for 406 yards and six touchdowns and was named D2football.com's and NCAA.com's Offensive Player of the Week. They have since lost shootouts to California by a score of 48-45 and to Bloomsburg by a score of 44-37. Against Bloomsburg, Fr. Josh Luckenbaugh relieved the injured Morton and performed well (16-of-24 for 194 yards, 1 interception, 2 TD's).

One of the Golden Bears' most explosive threats on offense is Josh Mastromatto, but he suffered an injury in the California game and is out indefinitely. In his place is Jr. Curtis Wortham (33 carries, 235 yards, 2 TD's). Kutztown's top receivers are Colby Tuell (22 catches, 276 tards, 4 TD's), Shahaid Smith (20 catches, 206 yards) and Brett Fox (8 catches, 142 yards, 2 TD's).

On defense, Kutztown is led by cornerback English Peay (24 total tackles, 3 pass breakups), So. linebacker Sam Dixon-Dougan (19 total tackles, 1 pass breakup), So. defensive end Zach Greenwald (22 total tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 QB hurry, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery. All-PSAC East defensive back Alex DiNolfi (11 interceptions in 2011) suffered a knee injury in the California game is out indefinitely.

Notes - West Chester continues its road trip next week at California followed by a visit to division foe East Stroudsburg...In 2011, Kutztown won the PSAC championship and their first ever NCAA playoff game...Last season at Farrell Stadium, Kutztown totally dominated West Chester by a score of 24-0 in the bitter cold, wind and snow on the Saturday before Halloween. Although both teams played in the same weather conditions, Kutztown managed 380 yards to West Chester's 157. West Chester quarterbacks were picked off twice and sacked five times...Saturday is Family Day at Kutztown...Kutztown starting free safety Greg Carroll registered 17 tackles against Bloomsburg and is the brother of West Chester defensive back Matt Carroll

9/19 UPDATE - The Morning Call is reporting that Kutztown QB Kevin Morton will miss Saturday's game against the Golden Rams due to the shoulder injury that he incurred in last week's game against Bloomsburg.

The Morning Call - Kutztown QB Kevin Morton out for Saturday's game with West Chester

PSAC Site - Football - Week 4 Notes

Kutztown Athletic Site - KU Welcomes West Chester for Family Day

KYW Newsradio - West Chester Visits Kutztown Looking For Third Straight Win

Reading Eagle - Albright, Kutztown football this weekend

Reading Eagle - KU's Luckenbaugh must fill big shoes at quarterback

Daily Local News - WCU set to face hurting Kutztown

D2football - PSAC Columnist - Coal Bowl IV takes center stage in the PSAC

Player News - Mattei Named PSAC East Offensive POW

For his efforts against Millersville, Sr. quarterback Mike Mattei was named PSAC East Co-Offensive Player of the Week. The co-captain was 16-of-20 for 358 yards and six touchdowns. Mattei also picked up 31 yards on five carries in leading West Chester to 655 yards of offense and a 56-14 victory.

Mattei shares this week's honor with Shippensburg's Zach Zulli.

PSAC Football Athletes of the Week - Week 3

West Chester Athletic Site - Mattei Named PSAC East Co-Offensive Player Of Week

Game Report - West Chester 56 - Millersville 14

West Chester took advantage of one of the league's worst defenses to right their offensive ship. After struggling last week against Gannon, behind the arm of Mike Mattei and the legs of Rondell White, the Golden Rams (2-1) piled up 655 total yards in route to a 56-14 victory over the visiting Millersville Marauders (1-2)

Mattei was 16-for-20 for 358 yards and six touchdowns for a gaudy 329 QB rating. His primary target was Erick Brundidge who had five catches for 156 spectacular yards and three touchdowns. White added 131 yards on the ground on 24 carries.

