Oct. 13, 2005

Complete Release in PDF Format

If you're looking for marbles, you can find them, all of them, in Dayton, Ohio this Saturday. That's where the biggest game this season in NCAA I-AA Mid-Major Football will take place at Welcome Stadium when the top-ranked University of Dayton Flyer football team takes on #2-ranked San Diego.

Dayton, 6-0, is the only undefeated team in NCAA Division I-AA Mid-Major football, and only one of two still perfect in all of I-AA. The Flyers are ranked #1 in all three mid-major rankings. San Diego is right behind at #2 in the rankings, with an impressive 5-1 record. The Toreros' most impressive win is a 17-14 win over Yale (the PFL's first-ever win over an Ivy League team), and its only loss is a 20-17 decision at Princeton.

The Flyers have been ranked at #1 at some point in every season since the Sports Network poll started in 2001.

Dayton and USD are tied for first in the PFL North after winning their respective league openers last week. Today's winner will hold its fate in its hands, with Dayton beating Drake last week, and the Toreros playing Drake next week.

UD is celebrating three significant milestones in the 2005 football season. Mike Kelly is coaching his 25th season as the Flyers' head coach, the 50th presentation of the Lt. Andy Zulli Memorial Trophy will occur next week on Senior Day, and the entire season will mark 100 years of varsity football at UD.

Last year, Dayton finished the 2004 football season 7-3. The Flyers' three losses were to Drake, San Diego and Yale, and all three were not decided until the final minute of the game.

UD's win at Drake clinched its 29th straight winning season, which is the best active streak among NCAA Division I teams. Florida State, who is currently 5-0, also came into the season with 28 straight winning seasons. Over the last ten years, UD has averaged 8.6 wins a season. The Flyers have won outright or shared the Pioneer Football League Championship eight times in the 12-year history of the league.

Flyer Facts...

*UD led all NCAA divisions in total defense last year. Dayton allowed just 263.1 yards a game in 2004. UD was also third in scoring defense, marking the fifth straight year the Flyers were in the top ten in Division I-AA in points allowed. Dayton is currently second in pass defense (112.5 yards a game), fourth in scoring defense (10.7) and fifth in pass efficiency defense (87.07).

*UD has not been shut out in 326 straight games, the best such active string in all of college football. The last team to shut out the Flyers was Marshall, 9-0, on October 16, 1976.

*Senior co-captain Ryan Winner has started 27 straight games at left offensive tackle for Dayton. He is the only three-year starter on the team.

*Between them, Dayton and San Diego are first in the PFL in all eight offensive and defensive team categories.

*Next week, UD will host Valparaiso on Senior Day, while San Diego hosts Drake. October 22 at San Diego.

Series Stuff...UD leads the series 10-2, but USD has won the last two games. The Toreros won last year in Jim Harbaugh's first season 38-35 on Nov. 6 in San Diego, and USD downed UD 41-30 on Nov. 8 in Dayton.

Coach Mike Kelly...Is in his 25th year as a head coach (all at Dayton), and has 228 wins. His 25 seasons as UD's head coach are the longest tenure in school history (College Football Hall of Famer Harry Baujan coached for 24 years at UD before becoming Director of Athletics). Kelly's .831 winning percentage (228-46-1) is the best among active NCAA Division I-AA coaches (min. five years head coach).

More Mike Kelly...Only three other active coaches at the Division I level--Florida State's Bobby Bowden (351), Penn State's Joe Paterno (343) and Albany's Bob Ford (205)--entered the 2005 season with more than 200 wins.

Even More Mike ...Mike Kelly was the Football Gazette NCAA Division I-AA Non-Scholarship and Pioneer Football League Coach of the Year in 1996, 1997 and 2001, the PFL Coach of the Year in 2000, and the Football Gazette's Coach of the Year in 2002. UD's win over Evansville in 1996 gave him 150 career wins, making him one of only four to reach 150 in his 16th season. The other three are certain College Football Hall of Famers -- Barry Switzer (2001 inductee), Tom Osborne (1998) and Joe Paterno (not in yet, but do you want to bet against him?). Kelly is UD's winningest football coach, having surpassed 1990 College Football Hall of Famer Harry Baujan back in 1993.

