GETTYSBURG, Pa.  – This weekend's football game between Gettysburg College and Susquehanna University will feature two teams on the rise in the Centennial Conference, but before the fireworks begin the Bullets and Crusaders will come together for a common cause.
 
For the third consecutive season, the annual meeting between Gettysburg and Susquehanna will be a part of Coach to Cure MD, a nation-wide event that seeks to raise national awareness of the disorder and raise money to fund research for a cure.
 
Coach to Cure MD is a partnership between the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and Parent Project Dystrophy (PPMD), the largest national charity devoted exclusively to Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Duchenne is the most common fatal genetic disorder diagnosed during early childhood. A progressive muscle disorder that causes loss of muscle function and independence, Duchenne affects approximately one out of every 3,500 boys and 20,000 babies born each year worldwide.
 
For the third-straight year, twins Dayton and Blake Biesecker will join the team captains from both teams for the coin toss. Dayton and Blake, now age nine, were diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy at age six.
 
As for the game itself, Gettysburg (3-0, 2-0 CC) and Susquehanna (2-1, 1-1 CC) are coming off dramatic victories in conference play. The Bullets shocked Juniata College last Saturday, scoring the game-winning touchdown with just 19 seconds remaining in a 30-25 decision. The Crusaders overcame Dickinson College in the final minutes 42-35.
 
"I think it was good for us," said Gettysburg Head Coach Barry Streeter. "When push came to shove and we had to finish the game, we were able to do that."
 
Gettysburg received a number of major contributions. Senior Sam McDermott (Newtown, Pa./Notre Dame (N.J.)) threw for 349 yards and three touchdowns, while also rushing for a game-high 90 yards. Junior Jordan Kelso (Cookstown, N.J./Bordentown Regional) grabbed seven passes for a career-high 177 yards and two touchdowns, while senior Brian Calatozzo (Sewell, N.J./St. Augustine Prep) snared an interception for the third consecutive game.
 
"The greatest thing about football is there are so many variables and you have to have everybody on the same page," said Streeter, who ranks seventh among active Division III coaches with 186 wins. "It's the ultimate team game. We have a lot of work to do,  but that game by winning it on the last play does a lot for you from a confidence standpoint and from a belief standpoint."
 
One important piece to the puzzle this fall has been the production of the offensive line. Despite losing the majority of the starting line to graduation last year, the Bullets front five have been solid. Gettysburg leads the Centennial Conference in rushing at nearly 300 yards per game and the squad has surrendered just three sacks.
 
"We had three new starters this year including myself," said senior left tackle Pierce Frauenheim (Bound Brook, N.J./Immaculata), whose 32-yard touchdown run against Juniata earned Play of the Week recognition from D3Football.com. "We're going to put our hands in the dirt every play and open up holes for the running backs and quarterback."
 
The Bullets face a Susquehanna team that has already equaled its win total from all of last season. The Crusaders bounced back from a 59-7 loss to Johns Hopkins University with an impressive showing against Dickinson. Susquehanna posted 436 total yards of total offense with sophomore quarterback Nick Crusco accounting for all six touchdowns. Crusco was named the CC Offensive Player of the Week.
 
"They're much improved," noted Streeter. "They run well on defense and they blitz about 90 percent of the time. On offense they're talented. We knew their quarterback could play. He threw well against us as a freshman last year. They may be the best team we've faced so far. They play with a lot of emotion and they play hard."
 
Gettysburg holds an 8-3-1 lead in the all-time series. Since Susquehanna joined the Centennial Conference in 2010, the Bullets have won four of five meetings, including last season's showdown in Selinsgrove 31-21.
 
"Susquehanna is always a tough game," said Frauenheim. "They're not going to give us anything easy. We're going to have to go to work all week, watch film, and get ready for them. They're going to come ready to play."
 
Saturday's opening kick-off is set for 1 p.m. at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.
 

OPENING KICKOFF
Gettysburg and Susquehanna meet for the 13th time on the gridiron. The Bullets look to remain unbeaten, while the Crusaders aim to start their own winning streak.  
 
GAME COVERAGE
Saturday's game will feature live stats and live video courtesy of Stretch Internet. You can follow along on your computer or mobile device at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/gettysburg/.
 
