Eagle Football Primed For Strong Finish

HUNTINGDON, Pa. – With two games remaining in what has been a steady climb toward being a competitive force in the Centennial Conference, the Juniata football program looks to cap off the year against two long time rivals, starting with Moravian this Saturday, Nov. 3 at 12 p.m. in the last home game of the season.  The Eagles will finish the year with a trip to Susquehanna on November 10.

Last Saturday's 24-7 win over McDaniel College has the Eagles standing at 2-6 for the year, but it marks the first time that the program has had two wins in a season since 2006.  They have not won three games in a year since the 2003 squad went 3-7.

Head coach Tim Launtz preferred to take a guarded approach as he took an overall look at his team's performance by noting, "We are further along than we expected in our second year and we are pleased with our progress. But we are not satisfied with where we are because we have not had enough success yet."

Juniata has received a number of outstanding individual performances this year as evidenced by junior Brandon Felus (Columbia, Pa./Columbia) being named Centennial Conference defensive player of the week after his game wrecking ten tackle and three sack effort last Saturday against the Green Terror. Felus has 25 solo tackles on the year.   He continues to draw praise from opposing coaches and leads the league in sacks.

Juniors Kevin Gorman (Waverly, N.Y./Waverly Central) and Jared Shope (Altoona, Pa./Altoona Area) also rank among the conference leaders.   They added to their status as Gorman finished with ten tackles last Saturday while Shope added seven stops.

On the other side of the ball place kicker Scott Andrews (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Altoona Area) entered last week's game ranked 23rd nationally in field goals and is currently 8-for-13 for the year and a perfect 16-for-16 in PAT to remain first in the conference.  Punter Jonah Plymire (York, Pa./Central York) is ranked 29th nationally in punting with a 39.3 yard average.

Sophomore quarterback Ward Udinski (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks West) continues to build solid numbers.  After completing 18 of 26 attempts for 308 yards, he also led the team in rushing with 61 yards on 17 carries and leads the team with 330 rushing yards for the season. He is ranked in the top forty nationally in total offense while ranking among the leaders in the conference in five different categories.

As a team, the Eagles rank in the top 100 nationally in passing offense, rushing defense and sacks per game.

The remaining two games will present a challenge given the history of the rivalries but Launtz remains optimistic.

"We are capable every time we go on the field," he said.  "We just need to worry about ourselves."

Juniata is 26-28-2 all-time against Moravian who is 2-5 in conference play this year with league wins over McDaniel and Dickinson.  The programs have been meeting since 1932 and the Eagles haven't found a way past Moravian since 2003.  The Greyhounds won the team's last meeting 28-3 back on Nov. 5, 2011.

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