Oct. 23, 2002

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The Game: Johns Hopkins (5-1) will look to bounce back from its first loss of the season as the Blue Jays travel to Ashland, Virginia to take on Randolph-Macon (4-2).

The Teams: Johns Hopkins had its season-opening five-game winning streak and its seven-game overall winning streak snapped with a 23-10 loss to Muhlenberg last Saturday. Randolph-Macon stunned an overflow crowd at Emory & Henry with a last-second, 17-13 win.

The Votes Are In: Johns Hopkins picked up 12 points in this week's AFCA Division III Coaches Poll. The Blue Jays rank 40th overall in the poll.

About the Ranking: Johns Hopkins has been listed as receiving votes each week since the AFCA Poll was first released on September 17. JHU crested at #26 last week.

Streak Snapper: The Blue Jays' 23-10 loss to Muhlenberg snapped several streaks for the Blue Jays. Among them:

Milestone: Johns Hopkins picked up its 400th all-time victory with the win over Ursinus. The Blue Jays are 400-447-57 (.474) in their history.

The Coach: Johns Hopkins is coached by Jim Margraff (JHU `82), who is now in his 13th season as the head coach at Homewood. With the season-opening win over Washington & Lee in 2001, Margraff became the all-time winningest coach in school history and he now sports an overall record of 71-51-3 (.580). The previous record for wins by a Johns Hopkins football coach was 60 by Ray Van Orman (1920-35).

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 .580 winning percentage is second among JHU coaches who have coached 30 or more games.

With the win over Ursinus, Margraff also became just the third coach in the history of the Centennial Conference to amass 50 league victories. He ranks third all-time in CC wins (50-34-2) and sixth in all-time CC winning percentage (.593).

Cradle of Coaches: Jim Margraff is one of eight active Johns Hopkins head coaches who rank as the all-time winningest coach in school history in their respective sport.

In addition to Margraff, Bob Babb (baseball), Nancy Funk (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) all rank as the winningest coach in their sport's history at JHU.

Margraff's Resurrection: Since taking over as the head coach prior to the 1990 season, Jim Margraff has guided JHU to eight winning seasons and 71 wins. The 71 wins are five more than Hopkins accumulated in the previous 18 years combined (1972-89). During that time, Hopkins posted six winning seasons and won 66 games.

And They Shall Lead Us: The Blue Jays selected three players to serve as team captains for the 2002 season. Senior DL Pat Doyle (Wilkes Barre, PA/Bishop Hoban), senior OL Kevin Kostibos (Florham Park, NJ/Hanover Park) and senior LB Mike Little (Red Bank, NJ/Middletown South).

Star Quality: Hopkins returns three players who earned All-Centennial honors last season. Senior center Kevin Kostibos (Florham Park, NJ/Hanover Park) garnered First Team All-CC status, while senior DL Pat Doyle (Wilkes-Barre, PA/Bishop Hoban) earned Second Team All-CC honors. In addition, senior OL Leif Glynn (Croton, NY/Croton-Harmon) was named an Honorable Mention All-CC performer.

It's All Academic: Senior OL Brian Williams (Katy, TX/Strake Jesuit) and junior DL Paul Smith (Lafayette, NJ/Sparta) were both named to the 2001 Verizon District II Academic All-America Team.

More Pass Protection: Johns Hopkins became the first NCAA Division III team since 1980 to not allow a touchdown pass in an entire season when the Blue Jays turned the trick last season.

Streak Snapper: Washington & Lee's Peter Dean threw an eight-yard touchdown pass to Taylor Callaham with 9:43 remaining in the third quarter in the season-opener vs. JHU. The TD pass was the first allowed by Johns Hopkins since the final game of the 2000 season. JHU had gone 207 consecutive pass attempts without allowing a touchdown pass.

Role Reversal: One year after leading the nation in pass efficiency defense, Johns Hopkins has become one of the more difficult teams to run against. Currently, JHU is allowing just 106.8 yards per game on the ground, which ranks second in the Centennial Conference. The Blue Jays allowed just 24 yards rushing on 26 attempts against Rochester and 73 yards on 38 attempts against Carnegie Mellon. Against Ursinus the Blue Jays held Gary Sheffield to just 59 yards rushing and the Bears to a net total of just 53 yards. Sheffield entered the game averaging 131.0 yards per game on the ground.

Home Sweet Home: Since the beginning of the 1996 season, Hopkins is 24-9 (.727) at home and won 10 straight at Homewood from 1996-97. Currently, JHU has won six of its last eight at home.

