Sept. 6, 2001
Washington & Lee (0-0) at Johns Hopkins (0-0) Homewood Field o September 8, 2001 o Noon
The Game: Johns Hopkins (0-0) opens its 117th season of football against Washington & Lee (0-0). Game time at Johns Hopkins' Homewood Field is set for noon on Saturday, September 8.
The Teams: Johns Hopkins and Washington & Lee posted identical 5-5 records last season. Both teams got off to quick starts, only to struggle down the stretch. The Blue Jays dropped three of their last four, while the Generals dropped five of their last six after getting off to a 4-0 start for the first time since 1961.
Note of the Day: Jim Margraff can become the all-time winningest coach in school history with a win over Washington & Lee.
The Coaches: Johns Hopkins is coached by Jim Margraff (Johns Hopkins '82), who is entering his 12th season as the head coach at Homewood. Margraff is currently tied with Dr. Ray Van Orman as the winningest football coaches in school history. Van Orman compiled a record of 60-64-7 from 1920-35, while Margraff enters the season-opener against Washington & Lee with an overall record of 60-47-3 in 11 seasons. Margraff guided the Blue Jays to a school-record-tying seven wins in 1996, 1997, and 1998 to record the winningest three-year period in school history. Margraff's .559 winning percentage ranks third among JHU coaches who have coached 20 or more games. In addition to needing just one win to become the all-time winningest coach in school history, Margraff also ranks third on the all-time Centennial Conference (CC games only) victory list (43-31-2) and seventh on the all-time winning percentage list among Centennial coaches (CC games only) (.579).
Frank Miriello is now in his seventh season as the head coach at Washington & Lee and enters the season with a record of 28-30-1/.480. Miriello already ranks as the fourth-winningest coach in W&L history and will move into third on the all-time list with four wins this season.
Series Information: o W&L leads the all-time series, 6-4-1.
o Johns Hopkins has won three of the four meetings since the series resumed in 1997. The Blue Jays won 34-28 in 1997, 43-23 in 1998, and 31-14 in 1999 before W&L took a 32-19 decision last season.
o The 43 points the Blue Jays scored in 1998 against the Generals were the most ever for a Johns Hopkins team in a season opener.
o Prior to exploding for 31 or more points in the three meetings from 1997-99, Hopkins had been held to 13 points or less in each of the first seven games in the series.
Scouting the Generals: Washington & Lee enters the 2001 season with a solid nucleus of returning players and several question marks that need to be answered. With senior RB Marc Watson and senior LB Jeff Bahl leading the way, the Generals have two of the premier players in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference back in the fold. At the same time, W&L will enter the season without a proven quarterback and starting wide receivers who combined for just 10 receptions last season. However, don't tell seventh year coach Frank Miriello that the Generals don't have what it takes to compete in the ODAC. After all, Watson is the reigning ODAC Player-of-the-Year and Bahl led the league in tackles last season. The biggest challenge facing Miriello and his staff will be putting together and quick start and a strong finish. Last season, the Generals started 4-0 before dropping 5-of-6. From 1996-99, W&L won 15 of the 21 games it played after October 15. Combining last season's start with the finish of previous seasons could put W&L in a position to challenge for its first ODAC title since 1985. Watson returns for a fifth season after setting school records with 1,325 yards rushing and 1,997 all-purpose yards last season. He enters his final season needing less than 600 yards to become W&L's all-time leading rusher. For Watson to succeed, Miriello will need either Peter Dean or Sean McGarvey to step up and take control of the offense. Dean, who is listed as the starter, is making the move to QB after playing defense last season. McGarvey saw action in five games last season, but completed less than 40% of his passes and threw five interceptions without throwing a touchdown. With the entire preseason to prepare, Miriello should have the passing game set by game time. Bahl's 108 stops led the ODAC and were 22 more than any other W&L player. He teams with junior Matt Stavish to give W&L perhaps the top linebacking tandem in the ODAC. Stavish finished second on the team with 86 tackles and added a team-high 18 tackles for losses. In addition to Bahl and Stavish, W&L returns two of three starters on the defensive line and two starters in the secondary. While there is no one area with all the starters returning, each area is experienced and balanced. Senior Brad Wiginton and sophomore Whit Whitfield will handle the place-kicking and punting chores, respectively. Wiginton already holds the school record for career extra points and is 11-of-16 on field goals, while Whitfield will be in his first season as the team's starting punter.
