Week 1 • W&L (0-0) vs. Alfred (0-0) • September 10, 2005 • 1:00 pm

SERIES INFO:
Time: 1:00 pm
Site: Wilson Field (7,000)
Series: AU leads 1-0
Last Meeting: 9/11/04 at AU (AU won 23-8)
First Meeting: 9/11/04 at AU (AU won 23-8)
Last W&L Win: None
Last AU Win: 9/11/04 at AU (AU won 23-8)
Current Series Streak: AU +1
W&L vs. AU at W&L: 0-0
W&L vs. AU at AU: 0-1

THE SERIES:
W&L and Alfred will be meeting for the second time in history with last season's meeting being the first. The Saxons claimed last season's opener by a 23-8 count in Alfred, N.Y. This will be the last meeting between the two teams in the current series as W&L will travel to Franklin & Marshall to open the season in 2006.

THE HEAD COACHES:
Frank Miriello (East Stroudsburg '67) is in his 11th season as the head coach at W&L and his 37th year of coaching. He claims a 47-51-1 (.480) overall record. Miriello is third all-time in victories at W&L and needs two more wins to overtake Lee McLaughlin for second place. The Saxons are led by eighth-year Head Coach Dave Murray (Springfield '81), who carries a 37-32 (.536) overall record. Murray posted an 8-3 overall record in 2004 and led the Saxons to the ECAC Northeast Championship.

ALL-TIME RECORD:
W&L has compiled a 429-477-39 (.475) all-time record. The Generals have been linked to the first intercollegiate football game played in the south, an 1873 matchup with VMI though the University officially recognized football as a varsity sport beginning in 1890.

LAST TIME OUT:
(W&L 21, GC 7; November 13, 2004 - Greensboro, N.C.)
The Washington and Lee football team earned its first winning season since 1995 and its first six-win season since 1985 with a 21-7 victory over Greensboro College in Greensboro, N.C. The Generals (6-4) amassed 293 yards of total offense while holding the Pride (2-8) to just 69 total yards, including -9 yards in the second half. Greensboro took a 7-0 lead 53 seconds into the second quarter when Dallas Daniels picked up the ball off a blocked punt and returned it 15 yards for a touchdown. Washington and Lee tied the score at 7-7 with 9:34 remaining in the second quarter when wide receiver Colton Ward rushed for a six-yard touchdown. Placekicker Ben Long extended the Generals’ lead to 10-7 on a 25-yard field goal with 5:38 remaining in the first half. Long kicked a 35-yard field goal with 1:53 left in the third quarter to give W&L a 13-7 advantage and the Generals closed out the scoring with 8:41 remaining on a 3-yard touchdown run by running back Michael Lackett. Quarterback Greg Tweardy completed a pass to Ward to convert the two-point conversion. Tweardy finished the game 24-of-30 for 153 yards and Lackett rushed for 38 yards on 13 carries and the one touchdown. Senior wide receiver Taylor Callaham caught six balls for 76 yards while Ward hauled in six passes for 41 yards and rushed for 19 yards and a touchdown on nine carries. Linebacker Brian Gallagher paced the defense with eight tackles and two of the Generals’ six sacks. Defensive end Bryant Fulk also had eight tackles and a sack.

WHEN LAST WE MET:
(AU 23, W&L 8; September 11, 2004 - Alfred, N.Y.)
The Washington and Lee football team held Alfred University to just 267 yards of total offense, but gained just 148 yards itself in falling to the Saxons, 23-8, in Alfred, N.Y. The Generals got on the board first when an Alfred punt snap went out of the back of the end zone with 12:32 remaining in the first quarter. W&L held the lead until Alfred’s Chris Reynolds nailed a 30-yard field goal to make the score 3-2 with 4:38 remaining in the opening period. Reynolds booted two more field goals in the second quarter, one of 26 yards and another from 31 yards to give the Saxons a 9-2 halftime edge. After a scoreless third quarter, the Saxons scored the game’s first touchdown as Chaz Bruce scored on a 31-yard run with 14:30 remaining. Bruce then improved the lead to 23-2 on a 40-yard touchdown run with 7:03 remaining, before the Generals answered on a 12-yard touchdown strike from quarterback Greg Tweardy to wide receiver Clark Kensinger with 1:42 remaining. The PAT attempt failed producing the final score. W&L was led by Tweardy, who completed 17-of-42 passes for 157 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Senior wide receiver Taylor Callaham caught six passes for 75 yards, while running back Michael Lackett carried 18 times for 32 yards. Senior linebacker Lloyd Wilson led the defense with nine tackles. Linebacker Robert Foster added four tackles, a sack and an interception. Alfred was led by Bruce’s 86 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Ron Duliba completed 11-of-25 passes for 156 yards and one interception, while Nicholas Gatto paced the Saxon defense with eight tackles and three of Alfred’s seven sacks.