THE COACHES
Barry Streeter enters his 37th season at the helm of Gettysburg's football program. Streeter is the longest-tenured active coach in Division III and his 186 wins place him seventh among active coaches. Streeter has led Gettysburg to three Centennial Conference championships (1983-85) and he has twice been named CC Coach of the Year. In 1985, he led the Bullets to the only undefeated regular season in school history (9-0-1) and an appearance in the national semifinals.
 
Tom Perkovich is in the midst of his first season at Susquehanna. Perkovich was an assistant coach at Muhlenberg for a combined 11 seasons, including each of the last nine. During that time he helped the Mules win five Centennial Conference titles and make six appearances in the NCAA Division III Championship. Perkovich was an assistant coach at Holy Cross and Colgate prior to returning to the Mules in 2006.
 
THE SERIES
Gettysburg has won eight of 12 meetings with Susquehanna. The series dates all the way back to 1897, but the teams did not face each other from 1923-2009. The rivalry renewed in 2010 when Susquehanna joined the Centennial Conference. Since then, the Bullets have enjoyed a 4-1 edge.

 

LAST MEETING
The Bullets put up a season-high 323 rushing yards in a 31-21 win over Susquehanna last season. Tied 14-14 at the end of the first half, Gettysburg opened an advantage on a seven-yard touchdown run by Kyle Wigley '16 (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) to start the third quarter. The Bullets added a field goal later in the frame before a score by the Crusaders cut the lead to 24-21. Gettysburg closed the game by holding the hosts scoreless in the fourth quarter, while picking up another touchdown. Wigley piled up 150 yards on 21 carries and added 35 yards on two receptions. Quarterback Zach Miller '15 finished 14-of-21 for 148 yards and carried the ball 17 times for 77 yards. Kodie McNamara '16 (Manasquan, N.J./Manasquan) totaled nine tackles and Chris Miller '17 (Manasquan, N.J./Manasquan) posted seven stops and an interception. Nick Crusco posted 336 yards passing and two touchdowns for Susquehanna. 
 
LAST TIME OUT
Freshman Tyler Frazee (Hopewell, N.J./South Hunterdon) hauled in a 39-yard touchdown reception with 19 seconds left to lift Gettysburg past Juniata 30-25 last Saturday. Gettysburg jumped out in front 17-0 to start the game, highlighted by a 32-yard touchdown run by senior left tackle Pierce Frauenheim (Bound Brook, N.J./Immaculata) in the second quarter. The Eagles closed the gap to 24-19 at halftime. In the second half, Juniata took its first lead of the game on a 39-yard field goal with 1:08 remaining. Senior quarterback Sam McDermott (Newtown, Pa./Notre Dame (N.J.)) started the game-winning drive with a 14-yard rush before finding classmate Brandon Sparks (New Hope, Pa./Central Bucks East) for an 18-yard reception. On third down, McDermott found Frazee racing past the defenders for the game-winning TD. McDermott finished with 439 yards of total offense, totaling 349 through the air and another 90 on the ground. Junior Jordan Kelso (Cookstown, N.J./Bordentown Regional) reeled in seven catches for a career-high 177 yards and two touchdowns. Senior Kodie McNamara managed a dozen stops, while senior Brian Calatozzo (Sewell, N.J./St. Augustine Prep) picked off a pass for the third-straight outing.
 
SCOUTING SUSQUEHANNA
Sophomore quarterback Nick Crusco accounted for all six touchdowns in a 42-35 win over Dickinson last weekend. Tied at 35 late in the fourth quarter, Crusco carried the ball across the goal line for the winning score with two minutes left. Sophomore linebacker Joe Scaglia picked off Dickinson's first pass on the ensuing drive to seal the victory. Crusco finished with 287 yards passing and three touchdowns, while adding 65 yards rushing and three more scores. His performance earned him Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week recognition this week. Sophomore Patrick Cutillo posted 122 yards on 10 catches and sophomore Cameron Ott carried the ball 17 times for 75 yards. Senior Jim Barry totaled 17 tackles with one fumble recovery.
 