Margraff's Resurrection: Putting head coach Jim Margraff's resurrection of the Johns Hopkins football program in perspective takes only a quick look at the Hopkins record book. Since taking over as the head coach prior to the 1990 season, Margraff has guided JHU to seven winning seasons and 60 wins. The 60 wins are exactly as many as Hopkins accumulated in the previous 17 years combined (1973-89). During that time, Hopkins posted six winning seasons and won 60 games.
The Big Picture: Jim Margraff has been associated with Johns Hopkins football as a player (1978-81), assistant coach (1982), and head coach (1990-present). During his 16 years at Hopkins, the Blue Jays have won a total of 79 games. This represents over 20 percent of the all-time wins in program history (389).
Lucky Number Seven: Johns Hopkins has won a school-record seven games in a season eight times. Jim Margraff has been involved in a total of four of those eight seasons. As a senior quarterback in 1981, he led the Blue Jays to a 7-2 record, while he coached JHU to back-to-back-to-back 7-3 records from 1996-98.
Cradle of Coaches: Whenever Jim Margraff earns his next victory to become the all-time winningest football coach in school history, he will join a rather large fraternity at JHU. With one more win, Margraff will become the eighth active Johns Hopkins coach to stand as the winningest coach in their sport's history. He will join Bob Babb (baseball), Nancy Blank (women's basketball), George Kennedy (women's swimming), Bill Nelson (men's basketball), Dick Oles (men's fencing), Matt Smith (men's soccer), and Leo Weil (women's soccer).
Staff Additions: Margraff hired two new assistant football coaches during the off-season, as Frank Colaprete and Russell Wrenn both joined the staff. Colaprete will coach the defensive backs, while Wrenn will coach the outside linebackers. In addition, fourth-year assistant coach Keith Emery takes over as the defensive coordinator in place of Dan Rattay, who left Hopkins after six years to become the defensive coordinator at Georgetown.
Captain, My Captain: The Blue Jays selected two captains for the 2001 season. Senior RB Scott Martorana (Long Valley, NJ/W. Morris Central) and senior LB Marc Della Pia (West Caldwell, NJ/James Caldwell) were selected as team captains at the conclusion of two-a-day practices. Both are in their second years as captains as they shared the honor with now-graduated Greg Gorla last season.
You Look Familiar, Part I: First-year assistant coach Russell Wrenn will see some familiar faces on Saturday as he graduated from Washington & Lee in May, 2000 and spent two years on the General football team.
You Look Familiar, Part II: Junior DE Nick Loiacono (Tappan, NY/Tappan Zee) is in his first season with the Johns Hopkins football team after playing his first two years at Swarthmore. Loiacono transferred to Hopkins after Swarthmore dropped football last year. A Second Team All-Centennial performer a year ago, Loiacono is scheduled to start this Saturday against Washington & Lee. He could see a familiar face when he lines up as his former Swarthmore teammate Mat Rapoza is slated to start at left tackle for the Generals. Ironically, Loiacono and Rapoza played their last football game at Swarthmore against Washington & Lee last November.
It's All Academic: Senior RB Scott Martorana (Long Valley, NJ/W. Morris Central) and senior WR Zach Baylin (Wilmington, DE/Tatnall) return after earning First Team Verizon District II Academic All-America honors last season.
Point Production: Johns Hopkins scored 257 points last season, marking the fourth straight season the Blue Jays have scored 200 or more points. This marks the first time in school history JHU has scored 200 or more points in four straight seasons. In addition, the 257 points rank as the fourth-highest single-season total in school history. Below is a list of the top scoring seasons in school history.
