Saint Mary's Plays Northeastern In Final Road Game of 2001
10/23/2001 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 23, 2001
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Previewing the Game: Saint Mary's will travel to Northeastern University for its final game of a three-game road swing, and the final road game of the 2001 season. The game is scheduled to begin at 9:30 am, pacific time, at Parsons Field in Boston, MA. Saint Mary's enters that game with a 4-3 record following a 24-10 victory over Florida Atlantic last week. Northeastern is 2-4 on the season and enters this week's contest riding a 7-0 win over Richmond.
Radio Coverage: All Saint Mary's football games for the 2001 season can be heard on KSMC 89.5 FM and on the internet at www.SMCGaels.com. Denny Bulcao and Kristie Sinigiani will call the game action against Northeastern.
Fans can access the game through the Saint Mary's website by clicking on the KSMC logo in the features section of the home page. If you don't have the real player needed to listen to the game, you can get a free download through the KSMC link.
Saint Mary's on the Web: Gael fans can access all the latest news and notes about Saint Mary's athletics on the web at www.SMCGaels.com. The official website offers the most up to date information and results of the Gaels' 15 intercollegiate sports plus much more.
Scouting The Huskies: Northeastern is 2-4 on the season and enters this week's game following a 7-0 victory over Richmond last week. The only score of the game came on a 77-yard run by QB Shawn Brady in the first quarter. The Huskies gained 230 yards of total offense while holding Richmond to 191 total yards, with 29 coming via the Richmond passing game.
Northeastern has posted wins over Richmond and Delaware (20-7) this season. The Huskies have suffered losses to Hofstra (45-21), Villanova (31-14), Harvard (35-20) and Maine (21-9). With the exception of the loss to Harvard, all of Northeastern's losses have come to ranked opponents.
As a team, the Huskies are averaging 299.3 yards of total offense per game, with 167.5 coming on the ground and the remaining 131.8 yards coming through the air. The defense is allowing opponents 127.3 yards rushing and 173.7 yards passing per game.
Senior tail back L.J. McKanas leads the team with 779 yards rushing on the season to average 129.8 yards per game. McKanas currently ranks 14th in the country in rushing. He has five touchdowns, to lead the team, and is averaging 4.8 yards per carry. Logan Galli is the teams leading passer with 372 and two touchdowns. However, freshman Shawn Brady earned the start against at quarterback against Richmond and completed 6-of-10 passes for 86 yards. Brady also rushed for 66 yards on eight carries.
Junior outside linebacker Adam Walker leads the team with 50 total tackles, 32 solo and 18 assisted. Walker has eight tackles for a loss of 25 yards and has 2.5 quarterback sacks. Leading the team in the sacks category is junior defensive end Steve Anzalone with four. Anzalone also leads the team with 10 tackles for a loss. Cornerback Art Smith has five of the team 14 takeaways with three interceptions and two fumble recoveries, both are team highs.
Don Brown (Norwich, 1977) is 6-11 in his second year as the head coach of the Huskies football program. Brown has a 31-17 record in his career which includes a 25-6 mark in three seasons at Plymouth State. Brown served as an assistant coach at Massachusetts before being named as the head coach at Northeastern. He also served assistant coach stints at Brown, Yale, Dartmouth and Mansfield.
The Series: Saturday's game against the Huskies will mark just the second time the Northeastern and Saint Mary's have faced off against each other. Northeastern defeated the Gaels 24-16 to open the 1997 season, in Moraga, CA.
Last Game Recap: Saint Mary's 24 - Florida Atlantic 10 Saint Mary's picked up its first road victory of the season with a 24-10 victory over Florida Atlantic at Pro Player Stadium in front of 10,143 fans on Saturday. Gael fullback Clint Wilson rushed for a game-high 102 yards and two touchdowns to lead Saint Mary's.
After Florida Atlantic took the opening drive 66 yards for a touchdown, Saint Mary's responded with an 11-play, 69-yard touchdown drive that was capped by a 3-yard run by Wilson on the Gaels' next possession. Following an Owl punt, Saint Mary's got its second touchdown when Wilson scored his second touchdown on an 8-yard run up the middle. Wilson finished the game with 102 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns. Florida Atlantic added a Mark Myers, 34-yard field goal to cut the lead to 14-10 with 6:47 remaining in the second quarter. It looked as if Saint Mary's would add another score before the intermission, but Gus Papanikolas fumbled the snap on the FAU 5-yard line with 49 second left in the half.
Both teams opened the second half with punts before Ezequiel Arevalo connected on a 23-yard field goal to give Saint Mary's a 17-10 advantage. On the Owl's next possession, free safety Weston Borba picked off a Jared Allen pass to give Saint Mary's the ball on the FAU 30. With a fourth and 14 on the Owl 29, offensive coordinator Ian Shield called on wide-out Nate Brown's throwing abilities. Papanikolas lateraled to Brown who then hit a wide-open Andre Coleman in the end zone for a 29-yard TD pass, the final score of the game. Coleman finished the game with 97 yards rushing on 13 carries and two catches for 25 yards and one touchdown.
Gael strong safety Myron Chivis intercepted an Allen pass on the SMC 1-yard line with 9:08 remaining in the game to help secure the victory and hold FAU scoreless in the second half.
Saint Mary's, the second ranked rushing team in the nation, gained 305 yards on the ground and finished with 411 yards of total offense. Defensive end, David Taylor had seven tackles, three tackles for a loss and two sacks. Travis White finished with 1.5 sacks. The Gaels held Florida Atlantic to 256 yards of total offense, which included 85 yards on the ground and 171 yards through the air.
