Oct. 8, 2008
Johns Hopkins-Dickinson Football Notes in PDF Format Additional Information Available in This Format 
The Game: Johns Hopkins (3-2, 1-2 Centennial) plays its second straight game at home as the Blue Jays welcome Dickinson (3-2, 2-1 CC) to Homewood Field for the only Friday night game of the season for the Blue Jays.
A Look Back: Johns Hopkins dropped its second straight game as the Blue Jays fell 28-23 to fifth-ranked Muhlenberg last Saturday. The Blue Jays rolled up 511 yards of total offense, but a 28-10 deficit and four turnovers were more than they could overcome. Dickinson bounced back from a loss to McDaniel with a gutty 16-7 win against previously undefeated Moravian last Saturday at Biddle Field.
The Coaches: Johns Hopkins is coached by Jim Margraff `82, who is in his 19th season as the head coach at Homewood. Margraff is JHU's all-time leader in games won (114) and coached (188) and he enters this week's game with a career record of 114-71-3 (.618).
Darwin Breaux is now in his 16th season as the head coach at Dickinson and enters this week's game against Johns Hopkins in search of career victory number 100. Breaux, who has guided the Red Devils to four Centennial Conference titles, two trips to the NCAA Playoffs and a pair of ECAC Championships, currently sports an overall record of 99-60-1 (.622).
Captain, My Captain: In a vote of his teammates, junior running back Andrew Kase was selected to serve as the team captain for the Blue Jays this season. According to records in the Johns Hopkins Sports Information Office, he is the first player to serve as a solo captain for the Blue Jay football team since 1983 (Francis Mullan).
On This Date: This week's game against Dickinson wil be the 14th the Blue Jays have played on October 10. Johns Hopkins has won nine of the previous 13 and has currently won five straight games played on this date.
Friday Night Lights: Johns Hopkins played its first home Friday night game on September 25, 1982 against Widener and this week's game against Dickinson will be the 40th the Blue Jays have played at home under the Friday night lights. The Blue Jays sport an all-time record of 25-13-1 (.654) at home on Friday night, including an impressive 21-8-1 (.717) mark under current head coach Jim Margraff. Dickinson is making its second appearance at Homewood Field on a Friday night - the Red Devils took a 17-7 decision in 2004 in their only other game at JHU on a Friday night.
Against Ranked Opponents: Johns Hopkins slipped to 3-4 all-time against teams ranked in the AFCA Top 25 with last week's narrow 28-23 loss to fifth-ranked Muhlenberg. The Blue Jays had won three straight games against ranked opponents prior to last week's loss.
Road Warriors: The loss at Moravian (9/27) snapped JHU's five-game road winning streak that dated back to last season. Despite the loss, the Blue Jays are still 6-2 on the road since the start of the 2007 season. Prior to the loss at Moravian, JHU's only loss on the road since the start of last season was a tough 28-21 setback at eventual league champion Muhlenberg last September. JHU is 28-11 on the road since the start of the 2001 season and 16-7 in away league games since the start of the `01 season.
Johns Hopkins and Dickinson Among CC's Top Three This Decade: Johns Hopkins and Dickinson rank second and third, respectively, in Centennial Conference victories since the start of the 2000 season. The Blue Jays rank as the second-winningest team in the Centennial with a 34-20 record in league games since 2000, while Dickinson ranks third with a 32-22 mark. The Blue Jays and Red Devils have combined to win six Centennial titles this decade.
Offense Rolls Past 500: Johns Hopkins rolled up 511 yards of total offense in last Saturday's game against Muhlenberg. The 511-yard effort marks the first time Johns Hopkins has topped 500 yards of total offense since a 508-yard showing in a 36-7 win against Washington & Lee in 2003.
That's a Blue Jay First Down: In rolling up 497 yards of total offense against Gettysburg the Blue Jays also set a school record for first downs in a game. JHU's 31 first downs against the Bullets topped the previous record of 30 set against then third-ranked Bridgetwater in 2001.
Octoberfest: Johns Hopkins is 17-12 in the month of October since the start of the 2001 season and 42-34-1 all-time under head coach Jim Margraff in October.
Close Calls In October: Fans don't want to leave a Johns Hopkins football game early in the month of October as the outcome is usually in doubt until the final horn. Dating back to the final game JHU played in October in 2003, 13 of the Blue Jays' last 18 games in the month of October have been decided by 10 points or less and 11 of the 18 have been decided by eight points or less.
Streaking: Since the start of the 2002 season the Blue Jays sport a 48-21 (.696) record. Taking it back farther the Blue Jays are 54-24 (.692) since the start of the 2001 season and 59-29 (.670) since the beginning of the 2000 season. The 59 wins the Blue Jays have amassed this decade are already the most wins in a decade in school history. The previous record of 55 wins came in the 1990s.
Must be the Speech: There must be something in the speech given by defensive coordinator Bob Chesney at halftime that gets the Blue Jay defense going. The touchdown Muhlenberg scored with 1:41 remaining in the third quarter last Saturday was the first touchdown JHU has surrendered in the third quarter since last season's 20-17 win at Dickinson - almost exactly one year to the day.
Since Dickinson's touchdown in the third quarter of last season's game, the Blue Jays have out-scored the opposition 59-10 in the third period and have held seven of their nine opponents scoreless in third during that time.
Working Overtime: The 39-31 triple overtime win at Randolph-Macon was JHU's first overtime game since a 21-14 win at Washington & Lee in the 2002 season-opener (one overtime period). The Blue Jays are now 2-2 all-time in overtime and all four extra-session games the Blue Jays have played in their history have been on the road.
In the Zone: Johns Hopkins has converted on 14-of-17 (.824) chances in the red zone this season and the Blue Jays currently rank third in the league in red zone offense.
The success in the red zone for the Blue Jays extends back to last season, when Hopkins finished the year 25-of-27 (92.6%) on the year with 17 touchdowns and eight field goals to their credit. Since the start of the 2007 season Johns Hopkins has 28 touchdowns and 11 field goals on 44 trips to the `zone.
Early Offensive Surge: Johns Hopkins ranks second in the Centennial Conference in scoring offense (31.0) with 155 points scored through five games. At this rate the Blue Jays could challenge the school record for points scored in a season (315 in 2003). Johns Hopkins has averaged 30 or more points per game just twice in school history (1967 ? 36.4 / 1968 ? 34.0).
Seven's Heaven: Since the beginning of the 2003 season the Blue Jays are 39-14 when scoring more than seven points and 0-5 when they have been held to seven points or less.
Statistical Youth: Through five games the Blue Jays have rushed the ball 195 times and have 90 receptions. Of the 285 offensive touches, exactly one (a three-yard reception) has been by a senior.
Note of the Day: For the first time in school history, Johns Hopkins had two players with 100 yards receiving (Wernick-205, Michels-108), a 100-yard rusher (Kase-128) and a 300-yard passer (Tomlin-387) as the quartet turned the trick last week against Muhlenberg.
It's All Academic: Johns Hopkins has earned 26 CoSIDA Academic All-District selections since 2003. JHU's 26 selections in that time are more than the other CC football-playing schools combined (22). Taking it back even farther, Johns Hopkins has earned 52 CoSIDA Academic All-District selections since 1991. During that time the other CC football-playing schools have combined for exactly 52 selections as well. Johns Hopkins has had at least three players earn CoSIDA Academic All-District honors every year since 2001.
Player Notes of Interest Included in PDF Version
