Week 3 • W&L (2-0) vs. Centre (3-0) • September 24, 2005 • 1:30 pm

LAST WEEK'S ODAC SCORES:
Bridgewater 56, Hanover 42
McDaniel 37, Catholic 36 (2 OT)
Shenandoah 20, Randolph-Macon 10
Averett 28, Guilford 21

SERIES INFO:
Time: 1:30 pm
Site: Wilson Field (7,000)
Series: CC leads 34-21-2
Last Meeting: 9/25/04 at CC (CC won 28-23)
First Meeting: 10/30/1897 at CC (W&L won 22-0)
Last W&L Win: 9/27/03 at W&L (23-17)
Last CC Win: 9/25/04 at CC (28-23)
Current Series Streak: CC +1
W&L vs. CC at W&L: 12-11-2
W&L vs. CC at CC: 8-20

THE SERIES:
W&L and Centre will be meeting for the 58th time, with the Colonels holding a 34-21-2 lead in the all-time series which began during the 1897 season.  Centre won the last meeting, 28-23, last season in Danville, Ky., and has won five of the last eight games played in Lexington.  W&L and Centre have met every season since 1955, tying with Sewanee and Hampden-Sydney as W&L’s longest continuous series against one opponent.

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 49-51-1 (.491) overall record and moved into second place on the W&L all-time wins list with the victory over Sewanee on Saturday. Miriello moved past Lee McLaughlin (1957-67), who posted a 48-43-4 overall mark. Gary Fallon holds down the top spot after claiming a 77-84-1 record from 1978-94. Centre is led by eighth-year Head Coach Andy Frye (Muskingum ‘81). Frye has logged a 43-30 (.589) career record with the Colonels and is 3-4 all-time against Washington and Lee. Miriello is 5-4-1 all-time against Centre.

ALL-TIME RECORD:
W&L has compiled a 433-478-39 (.476) 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 10, UOS 7; September 17, 2005 - Sewanee, Tenn.)
The Washington and Lee football team controlled the ball for nearly 37 of the game’s 60 minutes in defeating Sewanee, 10-7, on Saturday afternoon at McGee Field. The Generals opened the scoring with 6:45 remaining in the first quarter as junior placekicker Ben Long booted a 21-yard field goal. The Tigers (0-3) responded with a 7-yard touchdown run by running back Blake Mears with 4:22 remaining in the half, but W&L would again take the lead on a 2-yard touchdown strike from senior quarterback Greg Tweardy to sophomore wide receiver Jack Martin with 33 seconds remaining in the half. W&L had several scoring opportunities in the second half, but Tweardy was intercepted in the end zone on first-and-goal from the three yardline midway through the third quarter and Long had a 37-yard field goal blocked with 14:05 remaining in the game. However, the Generals’ defense would make the three-point lead hold up, allowing the Tigers just 154 yards of total offense on the day. Tweardy completed 20-of-32 passes for 152 yards and one touchdown, while Martin caught six passes for 64 yards and the one score. Junior wide receiver Colton Ward totaled 100 yards rushing and receiving, while sophomore running back Jordan Campbell carried 18 times for 59 yards. Junior defensive end Walker Williams led the defense with seven tackles and a forced fumble.

WHEN LAST WE MET:
(CC 28, W&L 23; September 25, 2004 - Danville, Ky.)
Senior quarterback Brian Behrendt completed 28-of-40 passes for a school-record 377 yards and three touchdowns and senior wide receiver David Crowley caught eight passes for a school-record 206 yards and two touchdowns to help lead the Centre College football team to a 28-23 win over Washington and Lee in Danville, Ky. The Generals took a 7-0 lead with 7:12 remaining in the first quarter on a 2-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Greg Tweardy to senior wide receiver Taylor Callaham. Centre evened the score at 7-7 just one minute into the second quarter on a 97-yard strike from Behrendt to Crowley. W&L scored the next 10 points on a 3-yard touchdown run by running back Michael Lackett and a 36-yard field goal by placekicker Ben Long with 6:08 left in the first half. The Colonels replied with 14 points in the final three minutes of the half for a 21-17 halftime lead. Centre extended its lead to 28-17 with 14:42 remaining in the fourth quarter on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Behrendt to Warren, but W&L closed to within 28-23 with 5:45 left on a 17-yard strike from Tweardy to Callaham. The two-point conversion failed producing the final score. Tweardy finished the game 18-of-34 for 234 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Callaham had eight receptions for 94 yards and two touchdowns, while Lackett rushed 22 times for 81 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, the Generals were led by safety Stuart Swann, who notched a team-high 11 tackles. Defensive end Liam Murray recorded 10 tackles, while defensive back Kyle Luby had five tackles and two of the Generals’ four sacks. For Centre, Warren rushed 20 times for 90 yards and a touchdown and caught eight balls for 81 yards and a touchdown. Taylor Holland made a team-high 10 tackles while seniors Jarrod Zywien and Nathan Fell chipped in with nine tackles apiece.