Coaching Experience...The Flyers are fortunate to have an experienced coaching staff with three of the coaches at UD for at least 25 seasons: Mike Kelly, Head Coach (Manchester '70), 25th season as head coach, 29th at UD Dave Whilding, Off. Coordinator/Quarterbacks (Earlham '71), 28th at UD Rick Chamberlin, Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers (Dayton '80), 26th at UD

Coincidence? I Think Not...Almost all (274, to be exact) of UD's NCAA-leading string of 326 games without being shutout have been with Dave Whilding coaching the Dayton quarterbacks. After coaching UD's defensive backs when he came to UD in 1977, Whilding moved over to the offensive side of the ball in 1981.

Six Football Flyers Join UD Hall of Fame...The 2005 football season is the University of Dayton's 100th anniversary season of football. To help commemorate this, six Flyer football players were inducted into the UD Athletic Hall of Fame on January 8. The 2005 Hall of Fame class brings the total membership in UD's Hall of Fame to 146. The new members are Jerry VanderHorst (1948-50), Leo Dillon (1968-70), Larry Nickels (1970-72), Mike Duvic (1986-89), Lou Loncar (1986-89) and Andy Pellegrino (1989-92).

PFL Power...The Flyers' 46-8 PFL record is the best in the 12-year history of the league. UD's eight league championships are more than the rest of the PFL combined.

Tops In I-AA Non-Scholarship...In the 12 years I-AA Non-Scholarship has been an option, UD has the best winning percentage (.809, 110-26) of the 22 schools playing at this level.

Welcome Mat...The UD Flyers moved to Welcome Stadium in 1974. The word "Welcome" implies hospitality, but Dayton has been anything but hospitable to its opponents at home. UD is 179-33-1 (.843) at home. The "Welcome" in Welcome Stadium is not a greeting, but honors the late Percival Welcome, longtime Director of Athletics for the Dayton Public Schools. UD has won 33 of its last 39 home games, and 18 of its last 19 road games.

Grab A Paint Brush...The University of Dayton, Dayton Public Schools and the Dayton-Montgomery County Port Authority have signed a letter of agreement to work together to renovate Welcome Stadium. Thanks to the agreement, the Port Authority was able to acquire #1 million from the State of Ohio in this fiscal year, and potentially another $1million in the next. Safety improvements, painting and new seating are scheduled to happen in the program's first phase, with a new FieldTurf playing surface and a new press box to follow.

Ranking Run...Dayton is ranked again #1 this week in the Sports Network poll. The Flyers have been ranked first in the Sports Network poll at least once in every year since the poll began in 2001. UD has been ranked either first or second in the Sports Network I-AA Mid-Major poll for 51 of a possible 60 weeks the Sports Network poll has been in existence. The Flyers have been #1 more than half of the time (32 of 60 weeks). UD is also first in this week's Football Gazette rankings and Dopke.com ratings.

Can't Spell Dayton Without The D...UD is ranked in the top ten of NCAA Division I-AA in pass defense (2nd, 112.5 yards a game), scoring defense (4th, 10.7 points a game) and pass efficiency defense (5th, 87.07). The Flyers are also ranked in scoring offense (3rd, 40.2 points a game), passing efficiency (3rd, 177.31), kickoff returns (4th, 26.1 yards per return) and total offense (7th, 473.3 yards a game). The Flyers have been in the top ten in scoring defense in each of the last five years.

PFL Numbers...UD is first or second in every important statistical category in the Pioneer Football League except rushing defense and turnover margin. UD leads in scoring offense (40.2), total offense (473.3), rushing offense (247.7), passing efficiency (177.3), pass defense (112.5), pass efficiency defense (87.1), kickoff return average (26.1) and kickoff coverage (43.9).

What Condition Their Condition Is In...UD has allowed only 643 yards in the second half so far in 2005, compared to 908 in the first half.

2005 Co-Captains Are...John Hoppe at linebacker (a Sports Network pre-season All-American), Steve Verhoff at tailback and Ryan Winner at offensive tackle (also a Sports Network pre-season All-American).

Who Needs Starters?...In the last five years, UD has finished in the top ten in Division I-AA in scoring defense. In those five years, coach Mike Kelly had the luxury of having a majority of his starters back the next season only once. UD returned six starters in 2002. In the other seasons Dayton had five back twice (2003 and 2000), four back once (2004) and three back once (2001). If history means anything, having three starters back will not be a problem for the Dayton defense in 2005.

