W&J’s opponent has overcome lot to get this far
Frostburg State’s football team has won games this season by overcoming a lot of barriers.
The Bobcats have won games in regulation and in overtime, by large deficits and small, with the passing game, the running game and a stifling defense.
And for the first time this season, all their players will be healthy when Frostburg arrives at Cameron Stadium Saturday to play Washington & Jefferson in the second round of the NCAA Division III playoffs.
Kickoff is at noon.
The winner will advance to face either No. 2 Mount Union (11-0) or No. 16 Case Western Reserve (11-0) Dec. 3.
Frostburg, a member of the New Jersey Athletic Conference, defeated No. 9 Wittenburg, 35-7, to reach this game. W&J won an emotional 31-28 game over Johns Hopkins.
The win over Wittenburg came after Frostburg eked out two victories by a combined 10 points to earn a playoff berth.
“To be totally honest, I thought we were the better team,” said Frostburg head coach DeLane Fitzgerald, who is in his fourth season as head coach.
“We didn’t think much of their conference (the North Coast Athletic Conference). We think our conference is a really good conference.”
With starting quarterback Connor Cox out with an injury, Frostburg rallied for a 17-14 victory over Kean two weeks ago. The following week, the Bobcats were forced into overtime against Salisbury in unusual weather conditions.
“We had 23 mph wins, so that made it hard to throw the football,” said Fitzgerald.
In a game that would decide the NJAC title, Frostburg went to overtime against Wesley tied at 24-24. Wesley took the lead on a filed goal, then blocked a 40-yard attempt by Frostburg that would have sent the game to a second overtime. Frostburg had six starters miss that game with injuries.
“They are a lot more athletic than us,” said W&J head coach Mike Sirianni. “That’s OK. We’ve played teams like that before. They are a really good football team.”
Cox is the lynchpin to the passing game and has a rotation of four to six wide receivers. Cox has completed 62 percent of his passes for 2,273 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Six receivers are in double-digits, led by Joe Beckford’s 36. Sergio Andino has a team-high 11 TD receptions out of just 32 receptions.
“Cox is the Baker Mayfield of Division III football,” Fitzgerald said. “He doesn’t lack for confidence and he is at his best inn pressure situations.”
Frostburg uses a three-pronged running attack with Jamaal Morant leading the way. He has 871 rushing yards and a team-best nine touchdowns. Gavin Lavat averaged 6.9 yards per carry and has 540.
Frostburg’s defense is led by Niles Scott, a 6-3, 310-pound tackle who Fitzgerald said has been scouted by 28 NFL teams.
“He’ll be on an NFL roster next year,” Fitzgerald said. “He’s huge but runs like a skilled kid.”
Scott leads the team with 15 1/2 tackles for loss and is tied for the lead with 9 quarterback sacks.
“They have 57 really, really good players and one great player (in Scott),” said Sirianni. “He’s as good a Division III tackler as I’ve ever seen, So we’re going to have to know where he is at all times.”
Notes
W&J has won all six meetings against Frostburg, the last coming in the 2010 season, 21-6. … W&J senior wide receiver Jesse Zubik was named one of 10 semifinalists for the 2017 Gagliardi Trophy, an award presented to the most outstanding football player in NCAA Division III. Zubik is third in Division III with 1,324 receiving yards this season and fourth with 16 touchdowns off 74 catches.