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WASHINGTON AND LEE FOOTBALL RELEASE

Week 7 • W&L at Sewanee • October 20, 2001 • 1:30 pm CST

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LAST WEEK'S SCORES:
Bridgewater 49, Guilford 14
Catholic 31, Frostburg State 26
Emory & Henry 24, Randolph-Macon 8
W&L 39, Hampden-Sydney 12

THE SERIES:
This is the 51st meeting between the two schools with W&L holding a 29-21 advantage in the series that began during the 1892 season. W&L and UOS have played every season since 1955 and the Generals' 29 wins against the Tigers are tied for the most wins against any opponent in school history. The Generals have won each of the last three and six of the last seven meetings with Sewanee. W&L defeated the Tigers, 27-24, last season in Lexington, Va.

SERIES INFO:
Time: 1:30 pm CST
Site: McGee Field (3,500)
Series: W&L leads 29-21
Last Meeting: 10/21/00 at W&L (W&L won 27-24)
First Meeting: 1892 (UOS won 22-16)
Last W&L Win: 10/21/00 at W&L (27-24)
Last UOS Win: 10/25/97 at UOS (48-14)
Current Series Streak: W&L +3
W&L vs. UOS at W&L: 21-5
W&L vs. UOS at UOS: 8-16

THE HEAD COACHES:
Frank Miriello (East Stroudsburg '67) is in his seventh season as the head coach at W&L and his 34th year of coaching. He claims a 31-33-1 (.485) overall record, 5-1 all-time against Sewanee. With the win over Hampden-Sydney, Miriello climbed into a tie for third all-time in victories at W&L with Tex Tilson (1933-40). Miriello needs 18 more wins to overtake Lee McLaughlin for second place. The Tigers are led by sixth-year head coach John Windham (Vanderbilt '86), who has posted a 28-25 (.528) overall record in his first career head coaching opportunity. Windham is 1-4 all-time against W&L.

W&L vs. THE SOUTHERN COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE:
W&L sports a 55-64-3 (.463) all-time record against the current members of the SCAC. However, the Generals have taken six of the last seven against the SCAC. Here is a breakdown:

Centre (20-32-2)
DePauw (0-0)
Millsaps (0-0)
Rhodes (6-11-1)
Rose-Hulman (0-0)
Sewanee (29-21)
Trinity (0-0)

LAST TIME OUT:
Sophomore quarterback Peter Dean completed 16-of-31 passes for 236 yards and a career-high three touchdowns to lead Washington and Lee to a 39-12 victory at Hampden-Sydney on Saturday afternoon. The Generals went ahead early as Dean tossed a pair of touchdown passes to junior wide receiver Jay Thomas to open the scoring. The first came with with 8:12 left in the first quarter. The duo hooked up again with 13:21 left in the second quarter to give the Generals a 14-0 lead. Hampden-Sydney scored two second quarter touchdowns, the first on an 86-yard punt return by Jonathan Meeks and the second on a 33-yard pass by Mac Russell to Conrad Singh. However, the Tigers were unsuccessful at two-point attempts both times. W&L senior placekicker Brad Wiginton converted a 43-yard field goal with 35 seconds to play in the first half to give W&L a 17-12 lead at halftime. The Generals put the game away at the start of the third quarter as Dean again hooked up with Thomas on a 74-yard touchdown pass. Thomas’ third touchdown catch tied a W&L single-game record. Senior running back Marc Watson then scored on a 10-yard scamper with 21 seconds to play in the third quarter. For Watson, it was the 30th touchdown in his career, setting a W&L record. The touchdown also gave Watson the career points record at W&L. Wiginton added three second half field goals. His four field goals set a W&L record for field goals in a game. He now has 10 for the season, which also ties a school record. W&L was led by junior running back Chris Sullivan, who collected 187 yards on 26 carries and accounted for 320 all-purpose yards. Thomas caught six passes for 135 yards and three touchdowns. Junior cornerback Brian Meehan led the defense with 10 tackles and a sack. He also forced a fumble.

THE LAST MEETING WITH SEWANEE:
(W&L 27, UOS 24, October 21, 2000 - Lexington, Va.)
Washington and Lee running back Marc Watson rushed for 262 yards and two touchdowns to help lead Washington and Lee to a 27-24 homecoming win over Sewanee. Watson's performance came on the heels of a 281-yard rushing day the previous week against Hampden-Sydney. Sewanee, who scored two defensive touchdowns, got on the board first with a safety just 3:59 into the game as a W&L punt snap sailed out of the back of the end zone. The Generals retaliated on a 27-yard field goal by senior placekicker Andy Vendig with 8:14 remaining in the quarter to make the score 3-2. W&L upped its lead to 6-2 with 27 seconds remaining in the opening quarter as placekicker Brad Wiginton booted a 35-yard field goal. Watson gave the Generals a 13-2 edge with 6:57 left in the second quarter as he broke off a 40-yard touchdown run and tight end Davis White extended the lead to 20-2 on a six-yard touchdown reception from sophomore quarterback Bobby Littlehale with 3:43 remaining in the half. Sewanee cut the lead to 20-9 as defensive end Chase Neal fell on a Watson fumble in the end zone with 10:15 remaining in the third quarter. Watson atoned for the fumble by scoring on a 61-yard run with 4:03 left in the third period to give the Generals a 27-9 lead. However, Sewanee again answered with a defensive score, this time on a 71-yard interception return by linebacker Charles McCauley with 8:11 remaining to make the score 27-15. The Tigers then converted a two-point conversion to make the score 27-17. Sewanee cut the lead to 27-24 with 2:43 left on a 31-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Max Fuller to wide receiver Pedy Tehrani, but could get no closer. Littlehale completed 14-of-23 attempts for 101 yards and one touchdown, while White caught five passes for 44 yards and one score. Sewanee was led by Fuller, who completed 11-of-18 attempts for 147 yards and rushed 18 times for 68 yards. Linebacker Jeff Bahl led the Generals' defense with 11 tackles and two fumble recoveries. Linebacker Matt Stavish also collected 11 tackles on the day. Sewanee's defense was led by linebacker Jason Wheat and senior defensive end Brian Tyler, who tallied eight tackles each.