SCOUTING CENTRE:
Centre is 3-0 on the season following a 31-27 win over Rhodes on Saturday afternoon in Danville, Ky. The Colonels trailed 14-7 at the half, but exploded for 24 second-half points in taking the conference victory. Junior quarterback Kevin Phelps rushed for 133 yards and three touchdowns and completed 11-of-27 passes for 122 yards to lead the offense. The defense was paced by sophomore linebacker Matt Johnson, who totaled 11 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble. For the season, Phelps has rushed 40 times for 171 yards and a team-high five touchdowns. Junior tailback Nick Warren claims a team-best 203 rushing yards and one touchdown, while senior tailback Adam Blandford has 165 yards on just 26 carries. Through the air, Phelps has completed 30-of-62 attempts for 331 yards and two touchdowns while being intercepted three times. His favorite target is senior receiver Lou Brenner, who claims seven catches for 87 yards. Junior wideout Adam Clark has posted six catches for 102 yards and one score. Johnson has led the defense with 37 tackles and a pair of forced fumbles. Junior defensive end Michael Tribble has 24 tackles and a team-high two sacks.

DRIVE FOR THREE:
W&L enters its game with Centre looking to go 3-0 for the first time since starting 4-0 during the 2000 season. In 115 seasons of play, W&L has started out with a 3-0 mark on only 16 occasions and just once since 1963.

RECORD-BREAKING DAY:
A major reason behind the Generals high scoring output in a week one win over Alfred was the play of senior quarterback Greg Tweardy who completed 27-of-40 passes for 244 yards and a school-record five touchdowns. Tweardy's five TD's broke the record of four which was accomplished eight times by six different players since 1971. Tweardy currently ranks fifth all-time at W&L in career touchdown passes (25) and completions (326), and is seventh in career attempts (562). His 58.0 career completion rate also currently ranks as the highest total in school history. Tweardy was named the ODAC Offensive Player of the Week following his performance against Alfred.

JACK BE NIMBLE, JACK BE QUICK:
Tweardy's favorite target this season has been sophomore wide receiver Jack Martin. In the opener, Martin caught 10 passes for a career-high 159 yards and a school-record tying three touchdowns. Against Sewanee on Saturday, Martin snared six passes for 64 yards and another score. Martin currently ranks second in the ODAC in receptions per game (8.0 rpg.) and scoring (12.0 ppg.), and fourth in receiving yards per game (111.5 ypg.).

TAKEAWAY TIDBITS:
W&L has forced 10 turnovers in two games and leads the ODAC with a +3.00 turnover margin. The Generals forced seven turnovers against Alfred, including five interceptions. The seven turnovers were the most forced by a W&L team since 1991 when the Generals forced eight turnovers, including seven interceptions in a 27-12 win over Georgetown. W&L forced three more turnovers in the win over Sewanee on Saturday.

TICK-TOCK:
Time of possession can be a key factor in games, especially early in the season when the weather is warm. The Generals' 2-0 start has had many contributing factors, but none more than time of possession. Through two games, W&L has held the ball on offense for an average of 15:02 more than its' opponents (37:31 - 22:29).

RETURN TO SENDER:
The Generals have excelled in the return game through the first two games. W&L compiled 215 return yards against Alfred and added another 79 yards against Sewanee. The Generals lead the ODAC in punt returns (13.9 ypr.) and are fourth in kickoff returns (18.8 ypr.). Junior Colton Ward returned two kickoffs for touchdowns in 2004 and returned the opening kick of the 2005 season 66 yards. Since that return, teams have been employing the squib kickoff, cutting the Generals' kick return average but providing excellent field position. Freshman cornerback Stuart Sitterson has been terrific in the punt return game and ranks second in the ODAC with a 13.9 return average.

MORE SPECIAL TEAMS TALK:
Senior punter Donny Banks may rank last in the ODAC in punt average (32.5 ypp.), but his effectiveness through two games has played a major factor in the Generals' 2-0 start. Banks has pinned the opponent inside its 20 yardline six times with just one touchback. In the win over Sewanee, Banks pinned the Tigers inside their 20 on four occasions, including twice inside the five yardline. A 29-yard Banks' punt with 1:33 remaining in the game pinned the Tigers on their three yardline and provided the catalyst for the Generals' defense to hold on Sewanee's final possession.

W&L vs. THE SOUTHERN COLLEGIATE ATHLETIC CONFERENCE:
W&L sports a 60-67-3 (.473) all-time record against the current members of the SCAC. However, the Generals have taken 11 of the last 15 games against the SCAC, including a 10-7 win over Sewanee last Saturday. Below is a breakdown:

Centre (21-34-2)
DePauw (0-0)
Millsaps (0-0)
Rhodes (6-11-1)
Rose-Hulman (0-0)
Sewanee (33-22)
Trinity (0-0)

-- GENERALS --