Single-Season JHU Scoring Records 1. 306 points 1968 2. 288 points 1998 3. 268 points 1997 4. 257 points 2001 5. 248 points 1999 6. 246 points 1967
Star Quality: Johns Hopkins placed six players on the 2000 All-Centennial Conference football team, and all six return this season. On offense, the Blue Jays boast returning First Team All-CC picks in senior RB Scott Martorana (Long Valley, NJ/W. Morris Central)and senior WR Zach Baylin (Wilmington, DE/Tatnall). In addition, Second Team All-CC center Kevin Kostibos (Florham Park, NJ/Hanover Park) is back to anchor the Blue Jay offensive line, while senior QB Rob Heleniak (Philadelphia, PA/Germantown Academy) returns after earning Honorable Mention All-Centennial honors last season. Defensively, Second Team All-CC defensive end Erich Hellmold (Sayville, NY/Sayville) joins fellow second team honoree Craig Reinert (LB) (Manalapan, NJ/Manalapan). Add in transfer Nick Loiacono (Tappan, NY/Tappan Zee), who earned Second Team All-CC status as a defensive end at Swarthmore last season, and senior LB Marc Della Pia (West Caldwell, NJ/James Caldwell), who earned Honorable Mention All-Centennial honors as a sophomore, and the Blue Jays boast eight players who have earned all-conference honors during their career.
Baylin Returns As Centennial Leader, Again: Senior wide receiver Zach Baylin (Wilmington, DE/Tatnall) enjoyed one of the finest statistical seasons in school history in 1999 and was well represented among the final Centennial Conference leaders. All he did for an encore last season was lead the conference in receptions for the second consecutive season and earn First Team All-CC and First Team All-ECAC honors. Baylin paced the Blue Jays with 68 receptions for 683 yards and a school-record 12 touchdown receptions. Baylin's season also ranks among the all-time best in school history. His 68 receptions rank as the second-highest single-season total in school history and the most for a Hopkins receiver since 1981, when Bill Stromberg set the school record and led the nation with 78 receptions. Baylin enters the 2000 season with 133 career receptions, good for third place on the all-time list at Johns Hopkins. In addition, he is tied for fifth in career TD receptions (14) and ranks sixth in career receiving yards (1,393). A duplication of last season's numbers would make Baylin just the second player in school history to amass 200 receptions, 25 touchdown receptions, and 2,000 career receiving yards.
Martorana, Johnson Provide Solid One-Two Punch: Senior Scott Martorana (Long Valley, NJ/W. Morris Central) and junior Kevin Johnson (Baltimore, MD/City) provide the Blue Jays with perhaps the top one-two punch at running back in the Centennial Conference. Despite missing four full games and not carrying the ball in another, Martorana rushed for a team-high 678 yards and eight touchdowns last season, while also averaging a staggering 195.7 all-purpose yards per game. His return to full health gives the Blue Jays an outstanding rushing-receiving threat out of the backfield. Johnson appears set for a breakout campaign after rushing for 394 yards last season. Johnson has quietly amassed over 800 rushing yards in the last two years and should become the 17th JHU running back to top 1,000 career rushing yards since (1955 when statistics first became available).
Heleniak Returns at QB: Senior QB Rob Heleniak (Philadelphia, PA/Germantown Academy) enters his final season with a chance to become just the third Johns Hopkins quarterback to amass over 4,000 career passing yards and 40 touchdown passes. Last season, Heleniak was 126-of-209 for 1,597 yards and 17 TDs against just five interceptions. He missed the last three games of the season with an injury.