QB Kevin...Redshirt sophomore quarterback Kevin Hoyng has started just six games in his UD career, and his first two starts resulted in the second- and third-best total offense efforts in UD football history (378 yards vs. Wittenberg and 328 vs. Tiffin, respectively) behind Kevin Johns' school-record 418 yards at San Diego in 1996. Hoyng is third in NCAA Division I-AA in passing efficiency (176.78) and is second in the PFL in total offense (267.2). Hoyng is also the top quarterback among the PFL's top ten rushers. Hoyng is eighth with an average of 55.3 yards a game and leads UD in rushing. He averages 4.5 yards a carry.

That Was Then, This Is Now...Kevin Hoyng has already surpassed his numbers for 2004. He had 826 yards in total offense last year, splitting time with the now-graduated Brandon Staley. Already this year, he has gained 1,603 yards and is on pace to set break Steve Keller's school record (which was set in 14 games) by over 200 even UD's fourth-leading rusher (145 yards) even though he only has seven carries, one being a 61-yard TD run versus Wittenberg. His 46 catches last season more than doubled the number of receptions he had in 2003 in 11 games (19). The Detroit Central Catholic product had 46 of UD's 104 receptions (44.2%), 840 of UD's 1,520 receiving yards (55.3%) and six of the Flyers' nine aerial touchdowns (66.7%) last year.

Climbing The Charts...Ryan Wrobleski is within spitting distance of Pat Hugar's UD record for receiving yardage in a career (1,878 yards). Wrobleski is currently fourth with 1,714 yards. Just ahead is Bill Franks in third (1,767) and Tim Eubank in second (1,851).

#1 Is #2...Detroit native Ryan Wrobleski changed his number last season to #1, partially imitating the University of Michigan tradition of putting the team's top receiver in the #1 jersey. The other reason is more personal: When he first began playing peewee, he wore #1, and he likes the prospect of finishing his career as he started -- wearing #1.

Happy Jack...Jack O'Dell is what could be called a first-strike weapon in the Dayton offense. Literally. Against Wittenberg, he caught a 65-yard TD pass on Dayton's first play from scrimmage. At Morehead, he took the opening kickoff back 54 yards . Aside from three punts (with a 39.7 average, no less), O'Dell has touched the ball 19 times in 2005 (11 pass receptions, and eight kickoff returns) and is averaging 26.4 yards a touch. O'Dell's 11 catches have resulted in a 25.2 yards-per-catch average, and his 28.0 yard kickoff average leads the PFL and is 16th nationally.

Very, Very Verhoff...In the backfield, the Flyers return their top rusher for the first time since Jermaine Bailey came back for his senior season in 2002. Starting tailback Steve Verhoff, a 2005 captain, was UD's leading rusher last season. He gained 612 yards (3.8 yards per carry) in 10 starts, with four rushing touchdowns. He was named Second Team CoSIDA Academic All-America, First Team CoSIDA Academic All-District and Academic All-PFL. So far in 2005, Verhoff is second on the team in rushing (50 attempts, 218 yards, 4.4 yards per carry, 2 TD, 36.3 yards per game).

Elementary...Backup tailback Tim Watson is third on the team in rushing (56 carries, 215 yards, 3.8 yards per carry, two TD's and 35.8 yards a game). No better than fifth on the depth chart last year, a great spring moved him up to the regular rotation this season.

Full-Speed Fullback...Fullback Matt Marshall has only 14 carries in 2005, but his average yards per carry of 5.0 is indicative of what he brings to the UD backfield. The speedy Marshall led UD running backs last year with a 7.2 yards per carry average (35 rushes for 251 yards).

Goal-Line Thunder...Starting fullback Matt Mong (the "Thunder" of UD's Thunder and Lightning fullback tandem) scored three TD's in the season-opening win at Tiffin and already has six this year. Mong scored five rushing touchdowns in all of 2004. He has never been thrown for a loss in his college career.

The Winner Is...Offensive tackle Ryan Winner, a 2005 captain, is back for his third year in the starting lineup. He has started the last 27 games at left tackle for UD. The largest Flyer (6-foot-6, 294 pounds) has been a mainstay on a line that has bulldozed the way for 91 rushing touchdowns the last two-and-a-half seasons, compared to 20 for Flyer foes. He was First Team All-Pioneer Football League and selected an Honorable Mention All-American by the Football Gazette. He's also received some 2005 preseason accolades. The Sports Network picked him to be on its preseason All-America team, and I-AA.org Magazine chose Winner to be its preseason PFL Lineman of the Year.