The Golden Rams wasted little time, taking the opening kickoff and on their fourth play from scrimmage, Mattei found Tim Keyser on a short pass on the right side who cut it all the way back across the field for a 41-yard touchdown catch. Later in the quarter, Brundidge made a tremendous leaping catch of a 43-yard Mattei pass for a touchdown. After the defense forced a three-and-out, Brandon Monk had a flashy 26-yard punt return which led to another Mattei to an uncovered Brundidge touchdown pass to stretch the lead to 21-0.

Erick Brundidge races into the end zone for one of his three touchdowns (Photo Geoff Ruth)

Millersville had their longest drive of the game, marching 72 yards in nine plays to close the score to 21-7. But Mattei hit Brundidge in stride who made a brilliant one-handed catch and run for a 69 yard touchdown reception. After Mattei's fifth touchdown pass, this one to Jim Kelly, the first half almost ended in disaster when Monk fumbled a punt on the West Chester 23 with eight seconds left. But Shawn Krautzel intercepted a pass in the end zone as time expired.

The Marauders opened the second half by returning the kickoff 97 yards to close the score to 35-14, but that's as close as they would get. Kelly wanted to get a piece of Mattei's action, took a handoff and threw a wobbly 24-yard duck of a touchdown pass to Sean Beahan. Mattei ended his night with an 11-yard strike to a completely uncovered Kelly.

The Golden Ram defense, much overlooked in this offensive onslaught, got into the scoring act as well. Dante Devine poked the ball away from the Millersville punter and Mike Lonergan scooped it up for a 22-yard touchdown.

West Chester played the fourth quarter without their starters and without scoring, but Monk, true freshman Eddie Elliott and reserve quarterback Drew Loughery ran for 55, 31 and 25 yards respectively. Loughery did not attempt a pass.

But back to that West Chester defense. Millersville's offense was on the field 13 times - five of those possessions were three-and-outs and two ended in turnovers. The Marauders had 233 yards of total offense, and 69 of those came on their final drive of the game. Linebackers Mike Culbreath (9 total tackles), Ronell Williams (7 total tackles, 1 pass breakup) and Mike Labor (6 total tackles, 1 pass breakup) led the way for the Rams.

Matt Carroll, Ronell Williams and Eric Edwers overwhelm a Millersville ball carrier (Photo Geoff Ruth)

Notes - Mattei tied the record of six touchdown passes in a game. He shares the mark with Ed Brown (vs New Haven in 1990), Matt Levin (vs Cheyney in 1995), Mike Mitros (at East Stroudsburg in 1998) and Joe Wright (at Kutztown in 2008)...LaRonn Lee did not dress due to a hamstring injury...Keyser left the game in the first quarter with a right knee injury...Kelly caught his first collegiate touchdown pass one drive before throwing his first collegiate touchdown pass...Beahan had five catches for 88 yards and a touchdown; last year he had five catches for 87 yards and a touchdown against East Stroudsburg.

Box Score Box Score

West Chester Athletic Site - Mattei Throws For 6 TDs As West Chester Downs Millersville, 56-14

Millersville Athletic Site - Mattei's Six TD Tosses Leads West Chester Past Marauders

Daily Local News - Mattei leads leads record-breaking passing attack as WCU cruises

PennLive.com - Millersville football gives up 655 yards in 65-14 loss to West Chester

Player News - O'Donnell Named ECAC Player of the Week

O'Donnell

For his efforts against Gannon, safety John O'Donnell has been named ECAC Division II Defensive Player of the Week. The senior co-captain had three assisted tackles on the day, but it was his two key interceptions that garnered the safety recognition.

His first pick happened on Gannon's first possession of the game and he returned it 48 yards for a touchdown. With West Chester trailing by three points in the fourth quarter and Gannon starting their drive at midfield, O'Donnell got his second interception of the day to set up the game winning Golden Ram touchdown.

ECAC Site - Football Players of the Week - September 11, 2012

Club News - September 13 Meeting

The Golden Ram Football Club will be meeting on Thursday at 7:45 pm at Timothy's in the Parkway Shopping Center in West Chester. The meeting will begin immediately following the Bill Zwaan Football Show which is also held at Timothy's at 7:00 pm. Golden Ram fans unable to attend the show can listen to it live on WCHE 1520AM. The meeting will not be broadcast.