SCOUTING SEWANEE:
Sewanee is 5-2 overall after a 21-14 win over Rhodes on Saturday afternoon. The Tigers used big plays to win the game as sophomore running back Justin Askew scored on a 75-yard run and freshman wide receiver Neko Jones scored on a 65-yard touchdown reception from senior quarterback Knox Vanderpool. Askew totaled 74 yards on eight carries, while Jones caught four passes for 89 yards. Vanderpool completed 9-of-18 attempts for 160 yards. He was picked off twice. On the season, junior quarterback Kirk Holtgrewe was leading the team with 538 yards and five touchdowns on the ground and 435 yards and five touchdowns through the air. Holtgrewe is currently injured and has been replaced by Vanderpool. Askew has gained 441 yards and two touchdowns on 76 carries, while Jones leads the receivers with 16 catches for 310 yards and three touchdowns. Senior linebacker Jason Wheat leads the defense with 45 tackles and two sacks.

ALL-TIME RECORD:
W&L has compiled a 413-460-39 (.474) all-time record. The Generals have been linked to the first intercollegiate football game played in the south, an 1873 matchup with VMI.

SEWANEE'S POISON:
Over the past three years, senior linebacker Jeff Bahl has been Sewanee's poison because he's a Tiger killer. In three games against the Tigers (two starts), Bahl has totaled 26 tackles, six fumble recoveries and one sack. In his last game on McGee Field, Bahl amassed 15 tackles, four fumble recoveries and a sack. Bahl claims 13 career fumble recoveries, six of which have come against Sewanee.

LEFTY QB:
Sophomore Peter Dean is the starting quarterback after switching from the defensive back position he held last season. Dean is the first left-handed quarterback to assume starting duties at W&L in over five decades. Dean also plays baseball at W&L where he posted a 6-0 record and 3.10 ERA on the mound last season.

RECORDS UPDATE:
Several school records fell on Saturday afternoon at Hampden-Sydney. Senior running back/wide receiver Marc Watson set W&L career records for touchdowns (30) and points (184). He also tied the career record for rushing touchdowns (27). Junior wide receiver Jay Thomas tied a game mark for touchdowns (3), while senior placekicker Brad Wiginton set a game record for field goals (4) and tied the season record for field goals (10). Junior running back Chris Sullivan totaled 320 all-purpose yards, the second-highest total in W&L history.

NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN:
Though Marc Watson has received much of the publicity the last three years, junior running back Chris Sullivan has been very productive at the position. Sullivan was a Second Team All-ODAC selection at running back in 1999 after amassing 722 yards and seven touchdowns. He claims 1,493 career rushing yards, ninth all-time at W&L. A versatile back, Sullivan has also recorded 3,368 career all-purpose yards, fourth all-time at W&L. Watson holds the top spot with 4,518 career all-purpose yards although Sullivan leads the ODAC in all-purpose yards (199.7 ypg.) this season.

TURNOVER TALLY:
One of W&L's strengths over the last four years has been turnover margin. During that span, the Generals have forced 97 turnovers (2.7 per game) while committing just 56 turnovers (1.6 per game) themselves. W&L has committed just seven turnovers in 2001, forcing 17 miscues by the opponents, including 12 interceptions.

MR. AUTOMATIC:
Senior placekicker Brad Wiginton, the current ODAC Player of the Week, has been almost automatic during his career. Wiginton has connected on 21-of-29 field goals (.724) and 83-of-88 PAT attempts (.943). He ranks second all-time at W&L in career in field goal percentage and third all-time in career PAT percentage. Wiginton holds the W&L record for career PAT's made and ranks third all-time in career field goals made. He will break the career field goals record with four more makes and can move into the Top 5 in career scoring with five more points.

THE DRIFTER:
Sophomore safety Ted Maffitt has been trying to find a home this season. Maffitt, who played fullback last season, was switched to cornerback in the preseason to help sure up a thin secondary. Maffitt played the first three games at corner before moving to safety against Randolph-Macon. Since making the switch, Maffitt has recorded three interceptions, including one to preserve the Generals' win against Catholic in the final minute.

COVER MAN:
Senior cornerback Chris Shortall picked off two passes on Saturday at Hamdpen-Sydney to increase his season total to a career-high three. Shortall claims seven career interceptions.

OH SO CLOSE:
The Generals' game at Randolph-Macon on September 29 was a real heart-breaker as the Yellow Jackets drove 95 yards to score the game-winner with 15 seconds remaining. The loss to Macon marked the eighth time that the Generals have lost a game by seven points or less since the beginning of the 1998 season.

-- GENERALS --


Contact: Brian Laubscher
Sports Information Director
PO Drawer 928
Lexington, VA 24450
Phone: 540-463-8670