Sept. 26, 2007

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The Game: Johns Hopkins travels to Allentown, Pennsylvania to take on Muhlenberg in a Centennial Conference game. The Blue Jays are coming off a 44-41 loss to Moravian, while the Mules picked up a gutty 14-13 win at Gettysburg last Saturday. It's Homecoming at Muhlenberg's Scotty Wood Stadium.

About the Coaches: Jim Margraff is now in his 18th season as the head coach at Johns Hopkins and carries a 108-66-3 (.619) record into this week's game against Muhlenberg. The all-time winningest coach in school history, Margraff has guided the Blue Jays to four Centennial Conference Championships, three ECAC titles and one appearance in the NCAA Playoffs. In addition to his overall totals, he also ranks among the all-time winningest coaches in the history of the Centennial Conference as he sports a 69-44-2 (.609) record in league play.
Mike Donnelly ranks as the all-time winningest coach in Muhlenberg football history as he sports a 64-44 record and has guided the Mules to the most successful period in program history. Muhlenberg captured at least a share of the Centennial title every year from 2001 through 2004 and made three straight appearances in the NCAA Playoffs from 2002 through 2004. Donnelly's 64 all-time victories are 10 more than any other coach in program history and his winning percentage (.593) is the third best in school history among those who coached 30 or more games.

A Brutal Stretch: This week's game at Muhlenberg is the second in a four-game stretch for the Blue Jays against teams that are all undefeated. Including last week's game against Morvian (4-0), this week's game against Muhlenberg (3-0) and consecutive games to follow against Dickinson (4-0) and Ursinus (3-0), the Blue Jays are in the midst of a four-game run against teams that are currently a combined 14-0.

Breaking Down the Brutality: Breaking down the Blue Jays' schedule into games before their bye week (October 20) and after their bye week reveals two entirely different levels of success. JHU's first seven opponents are currently a combined 22-4 (.846), while the final three teams on the schedule are a combined 1-9 (.100).

September Reign: Despite the loss against Moravian, the Blue Jays still sport a 21-8 record in the month of September since the start of the 2000 season and a 32-13 mark since the start of the 1995 season.

Road Warriors: Johns Hopkins is 13-5 in its last 18 road games dating back to a 17-3 win at McDaniel in the final road game of the 2003 season. JHU has won its only road game this season (17-16 at Hampden-Sydney).

Home Sweet Home: Since the beginning of the 1996 season Johns Hopkins is 43-17 (.717) at home and has twice enjoyed 10-game winning streaks at Homewood Field during that time.

Streaking: Since the start of the 2002 season the Blue Jays sport a 42-16 (.724) record. Taking it back further the Blue Jays are 48-19 (.716) since the start of the 2001 season and 53-24 (.688) since the begininng of the 2000 season. The 53 wins the Blue Jays have amassed this decade are already just two shy of the school record for wins in a decade (55/1990s).

Red Zone Success: Johns Hopkins leads the Centennial Conference in red zone offense as the Blue Jays have scored on 12-of-13 trips to the zone (92.3%). The Blue Jays count seven touchdowns and five field goals to their credit in red zone opportunities.

A Program First: Last week's 44-41 loss to Moravian marked the first time Johns Hopkins has played a game that saw both teams scored 40 or more points. In addition, the 41 points are the most Hopkins has ever scored in a loss and the most ever scored by a Centennial team in a league loss.

Comeback Kids: The 17-16 win at Hampden-Sydney was the latest in a long line of comebacks for the Blue Jays. JHU has 10 come-from-behind wins to its credit since the start of the 2004 season. The Blue Jays posted an amazing six come-from-behind wins in 2004 and two more in 2005. Randolph-Macon's 14-0 lead last season was the largest overcome by the Blue Jays since JHU came back from a 14-0 deficit to knock off Ursinus, 20-14, on October 30, 2004.

Shutouts: Johns Hopkins has posted 14 shutouts in 17+ seasons under head coach Jim Margraff and the two in 2005 mark the fourth time in the Margraff era that JHU has posted two or more shutouts in one year (1992 (2), 1996 (2), 2003 (3), 2005 (2)). The Blue Jays posted 11 shutouts in the 20 seasons prior to Margraff's arrival.

Seven's Heaven: Since the beginning of the 2003 season the Blue Jays are 33-9 when scoring more than seven points and 0-5 when they have been held to seven points or less.

Keys to Success: Johns Hopkins is an impressive 64-5 (.928) under head coach Jim Margraff when scoring 24 or more points...the Blue Jays have won 51 of their last 54 when scoring 24 or more...at the same time, Hopkins is 78-10-2 (.878) when holding the opposition to 14 points or less under Margraff...the Blue Jays have won 45 of their last 47 games when holding the opposition to 14 points or less.

It's All Academic: Johns Hopkins has earned 23 CoSIDA Academic All-District selections since 2003. JHU's 23 selections in that time are more than the other CC football-playing schools combined. Taking it back even farther, Johns Hopkins has earned 49 CoSIDA Academic All-District selections since 1991. During that time the other CC football-playing schools have combined for 44 selections.

Individual Player Notes of Interest Included in PDF Version.