Football 10/17/2011 3:19:00 PM Drake Athletics

Drake Football Returns Home To Face Valparaiso Saturday

Monday, Oct. 17, 2011

The Bulldogs return to Drake Stadium on Saturday seeking to regain their winning form against Valparaiso after seeing their five-game winning streak snapped at first-place San Diego. Drake, 3-0 at home this year, has won seven consecutive home games dating back to last season. The Bulldogs return home after playing their last two games, and three of their last four, on the road.

MEDIA LINKS: 2011 YEARBOOK/MEDIA INFO STATS (2006-11) ONLINE ROSTER

TOP NOTES FOR THE WEEK:

Drake is averaging 410.8 yards per game in its four PFL outings.
Drake leads the PFL in rushing defense (86.4, 8th NCAA FCS) and tackles for loss (8.3/game, T-7th FCS); ranks 2nd in scoring defense (20.7, 21st FCS); 3rd in passing (285.6, T-13th FCS) and passing efficiency (148.4, 20th FCS) and 4th in sacks (3.3, 9th FCS).
QB Mike Piatkowski averages 306.0 yards/game in 4 PFL starts & ranks 17th in the FCS in total offense (266.7). He is 2nd in the PFL (20th FCS) in passing efficiency (149.7) with three 300-yard passing games, four for his career. Piatkowski has thrown 13 TDs in his last six games.
DE Brandon Coleman leads the team with a career-high 8.5 sacks and is tied for fifth in the FCS (T-3rd PFL) at 1.42/game.
K/P Billy Janssen leads the PFL and is No. 5 in the FCS in punting (44.6), and 2nd in the PFL (T-24th) in field goals at 1.3/game.
RB Patrick Cashmore has rushed for a career-best 468 yards this season and posted two 100-yard games, both in conference play.
DT John Sawhill earned honorable mention def. line performer of the week by the CFPA.

KIDS DAY, $2 TICKETS: All kids between the ages of 3 and 18 are invited to attend Saturday's versus Valparaiso for just $2 admission. Children under 3 are admitted free. Tickets may be purchased in advance at the Knapp Center box office, or on the day of the game at Drake Stadium. The stadium box office will open at Noon on Saturday.

RADIO/TV: The game will be broadcast on KRNT 1350 AM with Sean Neugent handling the play-by-play and former Drake player John Pugh providing color commentary. Fans can also listen to the game online via the Drake Athletics website at www.GoDrakeBulldogs.com. A video webstream of the game is also available with a subscription via the website.

PREGAME TAILGATE: All fans are invited to enjoy the pregame tailgate activities at Drake Stadium. The tailgate will open in the west lots of the stadium at 11 a.m. Saturday. A variety of activities and a Kids Zone provide fun for the whole family. A limited number of reserved parking passes are available; to request a pass call (515) 271-4003. All other parking is on a first-come, first-served basis, so arrive early. Charcoal grills and glass containers are prohibited.

DRAKE-VALPARAISO SERIES: Drake leads 15-3 in a series that began in 1993, including an 8-0 mark at Drake Stadium. Valparaiso's three wins came on its own campus on consecutive Drake visits in 1999, '01 and '03. The Bulldogs have claimed the last seven games in the series. Last year the Bulldogs escaped Valparaiso with a 21-19 victory, and won 34-14 in the Crusaders' last visit to Des Moines, Oct. 3, 2009.

HEAD COACH CHRIS CREIGHTON: Drake football is in its fourth season under the direction of head coach Chris Creighton, who has compiled a 26-14 record (.650) over his first three-plus years, including victories in 24 of the Bulldogs' last 34 contests. Creighton's .650 winning percentage ranks second in school history.