John O'Donnell

According to the Bill Zwaan Football Show facebook page, reigning PSAC East Defensive Player of the Week safety John O'Donnell will be the special guest on Coach Zwaan's show. Come out to Timothy's at 7:00pm to participate in the show live.

Player News - Rondell White Profiled by KYW

West Chester running back Rondell White was interviewed by KYW's Matt Leon after the Golden Ram's 21-17 victory Saturday over Gannon. Article with audio below.

KYW Newsradio - WCU’s White Off And Running In 2012

Event News - Team to Walk Now for Autism Speaks

The West Chester University Golden Ram football team will be participating in the 2012 Philadelphia Walk Now for Autism Speaks event on Saturday, September 15 at Citizens Bank Park. Registration begins at 8:00 am with the one-mile walk starting at 10:00 am. For more information or to donate to the cause, please see the West Chester Football team page.

West Chester University Football Team, Coaches and Cheerleaders at the 2011 Philadelphia Walk Now for Autism Speaks Event at Citizens Bank Park

Bert Garbutt - Photo Collage

Game Preview - Millersville

The Golden Rams (1-1) welcome the Millersville Marauders (1-1) to Farrell Stadium in the PSAC East opener for both teams. Kickoff for Family Night is set for 6:00 pm. In last year's chilly and breezy game in Millersville, the Rams rolled up 542 yards of offense and Ronell Williams tallied 16 total tackles in a 49-13 WCU victory.

Although it's hard to get a read this early in the season, the Marauders have had a Jekyll and Hyde season. They opened 2012 with a 42-27 win over West Virginia Wesleyan, but fell 45-7 last week to Mercyhurst. Under center for Millersville is Ted Stachitas who began last season as the starting QB for Wake Forest. The entire offense goes through him as he leads the Marauders in both rushing (39 carries for 199 yards and 1 TD) and passing (25 of 44 for 246 yards, 1 TD and 3 interceptions).

Notes - Besides Family Night, the game will also be attended by a local Au Pair organization...Mike Reichenbach, son of the former East Stroudsburg and Philadelphia Eagle linebacker by the same name, is a sophomore wide receiver for Millersville...Rondell White is 17th in the country in rushing yardage and 15th in all-purpose yardage...John O'Donnell is 5th in the country in interceptions.

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Welcomes Millersville On Family Weekend Saturday Night

PSAC Site - Football - Week 3 Notes

Millersville Athletic Site - Football Starts PSAC East Play Versus Golden Rams

Daily Local News - Heavily favored WCU aims to avoid trap against Millersville

KYW Newsradio - West Chester Hosts Millersville Saturday

Player News - O'Donnell Named PSAC East Defensive POW

John O'Donnell after his first quarter touchdown (Photo Geoff Ruth)

For his efforts against Gannon, Sr. safety John O'Donnell was named PSAC East Defensive Player of the Week. Although O'Donnell only had three tackles, the co-captain nabbed two interceptions in the game. O'Donnell's first pick came on Gannon's opening drive and he returned it 48 yards for a touchdown. With West Chester trailing 17-14 in the fourth quarter and Gannon just receiving possession at midfield, O'Donnell made his second interception of the game. This turnover led West Chester on a 70-yard, game winning touchdown drive.

PSAC Football Athletes of the Week - Week 2

West Chester Athletic Site - O'Donnell Named PSAC East Defensive Player Of The Week

Game Report - West Chester 21 - Gannon 17

The Golden Ram defense led the way as all three West Chester touchdowns were the result of turnovers as West Chester defeated Gannon 21-17. The Golden Knights controlled both lines of scrimmage in the contest which was generally chippy from the onset.

