Washington & Jefferson (7-1) vs. Case Western Reserve (6-1) 

When: Saturday, November 2, 2024
Where: Cleveland, Ohio
Stadium: DiSanto Field
Kickoff: 1:00 p.m.

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The Series: Washington & Jefferson and case western reserve square off for the eighth time since renewing the series in the fall of 2014. The Presidents lead the all-time series of 21-19-1, with the first matchup coming in 1896. Since the merger between Case Tech and Western Reserve in 1967, W&J leads 16-11. The Presidents claimed last year's meeting, winning 38-33 in Washington. The last win for the Spartans in the rivalry was a 14-10 win in 2022 at DiSanto field. This is the fourth game in the last five meetings between the teams that has taken place in Cleveland.

Notable Notes:

CHAIN MOVERS: The W&J offense has picked up 206 first downs through eight games which leads Division III. The Presidents have succeeded at moving the ball due in large part to a timely offense which has converted 55.6% of third downs, which is sixth in the division.

DYNAMIC DUO: Junior wideouts John Peduzzi (Hilton Head, S.C./Hilton Head Christian Academy) and Jacob Macosko (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) have produced week-in and week-out for the Red and Black. Peduzzi has snagged 44 passes for 874 yards and 11 scores, while Macosko has 61 grabs for 876 yards and 11 touchdowns. The yardage totals rank Macosko and Peduzzi fifth and sixth in the nation, respectively. The touchdown totals have the two tied for eighth in the nation. Macosko's catch total also ranks fourth in the division. The junior has posted two-straight monster performances, combining for 332 yards, four touchdowns, and 20 catches over the last two weeks.

HALFWAY HOME: One of the things that has allowed W&J to have such success under Sirianni is that his teams are extremely good at winning games in which they're leading at halftime, boasting a 150-6 record in those contests, good for a .962 winning percentage.

PRESIDENTIAL PRESSURE: W&J has fielded a strong defense so far this season, allowing just 224.3 yards per game which stands at 14th in the nation. This is due in large part to a front seven that has consistently gotten to the quarterback. Senior defensive tackle Dawson Dietz (Allison Park, Pa./Hampton) has led the way for the Red and Black up front. The two-time All-American has racked up an impressive nine sacks, which is tied for fourth in Division III, and 18.5 tackles for loss, which is tops in the country. Senior edge rusher Avery Keith (Hartville, Ohio/Lake) has also been a consistent presence in the backfield, amassing 5.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss. As a team, W&J ranks tied for fourth with 28 sacks. Other contributors up front include senior edge rusher Sean Berardino (Millersville, Md./Archbishop Spalding), senior defensive tackle Zach Valentine (Allison Park, Pa./Shaler Area), junior interior linemen Aidan Thomas (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) and Tyler Primrose (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Catholic), and junior edge rusher Nathaniel Kadosh-Harris (Irwin, Pa./Norwin).

SHARING THE LOAD: The Presidents have found success utilizing a committee approach in the backfield. Senior Owen Petrisek (Ellsworth, Pa./Bentworth) has led the way on the ground, averaging 6.5 yards on 75 carries for a net of 484 yards. The Presidents leading rusher from 2023 has found the endzone four times this season. Junior Kobe Derosa (New Castle, Pa./Laurel) has been the dynamic threat out of the backfield for W&J. DeRosa has racked up 433 scrimmage yards (259 rushing and 174 receiving) and has scored nine touchdowns. Junior Troy Volpatti (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) has also gotten into the mix in the Presidents' run game.

A LOOK BACK: Last year's contest with Case Western Reserve saw W&J jump to an early 14-0 lead in the first quarter thanks to a rushing touchdown from Jacob Pugh, and a touchdown pass from Pugh to John Peduzzi. The two teams traded scores to make it 17-7 in the second quarter. A huge play followed as Zachai Simmons (Hawthorne, N.J./Linsly) blocked a Spartan punt and Kobe Derosa (New Castle, Pa./Laurel) grabbed the ball and ran into the endzone to make the score 24-7. CWRU stormed back as Alex Fromberg threw scoring passes to Noah Coyne and Ethan Dahlem to make it a one score game at 24-20. The Presidents responded by marching downfield in 14 plays, traversing 82 yards, with a Pugh touchdown pass to Jacob Macosko extending W&J's lead. Pugh found Macosko once again to start the fourth quarter, this time from 47 yards out, and giving W&J a commanding 38-20 lead. The Spartans did not give up, as Head Coach Greg Debeljak went into his bag of tricks as receiver Ethan Dahlam took a lateral and threw a 37 yard shot to Noah Coyne to get on the board. A Gage Duesler touchdown run drew the game within a score, as W&J led 38-33. W&J was unable to run out the clock and gave the ball back to the Spartans. After an Avery Keith sack pushed the CWRU into third and long, the Spartans turned the ball over on downs giving W&J the victory.

NATIONAL RECOGNITION: After defeating #7 Grove City in week seven, W&J jumped into the D3football.com and AFCA Top 25 polls. This week, W&J earned 173 points in the former, ranking 19th, while also garnering 201 points in the latter poll, which put W&J at 23rd. Conference foes Grove City and Carnegie Mellon are also ranked, with both teams being in the top 20 of each poll. As for other ratings, W&J is the 13th ranked team in the Massey Ratings and the 26th ranked team in the NCAA Power Index.

NOTABLE NUMBERS AND RECORDS: 
- Fifth year linebacker Justin Johns (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) currently stands at 337 career tackles, putting Johns in second place on Washington & Jefferson's career tackles list. Johns trails only Eric Field, who stands just 11 tackles in front. 

- Senior quarterback Jacob Pugh stands at 6,762 career passing yards and 84 passing touchdowns. Pugh needs 789 more passing yards to pass Jason Baer '96 for fifth place in school history. Pugh stands just four touchdowns shy of passing Baer  and Chris Edwards '05 for fourth place in W&J history. Pugh is also approaching 

- Dawson Dietz is surpassed some notable career milestones against Bethany in week eight crossing the 200 tackle, 50 tackle for loss, and 25 sack totals in his illustrious career. Dietz is now tied for fifth in school history in career tackles for loss with 53 and stands 4.5 sacks behind Mike Brooder '94 for fifth on the career sack list.

- Junior wideout John Peduzzi ranks fourth in school history in touchdown grabs. Peduzzi's 37 touchdown receptions stand behind Jesse Zubik (54), Andrew Wolf '21 (40), and Aaron Krepps '05 (39). Alex Baroffio '14 and Craig Besong '10 are tied for the fifth spot with 30 touchdown grabs. Peduzzi's yardage gains have also placed him in the top five of W&J career receiving, as his 2,915 yards rank fifth in school history. Peduzzi is 110 receiving yards shy of Todd Fry '02 for fourth place all-time at W&J.