The Road Most Traveled: Johns Hopkins is 6-2 in its last eight road games.

Don't Leave Early: Four of Johns Hopkins' five road games last season were decided by eight points or less with the Blue Jays winning two and losing two. Dating back to the 2000 season and including the overtime win at W&L earlier this season, six of JHU's last eight road games have been decided by eight points or less.

Point Production: Johns Hopkins scored 206 points last season, marking the fifth 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 five straight seasons.

Taking the Long Road: JHU has put together numerous impressive scoring drives in six games. Below is a breakdown of the long scoring drives the Blue Jays have had this year.

Opponent Distance Time Consuming

Washington & Lee 2-of-3 touchdown drives 60 yards or longer

Rochester 5-of-6 touchdown drives 57 yards or longer 4 scoring drives longer than 4:30

Carnegie Mellon 3-of-4 touchdown drives 54 yards or longer 2 scoring drives longer than 4:30

Gettysburg 2-of-3 scoring drives 60 yards or longer 1 scoring drive over 7:00

Ursinus 4-of-5 scoring drives 71 yards or longer 4 scoring drives over 4:00

Muhlenberg 2-of-2 scoring drives 55 yards or longer

Totals 18-of-23 scoring drives 54 yards or longer 11 scoring drives over 4:00

Not Surprisingly: For drives such as those listed above to take place, a team must excel on third down. Through six games, JHU is second in the Centennial Conference in third-down conversions as the Blue Jays are 34-of-86 (.395) on the year.

More Surprising: On the third-down attempts the Blue Jays have failed on, they have gone for it on fourth down 15 times, converting nine (.600). Only one other team in the Centennial has converted more than five fourth-down opportunities.

Rushing to the Front: Johns Hopkins ranks third in the Centennial Conference in rushing offense (187.3 yards per game). As a team, JHU is averaging 4.2 yards per attempt and has 12 rushing touchdowns. Hopkins also has four players who have already rushed for 200 or more yards on the year. Last season, JHU had 14 rushing touchdowns, had just three players rush for more than 160 yards and averaged 4.1 yards per attempt.

Into the Lyons Den: Freshman running back T.J. Lyons (Paramus, NJ/Paramus) wasted little time making a statement when given the opportunity to play against Gettysburg. Lyons rushed for 174 yards and one touchdown on just 18 carries to lead the way in the win. His 60-yard touchdown run with just under three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter sealed the win. He added a team-high 59 yards on just 12 carries against Ursinus and now has 245 yards and one touchdown on 39 attempts. His 6.3 yards per carry is by far the best average on the team.

More Lyons: T.J. Lyons' 174 yards against Gettysburg rank as the sixth-highest total ever by a Johns Hopkins freshman. The total also ranks as the 17th-highest single-game total in school history and he is one of just 12 players in school history to rush for 170 or more yards in a game.

A Final Lyons: T.J. Lyons' 60-yard touchdown run against Gettysburg was the longest run by a Johns Hopkins player since Adam Gentile had a 67-yard touchdown run against Kings Point on September 26, 1998.

Johnson Injured: Senior running back Kevin Johnson (Baltimore, MD/City) has been sidelined with a knee injury and he is listed as week-to-week. In his last outing against Ursinus, Johnson rushed 18 times for 52 yards and one touchdown to improve his season totals to 80 rushes for 311 yards and four touchdowns. His 311 total rushing yards and 62.2 yards per game both lead the team, while his four rushing touchdowns are tied for the team lead.

Johnson in the Record Books: Kevin Johnson moved into sole possession of 12th place on JHU's career rushing touchdowns list with his 11th in the win over Ursinus. He needs just two rushing yards to move into 13th-place on Hopkins' career rushing list. He now has 1,318 career rushing yards.

Pressure Cooked: Sophomore RB Adam Cook (New Freedom, PA/Susquehannock) continues to rank among the team leaders in several categories despite seeing limited action against Gettysbury and Ursinus due to an injury. He ranks second on the team in scoring with 26 points on four touchdowns and a two-point conversion. He also ranks second in all-purpose yards per game (419 / 69.8 per game), overall rushing yards (250) and rushing yards per game (41.7). In addition, he is third in receptions (12 for 74 yards).

More Pressure Cooked: Adam Cook's 176 all-purpose yards against Rochester were a career-high. His previous career-high was 172 yards against third-ranked Bridgewater last season.

