ECAC Asa S. Bushnell Bowl (II) - Washington & Jefferson Game Preview

For the second year in a row, the Hobart College Football Statesmen have been selected by the ECAC and will look to effectively defend last season's Bushnell Bowl Championship against the Washington & Jefferson Presidents. W&J (8-2, 6-2), not unlike the Statesmen, were a few plays away from a conference championship but still notched some impressive wins over #21 John Carroll (35-26), Westminster (17-14) and Grove City (31-14) this season.

Hobart (7-3, 4-2) technically got placed above two teams (Morrisville and RPI) in the seedings they lost to head-to-head (RPI also had a better overall LL conference record) but has to go on the road once again for their third straight postseason bowl game trip since 2019. The good news is Hobart is 3-0 in those games, and 2-0 in ECAC Bowl games, including their first one which goes all the way back to 2003.

As previously stated, it's been 80 years since these two teams have faced off. The Statesmen's 0-2 series record against W&J is a bit irrelevant based on the amount of time that's passed since they last played. That said the Presidents have had mixed results against LL and E8 teams in prior ECAC Bowl games, including last season's 20-7 loss at Brockport. They won 20-17 at Ithaca in 2019 and won 38-31 over Brockport in 2016 at Franklin Field (a year in which the ECAC's were held at UPenn's football stadium). W&J last went to the NCAAs in 2017 and 2018, beating Johns Hopkins in 2017 before losing to (now D2) Frostburg State. They lost to Centre in the first round of the 2018 playoffs.

Scouting the Presidents

Like many teams in the post-COVID season, W&J has a large senior class, so they bring a lot of experience to the table. Speaking of experience, the Presidents are coached by HC Mike Sirianni who's in his 20th season at W&J. Sirianni played at Mount Union ('94) and has an all-time record of 175-42, which is good for an 80.65 winning percentage, one of the best in the nation, at any level. If his last name sounds familiar, yes, he is the older brother of Philadelphia Eagles HC Nick Sirianni. 

The Presidents are a very balanced team on offense, having called 347 rushing and 355 passing plays on the season. W&J has used two QBs this season, starting off with JR QB Colton Jones, but it appears that SO QB Jacob Pugh has assumed the starting job going back to around the Westminster game.

Both have similar stats, completing more than 60% of their passes and throwing 11/12 TDs compared to 6 INTs, respectively. In the running game, the Pugh leads the Presidents with 7 rushing TDs. SO RB Raymond Holmes is a stocky (5' 10", 220 lbs.) runner who leads W&J with 485 rushing yards and 5 TDs.

The Presidents' leading receiver is FY WR John Peduzzi, one of several younger WRs on the roster having an impact this season. Peduzzi has caught 50 passes for 813 yard and 6 TDs. Overall, W&J likes to spread the ball around, with TDs going to a dozen different receivers for the season. 

Defensively, the Presidents are led by JR LB Justin Johns with 87 total tackles, with 3.5 TFL, a sack and an INT. In the secondary, the guy to keep an eye on is SR DB Tyler Sabo who's used his size (6'2" 200 lbs) and skill to lead the team with 4 INTs. Overall, it appears as though W&J is +6 in TOM, so Hobart would do well to protect the football.

On special teams, FY PK Deven Wyandt handles KOs (59.2 YPKO average), FGs (4-7 with a long of 38 yards) and punting (35.4 YPP average) duties. 

Keys to the Game:

1. Establish the Run (to Take Some Shots): The Presidents have a very strong rushing defense, allowing less than 3 yards per carry on the season and only 4 rushing TDs over 10 games. CMU was able to crack the 100-yard threshold in their win over W&J, carrying the ball 38 times. Case Western had little success running against the Presidents, but instead were able to set up enough play action (via 31 rush attempts) to have success in the passing game, going 23-35 for 302 yards and 2 TDs. While I don't expect 5th YR SR QB David Krewson to drop back 35 times, he can use his athleticism to extend plays and take some well-timed shots down the field. 

2. Bend Don't Break: On the defensive side of the ball, the Statesmen will need to find a way to hold a powerful W&J offense which averages just over 415 YPG and 37.9 PPG below those marks. A couple of teams have accomplished that this season, including CMU & CWRU who held the Presidents to 7 and 10 points, respectively. Keeping it a lower scoring game will play to Hobart's strengths. It should also be noted that in the two losses, W&J went 2-for-6 in the red zone, scoring only one TD and settling for one FG and turning it over on downs. 

3. Bushnell Bowl, Part Two, Redux: Following a similar script from last year's game - coming out and jumping on the Presidents early like the Statesmen did against the Titans will go a long way to getting another Bushnell Bowl win. A key defensive play like a punt block, pick six or otherwise will put pressure on the home team, who I've seen wilt a few times over the past couple of years in regular season games when things got tough. 

Prediction:

With what looks like a bitter cold (low of 20, high of 32) forecast Saturday, you can expect a lower scoring and hard-hitting game. As much as the Presidents have impressed over the years, I still have a bias that the LL is a better conference than the PAC (and that JCU and the OAC are overrated these past couple of years). 

I think Hobart can punch their way to a win by playing like they did in the second half of the Rochester game. Mixing it up with JR RB Rayshawn Boswell in the wildcat will be something that W&J isn't used to seeing and if Krewson can connect on some long passes like he did vs. RPI and Union, we should leave PA with another ECAC trophy and a hard-fought win.

I'll take Hobart 21-13.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!