Sept. 30, 2004
Complete Release in PDF Format - Additional Information Available in This Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
The Game: Johns Hopkins (3-0) opens Centennial Conference play against the Red Devils of Dickinson (2-1). Both teams had a bye last weekend.
The Teams: The Blue Jays defeated Carnegie Mellon, 24-14 in their last game, while Dickinson knocked off King?s Point, 24-14.
In the Rankings: Johns Hopkins is ranked 17th in this week?s AFCA Division III Coaches? Poll and 20th in this week?s d3football.com poll.
For Openers: Tonight?s game vs. Dickinson is the 2004 Centennial Conference opener for both teams. The Blue Jays have currently won a Centennial-record 13 straight league openers. Dickinson held the previous record for consecutive wins in CC openers as the Devils won 11 straight from 1988 through 1998. How much of an impact has Jim Margraff had on the Blue Jay football program? Prior to his arrival JHU was 1-6 in CC openers (league was formed in 1983). Since he arrived JHU is 13-1 in CC openers.
Streaking: Dating back to last season Johns Hopkins has won six straight games. During the six-game winning streak the Blue Jays have outscored the opposition, 200-74.
More Streaking: A win over Dickinson would give JHU a seven-game winning streak, which would be tied for the second-longest in school history (accomplished four times, most recently covering a span that bridged the 2001 and 2002 seasons). The school record for consecutive wins is 11 (bridging the 2002 and 2003 seasons).
A Final Streak: JHU is 17-1 in its last 18 games dating back to the final four games of the 2002 season. JHU has never won more than 17 games in any 20-game span in school history.
24-of-27: Johns Hopkins is 24-3 in its last 27 games dating back to the final two games of the 2001 season.
The Coach: Johns Hopkins is coached by Jim Margraff (JHU ?82), who is in his 15th 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 88-53-3 (.622). 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 then school-record-tying seven wins in 1996, 1997 and 1998 before leading the Blue Jays to their first-ever playoff appearance (and victory), first-ever Centennial Conference title and a school-record nine wins in 2002. He topped that last season as JHU posted a 10-1 record with Centennial and ECAC South Atlantic Championships. Margraff?s .622 winning percentage is second among JHU coaches who have coached 30 or more games and the Blue Jays are 64-29-1 (.686) since the beginning of the 1995 season.
Margraff?s Resurrection: Since taking over as the head coach prior to the 1990 season, Jim Margraff has guided JHU to 10 winning seasons and 88 wins. The 88 wins are just one less than Hopkins accumulated in the previous 22 years combined (1968-89). During that time, Hopkins posted 11 winning seasons and won 89 games.
Home Sweet Home: Since the beginning of the 1996 season, Hopkins is 34-9 (.791) at home and won 10 straight at Homewood from 1996-97. Under head coach Jim Margraff the Blue Jays are 53-17-2 (.750) at home and JHU has won 10 straight and 16 of 18 at home.
More Home Sweet Home: During their current 10-game home winning streak the Blue Jays have outscored the opposition, 316-99 (31.6-9.9).
The Road Most Traveled: Johns Hopkins is 13-5 in its last 18 road games. The Blue Jays were 4-1 on the road in 2002 and 2003. The Blue Jays are 10-2 in their last 12 road games since dropping back-to-back road tilts late in the 2001 season.
Quick Strike Attack: In 11 games last season the Blue Jays had 31 scoring drives that took less than 2:50 off the clock. In the last two games, JHU had seven scoring drives that took less than 2:50. The three touchdown drives against Carnegie Mellon all took 1:17 or less off the clock.
Quarterly Report: Johns Hopkins has scored in 10 of 12 quarters through three games.
It?s All in the Speech: There must be something to what head coach Jim Margraff says in the locker room before the Blue Jays take the field. Hopkins has outscored the opposition, 31-3 in the first quarter this season and 17-7 in the third quarter. Dating back to the beginning of last season (a span of 14 games) JHU has outscored the opposition, 84-20 in the first quarter and 101-21 in the third.
Sack Masters: In 11 games last season the Johns Hopkins defense came up with a total of 20 sacks. Through three games this season the Blue Jays already have 15 sacks to their credit. JHU had five in the season-opener against Rochester and nine in the win over Carnegie Mellon. Eight different players have already registered at least one sack on the year with Brian Nickel and Brian Cook leading the way with 3.0 each. Last season Alan Cody led the Blue Jays with 3.5 sacks.
Caught Behind the Line: In addition to the 15 sacks the Blue Jays have already registered this season, the Blue Jay defense has also amassed 36 other tackles for losses on the year. Brian Cook leads the way with eight tackles for losses, including his three sacks, among his 15 stops on the year.
Keys to Success: Johns Hopkins is an impressive 55-4 (.932) under head coach Jim Margraff when scoring 24 or more points...currently, the Blue Jays have won 42 of their last 44 when scoring 24 or more...at the same time, Hopkins is 60-9-2 (.859) when holding the opposition to 14 points or less since Margraff arrived for the 1990 season...the Blue Jays have won 25 of their last 26 games when holding the opposition to 14 points or less.
Friday Night Lights: The game between Johns Hopkins and Dickinson will be the first between the two teams on a Friday night at Homewood Field. This will be the Blue Jays? 29th game under head coach Jim Margraff under the lights at Homewood. JHU is 20-7-1 (.732) on Friday nights at home under Margraff, including 13-3 (.813) against Centennial Conference teams. The Blue Jays have currently won two straight and 12 of their last 15 at home on Friday night.
And They Shall Lead Us: The Blue Jays selected three players to serve as team captains for the 2004 season: senior DB Matt Campbell (Hillsborough, NJ/Hillsborough), senior RB Adam Cook (New Freedom, PA/Susquehannock) and senior OL Matt Weeks (Landisville, PA/Hempfield).
Star Quality: Johns Hopkins placed a school-record 13 players on the 2003 All-Centennial Football Team and eight of those players return for the 2004 season. The six first-time selections for the Blue Jays in 2003 tied the school record for most in one year. Below is a look at JHU?s returning All-Centennial selections:
Name Position Notes
Matt Campbell DB CC Def. POY and 1st Team All-CC / Named to three All-America Teams
Alan Cody DL HM All-CC / Led JHU?s defensive linemen with 50 tackles last season
Adam Cook RB 1st Team All-CC / School-record 1,047 rushing yards in ?03
Marc DeGennaro C 2nd Team All-CC / Latest in a long line of standout centers at JHU
Adam Luke LB 2nd Team All-CC / Led team in tackles (71) despite starting just three games
Matt Weeks OL 1st Team All-CC / Named to a pair of All-America teams
Max Whitacre LB HM All-CC / Tied for second on the team with 65 tackles
Brian Wolcott WR 2nd Team All-CC / Team highs of 45 receptions for 726 yards and nine TDs.
It?s All Academic: Johns Hopkins had seven players earn CoSIDA District II Academic All-America honors last season, including five who earned first team status. The seven overall selections and the five first team honorees were the most of any school in the country at any level. Below is a look at JHU?s three returning CoSIDA District II Academic All-Americans:
Name Position Notes
Mike Aynardi DL 2nd Team CoSIDA District II AAA / Had 33 tackles and started eight games
Nate Readal FB 1st Team CoSIDA District II AAA / TFL just once in 112 career attempts
Ryan Sheare OL 1st Team CoSIDA District II AAA / Started nine games on a young OL
Player Notes of Interest (Included in PDF Version)
