DOYLESTOWN (Pa.) – The newly crowned six-time Middle Atlantic Conference champion DelVal Football team looks to finish its sixth-consecutive undefeated conference slate when it hosts the Widener University Pride in the 41st playing of the Keystone Cup rivalry game. Kickoff is set for noon at James Work Memorial Stadium in Doylestown.
The Aggies are 8-1 overall this year with eight wins in a row in conference play. The eight wins extended the program's win-streak against MAC teams to 52, dating back to the 2016 campaign. It is the longest such streak in the 70-year history of MAC football.
Along with its sixth-straight conference championship, DelVal also earned its sixth-straight automatic bid to the NCAA playoffs that will begin on Saturday, November 18th. The Aggies will learn who and where they play in the first round during the NCAA Division III selection show at 5 p.m. on Sunday, November 12. The selection show will air on ncaa.com.
In the latest national polls, DelVal moved up one spot to number 24 in the D3football.com top 25, but fell on spot to number 25 in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Coaches' Poll. In the latest regional rankings released by the NCAA on Wednesday, the Aggies ranked second of seven teams that included two other MAC programs in Widener (#6) and King's (#7).
Region I rankings from NCAA.com, released Wednesday, November 8:
Rank School Overall Record
1 Springfield 8-1
2 Delaware Valley 8-1
3 Endicott 8-1
4 Salve Regina 7-2
5 Merchant Marine 6-2
6 Widener 7-2
7 King's (PA) 7-2
The regional rankings are used by the NCAA selection committee to help rank teams and determine at-large bids. For the NCAA playoff tournament, there are 28 automatic bids awarded to each winner of the 28 conferences, DelVal secured one of those bids by winning the MAC last week. The remaining four bids are at-large bids, commonly referred to as Pool C. There will be zero Pool B bids this year. Pool B is for teams who are independents or in conferences without automatic bids.
Since 2005, the 32-team NCAA tournament has been setup with four brackets and eight teams in each bracket. The brackets are set by the NCAA committee and grouped with geographical distance in mind. The NCAA reserves the right to seed the bracket in the interest of avoiding travel by airplane. If two schools are within 500 miles driving distance, the road team will travel by bus.
This week's game between the Aggies and the Pride pits the league's top-ranked offense against the top-ranked defense. Widener is scoring 34.7 points with 374.3 yards per game while DelVal's defense has allowed just 11.9 points and 210.1 yards per game. The Aggies are even better against conference opponents, as they surrender just 8.1 points and 184.6 yards per game. On the other side, Widener's numbers drop slightly when looking at conference-only games.
Tickets for all DelVal Football home games are $5 and must be purchased on-stie at the ticket booth outside the stadium. Ticket booths will open at 10 a.m. on Saturday. In addition, parking for all football games is $5 for all vehicles. All parking and ticket purchases are cash only.
If you cannot make it to the game, you can watch it live on MACtv at gomacsports.tv/delvalaggies with DelVal's own Gordon Mann on the call!
Live stats will be available via the official website of the Aggies – athletics.delval.edu/sidearmstats/football/summary.
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
Delaware Valley head coach Duke Greco '03 and his staff earned their 90th victory in just their 104th game last week. They own a .865 winning percentage including an 81-8 (.910) mark in regular season games.
The defense has pitched two shutouts this season, at home against King's and on the road at FDU-Florham. They have allowed just eight touchdowns in eight MAC games this season, four through the air and four on the ground. In conference play, the Aggies have permitted just 54.1 yards per game against the run, best in the league, and against the pass they allow 130.5 per game, third in the MAC.
The defense is also among the best teams in the country, ranking among the top-30 in the nation in 12 different categories:
CATEGORY NATIONAL RANK VALUE
Total Defense (238 ranked) T-5th 210 yards per game
Scoring Defense (238 ranked) 15th 11.9 points per game
Rushing Defense (238 ranked) 26th 79 yards per game
Passing Yards Allowed (238 ranked) 9th 131 yards per game
Team Passing Efficiency Defense (238 ranked) 28th 102.27
Team Sacks (238 ranked) 4th 3.56 sacks per game
Team Tackles for Loss (238 ranked) 26th 7.8 TFL per game
Red Zone Defense (238 ranked) 9th 0.556 opp. pct.
Frist Downs Allowed 28th 130
3rd Down Conversion Pct Defense (238 ranked) 11th 0.264 opp. pct.
4th Down Conversion Pct Defense (238 ranked) 23rd 0.292 opp. pct.
Blocked Punts (58 ranked) 4th 4
In last week's win at Misericordia, the Aggies allowed just 48 yards rushing and 111 yards passing, holding the Cougars to 3.4 yards per play. Shaun Balkcom and Anthony Puntolillo led the way with six tackles apiece and Jacquez Mabin had two tackles for loss.