Readal Breaks Out: With much of the focus on Adam Cook and Kevin Johnson, sophomore fullback Nate Readal (Allison Park, PA/Hampton) enjoyed the finest game of his career against Rochester. He rushed 13 times for a career-high 85 yards against the Yellowjackets. He added 38 yards on just six carries against CMU and 31 yards on six carries against Gettysburg. Against Ursinus he rushed nine times for 37 yards and had one reception for 37 yards as well. He is now averaging 33.5 yards per game and 5.2 yards per carry.

Trio Handles QB Role: Senior Rob Fernand (Wayne, NJ/Depaul), junior George Merrell (Bloomsburg, PA/Central Columbia) and freshman Zach DiIonno (West Caldwell, NJ/James Caldwell) have all seen time at quarterback this season with Fernand getting three starts, DiIonno two and Merrell one. Below is a brief summary of where they stand after five games:

* Fernand is 37-of-70 for 401 yards and three touchdowns with seven interceptions. He also has a pair of rushing touchdowns on the year and JHU is 3-0 in the games he has started. He threw for a career-high 239 yards and one touchdown and rushed for the game-winning touchdown in overtime in the 21-14 season-opening win over Washington & Lee.

* Merrell has played in three games with one start. He missed the second, fourth and fifth games with injuries. He is 11-of-26 for 134 yards with one touchdown and one interception and has rushed for 46 yards and one touchdown as well. He started in the 28-7 win over Carnegie Mellon.

* DiIonno earned his first start against Ursinus and earned Co-Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors for his efforts. In the win, he was 14-of-27 for 180 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He also rushed six times for 24 yards. He orchestrated four scoring drives that covered 70 yards or more in the game as well. He started the game against Muhlenberg and was 8-for-18 for 151 yards with one touchdown and one interception. His 97-yard touchdown pass to Brian Wolcott early in the fourth quarter drew Hopkins to within 16-10. The 97-yard touchdown pass is the longest pass play in the history of the Centennial Conference and the second-longest in JHU football history. On the year, he is 25-of-52 for 366 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions.

Lehman Among CC Leaders: Junior Jason Lehman (Manheim, PA/Manheim Central) enjoyed a solid outing in the win over Ursinus and continues to pace the Blue Jays in receptions. He had five receptions for 59 yards and one touchdown against the Bears to run his season totals to 18 receptions for 226 yards and two touchdowns. He ranks sixth in the Centennial Conference in receptions per game (3.00) and ninth in receiving yards per game (37.7).

Wolcott Breaks Loose: Sophomore Brian Wolcott (Harding, PA/Wyoming Area) enjoyed one of the finest games in school history by a wide receiver in the loss to Muhlenberg. On the day, he caught five passes for 193 yards and one touchdown, which covered 97 yards. The 97-yard touchdown reception is the longest touchdown reception in the history of the Centennial Conference and is the second-longest in JHU history. In addition, his 193 receiving yards rank as the sixth-highest single-game total in school history.

On the year, Wolcott now leads the Blue Jays in receiving with 19 receptions for 396 yards and three touchdowns. He has also rushed six times for 39 yards and leads the team in all-purpose yards with 435 (72.5/game). He ranks fifth in the Centennial Conference in receptions per game (3.17) and fourth in receiving yards per game (66.0). His average of 20.8 yards per reception is the highest among all Centennial Conference receivers with 15 or more receptions on the year.

More Wolcott: Brian Wolcott's 34-yard touchdown reception with 15 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter forced overtime against W&L. He then caught a 24-yard pass down to the W&L one-yard-line on JHU's first play of overtime to set up the game-winning touchdown.

Scouting the Offensive Line: The Johns Hopkins offensive line has lived up to its advance billing through six games as JHU ranks among the Centennial leaders in every offensive category (see JHU in the Centennial stats in box to left).

Senior center Kevin Kostibos (Florham Park, NJ/Hanover Park), senior guards Brian Williams (Katy, TX/Strake Jesuit) and John Tiberi (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA/Chadwick) and tackles Leif Glynn (Croton, NY/Croton-Harmon) and Zack Kail (Pittsburgh, PA/Upper St. Clair) have seen a majority of the action in the first six games.

Kostibos and Glynn both garnered All-Centennial honors last season as Kostibos earned First Team recognition, while Glynn earned Honorable Mention kudos.

