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Butler Hosts San Diego In A PFL North Game
Oct. 16, 2002 LEAGUE TEST: The Bulldogs (2-4, 0-1 PFL) will return to Pioneer Football League play this weekend when they host North Division foe San Diego (2-3, 0-0 PFL) on Saturday, Oct. 19. The 1 p.m., contest at the Butler Bowl will be televised on WTBU-TV (Ch. 69) and broadcast live on WKLU-FM (101.9). Butler dropped its only previous PFL North game at Dayton on Oct. 5, while the Toreros will open their league slate this weekend. A year ago, Butler and San Diego tied for second place in the PFL North, two games behind league champ Dayton. The Bulldogs are trying to snap a three-game losing streak, following last weekend's 40-23 loss in the Butler Bowl to Austin Peay. That game was Butler's first loss at home this season. San Diego dropped its last outing, 34-3, to Western Oregon at home last weekend. "San Diego plays an exciting brand of football. They have a high skill level on offense and they keep a lot of pressure on your defense." --Head Coach Kit Cartwright LATE FLURRY: Butler stood toe-to-toe with Austin Peay for three quarters, but the visiting Governors unleashed 20 points in the final 15:22 of the contest to claim a 17-point road victory. The Bulldogs came from behind in the first half to take a 10-7 halftime lead and then traded touchdowns with the visitors through the third quarter. Butler's final touchdown with 1:22 left in the third period gave the Bulldogs a 23-20 lead. That's when Austin Peay's Jay Bailey scored the first of his two touchdowns on a 66-yard run to give his team the lead for good. The Governors added two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter, including one on an 11-yard run by Bailey, to settle the final count. Butler had 368 yards in total offense, and the Bulldogs finished with a 22-20 edge in first downs and a 31:56-28:04 advantage in possession time in the game. "I was encouraged that we were able to get back to where we were able to be productive on offense. We put together some long drives and we were able to put some points on the board." --Head Coach Kit Cartwright FIRST CALL: Sophomore quarterback Ian Nelson was given his first collegiate start in Butler's game with Austin Peay, and the second-year player turned in a solid outing. He completed 21 of 38 passes (with two interceptions) for 249 yards and one touchdown, and he added a second rushing touchdown. Nelson scored Butler's first touchdown in the game on a one-yard run, and he threw a 12-yard pass to wide receiver Adam Lafferty for the Bulldogs' final score. He also handled Butler's punting chores and averaged 34.3 yards on seven kicks. "Ian handled the moment well. He threw some tough long balls, and he did a good job running the option. But most importantly, he was running the football team." --Head Coach Kit Cartwright Ian Nelson had one collegiate pass completion for 17 yards prior to his start against Austin Peay. LONG DISTANCE OPERATOR: Senior wide receiver Adam Lafferty caught six passes for 139 yards and one touchdown against Austin Peay. It was his highest total for receiving yards this season and the eighth 100-yard receiving performance of his Butler career. Lafferty had the Bulldogs' longest play of the game with a 41-yard pass reception, and he had Butler's longest rushing attempt with a 21-yarder. The fourth-year end tallied his third touchdown of the season on a 12-yard pass from quarterback Ian Nelson. Lafferty's performance against Austin Peay boosted his career total for receiving yards to 1,839 and moved him into fourth place on Butler's all-time receiving list. He's 94 yards shy of Tom Redmond, 1970-72, in third place and 98 yards away from Paul Page, 1983-86, in the No. 2 spot. Adam Lafferty has 97 career pass receptions, one shy of Dave Oliver, 1972-75, in 10th place on Butler's all-time list for catches. INDELIBLE IMPRESSION: It would be hard for senior wide receiver Kyle Derickson to look at Butler's contest with San Diego as just another game. San Diego has left a lasting mark on Derickson's collegiate football career. Derickson was enjoying a productive first year with the Bulldogs in 1999 when he took a crushing hit at Torero Stadium and was taken from the field on a stretcher with a dislocated hip. It took the Butler wide receiver more than a year to recover from the injury, which could have been career-threatening. Derickson rebounded strongly last season and celebrated his return to Torero Stadium by catching the game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter. With the Bulldogs trailing, 16-12, and facing a third down and 13 yards-to-go situation, Derickson hauled in a short pass and turned it into a 25-yard touchdown catch. Kyle Derickson has four career touchdown catches and all came in Butler wins. BULLDOG BITS: *Linebacker Lou Capizzi had a career-high 11 tackles against San Diego last year. He led a Butler defensive effort that held the Toreros to their second-lowest point total of the season. Capizzi, who had nine tackles against Austin Peay last weekend, is currently second on the team in tackles with 53. *Tailback Dale Jennings scored his ninth touchdown of the season on a 12-yard run against Austin Peay. Jennings, who rushed for 131 yards and a touchdown against San Diego as a sophomore in 1999, currently ranks third in the PFL and 11th in the NCAA I-AA in scoring (9.0 ppg). The senior running back has scored eight of his touchdowns in the Butler Bowl this season. *Dale Jennings ranks third in the PFL and 33rd in the NCAA I-AA in rushing with 88.5 yards per game. Jennings, who was hampered by a "turf toe" rushed for a team-high 78 yards against Austin Peay. *Junior defensive back Brandon Martin continues to lead the PFL in punt returns with a 14.4 yards per return average on eight returns. Martin ranks 15th in the NCAA I-AA in punt returns. *Sophomore Justin Campbell returned two kickoffs for 60 yards against Austin Peay, and he's moved into third place in the PFL in kickoff returns. Campbell is averaging 22.3 yards on 22 kick returns this season. *Justin Campbell ranks second in the PFL and 20th in the NCAA I-AA in all-purpose yards (141.2 ypg). Teammate Dale Jennings is fourth in the league and 38th in the nation in all-purpose yards (126.3 ypg). *Freshman defensive tackle Chris Durig suffered a foot injury in practice and didn't play against Austin Peay. Durig, Butler's lone freshman starter, was coming off a career-high eight tackles against Dayton. *Senior running back Roman Speron needs 36 receiving yards to reach 1,000 for his career. Speron already has 1,108 career rushing yards. Speron 66 yards rushing and 53 yards receiving against San Diego last year.
*Butler's coaching staff awarded "Player of the Week" honors to seven players following the Austin Peay game. Selected on offense were offensive guard Carl Erickson and wide receiver Kyle Derickson, while defensive backs Russ Mann and Andy Nelson were cited on defense. Mann and junior Kyle Bruton earned "Special Forces" (Special Teams) recognition, while freshmen Phil Vorndran and Landis Rayborn were tabbed from the scout team.
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