MOUNTAINEER FOOTBALL

2005

Game 11

Mansfield

at

Coastal Carolina

The Game

The Mountaineers will travel to nationally ranked Coastal Carolina University in South Carolina to take on the Division I AA Chanticleers Saturday afternoon. The kickoff is slated for 12:30 pm at Brooks Stadium in Conway, South Carolina.

This game serves as the last regular season game for the Mountaineers and is Coastal Carolina's Senior game.

Mansfield is the only NCAA Division II team in the nation playing a regular season game this Saturday. It also marks the fourth time in the past five weeks the Mountaineers have faced a nationally ranked opponent.

The Broadcast

 The game will be broadcast live on the Mountaineer Sports Network by WNTE 89.5 FM. The broadcast will also be carried live on the internet on both the Mansfield University sports homepage (sports.mansfield.edu, or www.mansfield.edu and go to sports) and MSA Sports Network (www.msasportsnetwork.com). Pre-game coverage will start at 12:15 pm with Darrin Denmon providing the play-by-play and color by Jonathan Schwab.

Last Week

The Mountaineers are 1-9 overall and finished 1-5 in the PSAC East after a 57-20 setback last week against #18 East Stroudsburg University. Mansfield played solidly through the first half, managing a 20-17 lead at halftime.

At East Stroudsburg, freshman quarterback John Hengehold turned in another impressive performance, becoming the first freshman in school history to pass for over 2,300 yards in a season. Hengehold completed 23-of-35 attempts for 282 yards and three touchdowns. He improved on his school freshman records for passing yards (2,303) and touchdowns (21). Poohbear McNeal rushed for 128 yards on 31 carries and caught six passes for 44 yards. McNeal became only the second player in school history to have multiple seasons over the 1000 yard rushing mark. Ozzie Mathis had seven catches for 80 yards and two touchdowns. Tyrone Robinson had a 71 yard touchdown reception and Rodney Davis pulled in 10 passes for 64 yards.

Junior linebacker Andre Turner had 12 tackles including eight solo to lead the defense. Ronnie Montgomery was credited with six stops, all of them solo and Jon Mattis and Jason Zeigler recorded five each.

Coastal Carolina defeated Savannah State by a score of 42-16 last week. They moved to 8-1 overall on the season and guaranteed themselves a share of their conference title.

The Series

This game will be the first contest between Mansfield and Coastal Carolina, as these two teams have never met on the field before. It is the Mountaineers first game against a NCAA Division I-AA opponent.

The Coaches

Jim Shiffer is in his second year at the helm of his alma mater where he has posted a 2-18 overall record. Shiffer was an outstanding offensive lineman for the Mountaineers in the last 1980s where he earned the coveted Frank Butsko Award. David Bennett is in his 3rd season at Coastal Carolina where he has posted a 24-7 record in the programs three year history.

About the Mountaineers

Current PSAC Rankings   

Offense -- Scoring (10th, 19.1 ppg), Total Offense (7th, 366.3 ypg), Passing Offense (2nd, 247.5 ypg), Rushing Offense (10th, 118.8 ypg) 

 Defense -- Scoring (14th, 42.1 ppg), Total Defense (14th, 498.1 ypg), Passing Defense (14th, 234.5 ypg), Rushing Defense (14th, 263.6 ypg)

The Mountaineers have been solid on offense through their first ten games of the season, but have struggled defensively over much of the season. Mansfield finishes the regular season conference play second in the 14 team PSAC in passing offense averaging 247.5 yards per game and seventh in the conference in total offense (366.3 ypg). Defensively, the team ranks 14^th in total defense giving up an average of 498.1 yards including 263.6 yards on the ground per game.

