Game Notes

Franklin & Marshall Last Time Out...

The Diplomats scored 14 unanswered points during the third quarter to take a 17-14 lead against Muhlenberg and went up 23-21 with just 1:20 left in regulation time. However, the visiting Mules had the final say as Connor Fenstermaker knocked a 29-yard field goal through the uprights as time expired to give Muhlenberg a 24-23 victory during the Diplomats' home finale. The host Diplomats had just taken a 23-21 lead when Aaron Rascoe capped a 72-yard scoring drive with a 10-yard touchdown run with just 80 seconds left in regulation time. That capped a drive which was highlighted by a 44-yard reception from Jack O'Hearen to get his side inside the red zone. With F&M forced to kick off from the 20 after an unsportsmanlike penalty after that play, the Mules returned the ball just past midfield before three consecutive completions got the visitors into scoring position. The Diplomats tried to ice the kicker with their remaining timeout, but it was to no avail as Fenstermaker converted to give his team sole possession of third place in the Centennial Conference standings.

Franklin & Marshall out gained Muhlenberg by a 371-253 margin in total yards. Tremba accounted for 297 yards passing and two touchdowns through the air. O'Hearen continued to stake his claim as the Centennial Conference's top receiver with 10 receptions for 127 yards on Senior Day. Rascoe led the team's rushing efforts as he averaged 4.4 yards per carry for a total of 58 yards. Nico Medlar led the defensive effort with 11 tackles – including nine solo stops – in addition to three pass break ups. Jacob Hille was second on the team with eight tackles that featured a sack. In total, F&M made eight stops behind the line of scrimmage. Six Diplomats finished with at least five tackles on the afternoon.

Franklin & Marshall Returning Honorees

• Laurence Miller - Fourth team All-American kicker, first-team All-CC in 2023

• Jeff Decker - first team All-CC defensive end (second team in 2022)

• Gary Lewis - first-team All-CC wide receiver in 2023

• Matt Scully - second-team All-CC linebacker in 2023, honorable mention returner in 2021

• Matt Wertz - second-team All-CC defensive back in 2023

• Aaron Rascoe - first-team All-CC running back in 2022

• Jacob Hille - second-team All-CC linebacker in 2022

Last time we met ... 

Franklin & Marshall celebrated last year's seniors in the best way it possibly could as the Diplomats officially locked up a spot in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series, guaranteeing another game for the graduating class during the final regular season game of the 2023 season. The Diplomats solidified one more week together with a 35-10 victory during the regular season finale. Turnovers certainly told a large portion of the story as the Diplomats held a 28-0 edge in points off of those turnovers with an opportunistic secondary coming up with three interceptions - in addition to a defensive line fumble recovery - as each of those short field drives resulted in touchdowns for F&M. The Diplomats led wire-to-wire during the victory, holding a 21-3 lead at the half before taking its largest and final lead of the day early in the fourth quarter.

A number of short field opportunities left limited yards for the Diplomats' offense on numerous occasions, but F&M still racked up a 216-149 yard advantage through the air. The Bullets did finish with a slight 336-314 edge in total years. Franklin & Marshall was certainly much more efficient during its time with the ball. In addition to the 28-0 edge in points off of turnovers, F&M was a perfect 4-for-4 scoring touchdowns when it entered the red zone. Tremba finished with 211 of those passing yards on 15-of-30 during his pass attempts with no turnovers. Lewis had just two catches – including his touchdown – but led the team with 61 yards receiving. He was one of five receivers on the day with at least 30 yards, joining Sutton, Ben Moir, O'Hearen, and Aselton. In addition to his touchdown run, Wagner average 3.7 yards per carry on his way to a team-best 61 yards rushing.

Scouting Gettysburg

The Bullets enter their final game of the regular season with a 2-7 (1-4 CC) record. Gettysburg started the year 2-2 with wins against Juniata and McDaniel but enter the final week of the regular season looking to snap a five-game losing streak. They are coming off of a 34-0 loss at Ursinus just one week ago. Rocco Abdinoor had seen most of the action under center for the Bullets, but is expected to miss this game. Matt O'Connor is expected to get the start at quarterback. He has completed 21 of his 41 passes this year for 129 yards and one touchdown. Walle Harwigsson Lundbland is the team's leading receiver with 397 yards and six touchdowns. Right behind him is Jason Roskam who has 396 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Running back Michael Zrelak is averaging 81.1 yards per game and has scored seven touchdowns on the ground.

Nate DeLorenzo leads the defense with 60 tackles and three interceptions. He has also forced two fumbles and recovered three. The Bullets defense has six sacks, eight interceptions, eight forced fumbles, and seven fumble recoveries on the year. Punter Matthew Van Istendal is averaging 36.2 yards per punt and has pinned opponents inside their own 20 during six of his 41 punts. Punt returner Luke Denison is averaging 9.4 yards per return, while he is averaging a team-best 28 yards on kickoff returns. Peter Schelling has seen the most returns on kickoffs with an average of 16.8 yards on 19 returns.

Looking ahead to the postseason

The Diplomats have officially clinched fourth place in the Centennial Conference standings and will play in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series next week. In addition to Johns Hopkins winning the automatic qualifier spot, Ursinus is currently in position to receive an at-large bid to the national tournament. If Ursinus is selected to the national tournament, F&M would be the No. 2 seed from the conference in the bowl series and travel to the top team to not make the NCAA Tournament from the Middle Atlantic Conference. If Ursinus did not get selected, F&M would be the No. 3 seed and travel to that same seed in the conference.

Centennial Conference Leaders for Franklin & Marshall

Rushing Yards
4. Aaron Rascoe (63.9 per game)

Passing Yards
2. Ty Tremba (241.0 per game)

Receiving Yards
1. Jack O'Hearen (90.9 per game)
3. Gary Lewis (65.3 per game)

Scoring
5. Laurence Miller (6.1 ppg)

Kick Returns
6. Matt Hanna (16.9 per return)
7. Jackson Boothby (16.8 per return)

Total Offense
3. Ty Tremba (253.8 yards per game)
10. Aaron Rascoe (63.9 per game)

All-Purpose Yards
5. Jack O'Hearen (90.9 yards per game)
10. Aaron Rascoe (72.0 yards per game)

Punting
2. Laurence Miller (38.1 yard average)

Field Goals
1. Laurence Miller (11)

Tackles for Loss
3. Jeff Decker (15.5)
4. Quincy Long (12.5)

Sacks
3. Jeff Decker (7.5)
4. Quincy Long (7.0)
9. Jacob Hille (3.0)

Passes Defended
4. Matt Scully (9)
10. Nico Medlar (6)

Interceptions
5. Matt Wertz (2)
5. Nico Medlar (2)
5. Daniel Shakal (2)

Fumble Recoveries
4. Rafe Carner (1)
4. Matt Wertz (1)
4. Quincy Long (1)
4. Jeff Decker (1)

Forced Fumbles
2. Connor Hille (4)
9. Chris Albero (1)