Game #12 2021 NCAA Division III Football Playoffs
No. 13 MUHLENBERG COLLEGE MULES

AT

No. 7 DELAWARE VALLEY UNIVERSITY AGGIES
Saturday, November 27 - 12 p.m. Robert A. Lipinski Field at James Work Memorial Stadium – Doylestown, Pa.

 
Broadcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xn0lzDlyNLM                  Live Stats: https://athletics.delval.edu/sidearmstats/football/summary                Twitter and Instagram: @dvuaggies

(Gordon Mann)

 

DOYLESTOWN (Pa.) – The second round of the 2021 NCAA Division III football playoffs kicks off on Saturday in Doylestown and will feature a rematch of the 2018 first round playoffs as the Delaware Valley University football welcomes local rival Muhlenberg College for a 12 p.m. kickoff at Robert A. Lipinski Field.

The Aggies finished the regular season ranked seventh in the nation according to the American Football Coaches' Association (AFCA) while the Mules ranked 13^th.

DelVal is a perfect 11-0 overall and earned the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) automatic qualifier with its fourth-straight conference championship. Muhlenberg, at 10-1 overall, reached the tournament by way of its third-straight Centennial Conference championship.

The last time these two teams met in the 2018 playoffs, the Aggies were 9-1 overall, ranked 13^th in the country, and coming off their second MAC Championship in a row. The Mules were 9-1 and had claimed a share of the Centennial Conference title.

DelVal raced out to a 13-0 first quarter lead, but Muhlenberg scored 17 unanswered points to earn the win.

The game was tied at 13-13 with 2:35 left in regulation as the Aggies punted the ball back to Muhlenberg. The DelVal defense forced a gutsy three-and-out and the offense took over at its own 10-yard line with 1:40 to play. The Aggies picked up three first downs to get near midfield but on 1^st-and-10, Mules sophomore cornerback Nick Sirico jumped an out-route on the far sideline and took an interception 65 yards the other way for a game-winning pick-six with 36 seconds remaining on the clock. Muhlenberg escaped with a thrilling 20-13 win and went on to advance past the second round before falling at Mount Union in the quarterfinals. 

Many of the players from that game, including Sirico, will be on the field this Saturday. Other notables include Muhlenberg quarterback Michael Hnatkowsky who was 14-of-35 for 286 yards passing with one touchdown and two interceptions in that game and DelVal defensive lineman Anthony Nobile who had 10 tackles including two tackles for loss as a first-year.

Overall, the Aggies and the Mules have met seven times on the gridiron with DelVal owning a 5-2 record.

DelVal is 12-9 in NCAA playoff games with a 10-6 mark on its home turf.

 

 
SCOUTING THE AGGIES

In its first round matchup against Anna Maria College, champions of the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference, DelVal football ran way with a 62-10 triumph at home. The Aggies trailed in the early going, 7-0, after surrendering an 88-yard touchdown return on the opening kickoff. However, they scored the next 21 points and closed the game with 41 unanswered as it cruised to the second round.

The Aggies racked up over 600 yards of total offense and held the AMCATS to under 60 yards rushing, and less than 50-percent passing, while forcing four interceptions. DelVal continued its balanced offensive approach with over 300 rushing yards on 42 attempts and 297 passing yards on 17 completions as it connected on big plays through the air.

For the year, the Aggies have outscored their opponents 443-67 with the offense averaging over 40 points per game with the defense holding opponents to just 6.09 points per showing.

Senior quarterback DaQuan Bohannan had his best showing of the season last week, totaling over 300 yards of offense. He completed 63.6% (14-of-22) of his pass attempts for 250 yards with two touchdowns and no turnovers. He added another two scores and 52 yards with his run game. For the season, Bohannan has thrown for 1,689 yards and 19 touchdowns with six interceptions and run for another 11 scores.

The offense as a whole averages 180.64 yards per game through the air and 222.8 rushing yards per game. They have posted 33 rushing touchdowns and 24 receiving scores.

