Complete Game Notes (.pdf)

Waynesburg (6-0, 4-0) at Bethany (1-4, 1-2)

When: Saturday, Oct. 13, 2012

Where: Bethany, W.Va. (Bison Stadium)

Radio: 99.5-FM WCYJ (Webcast can be heard at www.waynesburgsports.com)
 
Live Video: http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/bethanywv.portal#

Series Breakdown
All-Time Series: Waynesburg leads 28-16-7

First Meeting: 1899 – Bethany 28-0

Last Meeting: 2011 – Waynesburg 23-7

Things to Watch For
*- Waynesburg senior punter Zack Rogers leads the PAC in punt average and ranks 34^th in all of Division III with a 40.6 yards per punt average. Bethany punter Stephen Amic is just behind Rogers in second place within the conference with a 37.7 average. Amic was also named PAC and ECAC Division III Southwest Special Teams Player of the Week after putting seven punts inside the Geneva 20-yard line during the Bison's overtime win over the Golden Tornadoes. Amic was also lauded as a member of the D3Football.com Team of the Week.
 
*- Speaking of special teamers having special seasons, senior wide receiver Christian Jackson not only leads the PAC in kick return performance, but he is fourth in all of Division III with a 36.5 yard per take back average. The 2011 second-team All-PAC returner also comes into Saturday's game as the number-two punt returner in the conference with a 9.8 yards per return average.
 
*- Bethany may have a weapon in its arsenal to slow down Jackson on kickoff situations in freshman kicker Justin Evans, whose six touchbacks lead the PAC. Thanks in large part to those efforts, the Bison rank second in the conference in terms of kickoff coverage.
 
*- Saturday's game pits the top passer in the PAC against the league's number-two pass defense. Bethany junior Matt Grimard is averaging a conference-best 248.6 yards per game and 300.0 total offensive yards per contest. He has also thrown for 13 touchdowns, rushed for five more and is the current PAC and ECAC Division III Southwest Offensive Player of the Week. After six weeks of action, the Waynesburg defense is giving up just 166.0 yards per game and is starting to pile up the sacks. After taking down Grove City quarterback Brian Pell four times this past week, the Jackets now have 18 sacks for the season, just one behind Thiel, which leads the league with 19.
 
*- No one has been able to rack up the offense in 2012 like Bethany, which leads the PAC in scoring (32.4 ppg) and is second in total offense (386.8 ypg) and passing offense (248.6 ypg). While the Bison have centered their game plan around piling up points by chucking the ball around the field, Waynesburg has focused on a less flashy game plan, which focuses around running the football and playing defense. The Yellow Jackets are the top running team in the conference (179.3 ypg) and boast the stingiest rush defense (82.8 ypg) and overall defense (248.8 ypg) in the league.
 
*- Along with running the ball to control the clock and keep the high-powered Bethany passing game on the sidelines, the Jacket pass rush may also need to continue its hot play to keep Waynesburg in Saturday's contest. While the Orange and Black have recorded the second-most sacks in the PAC, the Bison have allowed Grimard to be brought down in the backfield 14 times, which is the third-highest total in the league. The 115 sack yards given up are the second-most in the conference. Waynesburg, on the other hand, has given up just three sacks for a total of 15 yards lost. Both of those totals rank in the top 10 nationally in Division III.
 
*- Converting third downs and stopping the opposition from converting third downs are two more areas in which Waynesburg appears to have the edge over the Bison. The Jackets are ranked number-two in the PAC with a 40.2 percent success rate in converting third downs. The Bison, on the other hand, are fifth at 34.4 percent. Waynesburg has really excelled in stopping the opposition on third down. The Jacket defense's 19.7 failure rate in terms of stopping opposing offenses on third down not only leads the PAC, but ranks fourth in all of Division III.
 
*- Saturday's officiating crew could be busy as Waynesburg and Bethany are two of the most penalized teams in the PAC. The Bison have been penalized 36 times for 302 yards, while the Jackets have had 35 flags thrown on them for 374 yards.
 
*- The Waynesburg/Bethany rivalry has been one of the most evenly played over the past handful of seasons. The two teams have alternated wins and losses over the past five years, with the Jackets taking last year's meeting in the rain and cold by the final score of 23-7.