Creighton's 21 wins in his first three seasons were the most by a head coach in school history in his first three seasons at the helm. His total was two greater than that of Warren Gaer (1949-51), who compiled a record of 19-6-2 in his first three seasons.
He ranks No. 20 in career winning percentage (.761) among all head coaches with at least five seasons at four-year colleges, entering this week's game with a record of 121-38 in his 15th season of coaching.
Creighton was named a 2011 winner of the Giant Steps Award presented by the National Consortium for Academics and Sports as part of National Student-Athlete Day on April 6, 2011. Creighton, awarded for the Coaching category, was one of just five 2011 winners of the Giant Steps Award, given annually to individuals who use sport to positively affect social change, actualizing the mission of the NCAS. The awards honor student-athletes, athletic administrators, civic leaders, coaches, parents, organizations, and other individuals who demonstrate an outstanding ability to manage life on and off the field, and who demonstrate a commitment to the betterment of society.
His Wabash teams won North Coast Athletic Conference titles in four of his seven seasons at the Division III school in Crawfordsville, Ind.
In four seasons at Ottawa (Kansas) his teams won two Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference titles (1997, 2000), its first two since 1972.
An All-America quarterback at Kenyon (Ohio) College, Creighton led the school to its only North Coast Athletic Conference title in 1989 and was named conference player of the year. He was inducted into the Kenyon College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2008. Creighton earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1991 and a master's degree from Concordia (Ill.) University in 1993.
Creighton was hired Dec. 22, 2007, as the 25th head coach in the history of Drake football.

Chris Creighton's Head Coaching Career:
Drake University                     2008-present                             26-14 (.650)
Wabash College                     2001-07                                    63-15 (.808)
Ottawa (Kansas) University     1997-2000                                  32-9 (.780)
Totals                                   15th season                           121-38 (.761)

ABOUT THE CRUSADERS: Valparaiso is 0-6 on the season, 0-3 in the Pioneer Football League. Last week the Crusaders lost 42-14 at Butler in a game in which they ran 100 plays, held the ball for 38:32 and outgained the Bulldogs 463-400. Valparaiso is coached by Dale Carlson, in his second year at the helm. QB Eric Hoffman averages 225.7 passing yards per game. Tanner Kuramata leads in receptions (23), Sean McCarty leads in receiving yards (294) and the leading rusher is Gabe Ali-El (36-130-3.6). Pat Derbek has 47 tackles, including 4.0 for losses, and Nikko Carson has a team-leading 2.0 sacks.

BULLDOGS-CRUSADERS: THE LAST TIME (Sept. 25, 2010): Drake defeated Valparaiso 21-19 in a game in which two Crusaders turnovers led to 14 Bulldogs points. The Bulldogs took a 21-6 lead on the first play of the second half when DT David Witkiewicz returned an interception 13 yards for a touchdown, but Drake's offense managed just 19 total yards over the remainder of the game. A defensive performance that limited the Crusaders to 158 yards of total offense and produced two turnovers preserved the victory for the Bulldogs. The first turnover, a fumble recovery by DainTaylor, led to Patrick Cashmore's 16-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Redshirt freshman Cody Seeger started at quarterback for Drake in place of the injured Mike Piatkowski and threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Steve Platek in the second quarter to give Drake a 14-6 lead. Valparaiso scored two touchdowns in a 1:17 span in the fourth quarter, but Drake held on for the road win to even its record at 2-2.

MEDIA PROCEDURES: To arrange interviews with Drake football players and coaches, please contact Assistant A.D./Athletic Communications Paul Kirk in advance (paul.kirk@drake.edu). Availability can be arranged either before or after practices, which generally run from 3:30-5:30 p.m. during a typical game week. Credential requests should also be directed to Kirk.

FOUR BULLDOGS HAVE EARNED PFL WEEKLY HONORS IN 2011: RB Nathan Paddock was named PFL Offensive Player of the Week for games of Oct. 8 and K/P Billy Janssen earned Special Teams Player of the Week off Drake's 41-26 win at Morehead State. QB Mike Piatkowski earned Offensive Player of the Week after setting an NCAA FCS record for single-game completion percentage (90.9%, 30-33) versus Campbell Oct. 1. It was Piatkowski's first such honor and the first time a Bulldog was named Offensive POW since Week 1 in 2007 (Cole Ingle). Piatkowski's honor came a week after DE Brandon Coleman was named PFL Defensive Player of the Week for his 1.5 sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss in Drake's 24-14 league-opening win at Butler Sept. 24.