There's Another-Part I: In addition to Zack and Ben Kail (Pittsburgh, PA/Upper St. Clair), who started the first two games at guard before being lost to a season-ending knee injury, younger brother Jake Kail (Pittsburgh, PA/Upper St. Clair) is also a member of the Johns Hopkins football team. A sophomore, Jake Kail is a backup tight end and Hopkins' long-snapper.

There's Another-Part II: Adam Cook's younger brother, Brian Cook (New Freedom, PA/Susquehannock), is a freshman defensive end for the Blue Jays. He returned from missing the Ursinus game with an injury to post a career-high seven tackles, including three solos and one for loss, against Muhlenberg.

Cook set the tone early in JHU's win over Rochester as his sack and fumble recovery on the first play of the game led to JHU's first touchdown two plays later. He added two tackles and a forced fumble in the win over Carnegie Mellon. Cook, who played fullback, tailback and quarterback at different times in high school, also returned one kickoff for 26 yards against Gettysburg.

Through six games, Brian Cook has 15 tackles, including four for losses and the one sack, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.

Positive Returns: Junior Ben Stopper (Reinholds, PA/Conrad Weiser) finished fourth in the Centennial Conference in kickoff returns as he averaged 21.8 yards per return last season. Stopper also averaged 6.9 yards on seven punt returns as the "up" man in Hopkins' return scheme. Through six games, Stopper has six kickoff returns for 107 yards (17.8 ypr.) and ranks ninth in the Centennial Conference in kickoff return average.

More Returns: Ben Stopper moved into eighth-place on Hopkins' career kickoff return yardage list with his two returns for 26 yards against Muhlenberg. He now has 533 kickoff return yards in his career and needs 174 more return yards to move into seventh place.

Eno in the End Zone: Freshman wide receiver Steve Eno (El Segundo, CA/El Segundo) had just one catch for 14 yards against Ursinus, but it capped a 13-play, 71-yard drive with a touchdown. Eno, who added one reception for six yards against Muhlenberg, has played in all six games this season and has six receptions for 100 yards and the one touchdown. His average of 16.7 yards per reception ranks second on the team.

Longo Rolls On: Junior linebacker Paul Longo (Kensington, MD/Bethesda-Chevy Chase) posted a career-high 12 tackles, including one for a loss, in the loss against Muhlenberg. Longo is third on the team in tackles with 39 and is tied for second with 20 solo stops to his credit. He also has three tackles for losses, one sack and is tied for the team-lead with five pass breakups.

Leading the Pack: Senior Mike Little (Red Bank, NJ/Middletown South) continues to enjoy a solid season at linebacker as he posted nine tackles, including two for losses, against Muhlenberg. Through six games, he ranks second on the team with 40 tackles and counts six tackles for losses among his 40 stops. He had a career-high 14 tackles against Gettysburg earlier this season.

Closing in on 200: Mike Little's nine tackles against Muhlenberg boosted his career total to 192 tackles. His 192 tackles are the most of any player on the team. He tied for the team-lead with 59 tackles last season.

Anchoring the Middle: Senior defensive tackle Pat Doyle (Wilkes-Barre, PA/Bishop Hoban), a Second Team All-Centennial selection last season, enjoyed a solid game against Muhlenberg and continues to rank among Hopkins' tackle leaders. Doyle posted six tackles, including one for a loss, against the Mules and he has now averaged 6.0 tackles in his last four games. He ranks fourth on the team in tackles with 31 and ranks second with his eight tackles for losses. He is also tied for first with two sacks to his credit. In his career, he now has 104 tackles, including 21 for losses.

Meet You in the Backfield-I: Junior Paul Smith (Lafayette, NJ/Sparta), posted five tackles in the game against Muhlenberg.

Meet You in the Backfield-II: Through six games, 10 of Paul Smith's 30 tackles have been for losses. The 10 TFL's are the most of any player on the team, while his 30 total tackles rank fifth on the team.

Meet You in the Backfield-III: Including last season, 24 of Paul Smith's last 70 tackles have been for losses.

Career-High: Sophomore safety Matt Campbell (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough) posted a career-high 19 tackles, including five solos and one for a loss, in the loss to Muhlenberg. He also had one pass breakup.

Topping the Charts: Through six games, Matt Campbell leads the team in tackles with 53, including 22 solos and two for losses. In addition, he has two interceptions, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and four pass breakups to his credit. He also ranks fifth in the Centennial Conference in punt returns as he is averaging 6.6 yards per return. Against Ursinus, he had four tackles, two pass breakups and one interception.