A Look Inside Landis: Tim Landis (Randolph-Macon, 1986) is 10-8 in his second season at the helm of the Saint Mary's football program. Landis is 45-44-1 (.500) in eight years of coaching at the Division I-AA level. In his first season with the Gaels, Landis guided Saint Mary's to a 6-5 record, reviving past winning traditions. Landis, who became the 16th head coach on March 10, 2000, brings enthusiasm and a unique perspective to the field, while providing excitement to Gael football. Prior to Saint Mary's, Landis served a seven-year stint as the head coach at Davidson College where he accumulated a 35-36-1 record. In his last two years with the Wildcats, he guided the team to historical seasons, posting an 8-2 mark in 1998 and an 8-3 record in 1999 - matching the school's highest win total in the 102-year history of the program.
How the Gaels Rank Against the Nation: After a 305-yard rushing performance against Florida Atlantic on Saturday, Saint Mary's held onto second place in I-AA football in rushing offense with 307.0 yards per game. Going into the game, Saint Mary's was averaging 308.6 yards per game on the ground and saw its average fall just slightly. Georgia Southern, the nations top ranked team, is posting 346.7 yards on the ground per game. The Gaels moved up one spot from 29th in total offense to 28th with 400.0 yards per game. The Gaels totalled 411 yards against Florida Atlantic last week.
Papanikolas Moves up in SMC Record Books: Senior quarterback Gus Papanikolas (Salt Lake City, UT) made the transition to the spread option attack a smooth one for the Gaels in 2000. Following last year's stellar season, Papanikolas notched his name in the top ten in a number of Saint Mary's career records. With his 111 yards of total offense against FAU, Papanikolas now has 4,406 yards of total offense in 28 games at Saint Mary's and ranks third in total offense. He is tied for sixth in passing touchdowns with 24 and needs one TD pass to pull even with Randy Nelson for fifth all-time. He also has completed 215 passes in three seasons and is seventh in that category. With his 77 yards passing against the Owls he now has 2,965 career passing yards and rank seventh all-time. He now needs 486 yards to pass Cree Morris for sixth place.
White Continues to Pressure Opposing QB's: Senior defensive end Travis White (San Pedro, CA) , Lindy's magazine I-AA Independent Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, recorded three tackles, two solo and one assisted against Florida Atlantic last week. He currently has 8.0 sacks and 11 tackles for a loss of 46 yards this season. He has 20 sacks in his career and moved into fourth place all-time in school history. He needs three sacks to pass Domingo Ruiz for third place all-time. With his 11 tackles for a loss, he has 36 in his career and moved into a tie with Jim Wardy for fourth all-time. White needs eight more TFL's on the season to equal Domingo Ruiz and Coree Thomas, who have 44 each.
Coleman Leading I-AA's Number-Two Rushing Attack: Sophomore slot back Andre Coleman (Compton, CA) has rushed for 700 yards in his first seven games of the 2001 season. Coleman is currently averaging 100.0 yards per game on the ground and is ranked 25th in the country in rushing. He currently holds three spots on the team's single game rushing list. His name appears second, a 220-yard day against Drake, fifth, a 181-yard game against Central Washington this season, and seventh, a 175-yard day against Sacramento State to open the 2001 campaign. Coleman now needs 300 yards in the final four games to become the first Gael to rush for 1,000 yards in a single season since 1993.
Gael Players of the Week: Tim Landis and his coaching staff named Clint Wilson (Thousand Oaks, CA) the team's Offensive Player of the Week after he led the team with 102 yards on 18 carries and two touchdowns against the Owls. Myron Chivis (Highlands, CA) garnered the team's defensive honors when he recorded three tackles, forced and recovered a fumble and had an interception which he returned for 26 yards. Punter Ben Antongiovanni (Bakersfield, CA) was named the Special Teams Player of the Week when he averaged 39.0 yards on three punts with a long of 48 yards. Bob Gamble (Atwater, CA) was named the Scout Team Player of the Week.
Injury Report: #12 Anthony Johnson (Foot), Probable, #31 Dax Harris (Knee), Questionable, #50 Scott McMahon (Knee), Out, #57 Dave Biller (Ankle), Questionable, #65 Rocky Lucero (Back), Out, #71Chris Jacobs (Knee), Probable, #85 James Blades (Ankle), Out, #94 Lucas Lucero (Hip), Probable.
Make-Up Date for Cal Poly Finalized: The game between Saint Mary's and Cal Poly, originally scheduled for Saturday, September 15, has been rescheduled for Saturday, November 24. Kickoff at Saint Mary's Stadium is scheduled for Noon. Originally, SMC's final scheduled game was November 10 against Dayton, while Cal Poly's original season finale was at Northern Iowa on November 17.
Saint Mary's Announces 2002 Football Schedule:
August 31 at Montana State Noon September 7 Sacramento State 1:00 PM September 14 Bucknell 1:00 PM September 21 at Central Washington TBA September 28 *Western Washington 1:00 PM October 5 at Humboldt State TBA October 12 at Holy Cross TBA October 19 Cal Poly 1:00 PM October 26 at Southern Utah 7:00 PM November 2 at UC Davis 1:30 PM November 9 Drake 1:00 PM *Homecoming
Next Week: Saint Mary's will return home for good, starting a three-game homestand to close the season, against Southern Utah. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Saint Mary's Stadium. The game against the Thunderbirds will mark the 13th meeting between the two schools. Southern Utah leads the overall series 8-3-1 on the heels of three straight victories. Southern Utah defeated Saint Mary's 43-14 last season in Ceder City, UT. The last SMC win came at the close of the 1997 season, a 31-27 Gael victory in Moraga.
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