Mabin, a junior, is third in all of Division III with 19 tackles for loss and fifth with 11 sacks from his defensive end position. He is tied-second on the team in tackles with 65. Puntolillo, the senior linebacker, joins Mabin with 65 tackles this season and is second on the team with 6.5 sacks to go with 8.5 TFl and a team-best four forced turnovers including two interceptions. Nick Chapman, another senior linebacker, paces the unit with 76 tackles including 11.5 TFL to go with six quarterback hurries. Rounding out the senior group of linebackers is Ahmad Jones who brings 49 tackles, 6.5 TLF, and three sacks to go with an interception and a forced fumble. Balkcom, a junior on the defensive line has 9.5 TFL and five sacks to his credit this year.
The DelVal offense has found success using a potent run game to set up an explosive passing attack this season. The team ranks 36th in all of Division III in rushing offense with 202.5 yards per game and their 16.33 yards per completion is 15th among 238 teams in the nation. They have eclipsed 200 yards rushing in six games and have totaled 22 rushing touchdowns. After first team all-conference running back Jay White went down with an injury in week four, sophomore Jack Fallon stepped in and has averaged 72.2 yards per game with a team-high 10 touchdowns. Fallon also has 10 receptions for 92 yards this year.
Junior quarterback Louie Barrios IV is a dual threat as he has 98 carries for 452 yards this season including a long burst of 40 yards. Through the air he has 981 yards and six touchdowns to five interceptions. Luan Avdijaj and Ryan Loughlin are the team's leading receivers. Avdijaj averages 20.6 yards per catch with 12 receptions and three touchdowns. Loughlin, the senior, has a team-high 14 receptions with one touchdown and 14.9 yards per competition. In total, nine different players have a receiving touchdown for DelVal this year.
On special teams, Nick Arcaroli averages 35.5 yards on 26 punts and has pinned the opponent inside their own 20 on 10 occasions with a long of 50 yards. First-year Mike Bartley is 1-for-3 on field goal attempts with a make from 38 yards and is 19-for-21 on PAT kicks.
SCOUTING THE PRIDE
Head coach Mike Barainyak, a 2010 graduate of Delaware Valley and former assistant coach with the Aggies, is in his fifth season at the helm of the Pride and owns a 15-16 overall record in that time.
Widener is 7-2 this season with consecutive losses coming at Stevenson and home against Lebanon Valley. The Mustangs cruised to a 49-7 triumph over the Pride while the Dutchmen outlasted the Pride in double overtime to steal a 27-24 win. Sinc then, Widener has won four straight including a 42-10 victory over Easter at home last week. Quarterback Chase Diehl completed 24-of-39 passes for 310 yards and three touchdowns and Isaac Hostetter caught eight passes for 143 yards and two scores to lead the Pride to the victory.
Diehl, a graduate student, leads the MAC in passing touchdowns this season with 17 and his 1,676 yards ranks second. He completes 48.9-percent of his passes and has eight interceptions against. Diehl has been sacked 24 times through nine games and has negative net rushing yards this season on 52 credited runs. Senior wideout Jordan Baxter has been his favorite target this year and averages 20.7 yards per catch on 31 receptions with two scores. Hostetter, the junior wide out, has nine receiving touchdowns and 594 yards on 32 receptions this year. Zack Vanscovich is another player to watch as he has 28 receptions for 408 yards and three scores. Damique Stokes, another junior wide receiver is a target in the red zone as six of his nine receptions have gone for touchdowns.
Graduate student Shawn Thompson is the bell-cow back with 152 carries this season for 683 yards and six touchdowns. Senior Bryce Casey has four rushing touchdowns and is averaging 4.8 yards per carry.
Against the Pride, opponents are going for 110.1 yards per game on the ground and 166.2 yards through the air. Among the MAC, they rank fourth against the run and sixth against the pass. Jalen Walker, a junior defensive end, has 11 tackles for loss and six sacks this season while linebacker Colin Murt has a team-best 76 tackles to go with 6.5 tackles for loss, and two interceptions. Widener leads the MAC with 21 interceptions this season and three players with three or more. Joshua Slater, a sophomore defensive back has three to go with nine pass breakups, and senior linebacker Sean Reynolds also has three interceptions to go with two blocked kicks.
On special teams, AJ Celona averages 34.3 yards per punt with a long of 52 yards and 11 inside the opponent 20 yard line. Ryan Pattison is 9-for-10 on field goals with a long of 47 and three makes of more than 40 yards. The Pride have returned two punts for touchdowns.
