The Game
« Johns Hopkins opens the 2025 season on the road as the Blue Jays make the trip north to take on Ithaca. Kickoff is set for 1 pm on Saturday, September 6 at Ithaca's Butterfield Stadium.
A Look Back
« Johns Hopkins posted 12-2 record, won the Centennial Conference title and advanced to the NCAA Semifinals last season. The Blue Jays finished the 2024 season ranked third in the final AFCA and D3football.com polls.
« Ithaca posted a 6-4 record in 2024. The Bombers played four games against teams that advanced to the NCAA Playoffs last season.
The Facts
« This is the 140th season of Johns Hopkins football. JHU first fielded a team in 1882.
« Johns Hopkins enters this week's game with an all-time record of 608-492-57 (.550).
« Overall, JHU owns 17 Centennial Conference titles (all 17 won since 2002) and has qualified for the NCAA Playoffs 13 times (all 13 since 2005).
Oh Captain, My Captain
« In a vote of the team, five players were selected to serve as captains of the 2025 Johns Hopkins football team.
« Graduate student Bay Harvey (QB) and seniors Carson Bourdo (DB), Xavier Newell (DL), Michael Nwosu (OL) and Geoff Schroeder (RB) will lead the team as co-captains in 2025. Harvey is in his third year as a co-captain, while Bourdo, Newell, Nwosu and Schroeder are first-time captains for the Blue Jays.
« Harvey is the first Johns Hopkins player since Stu Markley (1991-93) to be selected as a captain three times.
On the Road Again
« For the second consecutive year and the fifth time in the last six seasons, Johns Hopkins is opening the season on the road.
« The Blue Jays opened at Randolph-Macon (2019), at Stevenson (2021) and at Case Western (2022) before hosting Ithaca in 2023. This year's trip to Ithaca marks the second straight year the Blue Jays are opening at IC as JHU made its first-ever trip to Butterfield Stadium in 2024.
« For the record, the Blue Jays won each of the four games noted above.
Poll Position
« Johns Hopkins drew a trio of preseason rankings as the Blue Jays were ranked #3 by Lindy's, the AFCA and D3football.com.
« The number three preseason rankings from the AFCA and D3football.com are the highest ever for Johns Hopkins. JHU's highest previous rankings in the preseason were 8th (AFCA / 2024) and 6th (D3football.com / 2019).
« The #3 rankings from the AFCA and D3football.com also match JHU's highest-ever rankings from those organizations as the Blue Jays were ranked third in both polls at the end of the 2024 season.
« Ithaca was among the teams listed as receiving votes in both the AFCA and D3football.com Preseason Polls.
« Johns Hopkins is appearing in the AFCA Top-25 for the 144th time in 259 polls since the poll debuted in 1999. Additionally, the Blue Jays are in the D3football.com Top-25 for the 163rd time in 273 polls since D3football launched its poll in 2003.
A Fraternity of Two
« Johns Hopkins advanced to the NCAA Semifinals for the second time last season (2018). Last year's appearance came one season after the Blue Jays made a run to the NCAA Quarterfinals.
« Johns Hopkins and North Central are the only two teams in the nation that have advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals in each of the last two years.
A Fraternity of Three
« In addition to ranking as one of just two teams in the nation that has advanced to at least the NCAA Quarterfinals in each of the last two years, Johns Hopkins also belongs to another close-knit fraternity based on its recent success.
« Since 2021, Johns Hopkins has won 10 (2021), 10 (2022), 12 (2023) and 12 (2024) games with a combined record of 44-6 in that time. Among Division III teams, only North Central and Mount Union have also won at least 10 games in each of the last four years.
Program Ties
« Ithaca head coach Mike Toerper spent seven years as an assistant coach at Johns Hopkins from 2010-16.
« While at Hopkins, Toerper helped coach current Blue Jay head coach Dan Wodicka, who played at JHU from 2010-13.
« Wodicka started his coaching career with a two-year stint at Johns Hopkins that covered the 2014 and 2015 seasons. During that time, his roommate was ... Mike Toerper.
« In addition to Toerper, Ithaca linebackers coach/co-special teams coordinator Will Margraff is the youngest son of the late Jim Margraff, who served as JHU's head coach from 1990-2018.
« Former Ithaca and now second-year Cornell head coach Dan Swanstrom served as the Johns Hopkins offensive coordinator from 2008-13 and also coached Wodicka, who graduated as JHU's career leader in receptions.
Tough Non-Conference Slate
« Johns Hopkins' game this week at Ithaca kicks off one of the strongest non-conference schedules in the nation.
« In addition to Ithaca, which posted a deceiving 6-4 record last season, Johns Hopkins will host John Carroll and travel to Susquehanna in the first three weeks of the year. The Blue Streaks went 9-3 and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Playoffs last season, while Susquehanna rang up a 12-2 record and advanced to the NCAA Semifinals in 2024.
« Combined, JHU's three non-conference opponents posted a 27-9 record (.750) a year ago.Â
Head Coach Dan Wodicka
« Dan Wodicka is now in his second season as the head coach at Johns Hopkins. He led the Blue Jays to a 12-2 record, the Centennial Conference title and a run to the NCAA Semifinals in his first season in 2024.
« A 2014 Johns Hopkins graduate, Wodicka spent the previous five years (2019-23) on the Blue Jay staff, including the final two of those years as the defensive coordinator.
