DRAKE VS. LEHIGH

6:07 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 4, 2010

Drake Stadium (14,457), Des Moines, Iowa

GAME SIGNIFICANCE: Drake, under third-year head coach Chris Creighton, opens its 117th season of intercollegiate football playing host to Lehigh.

DRAKE FOOTBALL ON RADIO: Saturday's game with Lehigh will be broadcast on KRNT Radio (1350 AM) with Scott Pierce handling the play by play. Fans can also listen to the game at www.GoDrakeBulldogs.com

TELEVISION: The Drake-Lehigh football game will be televised on Fox College Sports as well as FSN Pittsburgh, DirecTV and DISH Network.

TICKETS: Children, ages 12 and under, are admitted free to Drake home football games when accompanied by a paid adult. Student tickets, for ages 13 to 17, are $5 while tickets for adults are $12. For more information contact the Drake Athletic Ticket Office at www.godrakebulldogs.com

PREGAME TAILGATE: Fans are invited to attend a pregame tailgate party, starting at 4 p.m. in the parking lot west of Drake Stadium off Forest Ave.

SEASON OPENERS: The Bulldogs sport a 69-41-6 record (.627) in season openers, having won their last three season openers including a 22-0 home victory against Grand View last year and a 17-13 home triumph against Upper Iowa in 2008.

Drake's 27-24 upset win at Illinois State in 2007 snapped a string of six straight years in which the Bulldogs had dropped their season opener with all the games played against scholarship opponents: Truman State, 40-29, 2001; Western Illinois, 64-7, 2002; at Illinois State, 27-13, 2003; at Missouri State, 31-26, 2004; at Northern Iowa, 52-17, 2005; and Northern Iowa at home, 48-7, 2006.

AMONG LEADERS: Drake ranks 20th in overall victories (556) among the 123 schools which play in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).

The game against Lehigh will be the 1,066th game in school history with Drake owning a record of 556-479-29 for a winning percentage of .537.

PRESEASON PFL POLL: Drake was picked to finish fourth in the Pioneer Football League preseason coaches' poll, receiving 54 points.

Ten-time Pioneer Football League champion Dayton was the favorite in the league's preseason coaches' poll, receiving four of 10 possible first-place votes. Dayton received 76 points while defending league champion Butler was picked second, receiving two first-place votes, with 69 points. Jacksonville received the four remaining first-place votes and finished third in the preseason poll with 68 points.

San Diego, receiving 52 points, was tabbed fifth, followed by, Marist (45), Davidson (30), Campbell (25), Morehead State (22) and Valparaiso (nine).The 2010 PFL slate starts Sept. 18 when Davidson travels to Campbell and Morehead State travels to Dayton.

THE SERIES: This will be just the second meeting between the schools with Lehigh claiming a 19-0 home victory in a game played in steady downpour from the aftermath of Tropical Storm Hanna in 2008.

Drake's defense did force four turnovers, with linebackers Josh Walkup and Ben Morrison recovering fumbles.
   
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT:  Lehigh has made five NCAA playoff appearances since 1998, while advancing to the quarterfinal round three times. Lehigh has 17 returning starters from last year's team which posted a 4-7 record, including a 4-2 second-place mark in the Patriot League.

The Mountain Hawks led the nation in sacks with 39 and ranked 12th in tackles-for-loss with 83.  Lehigh led the Patriot League in pass defense, red zone defense and kick-off return average and ranked second in scoring defense and total defense.  Graduation losses included linebacker Matt Cohen who was named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year.

Drake's defense will be tested by Lehigh's Will Rackley who was named one of the top ten offensive linemen in the Football Championship Subdivision by The Sports Network. The 6-4, 310-pound lineman earned third-team All-America honors by The Associated Press last year and has been named to four preseason All-American teams this fall.

Junior Chris Lum, who passed for 564 yards including five touchdowns while starting three games, has been named Lehigh's starting quarterback against Drake. Senior Jay Campbell is back after leading the team with 659 yards rushing in 139 carries (4.7 avg.) including a career best 155 yards against Fordham.

Junior Jake Drwal caught a team-high 47 passes for 641 yards (13.6 avg.) including four touchdowns.

Senior cornerback Jarard Cribbs leads the Lehigh defense after earning first-team all-league honors last year when he had 45 tackles and two interceptions.

Andy Coen, a 1986 graduate of Gettysburg, is in his fifth year as head coach at Lehigh owning a 20-24 record. During his time as the Mountain Hawks leader, Coen has produced 42 All-Patriot League honorees, including 12 All-America selections.