SEVEN BULLDOGS HAVE EARNED WEEKLY CFPA HONORS: Seven players have earned weekly recognition from the College Football Performance Awards. DE Brandon Coleman earned honorable mention recognition for Defensive Line Performer of the Week for the game at North Dakota (9/1) when he had 3.0 sacks. Drew Blackmon earned honorable mention at WR after Game 2 vs. Grand View (9/10) when he tied his career with nine receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns. For Game 3 vs. Missouri S&T, the CFPA recognized K/P Billy Janssen for both kicking and punting (3-3 PAT; 2-2 FG; 47.0 ypp) and LB Tyler Moorehead for his 9 tackles, 1.0 sack, 3.0 tackles-for-loss and blocked punt. Drake's 31-14 defeat of Campbell earned QB Mike Piatkowski recognition as national co-Quarterback of the Week (90.9% completions, 342 yards 3 TDs) and Janssen again as honorable mention kicker/punter (4-4 PAT; 1-1 FG; 48.0 yards per punt). Janssen was named again after Drake's Week 6 win at Morehead State, along with Nathan Paddock who was named honorable mention running back of the week. DT John Sawhill was recognized with honorable mention status for his team-leading 8 tackles and a sack at San Diego (10/15).

PIATKOWSKI'S RECORD-SETTING DAY: Mike Piatkowski broke the NCAA FCS single-game record for completion percentage (min. 30 comp.) in Drake's Oct. 1 win over Campbell, completing 30 of 33 passes, 90.9% (since broken). That topped the previous standard of 88.9% set by Appalachian State's Richie Williams vs. Furman, Oct. 9, 2004 (40-45). Piatkowski threw for a career-high 342 yards and tied his career best with 3 touchdowns to fuel the Bulldogs' 31-14 win, and earned his first PFL Offensive Player of the Week honor, along with National co-Offensive Player of the Week by The Sports Network/Fathead.com and National co-QB of the Week by the College Football Performance Awards (CFPA).

PIATKOWSKI MOVES UP CAREER PASSING CHART: Drake QB Mike Piatkowski climbed from seventh to third on Drake's career passing yards list in the first four games of 2011, and now has 5,981. He began the year with 3,993 yards, and moved past previous No. 6 Rick Casko (3,935; 1977-80) at North Dakota (9/1); current Drake wide receivers coach and then-No. 5 Jeff Martin (4,365; 1973-76) vs. Grand View (9/10); previous No. 4 Ron Royer (4,677) vs. Missouri S&T and previous No. 3 Gary Yagelski (4,795) at Butler. The top five list is below.

DRAKE CAREER PASSING YARDS LIST

1) 7,868-Ira Vandever (1999-2002)
2) 6,525-Connor Jostes (2002-05)
3) 5,981-Mike Piatkowski (2009-curent)
4) 4,795-Gary Yagelski (1979-82)
5) 4,677-Ron Royer (1963-66)

NUMBERS TO WATCH:

545-Passing yards needed by Mike Piatkowski to move into second place on Drake's career list, passing Connor Jostes (6,525; 2002-05). The all-time record is 7,868 by Ira Vandever (1999-2002).

152-Passing needed by Mike Piatkowski to set a single-season career best, topping his 2009 total of 2,139.

3-TD passes by Piatkowski to set a personal single-season high (16).

62.2%- career completion percentage for Piatkowski (519-834); best in school history. His 62.8% mark in 2009 (203-323) is the best single-season figure ever by a Bulldog, and he is completing 66.5% of his passes thus far in 2011 (155-233).

