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Butler Hosts Two-Time National Champ San Diego
Sept. 26, 2007
Complete Release in PDF Format
NOTE: Butler's Homecoming football game against San Diego will be televised on a delayed basis by HomeTown Television. Following is the replay schedule: Oct. 2-HomeTown 19, Noblesville, 11 a.m., 3 & 7 p.m. (also at www.hometowntelevision.net) LEAGUE START: Butler won't be taking an easy route into the start of Pioneer Football League play. The Bulldogs, riding a four-game winning streak, will host two-time defending PFL champ San Diego on Saturday, Sept. 29. The game, Butler's Homecoming contest, is slated for 1 p.m. (ET) at the Butler Bowl. Butler and San Diego are two of the PFL's three remaining unbeaten teams. The Bulldogs, off to their best start in more than a decade, picked up their fourth win in as many outings with a 28-21 overtime decision against NCAA Division II foe Missouri-Rolla last weekend. San Diego rolled to wins in its first three games, before having an open date on the schedule last weekend. The Toreros, who have finished atop the NCAA I-AA Mid-Major national poll for two straight seasons, boast the PFL's most potent offensive attack. Under first-year head coach Ron Caragher, San Diego is averaging 43 points and 464 yards per game. The Toreros have out-scored their first three opponents, 129-62. San Diego will begin PFL play with a 14-game league winning streak. Butler, wrapping up a three-game homestand, will begin a stretch of three consecutive PFL road contests on Oct. 6 at Drake.
Butler's 4-0 start is the best since 1991, when the Bulldogs opened with six consecutive wins. BONUS PLAY: The Bulldogs scored 21 straight points to pull out a come-from-behind victory against Missouri-Rolla. Trailing 21-7 with just over ten minutes remaining, quarterback T. J. Brown guided the Bulldogs on two scoring drives in an eight-minute stretch to tie the game at 21-21 and send the contest into overtime. Butler then scored the game-winner in the extra session on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Brown to wide receiver Dan Bohrer. The Bulldogs stopped Missouri-Rolla on four plays and celebrated their first overtime victory since 1999. Butler's victory over Missouri-Rolla was the Bulldogs' first overtime win in the Butler Bowl. BALL CONTROL: The Bulldogs had more than an 11-minute advantage in possession time in their overtime victory over Missouri-Rolla. Butler controlled the ball for 35:42 in the contest, while Missouri-Rolla had the ball for 24:18. The Bulldogs had 332 yards in total offense, including 173 on the ground, to 249 total yards for Missouri-Rolla. Butler leads the PFL in time of possession (34:40) through four games. DOUBLE THREAT: Quarterback T. J. Brown completed 17 of 28 passes for 159 yards and two touchdowns against Missouri-Rolla. But the Bulldogs' signal caller relied on his legs for what may have been the biggest play of Butler's come-from-behind victory. Facing a fourth-and-seven situation at the visitors' 22-yard line, Brown was forced to scramble on a pass attempt, and he broke loose on a 14-yard run to the Missouri-Rolla eight-yard line. He found wide receiver Tom Mulvihill open in the end zone on the very next play, and threw a touchdown pass to cut the Miners' lead to 21-14. TRIPLE CROWN: Butler running back Scott Gray, the leading scorer in the PFL, has had no trouble finding the end zone this season, but he's still looking to break into the Bulldogs' depth chart. Gray is Butler's short-yardage specialist and the No. 3 running back in the Bulldogs' three-back rotation, along with senior Derek North and sophomore Ricky Trujillo. Together, the trio has lifted Butler's rushing attack to No. 3 in the PFL with an average of 175.0 yards per game. A year ago, the Bulldogs managed just 47.1 yards per contest and ranked last in the league in rushing. Gray ran for a career-high 97 yards on 20 carries against Missouri-Rolla, one week after North rolled up a career-high 101 yards on 23 carries against St. Joseph's. Trujillo had a career-high 92 yards on 17 attempts in Butler's season-opening victory over Albion. North currently ranks fourth in the PFL in rushing (82.5 ypg), while Gray stands eighth in the league (47.2 ypg). Trujillo ranks ninth in the circuit in rushing (46.2 ypg). Butler has out-rushed each of its first four opponents. RED ZONE: The Bulldogs continue to lead the PFL in "Red Zone" defense after four games. Butler's opponents have reached the "Red Zone" (inside the Butler 20-yard line) six times in the first four games and have scored twice (33%). The Bulldogs are the only team in the PFL holding their opponents below 50% in the Red Zone. IMPACT PERFORMERS: Running back Scott Gray ranks second in the PFL in "Impact Rushing" and wide receiver Nate Miller ranks fifth in "Impact Receiving". Impact plays are defined as plays resulting in a touchdown or a first down. Gray has had 22 impact rushes, while Miller has 11 impact catches. EXTRA SESSIONS: The Bulldogs' win over Missouri-Rolla was the fourth overtime game in Butler history and the second overtime victory. The Bulldogs defeated Albion, 27-20, in overtime in 1999, while falling to Lindenwood, 34-33, in 1998 and Georgetown (D.C.), 57-56, in 2000. The win over was Butler's first overtime victory in the Butler Bowl. BULLDOG BITS: •San Diego is ranked No. 1 in The Sports Network Mid-Major poll. Butler is ranked sixth in the same poll. The Toreros also are the top Mid-Major team in the CollegeSportsReport.com poll and the Sagarin Ratings. •Running back Scott Gray boosted his season touchdown total to 11 with a pair of scoring runs against Missouri-Rolla. Gray trails Leroy Thompson (69 points in 1956) in 10th place on Butler's single season scoring list by three points. •Quarterback T. J. Brown needs 222 passing yards to catch Eli Stoddard (1994-97) in 10th place on Butler's all-time passing list. Brown has thrown for 2,773 yards during his Butler career. He currently ranks third in the PFL in passing average (174.5 ypg). •Defensive back Mark Kwiatkowski shared Butler's tackle lead against Missouri-Rolla with a career-high eight stops. He had five solo tackles, including one tackle for loss, and three assists. •Running back Derek North matched his career-high with five pass receptions (for 48 yards) against Missouri-Rolla. North also had five catches against Jacksonville in 2006 and against Missouri-Rolla in 2005. •Senior linebacker Mike Hiday made his first career start for the Bulldogs against Missouri-Rolla, and he finished with six tackles, one shy of his career-high. •Freshman Tadd Dombart continues to lead the PFL in pass interceptions with three. He also ranks second in the league in punt returns (15.2 ypr). •Sophomore Spencer Summerville ranks second in the PFL in kick return average. Summerville has returned five kickoffs for 167 yards (33.4 ypr). •Butler ranks second in the PFL in quarterback sacks with 18, five behind league-leading Dayton. Sophomore Derek Guggenberger and freshman Cody Bearden share the team lead with three sacks apiece. Guggenberger picked up his third quarterback sack in Butler's victory over Missouri-Rolla. •Linebacker Mike Marzotto sat out the Missouri-Rolla game with a sprained ankle, snapping a string of 25 consecutive starts for the Bulldogs. The PFL's active career leader in tackles (213) is expected to be available for the San Diego game. |