SCOUTING ALFRED:
Alfred is coming off an 8-3 season in which it won the ECAC Northeast Championship. The Saxons featured a stingy defense in 2004, limiting their opponents to just 268.2 yards (27th nationally) and 16.3 points points per game. The defense returns seven starters in 2005 led by senior linebacker Brenton Brady, who totaled 96 tackles, seven sacks and four interceptions last season. Brady, the Empire 8 Player of the Year, is a Preseason First Team All-America selection. Junior safety Aaron Meyers also returns after totaling 78 tackles and a team-high 10 pass breakups in 2004. As a team, Alfred notched 36 sacks and 35 turnovers last fall, with seven sacks and three turnovers coming at the Generals' expense in the opener. On offense, the Saxons return three offensive lineman, but will feature several newcomers in the skill positions. Quarterback Ron Duliba (1851 yds., 15 TD), running back Chaz Bruce (1,400 yds., 10 TD), and wide receivers Jake Sprague (498 yds., 1 TD), Chris Sargent (447 yds., 5 TD) and TyQuan Horton (299 yds., 4 TD) have also departed, leaving Alfred with several holes to fill. Sophomore placekicker Chris Reynolds does return to lead the special teams after booting 13-of-19 field goals last season.

WHAT'S GONE?:
The Generals did not lose much in terms of numbers from last season's squad, but it did lose quality in the graduation of First Team All-ODAC linebacker Lloyd Wilson, First Team All-ODAC offensive lineman David Startsman and wide receiver Taylor Callaham. Wilson led the team with 83 tackles last season, while Startsman was the leader of a big and experience offensive line which also graduated Zack Taylor. Callaham finished his career fifth on the W&L all-time receiving list with 1,531 yards and 10 touchdowns. The Generals also lost three-year starting tight end Patrick Neuman and starting nose tackle Chris Caramore.

WHAT'S BACK:
W&L welcomes back 17 players who started at least one game last season -- 10 on defense, five on offense and two specialists.

The defense will be led by senior defensive end Liam Murray (61 TT, 3 Scks.) and senior safety Stuart Swann (43 TT, 2 Scks.), both of which garnered First Team All-ODAC accolades last season. Sophomore cornerback Kyle Luby (47 TT, 4 Scks.) also returns after notching Second Team All-ODAC honors as does senior linebacker Brian Gallagher (54 TT, 2.0 Scks.), who posted Honorable Mention All-ODAC laurels.

The offense will again be paced by junior wide receiver Colton Ward. Ward totaled 1,050 all-purpose yards and nine touchdowns in just eight games en route to First Team All-ODAC honors. Senior Trey Allen will lead a young offensive line after receiving Second Team All-ODAC laurels last season. Senior quarterback Greg Tweardy returns after setting school records for completions (210) and attempts (346) in throwing for 1,897 yards and 11 touchdowns. Senior Michael Lackett will look to lead the running game after totaling 441 yards and three scores a season ago.

The Generals should be in good shape as far as special teams, with the starting punter, kicker and return men all returning. Junior Ben Long nailed 7-of-12 field goal attempts last season, while senior Donny Banks averaged 37.1 yards per punt in 2004. Ward will handle much of the return responsibilities after posting a pair of kickoff return touchdowns and a 28.0 average last season.

FOR OPENERS:
Since 1900, W&L is 55-49-1 (.529) in its season opening games. The Generals ended a streak of 15 straight season-opening losses with a 32-19 win over Hopkins during the 2000 season, but have dropped four straight openers since that win.

ON THE DEFENSIVE:
W&L featured a stingy defense last season and should continue that success again in 2005. The Generals return 10 players who started at least one game during the 2004 campaign, including a pair of First Team All-ODAC selections in senior defensive end Liam Murray and senior safety Stuart Swann. W&L set a school record with 43 sacks and ranked second nationally in rushing defense (67.5 ypg.) a season ago. The Generals also ranked among the national leaders in total defense (263.6 ypg.), scoring defense (15.7 ppg.) and turnover margin (+0.7 topg.).

CAN IT HAPPEN AGAIN?:
The Generals 6-4 overall mark last fall was the best season in 19 years. With 17 players returning who started at one point during the 2004 season, it appears as though W&L is on track for another winning campaign. The last time W&L had back-to-back winning seasons was 1994 (5-4) and 1995 (5-3-1). The Generals have not posted back-to-back seasons of at least six wins since 1984 (6-4) and 1985 (7-2).

CLIMBING THE CHARTS:
Senior quarterback Greg Tweardy is climbing the school's career passing charts. He ranks sixth (279) in career completions, eighth in career passing yards (2,737) and seventh in career passing touchdowns (19). Tweardy set school season records for completions (210) and attempts (346) last season.

-- GENERALS --