Coen led the Mountain Hawks to a share of their eighth Patriot League Championship in his first-ever season as a head coach in 2006.  By capturing that title in 2006, Coen has been a part of six league championship teams in his past 12 seasons as a coach, including three at Lehigh (1998, 1999, 2006) and three at the University of Pennsylvania (2000, 2002, 2003).

Coen became the 28th head football coach in Lehigh history on Jan. 3, 2006. He spent six seasons as an offensive line coach at Lehigh – including four as the team's offensive coordinator— from 1994-99.

Coen was the offensive coordinator at Pennsylvania from 2000-05 with the Quakers capturing three Ivy League titles, including a top ten national finish in 2003.  In his first stop at Lehigh (1994-99), Coen was a part of three Patriot League championship teams, including the 12-1 1998 squad.  That team set a school mark for the most wins in a season, while reaching the NCAA Division I-AA quarterfinals.

Coen was the offensive coordinator and head baseball coach at the United States Merchant Marine Academy from 1990-93. He also worked as a graduate assistant coach at Minnesota, and James Madison.

IN THE PATRIOT LEAGUE: Lehigh has won eight Patriot League football titles (1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2006). The Mountain Hawks, receiving three first-place votes, were picked to finish third in the Patriot League preseason coaches poll with 35 points. Colgate was selected as the preseason league favorite earning six first-place votes and 46 points overall.

NATIONAL CHAMPS ON DECK: Lehigh will open its home season Sept. 11, playing host to defending FCS national champion Villanova.

DRAKE SQUAD BREAKDOWN: Drake's 98-man roster includes seven fifth-year seniors, 11 seniors, 19 juniors, 20 sophomores and 41 freshmen. There are players from 15 states, with Illinois leading the way with 44, followed by Iowa 16, Missouri and Texas six, Wisconsin five, Colorado and Kansas four, California 3,and one apiece from Indiana, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska and Ohio.

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE: Drake has accumulated a record of 67-16-1 at Drake Stadium dating back to 1994.
 
THE CREIGHTON ERA: Under the guidance of third-year coach Chris Creighton, Drake enters the 2010 campaign having won 13 of its last 16 games, while moving toward the upper echelon of the Pioneer Football League.

Drake posted an 8-3 mark in 2009, including a 6-2 second-place finish. Only a last-second field goal in the season finale by eventual league champion Butler (20-17) prevented Drake from earning a share of the Pioneer Football League title.

 Creighton was named the 25th head football coach at Drake University on Dec. 22, 2007. In his first year at Drake, Creighton guided the Bulldogs to a 6-5 record in 2008 with the team winning four of its last five games.

Prior to his arrival at Drake, Creighton ranked fourth among all active NCAA Division III football coaches in career winning percentage. He served as head coach at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Ind., from 2001-2007 where he constructed a 63-15 record with teams winning four North Coast Athletic Conference championships, while competing in three NCAA Division III playoffs.

 Creighton, 41, owns an overall record of 109-32 (.776 winning percentage) in 12 years as a college head coach including a 32-9 mark as head coach at Ottawa (Kan.) University from 1997-2000.

During his last three years at Wabash, Creighton led the Little Giants to a 30-5 record, including three straight league championships and appearances in the 2005 and 2007 NCAA Division III playoffs.

Wabash posted an 11-2 record in 2007, competing in the NCAA Division III playoffs while being ranked No. 8 in the final NCAA Division III coaches poll. Wabash was 12-1 in 2002 and 11-1 in 2005, capping both seasons with appearances in the playoffs.

As offensive coordinator at Wabash, Creighton's teams averaged 35 points per game with the multiple offense producing the school's all-time leading rusher and passer. Three starting quarterbacks received All-American honors.

Under Creighton, Wabash won conference championships in 2002, 2005, 2006 and 2007. He coached 83 all-conference players, including seven who earned conference player of the year honors, along with 13 All-Americans.

He was named the North Coast Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2002, 2005 and 2007, as well as the Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 1997.

The Seattle, Wash., native produced one of the greatest single season turnarounds in NAIA history during his first year at Ottawa in 1997. He inherited a team that posted a 1-8 record the previous season, then finished 9-2 en route to capturing its first Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference title since 1972. He also led Ottawa to a league championship in 2000, along with appearances in the NAIA playoffs in 1997 and 2000.

Creighton was offensive coordinator at Concordia (Ill.) from 1991-92 and Manchester (Ind.) from 1993-96 before becoming head coach at Ottawa.