« Wodicka launched his coaching career with a two-year stint as the Johns Hopkins' wide receivers coach (2014-15) and made stops at Northern Michigan (2016) and Williams (2017-18) before returning to Homewood in 2019 as the special teams coordinator and defensive line coach.
« During 11 seasons with the program (four as a player, six as an assistant coach and one as the head coach), Wodicka has helped Johns Hopkins to a record of record of 112-18 (.862), nine Centennial Conference titles and eight trips to the NCAA Playoffs.
« Wodicka graduated as Johns Hopkins' career leader in receptions with 260, which went for 3,148 yards and 16 touchdowns. He remains second in school history in receptions and is also second in receiving yards.
« Wodicka took over for Greg Chimera, who left Johns Hopkins after the 2023 season to become the offensive coordinator at Penn.
« Wodicka's ties to Johns Hopkins go beyond the football field. His father, George, is a 1982 Johns Hopkins graduate and was a classmate of Jim Margraff. In addition, Dan's sister, Maggie, played on the Blue Jay women's basketball team and graduated in 2020.
A Hopkins Man Shall Lead Them
« For the 46th consecutive year, a Johns Hopkins graduate will lead the Blue Jay football program.
« Jerry Pfeifer, a 1965 JHU graduate, guided the Blue Jays from 1980-89 before turning the program over to Jim Margraff '82, who would become Hopkins' career leader in victories (221) over a 29-year career from 1990-2018.
« When Margraff passed away suddenly after the Blue Jays' run to the 2018 NCAA Semifinals, Greg Chimera '09 was appointed the head coach and served from 2019-2023 before Dan Wodicka took over on February 1, 2024.
For Openers
« Johns Hopkins has won its last 13 season openers dating back to 2011.
« During the 13-game winning streak in season openers, the Blue Jays have outscored the opposition 531-234 and only four of the 13 games have been decided by 15 points or less.
Sweet September
« Dating back to 2010, Johns Hopkins is 51-5 in the month of September.
« Also dating back to 2010, the Blue Jays are 23-2 at home and 28-3 on the road in September.
Against the Liberty League
« In addition to being the third all-time game between Johns Hopkins and Ithaca, this week's game against the Bombers will also be the 16th all-time for the Blue Jays against a team from the Liberty League. The Blue Jays are 10-5 all-time against the Liberty League.
« JHU bookmarked its 12 wins in 2023 with wins against Liberty League opponents as the Jays opened the season with a 27-17 win over Ithaca and topped Union, 39-17, in the second round of the NCAA Playoffs.
Road Warriors
« Johns Hopkins went a perfect 5-0 on the road in 2023 and won its school-record-tying 12th consecutive road game with the win at DePauw on December 7, 2024 (NCAA Round of 16) before falling at Mount Union, 45-37, in the NCAA Semifinals.
« The 12-game road winning streak matched the record originally set from 2015-17.
« In their last 27 road games dating back to 2019, the Blue Jays are 23-4. All four losses came against teams ranked in the top 20 at the time of the game (#6 Muhlenberg-2019 | #4 Mount Union-2021 | #18 Susquehanna-2022 | #3 Mount Union-2024).
« Dating back to 2013, JHU is 55-10 overall on the road (51-5 in the regular season).
Close Calls
« Since the start of the 2013 season, Johns Hopkins has lost a total of 17 games. Those 17 losses have come by a total of 122 points for an average margin of defeat of 7.2 points. The setbacks have come by one, two (twice), three (four times), four, five (twice), seven, eight (twice), 10, 15 (twice) and 28 points in that time.
« Translation, 13 of Johns Hopkins' 17 losses since the start of the 2013 season have come by a touchdown or less.
Comeback Jays
« Johns Hopkins erased a 17-0 second-quarter deficit to grab the 27-23 come-from-behind win at Ithaca in the 2024 season opener.
« The 17-point deficit is the largest Johns Hopkins has overcome to win a game since November 6, 1999, when the Jays posted a 35-33 win against F&M after trailing 27-10.
« Since 1971, the come-from-behind win against the Bombers is believed to be the sixth time the Blue Jays have come from 17 points down (or more) to win.
« The largest come-from-behind win on record for the Jays came in 1983, when Hopkins spotted Lebanon Valley a 24-0 second-quarter lead before rallying for a 35-31 victory.
I'm Honored
« Johns Hopkins returns two players who earned All-America honors in 2024.
« Senior Carson Bourdo (DB) was a First Team AP All-American and a Second Team D3football.com All-American a year ago, while senior Michael Nwosu (OL) was a Fourth Team D3football.com All-American for the second consecutive year.
More Honors
« Of the 15 Johns Hopkins players who earned All-Centennial Conference honors in 2024, eight return in 2024.
« Returning First Team All-Centennial selections include Michael Nwosu (OL), Isaac Urquidi (DL), Carson Bourdo (DB) and Brad Paxton (PK), while Geoff Schroeder (RB) and Will Seibert (DL) are back after grabbing Second Team All-CC. In addition, Cole Crotty (WR) and Charlie Pearson (OL) were honorable mention selections in 2024.
« In addition to earning first team honors last season, Paxton was the Centennial Conference Rookie of the Year.Â
It's All Academic
« Since 2011, the Johns Hopkins football team has produced 44 CoSIDA/CSC Academic All-Americans. Only one other Division III program has produced even 30 during that time (Carnegie Mellon (31)) and only two others - MIT (23) and Rose-Hulman (22) - have even produced 20 during that time.
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