Complete Wofford notes (pdf)
Complete Wisconsin notes (pdf)
This week’s game
Wofford will hit the road for the second time in the first three weeks of the season as they face Wisconsin on Saturday at noon ... The game will be played at Camp Randall Stadium (80,321) ... The Badgers have had 41 straight home sell-outs and if they sell out for Wofford, it will mark the largest crowd ever to see the Terriers play ... The game will be the final non-conference game of the season for the Terriers, who begin SoCon play next week at Chattanooga ... Last week Wofford defeated Charleston Southern 42-14, while the Badgers needed two overtimes to defeat Fresno State 34-31 ... The game will be the first time the Terriers have played a team from the Big Ten ... It will also mark the second opponent of the season from the FBS, as the Terriers were defeated 40-7 by South Florida in the season opener ... The Terriers are ranked fourteenth in the Sports Network Poll and fifteenth in the FCS Coaches Poll ... The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network, which is available through many cable and satellite providers.
About Wofford
Wofford is 1-1 so far in the 2009 season with a 40-7 loss at the University of South Florida and a 42-14 win at home against Charleston Southern. Wofford returns 44 letterwinners from last season, including four offensive starters, five defensive starters and three specialists. In addition, three other players with at least two starts return for Wofford. Wofford runs the wingbone offense, led by sophomore quarterback Mitch Allen and backs Mike Rucker, Sean Lees and Eric Breitenstein. Last season the rushing offense was second in the nation with 343.27 yards per game and the total offense of 470.45 yards per game was also second. The offensive line allowed only five sacks in all of 2008, best in the nation. The multiple defense is led by first team All-SoCon defensive lineman Mitch Clark and sophomore linebacker Mike Niam. In 2008 the defense was tenth in the nation with 34 sacks during the season. Wofford had five players named to the Preseason All-SoCon Team. OL Pat Illig and DL Mitch Clark earned first team honors, while OL Trey Johnson, LB Gary Blount, DL Eric Eberhardt and DB Mychael Johnson were named to the second team. The Terriers were picked to finish second in the Southern Conference by the coaches and third by the media in the 2009 Preseason Polls.
About Wisconsin
Wisconsin is 2-0 on the season after wins over Northern Illinois and Fresno State. Head Coach Bret Bielema is in his fourth season at Wisconsin and has a 30-11 overall record. The Badgers return 42 lettermen and 13 starters from the 2008 season in which the team posted a 7-6 overall record. They were 3-5 in the Big Ten to finish tied for sixth. This season they were picked to finish fifth in the Big South preseason poll. On offense, they are led by quarterback Scott Tolzien who has thrown for 482 yards and two touchdowns in the first two games. Receivers Garrett Graham, Nick Toon and Isaac Anderson all have over 100 yards receiving, while John Clay leads the team with 186 rushing yards and three touchdowns. On defense, O’Brien Schofield has 18 tackles and 6.5 tackles for loss, including 1.5 sacks. Players named Preseason All-Big Ten include OL Gabe Carimi, RB John Clay, WR David Gilreath, TE Garrett Graham, LB Jaevery McFadden, OL John Moffitt and DB Jay Valai.
The Wisconsin Series
This will be the first meeting between Wofford and Wisconsin on the football field. The two teams did meet in 2007 on the basketball court, with the Badgers winning 70-43.
Terrier-Badger Connections
Wofford does not have any players from Wisconsin and the Badgers do not have any players from the state of South Carolina. The Terriers and Badgers have several connections among players. Wofford RB Matthew Boggs and Badger LB Culmer St. Jean and DL Anthony Mains are from Naples, Florida ... Wofford DL T.J. White and Badger OL Jake Current played at Troy (Ohio) High School ... Terrier Mike Niam and Badger OL Bill Nagy played at Hudson (Ohio) High School.
Terrier Top Ten
Here are the top ten notes of interest heading into the Wisconsin game:
• The Terriers are second in the nation in rushing with 285.50 yards per game in 2009
• Wofford is meeting a Big Ten team for the first time
• Fourteen players made their first career starts at South Florida
• The offensive line allowed only five sacks in 2008, best in the NCAA FCS
• Wofford had five players named Preseason All-SoCon
• Mitch Clark led the team with eight sacks in 2008, eighth most in school history in a season
• The Terriers have scored on their opening drive in both games so far in 2009
• Wofford leads the SoCon in rushing, kickoff returns and turnover margin
• The last time Wofford played two FBS teams in the same season was 2001 (Clemson and SC)
• The Wisconsin game will be the final non-conference game of the season
Head Coach Mike Ayers
Wofford head coach Mike Ayers (Georgetown, Ky. ‘74), the winningest coach in school history, is entering his 22nd season at the Terrier helm with a record of 142-97-1. Ayers is in his 25th year as a collegiate head coach and has a record of 153-118-2 that includes a three-year stint as the head coach at East Tennessee State from 1985-87. Ayers has earned Southern Conference Coach of the Year honors from the league coaches in 2000, 2003 and 2007 and by the media in 2000, ‘02 and ‘03. Ayers was the 2003 recipient of the Eddie Robinson Award as Division I-AA’s National Coach of the Year and also earned the 2002 Division I-AA National Coach of the Year award from the College Sporting News in addition to being the runner-up for the Robinson Award.
Injury Update
Wofford opened the season without running back Jeremy Marshall, who is still recovering from a knee injury suffered in the 2008 Appalachian State game. Freshmen Cody Burris (clavicle) and Kenny Barnes (knee) will also miss the season after injuries in August camp. DL Mitch Clark, WR Justice Joslin, S Hunter Hobson and LB Cody Van Der Linden were out of the CSU game due to injury. During the Charleston Southern game, FB Eric Breitenstein suffered a knee injury (PCL) and will be out 4-6 weeks. He will be re-evaluated at that time. Other injuries included LB Jonathon Sharpe (concussion) and WR Brenton Bersin (shoulder).