OFFENSIVE NOTES FROM GAME 7 AT SAN DIEGO (10/15/11):

QB Mike Piatkowski narrowly missed his third straight 300-yd. game with 296 to keep his PFL average over 300 ypg (306.0).
WR Nick Rosa caught six passes and set a career-best in receiving yards with a game-high 94.
Four players caught at least five passes for 50 yards, as Drew Blackmon (5-81), Nathan Paddock (5-71) and Joey Orlando (5-50, TD) joined Rosa in catching passes from Piatkowski.
WR Joey Orlando scored his fourth receiving touchdown in the past three games, on a third-quarter 18-yard pass from Piatkowski.

DEFENSIVE NOTES FROM GAME 7 AT SAN DIEGO (10/15/11):

Drake's No. 1 rushing defense in the PFL (87.3) held the FCS's No. 32 rushing offense (179.8) to 81 yards on the ground.
DE Anthony Gianaras had one sack among his four tackles (2 solo), and now has 4.5 for the season, second on the team.
DT John Sawhill led the team with a season-high eight tackles (5 solo), including one sack and three tackles for loss.
CB Michael Lahart snared his first interception of the season, fourth of his career to set up a fourth-quarter game-tying touchdown.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES FROM GAME 7 AT SAN DIEGO (10/15/11):

K Billy Janssen was perfect on all four kicks, including a 33-yard field goal, to account for six points on the day. He also averaged 44.2 yards on four punts with a long of 54 and placed two inside the 20 without a touchback.

BLOCK PARTY: Drake has blocked six kicks this season (3 FGA, 1 PAT, 2 Punts), tied for second-most by any NCAA FCS school. LB Tyler Moorehead has two blocks-a punt that was returned for a TD vs. Missouri S&T (9/17) and a 37-yard field goal attempt vs. Campbell (10/1). CB Dustin Davis blocked a 20-yard field goal attempt vs. Grand View (9/10); DE John Sawhill blocked a PAT in the second quarter vs. Missouri S&T (9/17); S Michael Ratelle blocked a punt in the first quarter at Morehead State (10/8) and CB Michael Lahart blocked a second quarter 29-yard field goal in the same game.

AT HOME IN DRAKE STADIUM: Drake has won seven home games in a row and is 17-3 at Drake Stadium since Chris Creighton became head coach in 2008. His '08-'09 teams also won seven in a row at home. Furthermore, under Coach Creighton Drake is 11-2 in PFL home games, including wins each of its last five conference games at Drake Stadium.

EXCELLING ON AND OFF FIELD: Two Drake fifth-year seniors have received significant off-the-field honors this year. CB/PR Michael Lahart was announced Sept. 29 as a candidate for the National Football Foundation's National Scholar-Athlete Award, and a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy as the top scholar-athlete in the nation. LB Stoy Hall was named Sept. 20 as the first Bulldog to make the prestigious 22-man Allstate/AFCA Good Works Team for his community work. He will take part in events at the 2012 Sugar Bowl and be recognized at the game.

OVERTIME NOT SO COMMON OCCURRENCE FOR DRAKE: Drake's Sept. 10 overtime win against Grand View was just the third played by the Bulldogs, and the first since Oct. 25, 2003. That game was a 51-45 loss at Valparaiso. Drake's first overtime game came a year earlier, Oct. 12, 2002, when the Bulldogs defeated Albany 49-42 in double overtime at Drake Stadium. Drake is 2-0 at home in overtime games and 0-1 on the road.

LEADERSHIP FROM THE CAPTAINS: Drake's players voted during the summer to elect one team captain for the entire season, and chose fifth-year senior cornerback/return specialist Michael Lahart to serve in that role. One game captain has joined Lahart each week: Wk. 1 at North Dakota (9/1/11), Wk. 3 vs. Missouri S&T (9/17) & Wk. 7 at San Diego (10/15)-Fifth-year senior kicker Billy Janssen; Wk. 2 vs. Grand View (9/10)-senior linebacker Tyler Moorehead; Wk. 4 at Butler (9/24)-junior linebacker Jake Underwood; Wk. 5 vs. Campbell (10/1)-sophomore cornerback Joshua Matthews; Wk. 6 at Morehead State (10/8)-senior DT David Witkiewicz.