Slemenda Fills Big Shoes: Junior Colin Slemenda (Beaver, PA/Beaver) starts at middle linebacker for the Blue Jays and is tied for sixth on the team with 25 tackles, including 13 solos, five tackles for losses and one sack. He had two solo tackles, including one for a loss, against Muhlenberg. On the year, Slemenda also has one pass breakup and he blocked a punt that was returned for a touchdown against Gettysburg.

The "Old Man" Comes Up Big: Senior Mark Robinson (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills) is the only senior listed on the Johns Hopkins depth chart in the secondary and moved into the starting lineup at cornerback against Gettysburg. He registered two tackles in the win over the Bullets and added five in the win over Ursinus and six in the loss to Muhlenberg. He now has 24 tackles (eighth on the team) and four pass breakups to his credit through six games.

Robinson's experience paid off in the win over W&L as he had four tackles, including three solos, and a team-high three pass breakups. His PBU in the end zone on the last play of the game in overtime preserved the win for the Blue Jays. Robinson had six tackles, including one for a loss, against CMU.

Career High: Junior Rich Lamour (Spring Valley, NY/Don Bosco), who starts at cornerback, became the first Johns Hopkins player since the 2001 season-opener to come up with two interceptions in one game as he picked off a pair of passes against Muhlenberg. In addition to his two INTs, which he returned for a total of 30 yards, he also tied his career-high with seven tackles.

Lamour, who is now tied for sixth on the team with 25 tackles to his credit, has a team-high three interceptions on the year, which ties him for first in the Centennial Conference. In his last three games, he has 20 tackles.

"Max"imum Impact: Freshman Max Whitacre (Sugarloaf, PA/Bishop Hafey) earned a spot on the Centennial Conference Honor Roll with a career-high 12 tackles against Muhlenberg. He counted six solo tackles and one tackle for loss among his 12 tackles, which improve his season total to 23 tackles. Whitacre, who missed two games with an injury earlier this season, also has two tackles for losses and one pass breakup to his credit.

Sudden Impact: Senior linebacker Jim Donohue (Hammonton, NJ/Hammonton) enjoyed the most productive game of his career in the win over Ursinus. With several players missing the game due to injury, Donohue earned the first start of his career and made it a memorable one. He posted a career-high five tackles and added an interception that he returned 15 yards. Donohue has played in four games this season.

Taylor-Made: Junior Matt Taylor (Greenwich, CT/Greenwich) saw significant action in the win over Ursinus and registered a career-high five tackles, including three solos.

Inside or Out: Sophomore Mark Oppedisano (Garden City, NY/Garden City), normally JHU's backup at defensive tackle, got the start against Ursinus at defensive end and had a solid game despite the last-minute position change due to injuries to other players. Oppedisano had three tackles in the win, including one solo stop and another tackle for a loss. He added two tackles in the loss to Muhlenberg and now has 11 tackles, including two for losses, to his credit.

Loiacono Returns: Senior defensive end Nick Loiacono (Tappan, NY/Tappan Zee) returned to action against Muhlenberg after missing two games with an injury. He posted eight tackles against the Mules and now has 19 tackles, including six solos and one for a loss, in four games played.

Right or Left: Junior Chris Smolyn (Randolph, NJ/Lenape Valley) has handled the JHU punting chores since he arrived as a freshman and has added the place-kicking duties this season. He is averaging 34.5 yards per punt through six games and he had a season-long punt of 61 yards against Muhlenberg. Against the Mules, he averaged 39.8 yards per punt on six punts, including the 61-yarder. In addition, five of his 25 punts have been downed inside the opposition's 20-yard line.

As JHU's primary place-kicker, he has converted 16-of-19 extra points and hit his first career field goal from 21-yards out in the win over Gettysburg. He added two field goals, from 31 and 39 yards, and hit all three of his extra points in the win over Ursinus. He also nailed a 28-yard field goal against Muhlenberg and is now 4-for-5 on field goal attempts this season.

Some may think the most unique thing about Smolyn is that he is 6-foot-5 and is listed as 265 pounds and is JHU's primary kicker. However, the most unique thing may be that he punts left-footed and kicks extra points and field goals right-footed. Oh, one more thing. He kicks his field goals and extra points straight-on.

Team Notes of Interest: Johns Hopkins is an impressive 43-4 (.915) under Margraff when scoring 24 or more points...currently, the Blue Jays have won 31 of their last 33 when scoring 24 or more...at the same time, Hopkins is 49-8-2 (.847) 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 16 straight games when holding the opposition to 14 points or less.