GETTYSBURG OFFENSE
Gettysburg put up more than 400 yards of total offense for the third consecutive week and the team ranks second overall in the Centennial at 538 yards per game. The Bullets pace the conference in passing yards per completion (17.2), rushing yards (892), rushing attempts (161), rushing yards per game (297.3), and yards per rush (5.5). Quarterback Sam McDermott is tied for the conference lead in both passing yards per game (240.7) and passing touchdowns (9). McDermott also ranks fourth in rushing yards per game (96.0), while senior Kyle Wigley sits second at 99.3. Junior Jordan Kelso rates second in the league with 85 receiving yards per game.

 

GETTYSBURG DEFENSE
The Bullets rank fourth in the conference in scoring defense at 16.7 points per game. The team has been solid against the run, holding foes to just 99.7 rushing yards per game, which ranks second in the conference. Gettysburg has surrendered only one rushing touchdown through its first three games. On third- and fourth-down situations, the Bullets have allowed opponents to succeed only 30 percent of the time. Senior linebacker Kodie McNamara ranks second in the conference with 13 tackles per game, while senior cornerback Brian Calatozzo paces the league with three interceptions.
 
GETTYSBURG SPECIAL TEAMS
Freshman Matt McFadden (Morristown, N.J./Morristown Beard) ranks third in the conference at 131.7 all-purpose yards per game. McFadden has racked up a conference-high 112 yards on punt returns. Senior Robby Fay (New Providence, N.J./New Providence) ranks second in the CC with 40.6 yards per punt. He's 2-of-4 on field goals and 7-of-9 on extra points.
 
OFFENSIVE DISPLAY
Senior Sam McDermott posted the fourth-highest total in program history with 439 yards of offense against Juniata. His 349 passing yards was the eight-highest mark at Gettysburg and he added 90 yards on the ground. McDermott's total was the most by a Bullet since Kyle Whitmoyer '12 put up 444 against Susquehanna in 2010.
 
RUSHING UP THE RANKS
Senior Kyle Wigley has climbed into 11th place on Gettysburg's career rushing list with 1,884 yards. He can crack the top 10 and pass current assistant coach and former All-American Kirby Scott '77 (1,890) with seven more yards.
 
BIG MAC ATTACK
Senior Kodie McNamara is flying up the career list for tackles. He currently ranks fourth in program history with 328 career stops. He needs six more to pass 2005 graduate Grant Acker. After Acker, McNamara will be chasing Hayes Reilly '82 (374) and Ryan Moore '02 (430).
 
GOING TO GOAL
Senior left tackle Pierce Frauenheim posted a 32-yard rushing touchdown against Juniata last week. The last offensive lineman to find the end zone was James Russell '08, who carried the ball in from seven yards against Franklin & Marshall in 2007. Russell did it twice in his career, adding a 19-yard touchdown run against Dickinson in 2006.
 
CAREER DAY
Junior wide receiver Jordan Kelso posted a career-high 177 receiving yards on seven catches against Juniata. He equaled his previous career-high game total on one catch with a 71-yard score in the second quarter. His final yardage total was the fifth-best receiving effort in program history.
 
PICK THREE
Senior Brian Calatozzo has posted interceptions in each of the first three games. The last Bullet to post interceptions in three consecutive outings was Ryan Moore '02 in 2001. Calatozzo now has nine career interceptions and one more would push him into the top 10 all-time at Gettysburg. 
 
GREAT SCOTT
Kirby Scott '77 has returned to his alma mater to serve as a volunteer assistant coach with the track and field and football programs. Scott was an All-American in both sports during his collegiate tenure. On the gridiron, he scored 10 touchdowns as a junior and followed that up with a school-record 932 yards rushing in 1976. Following graduation, Scott embarked on a 30-year career in the FBI. He was recently featured in last Sunday's edition of the Hanover Evening Sun.
 
HAPPY 50TH!
Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium is celebrating its 50th year of competition this season. With former President Dwight D. Eisenhower in attendance, the stadium was dedicated prior to the game against Bucknell on Sept. 25, 1965. The venue has witnessed the transition to NCAA Division III, the rise of the Centennial Conference, and dozens of conference titles. In addition to football, the field is the home venue for field hockey, men's lacrosse, and men's and women's track and field. In 2003, the field received a makeover and was named in honor of Dick Shirk '67, captain of the 1966 team that won the Lambert Memorial Cup as the best small college team in the East.