Mitch Fox/The Hoya Junior fullback William Huisking and the Hoyas battle Bucknell tomorrow at Harbin Field.
With only one conference home game remaining, the Hoyas have yet to win a Patriot League game since their step up to the league two years ago. Saturday’s match-up against the Bucknell Bison presents Georgetown’s best chance thus far, as Bucknell also enters the game winless in conference play this season.
“It’s an opportunity we feel pretty good about,” Head Coach Bob Benson said. “We feel that we’ve been improving.”
The Hoyas will once again attempt to rebound from a loss, after falling to Lafayette 35-17 last weekend. As has been the case with opponents throughout the season, Georgetown failed to put together a consistent offensive effort, while Lafayette exploited the Hoyas young defensive backfield with big plays.
This weekend, Georgetown will face a team very similar to itself. Bucknell’s offense has struggled this season, averaging a mere 16.8 points per game. Additionally, Bucknell’s starting quarterback, senior Todd Weinrich, was injured in last week’s game against Towson and listed as questionable for Saturday’s game. Sophomore Cole Ciesnolevicz filled in for Weinrich last week and completed 10 of 15 pass attempts with two interceptions.
While Bucknell is 0-2 in the Patriot League this season and 2-4 overall, opponents have rarely beaten them badly. In its two losses to conference foes, Bucknell fell by a combined nine points, losing 20-14 last week to Towson and 13-10 to Colgate in overtime.
“We don’t care who we’re playing,” Benson said. “Right now we just want [to win] No. 3. We want to try to get to four wins by the open date.”
The narrow losses can largely be attributed to Bucknell’s tough defensive squad, ranked 25th in Division I, allowing 17.8 points per game. The Bison have made their opponents earn every yard against them and promise a stiff challenge for the often-stagnant Georgetown offense. Senior quarterback Dave Paulus and Georgetown’s offensive play callers may utilize some trickery in order to crack the hardened shell of the Bucknell defense. Paulus, who leads the Patriot League with a quarterback rating of 165.5 since assuming the job, has the ability to scramble as well as pass and could present problems as a double threat.
“We are counting on our offense to control the clock,” Benson said.
With two tough defenses on the field, Saturday’s game will likely come down to field position and turnovers. As such, the team that makes the fewest mistakes will likely come away with the victory. Bucknell enters the game with a turnover ratio of negative five, the second worst in the Patriot League. Georgetown enters with a ratio of negative two. Georgetown will also have to avoid critical penalties. Two defensive penalties on third downs against Lafayette led to Leopard first downs and ensuing touchdowns in last week’s game.
“We cannot be missing a piece of the puzzle this weekend,” Benson said. “It has to be a group effort.”
Benson is confident though that his team is coming around, particularly offensively.
“We’ve been moving the ball well the last two games. We’ve run the ball well. We’re not turning the ball over, we’ve been less penalized and special teams have been hanging in there.”
Georgetown will be slightly less banged up this week. A shoulder injury has sidelined freshman defensive back Maurice Banks and sophomore DB Jason Carter will sit out the contest with an injured knee. Senior tight end Bo Cote is listed as questionable with an ankle problem, while senior center Adam Rini may return to action.
Kickoff is at 1 p.m. on Harbin Field.