As an All-American quarterback, Creighton led Kenyon (Ohio) College to its only North Coast Athletic Conference title in 1989. He was named the league's player of the year after setting single-season conference records for passing yardage (2,843) and touchdowns (29). He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Kenyon in 1991 and a master's degree from Concordia (Ill.) University in 1993.
   
CREIGHTON RANKS AMONG NATION'S BEST: Chris Creighton enters the 2010 football season ranked 36th among the winningest active college football coaches at all levels with a .784 winning percentage, owning a 109-30 career mark in 13 years.

BRAIN TRUST: The Drake coaching staff welcomes three additions headed by  new defensive coordinator Tom Allen who succeeded Neal Neathery who left to become the defensive coordinator at Texas-San Antonio. Allen had spent the previous two years as defensive coordinator at Lambuth (Tenn.) University. He also was special teams coordinator and defensive back coach at Wabash College under Chris Creighton in 2007.

Casey Carlo, who served as defensive line coach at Southwest Minnesota State last year, joins the Drake staff in a similar capacity. Mark Watson, a 2010 graduate of McPherson College where he was a two-year starter, is in his first year as cornerbacks coach.

Rick Fox, who had served as offensive coordinator at Centre (Ky.) College since 1999, is in his third year as Drake's special teams coordinator and offensive line coach. Aaron Selby also is back for his third year as tight ends coach. Kyle York returning for his second year as cornerbacks coach, was promoted to recruiting coordinator this past spring.

FAMILIAR TRIO: Part-time coaches Bill Charles and Jeff Martin, who have been fixtures on the Drake coaching staff for more than two decades, also return along with defensive line coach George Sypniewski who comes back after a two-year absence.

Charles, who is the running backs coach, began coaching at Drake under coach Chuck Shelton when the program was Division I from 1980-85.  He also served on the coaching staffs of Nick Quartaro in 1987-88, Rob Ash (1992-2006) and Steve Loney (2007). Martin, who is the receivers coach, is in his 15th year as an assistant at Drake. The Des Moines native graduated from Drake in 1977 as owner of five school records, including career pass completions (370) and total offensive plays (982). Sypniewski, who was a three-year starting linebacker at Drake from 1969-71, was an assistant coach for the Bulldogs from 1990-2007.

CO-CAPTAINS: Senior defensive tackle Andrew Asbell (Machesney Park, Ill.), senior linebacker Ben Morrison (Long Grove, Ill.), senior fullback Steve Platek  (Arlington Heights, Ill.) and senior defensive end Dain Taylor (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) have been selected as captains for the Drake football team.

Platek, a two-time first-team All-Pioneer Football League selection, was named a captain for the second straight year. He was the most valuable player for the Bulldogs last fall after leading Drake with a team-high nine touchdowns. He caught a team-best 49 passes for 553 yards, including three touchdowns. He also rushed 30 times for 147 yards, including a team-high six touchdowns.

Taylor also earned first-team all-league honors last year after collecting  48 tackles, including 29 solos. He led Drake with 19.5 tackles for losses totaling 90 yards, while recording a team-high 10.5 quarterback sacks for 73 yards in losses.

Morrison earned honorable mention All-PFL honors last year. He had 75 tackles, including 14.5 tackles totaling 57 yards in losses, while recording 4.5 quarterback sacks and forcing four fumbles.

Asbell, a three-year letterwinner, earned second-team all-league honors in 2007 and was an honorable mention choice in 2008.

START WITH DEFENSE: With 14 starters back, the Drake football team hopes to pick up where it left off last year when the Bulldogs posted an 8-3 record.

There are eight starters returning on defense which ranked in the top 12 in five final NCAA Football Championship Subdivision team statistics in 2009. Drake was second in tackles for losses, averaging 8.73; fifth in quarterback sacks (3.27 avg.), eighth in rushing defense (90.55 yards per game avg.), and 12th in both total defense (276.45 yards per game avg.) and scoring defense (17.07 pts. per game avg.).

TAYLOR LEADS VETERAN DEFENSE: Drake senior defensive end Dain Taylor has been named to a fourth preseason All-American football team.The co-captain was selected to the preseason College Sporting News Football Championship Subdivision All-American third team.

Previously, Taylor was named to the preseason All-American football team by the FCS Senior Scout Bowl selection committee. The FCS Senior Scout Bowl is a post-season all-star game showcasing the talent of senior players from the NCAA FCS Division (formerly 1-AA ) football level. Taylor was selected to the North defense second team. He also was named to The Sports Network Preseason All-America third team and the Consensus Draft Services Preseason Football College Subdivision All-American second team.