Senior tailback Donte Simmons was named the MAC Offensive Player of the Year and became the first Aggie to eclipse 1,000 yards rushing in a season since 2017. He has 1,063 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns with an average of 5.8 yards per carry this year. In last week's game, he was asked to tote the ball just 13 times and went for 55 yards and two scores. He contributed in the receiving game with a nice 37-yard reception near the goal line.

First-year tailback Julian White is the team's second leading rusher this season with 47 carries for 456 yards, 9.5 yards per carry, and three touchdowns. He had his second 100-yard game with 101 yards on four carries including an 80-yard touchdown sprint in the third quarter.

Three different receivers caught a touchdown pass last week including the team's leading receiver Tahmir Barksdale who went for four catches and 73 yards against Anna Maria. He has 41 receptions this year for 437 yards and four touchdowns.

Nahsir Morgan hauled in his team-leading sixth touchdown catch of the season last game. He averages 20.3 yards per reception this year with 16 catches for 325 yards.

Senior Aaron Nelson returned to form last week with a game-high five catches and 86 yards including a highlight-reel, 42-yard touchdown reception.

Along with the consistent, balanced offensive attack, the identity of the 2021 Aggie football team has been the nation's top-ranked defense.

It entered the playoffs number one in total defense, run defense, and pass defense and is now ranked inside the top-10 in the nation in 16 different categories:

STAT	VALUE	NCAA RANK
Total Defense	99.5 ypg.	1st
Rush Defense	30.6 ypg.	1st
Pass Defense	82.2 ypg.	1st
First Downs Allowed	95	1st
Passing Efficiency Def.	61.55	1st
Scoring Defense	6.1 ppg.	1st
Defensive Touchdowns	5	3rd
3rd Down Defense	.175 opp. pct.	1st
Red Zone Defense	.308 opp. pct.	1st
4th Down Defense	.071 opp. pct	2nd
Turnovers Gained	32	3rd
Turnover Margin	1.73	2nd
Time of Possession	34:06	8th
Team Tackles for Loss	8.3 per game	8th
Fumbles Recovered	15	1st
Passes Intercepted	21	6th

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The unit has given up just six touchdowns all year and zero in the last five weeks. Over that time, the Aggies have outscored opponents, 184-13.

Defensive coordinator Nick Brady saw nine of his 11 starters named to All-MAC teams including Defensive Player of the Year Anthony Tedesco. In total, seven players earned first-team honors and another two were second-teamers.

Junior cornerback Jamir Prevard was one of the first-team honorees and he shined last week with three interceptions to up his season total to nine - the most by any player in Division III this year. Prevard is joined in the defensive backfield by another three all-MAC first-teamers and upperclassmen – cornerback Justin Harris, and safeties Blaine Netterman and Dontae Mason. The four players combined for 15 interceptions and 22 pass break-ups through 11 games.

Tedesco, the two-time first-team linebacker, leads the team with 77 tackles (32 solo) to go with 8.5 tackles for loss, three forced fumbles, four quarterback hurries, one fumble recovery and one interception this season. He is joined by seniors Aaron Mayers and Trent Fries who combined for 54 tackles, seven tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.

The defensive lined is anchored by first-team all-conference honorees, juniors Yusuf Aladinov and Anthony Nobile. Aladinov comes off the end for a team-high 19.5 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks to go with five fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles. Nobile will rotate inside and out and has 46 tackles this year, 9.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, 12 quarterback hurries, three fumble recoveries, a forced fumble and an interception. Another stalwart on the line is senior Shymere Vessels with 37 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks this year.

DelVal entered the playoffs ranked seventh in the country by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and ninth in the D3Football.com top-25. In the latest NCAA Region I rankings, the Aggies were the top team and only undefeated squad. 