Comeback Kid...Offensive guard Ross Mroczek came back after off-season knee surgery (he missed the last three games of 2004 after a severe knee injury) to be named UD's Offensive Player of the Week in the season-opening 38-0 win at Tiffin. Even with the injury, Mroczek was named UD's Most Improved Player in 2004.

To Serve And Protect...Offensive linemen have earned three of the first five UD Offensive Player of the Week Awards in 2005. Ross Mroczek was named after the Tiffin win, Adam Love was chosen following Austin Peay and Ryan "Bo" McNulty was tabbed after the Jacksonville win. The Flyer O-Line has plowed the way for a 5.0 yard-per-carry average this season.

You Know You Have Arrived When...Senior All-American tackle and captain Ryan Winner's family owns and operates a regionally-famous butcher shop, but he isn't the member of the Dayton offensive line who has a sandwich named after him. That honor goes to senior tackle Dan Fedyk, for whom the "Fedyk Dog" is named at Pug's Dog House near UD's campus. For the record, it's a hot dog with mustard, onions, chili, cheese and cole slaw.

I'm Your Dence-ity...Despite throwing the first incompletion of his college career in the Austin Peay win, backup quarterback Robert Dence is the highest-rated passer in the PFL. This season, Dence has competed six of seven passes for 83 yards and a QB rating of 185.3. One of the best athletes on the team, Dence is also one of the outside men in kickoff coverage for the Flyers, and was named Special Teams Player of the Week after the Jacksonville game.

Hoppily Stopping The Ballcarrier...The Dayton defense, led by senior linebacker John Hoppe, held Tiffin to just 87 yards in total offense, and to 56 yards rushing in 34 carries (1.6 avg.). The Dayton defense held Tiffin to minus-three yards in the third quarter. Hoppe led UD with 11 tackles (six solo), including two hits in the backfield. He also blocked a punt. For the year, Hoppe leads the Flyers in tackles (51), solo hits (28) and tackles in the backfield (6). Hoppe's 8.5 tackles a game is sixth in the PFL.

Dayton's Big Hoppe...Senior linebacker John Hoppe was named PFL and Football Gazette Defensive Player of the Week following the Jacksonville win. UD's answer to David Ortiz (it's most valuable hitter), Hoppe complimented his nine tackles in the game with some serious ball skill. He intercepted two passes, including one early in the third quarter that he returned 47 yards for the touchdown that ignited a 28-point third quarter to seal the win.

Start Me Up...Junior linebacker Brian Kelly has started the last two games in place of injured senior Pat Weale, and Kelly has turned in 20 tackles (13 vs. Jacksonville). He also recovered two fumbles at Drake. Kelly is second in overall tackles with 40.

Pickoff Artist..Junior cornerback Casey Klaus leads UD and is tied for third in the PFL in interceptions (3 on the season, 0.50 per game). Klaus led UD with nine hits vs. Austin Peay (five solo) with two passes batted down.

Paper or Plastic...Defensive end Scott Wintering's 2.5 sacks this year leads the team.

From Depth To Defense...Junior Marques Warner has moved from UD's deepest position (tailback) to defense, where he has proved to be a fast learner. Warner has moved up to #2 corner behind Chance Walton.

Putting The "Special" In Special Teams...UD has had 19 different players make at least one special teams tackle this season. Frank Kohstall leads with seven hits (three solo), and two others have six -- Marques Warner (5 solo) and Robert Dence (4 solo). Oddly, all three began their UD careers on the offensive side of the b all. Dence is still there as UD's #2 quarterback, while Warner moved from tailback to cornerback, and Kohstall moved from fullback to defensive end.

Our Man Hall...Sophomore punter Derek Hall's first two punts of the year were kicked out of bounds inside the ten-yard-line. For the season, he is averaging 37.0 yards a punt, with six of his 22 boots winding up inside the 20, and four more being fair caught.

Nick's New Stat...If you can "pre-board" an airplane, can you get a "pre-first down?" Nick Ruhe is doing just that, averaging 11.0 yards a punt return, second in the PFL.

The Cream Does Rise To The Top...UD's 2005 roster includes a number of what some might call "over-achievers." Fifty-three current Flyers were in the National Honor Society, and 92 were team captains in some sport.

