Nov. 15, 2004

BALTIMORE, MD ?- The Johns Hopkins football team will host Waynesburg (PA) College on Saturday, November 20 in the ECAC Southeast Championship Game it was announced today by representatives of the ECAC. The Blue Jays earned the top seed in the South Region of the ECAC with their 8-2 overall record and third consecutive co-championship in the Centennial Conference. Waynesburg finished the regular season at 7-3 and placed third in the President's Athletic Conference.

Kickoff for Saturday?s game at Johns Hopkins? Homewood Field will be at noon. In lieu of an admission charge, members of the Johns Hopkins Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will be conducting a food drive to benefit needy families for Thanksgiving. Those attending the game are asked to bring a nonperishable item to donate to the food drive. Individuals may also make a cash donation, which will be used to purchase turkeys.

The Blue Jays are making their third consecutive appearance in the post-season as Hopkins defeated Frostburg State, 24-21 in the ECAC Southwest Championship Game in 2002 and followed that with a 41-13 victory over King's (PA) in the ECAC South Atlantic Championship Game last season. The game against Frostburg was the first playoff game in the history of the program and both previous ECAC Playoff appearances came on the heels of Centennial Conference Co-Championships as well.

Johns Hopkins, which spent the early part of the 2004 season ranked in the top 25 in the nation, was one of five teams to earn a share of the Centennial Conference Championship this season. The Blue Jays were the team responsible for creating just the third five-way tie for a conference title in the history of college football as JHU's 12-9 victory over McDaniel last Saturday denied the Green Terror an outright championship and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs. Muhlenberg, via a strength of schedule formula, was awarded the Centennial's automatic bid to the NCAAs, while Hopkins, McDaniel and Franklin & Marshall all received ECAC bids. This is the first time in the history of the Centennial Conference that four teams have qualified for the post-season.

Johns Hopkins has used a balanced offensive attack and a stingy defense to fuel this season?s success. The Blue Jays feature a pair of running backs who have rushed for over 600 yards in junior T.J. Lyons (637) and senior Adam Cook (605) and a pair of wide receivers with over 600 receiving yards in senior Brian Wolcott (719) and sophomore Anthony Triplin (605). Junior Zach DiIonno has thrown for 1,598 yards and 13 touchdowns despite missing a game with an injury.

Defensively the Blue Jays feature an active trio of linebackers who all have over 70 tackles on the season. Sophomore Matt Hagel (88 tackles) and juniors Max Whitacre (70) and Mike Barrasso (70) spearhead a unit that has not allowed more than 17 points all season (a streak that actually stands at 21 games dating back to last season) and is allowing just 274.8 yards per game. Junior Alan Cody (20 tackles for losses / 9.5 sacks) and sophomore Brian Cook (22 TFLs / 10.5 sacks) are both within striking distance of the JHU single-season record for sacks.

Waynesburg is making its first ECAC appearance after earning its first trip to the NCAA Playoffs last season. The Yellow Jackets feature one of the most potent offenses in the nation, as they will come to Homewood Field with averages of 40.4 points and 418.9 yards per game. Senior quarterback Jeff Dumm has thrown for 2,271 yards and 19 touchdowns this season, while sophomore Ryan Abels has rushed for 957 yards and 10 touchdowns. The 'Jackets will be arguably the most balanced team the Blue Jays have faced this season as they average 186.0 yards per game rushing and 232.9 yards passing.

While the offense gets most of the attention, the Waynesburg defense has been nearly as impressive. The Yellow Jackets have held seven of their 10 opponents to 19 points or less and are surrendering just 282.4 yards per game. Waynesburg's three losses this season have come by a total of just 14 points.

This will be the first meeting between Johns Hopkins and Waynesburg and the teams did not share any common opponents this season.

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