Head coach Duke Greco owns a 70-11 overall record in seven seasons at the helm of his alma mater. He and his staff have reached the postseason every year with five NCAA berths, and two Centennial-MAC Bowl series championships.

 

SCOUTING THE MULES

Muhlenberg College football has appeared in the NCAA Playoffs each of the last three seasons and four times since 2014. In 2018, the team defeated Delaware Valley on the road before beating Randolph Macon at home and ultimately falling at Mount Union in the quarterfinals, 38-10.

The Mules appeared again in 2019 after an incredible undefeated regular season and historic run in the playoffs. Muhlenberg allowed only eight points in its three playoff wins, shutting out MIT (38-0) and Brockport (42-0) in the first two rounds. The Mules were the first team in the history of the Division III playoffs to record shutouts in the first two rounds and have outscored their three opponents 104-8 in that span.

In the national semifinals, Muhlenberg hosted a North Central squad that was coming off a 31-14 home win over the Aggies in the quarterfinals. The Mules trailed 38-7 before halftime and never challenged the Cardinals lead as they left with a 45-14 triumph, en route to the National Championship. 

This year's Muhlenberg team is 10-1 overall with its lone loss coming at home against conference foe Ursinus College in week three. The Mules out-gained the Bears 441-380 in total offense but turned the ball over four times as they were forced into three interceptions. 

Since then, Muhlenberg has won eight in a row and outscored opponents 333-78 with shutouts in each of its last two games. Last week, the Mules defeated Framingham State in their opening round game at home, 45-0. Senior quarterback Michael Hnatkowsky completed 27-of-36 passes for 352 yards and four touchdowns. The team managed just 68 total rush yards but found pay dirt twice via the ground game.

For the year, Muhlenberg's offense averages 40.3 points per game, 106.2 rushing yards per game, and 311.2 yards through the air per showing.

Hnatkowsky, the 2019 Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Year and all-region honoree is an extremely accurate passer and has been one of the best signal callers in the nation this year. He is third in Division III with 42 touchdown passes, fourth in completion percentage (72.7%), sixth in passing yards with 3,326, and fifth with a 181.8 passing efficiency.

His leading receiver is senior wideout Michael Feaster who has 87 receptions for 1,068 yards and 12 touchdowns. Feaster is averaging 97 yards per game. Fellow senior Daniel Mitch follows with 63 catches for 878 yards with 11 touchdowns and five other players have at least 10 receptions and a touchdown.

The ground game features two backs that average about 3.5 yards per carry each in Rory DeLuca and Ethan Brader. DeLuca has 129 carries for 463 yards and three touchdowns while Brader has 121 attempts for 415 yards and four touchdowns.

The Muhlenberg defense allows just over 12 points and over 250 yards per game. Teams have run for 82.7 yards per showing and thrown for another 169.3 yards per game. The Mules have forced 25 turnovers this year with 19 interceptions and six fumble recoveries.

Senior linebacker Spencer Kirin leads the unit with 83 tackles and two forced turnovers. Another senior linebacker, Pat Palmer, is the team's leader with 5.5 sacks to go with nine tackles for loss and 40 tackles this year. Senior defensive end Quentin Ogren has a team-high 11.5 tackles for loss with 4.5 sacks and 29 tackles this year.

Senior cornerback John Washington is a player to watch as he has five pass breakups, three interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery this year. Nick Sirico and Steve Sanders also roam the defensive backfield and have three interceptions apiece to their credit.

On special teams, the Mules have three returns for touchdowns. Tim Fitzpatrick has handled the majority of the punt return duties but its Spencer Kirin and Tim Higgins that have the return scores. John Washington has a team-high 12 kick return tries and averages 36 yards per attempt with a 96-yard touchdown return.

Sophomore Nick Stannard handles the kicking duties and is 7-for-8 on field goal attempts with a long of 35 yards, and 54-for-58 on PATs.

The rivalry renews this Saturday, November 27 at 12 p.m. at Robert A. Lipinski Field in Doylestown.