Hellmold Leads Strong DL: Senior DE Erich Hellmold (Sayville, NY/Sayville) a two-time Second Team All- Centennial selection, returns to lead what should be a talented defensive line. Hellmold posted a career-high 43 tackles last season and led the team with 12 tackles for losses and 6.0 sacks. Senior Adam Seidman (Ramsey, NJ/Ramsey) and junior Nick Loiacono (Tappan, NY/Tappan Zee) join Hellmold at defensive end and the trio should form a solid rotation. Seidman finished fifth on the team with 36 tackles from his linebacker spot, while Loiacono is coming off a season in which he garnered Second Team All-CC honors at Swarthmore. Inside, junior Pat Doyle (Wilkes Barre, PA/Bishop Hoban) and sophomore Paul Smith (Lafayette, NJ/Sparta) will start at tackle and nose guard, respectively. Doyle posted 26 tackles, including four for losses, while Smith led all JHU freshmen with 22 tackles, including 5.5 for losses and three sacks.
Trio of Returning Starters Bolster LBs: Seniors Marc Della Pia (West Caldwell, NJ/James Caldwell) and Craig Reinert (Manalapan, NJ/Manalapan) and junior Mike Little (Red Bank, NJ/Middletown South) return this season and provide the Blue Jays with an experienced and talented group of starting linebackers. Della Pia and Little will handle the inside linebacker spots in the Blue Jays' revamped 4-4 defensive scheme. Della Pia led the team in tackles for the second straight season last year as he posted 68 stops on the year. Little took advantage of his increased playing time last season as he finished second on the team in tackles (65) and tackles for losses (9.5). Reinert posted a career-high 34 tackles en route to garnering Second Team All-CC honors last season and will start on the outside. Sophomore Paul Longo (Kensington, MD/Bethesda-Chevy Chase) has enjoyed an outstanding preseason camp and is listed as the other starter on the outside.
Angelosante Leads Secondary: Seniors Joe Angelosante (Ridgefield Park, NJ/Ridgefield Park) and Mike Halas (White Plains, NY/Hackley) will start at cornerback and sophomore Jonas Nelson (East Berlin, PA/Spring Grove) will start at safety in the Blue Jays' new 4-4-3 alignment. Angelosante is the most experienced player in the secondary, despite missing the last five games of the 2000 season. After playing cornerback his first two years, he switched to safety last season and responded with 31 tackles and five pass breakups in five games. Halas and Nelson are both converted wide receivers who gained their first experience on defense last season. Halas posted 16 tackles in eight games, while Nelson ended his freshman campaign with 19 tackles in nine games. Halas spent his first two years at Hopkins as a wide receiver, while Nelson made the move during the middle of last season.
Special Teams in Good Hands: The place-kicking chores will once again fall on the shoulders of senior Matt Andrade (Wyoming, DE/Casear Rodney), who enters his third season as Hopkins' place kicker. Last season, Andrade converted 24-of-28 extra point attempts and 3-of-5 field goals. In just two years he already ranks fourth in career kick-scoring (81 points) and third in career field goals (11). His experience in pressure situations and length on kickoffs provide the Blue Jays with an obvious edge in the kicking game. Sophomore Chris Smolyn (Randolph, NJ/Lenape Valley) is the incumbent punter after averaging 34.6 yards on 46 punts last season. In addition, 10 of his 46 punts were downed inside the opponent's 20-yard line.
Home Sweet Home: Since the beginning of the 1996 season, Hopkins is 18-7 at home and won 10 straight at Homewood from 1996-97.
Team Notes of Interest: Johns Hopkins is an impressive 37-3 (.925) under Margraff when scoring 24 or more points...currently, the Blue Jays have won 25 of their last 26 when scoring 24 or more...prior to the 37-24 loss against Bridgewater last season, the Blue Jays had won 20 straight games when scoring 24 or more points with the last loss a 27-24 setback against Gettysburg in 1994...at the same time, Hopkins is 40-8-2 (.820) when holding the opposition to 14 points or less since Margraff arrived for the 1990 season...the last time JHU lost a game when it held the opposition to 14 points or less was on October 31, 1997, when the Blue Jays dropped a 13-7 triple-overtime decision against Dickinson... currently, the Blue Jays have won nine straight games when holding the opposition to 14 points or less.
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