West Chester scored first as Sr. John O'Donnell picked off a Liam Nadler pass and returned it 48 yards for the touchdown. After a punt exchange, Dante Devine forced a fumble which was landed on by Anthony McCloskey at the Gannon 32. A few plays later, LaRonn Lee made a great leaping catch and hung on to a 23-yard pass from Mike Mattei for a touchdown. At this point, it looked like last week in reverse.

Safety John O'Donnell returns a first quarter interception for touchdown (Photo Geoff Ruth)

But Gannon QB Liam Nadler led the Golden Knights on a seven minute drive until the Golden Ram defense stiffened, holding Gannon to 45-yard field goal. The West Chester offense sputtered for the remainder of the first half and the stiff southerly breeze started to dictate field position. It looked like the score would stay 14-3 at the half, but Gannon's Abraham Ocasio caught a 31-yard touchdown pass in the last minute to cut West Chester's lead to 14-10.

Last week at Delaware, the Golden Rams opened each half with a sound offensive plan and execution. That was not the case against Gannon. Gannon forced a three-and-out to start the second half and generally kept Rondell White bottled up all afternoon. White finished with 45 yards on 18 carries. White looked to break out of the funk when he picked up 23 of those yards on one play which gave the Golden Rams a first down at Gannon's 20-yard line. But West Chester then got zero yards on the next four plays. On the ensuing possession, Gannon's Abraham Ocasio slipped behind the defense, caught a Liam Nadler lob and made a host of West Chester tacklers miss as he weaved his way 66 yards into the end zone.

In the fourth quarter, Gannon continued to move the ball with relative ease until Carl Barnes picked off a pass at the West Chester 12. The Golden Rams managed only one first down on that drive and a 16-yard punt gave Gannon the ball at midfield with nine minutes left. But John O'Donnell got his second interception of the game. This possession ended with a 29-yard Mike Mattei to Erick Brundidge touchdown pass giving the Golden Rams a 21-17 lead.

Carl Barnes and Al-Haj Shabazz made a key stop on Gannon's fourth and three attempt, giving West Chester the ball on the Gannon 36. West Chester moved the ball to the Gannon 10, but when faced with a fourth-and-one with the breeze at their back, elected not to go for the field goal which would have extended the lead to seven. Although they failed to get the first down, the defense once again stepped up and stopped Gannon's later fake punt attempt, ending the game.

Bob Sabol recovers a second quarter Gannon fumble (Photo Geoff Ruth)

Notes - R-Fr. Adam Dempsey saw his first collegiate action and had two catches, one resulting in a first down in the fourth quarter...R-Fr. Brandon Monk saw more action in this game and picked up 28 yards on the ground in addition to returning kickoffs...So. Rich Bruno dropped half of his eight punts inside the Gannon 20...the Golden Ram defense forced a total of five turnovers and held the Golden Knights to 3 of 14 on third down...West Chester had a five minute advantage in time of possession...So. Ronell Williams had 12 tackles, including two for loss, and a forced fumble, but was also flagged for a personal foul after a third down incomplete pass...Fr. Andrew Cohen continued to impress with a total of six tackles with three of those resulting in losses

Box Score Box Score

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Slips past Gannon With Late Score, 21-17

Gannon Athletic Site - Gannon Football Comes up Short Against West Chester 21-17

Daily Local News - Defense, late score help WCU escape in home opener

GoErie.com - Gannon lets lead slip away at West Chester

The Gannon Knight - West Chester sinks Gannon

WCHE 1520 - West Chester 21 - Gannon 17 - Game Podcast

Club News - September 6 Meeting

The Golden Ram Football Club will be meeting on Thursday at 7:45 pm at Timothy's in the Parkway Shopping Center in West Chester. The meeting will begin immediately following the Bill Zwaan Football Show which is also held at Timothy's at 7:00 pm. Golden Ram fans unable to attend the show can listen to it live on WCHE 1520AM. The meeting will not be broadcast.