Gotta Play Smart...The University of Dayton placed a league-best 10 players on the 2004 Academic All-Pioneer Football League team. Since the league's origin in 1993, over a quarter (113 of 410) of the PFL All-Academic selections have been Dayton Flyers. UD also had 46 players on the PFL Academic Honor Roll (3.0 GPA or better).

Hitting The Books...The University of Dayton had two football CoSIDA Academic All-Americans in 2004, matching the most from one school for the fourth straight year. UD had eight players named to the 2004 CoSIDA Academic All-District Team, which doubled any other team in the district (Kentucky had four). UD has had 43 football Academic All-Americans. Among schools currently playing Division I football, only Nebraska (80) and Notre Dame (44) have had more. UD has had at least one football player named Academic All-American in 13 of the last 14 years. Twelve Flyers were nominated for Academic All-America in each of the last two years (2003 and 2004).

Super Stat...When Jon Gruden coached the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to the Super Bowl championship in 2003, he became the second UD grad to coach a Super Bowl winner. Former UD co-captain and 1993 Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Chuck Noll won four Super Bowls (IX, X, XII. & XIV) as coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Noll started at center and linebacker for the Flyers and graduated from the University in 1953. Gruden played quarterback at Dayton and earned his degree in 1986. UD became only the third school to have two alumni coach Super Bowl winners. The others San Jose State, with grads Bill Walsh (XIV, XIX, XXIII) and Dick Vermeil (XXXIV), and Arkansas with grads Jimmy Johnson (XXVII, XXVIII) and Barry Switzer (XXX). Gruden is the youngest coach to win a Super Bowl, and Noll is the fourth-youngest. As a matter of fact, UD has ties to 18 Super Bowl rings. In addition to Noll's four and Gruden's one, five former members of Dayton coaching staff own a total of 13 Super Bowl rings between them. They are the late Len Fontes (New York Giants, Super Bowl XXI), Jon's father Jim Gruden (San Francisco 49ers, Super Bowls XXII & XXIV), John McVay (49ers, XVI, XIX, XXII, & XXIV), Tom Moore (Pittsburgh Steelers, XIII & XIV) and George Perles (Steelers, IX, X, XII & XIV). McVay was the Flyers' head coach from 1965-72. The other four were UD assistants.

Week#6...Dayton 25, Drake 17...For the second straight year, the football game between the University of Dayton and Drake University came down to one play, and for the second straight year, the road team won. Fortunately for the Dayton Flyers, the game was played in Iowa and UD took the exciting 25-17 come-from-behind win over Drake in Des Moines. What promised to be a high-scoring game on paper proved to be anything but on the field, as each team could only muster one first down in the first quarter, and UD took a 12-0 halftime lead. Drake scored the next 17 points to take a 17-12 lead with 11:31 left in the game. Up to that point, Drake had outgained the Flyers 145 to 11 in the second half, and UD's best sustained drive of the day was a mere eight plays for 37 yards to open the scoring. But Dayton has not earned the #1 ranking in NCAA Division I-AA M id-Major football without some backbone, and the Flyers showed what they were made of on the next two possessions, gaining 135 yards, and scoring a pair of TD's to make the score 25-17 with 1:13 to go. But the Dayton defense had to make one more stand. When Drake QB Connor Jostes' pass over the middle under pressure on the last play of the game was batted down by Casey Klaus to give Dayton the win. Klaus, a junior cornerback, was one of five UD players with at least seven tackles on the day. Dayton's other corner, Chance Walton, led with eight hits (seven solo) and a fumble recovery. Linebackers Brian Kelly and John Hoppe, Klaus and safety Brandon Cramer each had seven. Kelly also recovered two fumbles. Cramer forced two fumbles and broke up two passes, and Hoppe forced another fumble. Hoyng was 16 of 25 passing for 173 yards and two TD's. He also led UD in rushing, with 47 net yards on 20 carries. Verhoff had 43 yards on seven carries, Steve Watson added 29 yards on 12 attempts from the tailback position, and Mong's two touchdowns came on for carries for 14 yards. Ryan Wrobleski was the team's leading receiver (five catches for 52 yards).

Up Next...After San Diego, Dayton will remain home to meet Valparaiso on Senior Day. The Flyers will close the regular season on the road, playing at Davidson on October 29, and at Butler on November 5.