He led the PFL with  19.5 tackles for losses totaling 90 yards, while recording a PFL-high 10.5 quarterback sacks for 73 yards in losses.

Junior Dave Witkiewicz (Hales Corner, Wis.) is back for his second year at starting nose guard, while the team welcomes the return of three-year starting defensive tackle Andrew Asbell who was redshirted in 2009. Asbell earned second-team all-league honors in 2007 and was an honorable mention choice in 2008.

Senior end Josh Walkup (Littleton, Colo.) ranked fourth in the PFL last year with eight quarterback sacks, totaling 73 yards in losses.

Senior linebacker Ben Morrison was an honorable mention All-PFL choice last year after totaling 75 tackles, including 14.5 tackles for 57 yards in losses, while collecting 4.5 quarterback sacks. Morrison ranked 10th in the PFL in total tackles last year.

Linebacker Tyler Moorehead (Mason City, Iowa) was named the 2009 Pioneer Football League Freshman Defensive Player of the Year. Moorehead, along with Taylor, tied for second in the PFL in forced fumbles with four. Moorehead had 14.5 tackles for losses totaling 57 yards.

The secondary has three starters returning in junior free safety Nick Chenier (Hinsdale, Ill.)  and cornerbacks Michael Lahart (Chariton, Iowa) and Lucas Mosier (Griswold, Iowa). A three-year letterwinner, Mosier ranked fourth in the league with nine pass break ups.

PLATEK KEYS OFFENSE: Senior Steve Platek, a two-time first-team all-league choice at fullback, headlines seven offensive starters.

Platek, a co-captain, led Drake with a team-high nine touchdowns last year. He caught a team-best 49 passes for 553 yards, including three touchdowns. He also rushed 30 times for 147 yards, including a team-high six touchdowns.

"Steve makes big clutch plays for us,” said Creighton. “He does it on the ground and in the air. We are well balanced with several players who now know our system.”

Junior offensive tackle Evan Lawrence (Moline, Ill.), an honorable mention All-PFL selection last fall, and senior left guard Stephen Flynn (Davenport, Iowa), a two-year letterwinner, will lead a young offensive line.

Other returning letterwinners on the line who are expected to contribute include senior Dan Clinton (Gurnee, Ill.) and junior Chris Wilson (Homer Glen, Ill.).

Drake will head into the fall with more certainty at the quarterback position after junior Michael Piatkowski (Wheaton, Ill.) assumed the role last year.  Piatkowski passed for 2,139 yards — the most by a Drake quarterback since Connor Jostes threw for 2,196 yards in 2004 —  including 14 touchdowns.

"Last season none of our quarterbacks had experience headed into the opening game.  With one year under his belt, I think Michael (Piatkowski) will be better this fall. The greatest improvement is often from year one to year two,” added Creighton.

Senior Tom Kostek (West Des Moines, Iowa) and Patrick Cashmore (Kansas City, Mo.) will return to share the slot-back duties. Kostek led the Bulldogs with 347 yards rushing in 88 carries (3.9 avg.) including four touchdowns. Cashmore rushed for 251 yards in just five games.  Sophomore Trey Morse (Elmo, Texas), who rushed for 278 yards (3.5 avg.), provides depth in the backfield.

Returning receivers junior Drew Blackmon (Florissant, Mo.) and sophomore Joey Orlando (Park Ridge, Ill.) caught 31 and 20 passes, respectively, last year. Junior letterwinner Ben Sabal (Arlington Heights, Ill.) is back at tight end.
   
SPECIAL TEAMS: One of the priorities in the spring was finding a replacement for first-team all-league kicker Brandon Wubs, who also was a four-year starter as punter and made 13 of 15 field goals in his first year as the team's regular placekicker in 2009.

 Fifth-year senior Mitch Rasmussen (Long Grove, Ill.)  and senior Billy Janssen (Round Lake Beach, Ill.) have been neck and neck in competition for both the punting and place-kicking chores. Rasmussen did make two point after conversion kicks along with a 41-yard punt against Campbell last year.   

The special teams also features Michael Lahart, who led the league in punt returns, averaging 10.6 yards.  Lucas Mosier ranked fifth in the conference in kickoff returns, averaging 21.4 yards. Senior Stoy Hall (Omaha, Neb.) returns for his third year as the long snapper.