Tom Di Camillo

After head coach Bill Zwaan speaks at the meeting, this week's guest speaker will be Tom Di Camillo. Di Camillo served as West Chester University's Sports Information Director from 1990 through 2007 and is currently the Assistant Commissioner in charge of Media Relations of the Pacific West Conference. He is the 2008 recipient of the College Sports Information Directors of America's Warren Berg Award and the 2012 recipient of the Bill Vansant Award.

Game Preview - Gannon

West Chester (0-1) hosts Gannon (1-0) in the Golden Rams' 2012 home opener on Saturday, September 8. Kickoff is scheduled for noon at Farrell Stadium.

The Golden Knights haven't finished better than 6-5 since joining the PSAC in 2008, but they have a knack for playing spoiler. In 2009, they defeated Bloomsburg in Bloomsburg by a score of 10-7 in the final game of the regular season, ending the Huskies season at 8-3 with no chance for a NCAA playoff bid. And last year, despite finishing 4-7, the Golden Knights gave Slippery Rock their second loss of the season, 33-27, essentially ending all talk of The Rock making the postseason.

PSAC West Offensive POW Liam Nadler

Last week, Gannon opened the season with a heroic 36-33 victory over Lake Erie (OH) which finished 2011 3-8 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. In that contest, redshirt freshman quarterback Liam Nadler made his collegiate debut and went 27 of 44 for a school record 420 yards and four touchdowns. For his effort, Nadler was named PSAC West Offensive Player of the Week. The 6'7" signal caller was 4 of 4 for 74 yards in the final drive, including a fourth down touchdown pass with a minute left in the game.

Wide receiver So. Abraham Ocasio had 8 catches for 159 yards and 2 TD's and So. Joe Sobucki had 6 catches for 106 yards and a TD. Although running backs Jansen Jones and Alex Papson rushed for 481 yards and 369 yards respectively last season, against Lake Erie the two ball carriers combined for 12 net yards on 17 carries. Nadler was sacked 8 times for 43 yards and lost two of his three fumbles against Lake Erie.

On defense, Gannon is led by All-PSAC West defensive lineman Ian Jeffers who had six tackles against Lake Erie. Freshman defensive lineman Trenton Donald was credited with three pass breakups last week while Sr. linebacker Will Giles filled the stat sheet with eight total tackles, one tackle for loss and an interception which led to a Gannon touchdown.

Notes - At halftime, the WCU Hall of Fame Class of 2012 will be introduced...Despite Gannon entering its fifth season in the PSAC, this will be the first time ever that they've faced West Chester...The Gannon squad is very young - Brad Rzyczycki is in his first year as head coach and they start just two seniors on offense and five seniors on defense...Rondell White is 5th in the country in both rushing yardage and all-purpose yardage...After suffering a broken ankle in the Delaware game, Sean McCartney is out for the season. Sr. Mike Mattei will get the start at QB.

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Lifts Lid On Home Slate Saturday Against Gannon At Noon

PSAC Site - Football - Week 2 Notes

Gannon Athletic Site - Gannon Football Team Hits The Road Saturday Afternoon for First Time; Travels to Traditional PSAC East Power West Chester

philly.com - Video: West Chester football looks to rebound from loss to Delaware

KYW Newsradio - West Chester Hosts Gannon Saturday

GoErie.com - Nadler-Ocasio connection on early display at Gannon

Daily Local News - Mattei steps in for injured McCartney in WCU’s home opener

WCHE 1520 - Bill Zwaan Football Show Podcast

Alumni News - Giants Waive DePalma

The New York Giants waived former West Chester University wide receiver Dan DePalma and do not appear to be signing him to their practice squad as expected by close followers of the team. The Giants are carrying six wide receivers and assigned another one, David Douglas, to the practice squad. Head Coach Tom Coughlin recognized DePalma for his hard work and service to the Giants.

Rant Sports NFL - New York Giants Trim Roster, Greg Jones and D.J. Ware Released

myveronanj.com - Giants Waive DePalma