BULLDOGS AMONG THE BEST: Drake ranks No. 20 in overall victories (568) among the 123 schools that make up the Division I Football Championships Subdivision (FCS). This week's game will be the 1,083rd in school history, dating back to the initial campaign in 1893. The Bulldogs' all-time record is 568-485-29 (.539).

THE LAST TIME IT HAPPENED:

Last time Drake played an overtime game -at Drake 28, Grand View 21 (one overtime), Sept. 10, 2011

Last time Drake played an overtime game on road -Valparaiso 51, Drake 45, (one overtime), Oct. 25, 2003

Last shutout by Drake - 19-0 vs. Missouri S&T, Oct. 10, 2009

Last shutout by Drake at home - 19-0 vs. Missouri S&T, Oct. 10, 2009

Last time Drake shut out - 16-0 at North Dakota, Sept. 1, 2011

Last time Drake shut out at home - 37-0 by San Diego, Oct. 21, 2006

Last Drake kickoff return for touchdown - 90 yards, Augustine Agyei vs. Waldorf, Sept. 8, 2007

Last Drake punt return for a touchdown - 49 yards, Mike Lahart vs. Marist, Oct. 2, 2010

Last time Drake blocked a punt for a touchdown - 28 yards, Brent Shelton vs. Missouri S&T, Sept. 17, 2011

Last time Drake blocked a punt for a safety - Mike Bialas vs. Butler, Oct. 6, 2007

Last Drake pass interception for a touchdown - 95 yards, Ben Morrison vs. San Diego, Oct. 30, 2010

Last Drake fumble return for a touchdown - 22 yards, Mike Piatkowski vs. Davidson, Oct. 23, 2010

Last Drake player to rush for 100 yards - 114 (22 carries) Patrick Cashmore at Morehead State, Oct. 8, 2011

Two Drake players 100+ rush yards same game - 101 yards (19 carries), Willie Cashmore; 216 yards in (27 carries), Scott Phaydavong vs. Jacksonville, Nov. 10, 2006

Last Drake player to have 100 or more yards receiving - 163 yards (5 receptions, 2 TDs), Nathan Paddock at Morehead State, Oct. 8, 2011

Last Drake player to pass for more than 300 yards - 310 yards, Mike Piatkowski at Morehead State, Oct. 8, 2011

Last Drake player to rush for three touchdowns - 3, Scott Phaydavong vs. Valparaiso Sept. 29, 2007

Last Drake player to catch three touchdowns - 3, Jason Jones vs. Jacksonville, Oct. 4, 2003

Last Drake player to pass for four touchdowns - 5, Connor Jostes vs. Upper Iowa, Nov. 6, 2004

Last Drake player to score three touchdowns - 3, Scott Phaydavong vs. Valparaiso, Sept. 29, 2007

Last Drake player to make four field goals - 4, Billy Janssen at Morehead State, Oct. 8, 2011

POSTGAME QUOTES (AT SAN DIEGO, OCT. 15, 2011):

Head Coach Chris Creighton:

(General)

"In the first half I feel like we didn't produce, or play with confidence. Our guys wanted it so bad and this was such a big game, but we weren't able to put that out onto the field the way that you need to against a very good football team."

"There were penalties and we turned the ball over, which you can't do"

"They're a good football team. We knew that coming in. Coming into their place, they wanted it as bad as we did."

"We didn't deserve to win the football game. We fought, we came back and gave ourselves chances to win, and that's not surprising at all to me. But we're not going to hang our heads. We brought it on ourselves, and we're going to respond. I really do believe that we'll respond to this."

"It's a sour taste right now. We didn't play good enough to win, and we're capable of playing good enough to win, so that's a really tough "feeling. As a coach, that's my job to get our team to play like they're capable."

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