Poohbear McNeal continues to be one of the top offensive threats in the nation, ranking sixth in the PSAC in rushing (108.2 ypg) and fifth in all-purpose yardage (163.8 ypg). John Hengehold is second in the conference in passing averaging 230.3 yards per game and second in touchdown passes (21). 24 of Mansfield's 29 touchdowns this season are passing TD's. Freshman Rodney Davis is second in the PSAC in receptions per game (5.8) and fourth in receiving yards per game (70.5). Davis now has 58 catches for 705 yards and six touchdowns on the season. Tyrone Robinson has caught 34 passes for 508 yards and five touchdowns while Ozzie Mathis has 31 receptions for 439 yards and seven TD’s. Jeff Tanner has caught 24 passes for 321 yards and two touchdowns on the season.

Nationally, the Mountaineer offense ranks 29th in the NCAA Division II in passing averaging 247.5 yards per game. Poohbear McNeal ranks 34th in the nation in rushing averaging 108.8 yards per game. McNeal ranks 18th in the nation in all purpose yardage averaging 163.8 yards per game.

Andre Turner leads the defense and ranks among the leaders in the PSAC in tackles with 84. Ryan Kassak (72), Keith Slezak (66), and Jason Zeigler (64) also rank among the conference leaders in tackles. Zeigler and Wes Bair also rank among conference leaders in forced fumbles. Marc Hunsberger has 55 stops along with a team high five sacks. C.J. Okogeri has 48 tackles on the year.

Junior punter Brandon Fields is ranked fifth in the PSAC in punting, averaging 37.6 yards per boot.

Records Watch

McNeal now has 3589 rushing yards in his career and has taken control of the all time rushing record.

McNeal has also moved into second in the record books for all purpose yardage. He currently has 4,995 all purpose yards in his career and trails Mike Kemp (1973 - 1976) by 285 yards. Kemp holds the record with 5,280 yards. McNeal has scored 30 touchdowns in his career and trails Robert Funderburke (33 - 1983-86) by three touchdowns.

John Hengehold becomes just the fourth quarterback to pass for more than 2,300 yards in a season with 2,303 yards and one game remaining. Hengehold is 67 yards away from being third in the record books, and 80 from second.  Bryan Woodworth holds the school record with 2,719 passing yards in 1994 with Travis Motley passing for 2383 in 2002. Bill Bair surpassed the 2,000 mark three straight years (2307 – 1992; 2253 – 1991; 2370 – 1990).

Hengehold is one touchdown pass away from Travis Motley's school record 22 touchdown passes in a season. He is also only 12 completions away from taking over the most completions in a season record. Hengehold has 184 completions; the record shared by Bair and Motley is 196 completions.

Rodney Davis now has 58 catches on the season and needs only three more to surpass Mark Doherty (61 - 1994) atop the record books.

Ronnie Montgomery, after spending a large portion of the season out with an injury, still has a chance at taking over the all time leading kickoff return yardage record. Montgomery currently has 1873 yards and will need 64 yards in his final game to overtake John Miller (1937 - 1990-93)

About the Chanticleers

Coastal Carolina University is a member of the Big South Conference and the NCAA Division I AA. They are currently ranked in the ESPN/USA Today Poll.

Coastal Carolina University inaugurated their football program in 2003 with a winning record 6-5 season. Last year, the Chanticleers went 10-1 overall and 4-0 in the Big South Conference to win the league title.

Thus far this season, the Chanticleers are 8-1 overall and are currently undefeated in conference play.

Coastal Carolina is led by junior quarterback Tyler Thigpen, a threat on the ground as well as in the air. Thigpen is 119-for-217 with 1414 yards and 10 touchdowns on the season. Thigpen is also the Canticleers number two rusher, averaging 41.8 yards per game on the ground. Joining the offensive attack are receivers Jerome Simpson, Chris Noble, and Santini Washington. Simpson leads the team in receptions with 30 catches and nine touchdowns.

The Chanticleers offense averages 341.7 yards per game including an average of 180.1 rushing yards per game.

The CCU defense is led by Jamar Leath who has 94 tackles and three sacks on the season. Maurice Simpkins (74), Quinton Teal, and Anthony Steele (53) are also among the team's defensive leaders.

Coastal Carolina's defense gives up an average of 354.6 yards per game including 160.1 rushing yards per game and 194.4 passing yards per game.