Skip To Main Content

Robert Morris University Athletics

Football

RMU Hosts Saint Francis as Part of Homecoming

Saint Francis (1-4 / 0-2 NEC) vs. Robert Morris (1-3 / 1-0 NEC)
Saturday, Oct. 8, 2011, at 7:00 p.m.
Joe Walton Stadium (3,000) - Moon Township, Pa.

Top Story - The Robert Morris University football team returns home to Joe Walton Stadium for the first time in over a month Saturday to host in-state rival Saint Francis as part of the University's Homecoming festivities in the first home night game in school history. The Colonials are coming off a 23-20 victory @ Monmouth (10/1) in their 2011 Northeast Conference opener, which helped RMU improve to 14-5-1 (.725) all-time when playing after a bye week and 10-6 (.625) in NEC openers. Junior quarterback Jeff Sinclair finished 18-for-24 passing for 211 yards and two touchdowns against the Hawks, including a 21-yard touchdown strike to senior tight end Shadrae King with 5:15 to play that proved to be the game-winning score. King tied a career high with nine receptions against Monmouth, compiling 104 receiving yards and two touchdowns. For those efforts he was tabbed the NEC Offensive Player of the Week (10/3) and the National Tight of the Week by the College Football Performance Awards (10/3). RMU returns to the road after hosting the Red Flash, traveling to Albany, N.Y., for a 1:00 p.m. kickoff against Albany at University Field.

 



Quick Stat of the Afternoon - RMU earned its first victory of the 2011 season with a 23-20 win @ Monmouth (10/1) in come-from-behind fashion. Trailing, 20-17, in the fourth quarter, junior quarterback engineered a nine-play, 79-yard drive, the longest touchdown drive of the season for Robert Morris, and capped it with a 21-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end Shadrae King. Sinclair finished 4-for-5 passing for 68 yards during the decisive drive, marking the third time in his career Sinclair has led the Colonials on a game-winning drive in the fourth quarter. That total is tied for third in school history for fourth-quarter comebacks with former Colonial Drew Geyer (2002-05) and trailing only former Colonials Erik Cwalinski (2005-08) and Tim Levcik (1998-2001). Cwalinski engineered five game-winning drives in the fourth quarter during his career, while Levcik posted four.

Saturday's Opponent - Saint Francis is one of just three opponents Robert Morris has faced in each of the first 17 years the Colonials have fielded an intercollegiate program, joining fellow NEC foes Central Connecticut State and Wagner. All-time the Colonials are 14-2-1 (.853) against the Red Flash and enter Saturday's game on a five-game winning streak against Saint Francis. In last season's matchup the Colonials scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to break open a tight game en route to a 35-14 victory. For more information on the all-time series against Saint Francis, including last year's game recap, please see page four of today's game notes.

All-Time Series vs. Saint Francis
RMU leads, 14-2-1
10/29/94 - T, 14-14; Away
11/11/95 - W, 21-6; Home
11/9/96 - W, 16-15; Away
11/8/97 - W, 34-7; Home
11/7/98 - W, 35-3; Away
11/6/99 - W, 49-0; Home
9/30/00 - W, 63-0; Away
9/29/01 - W, 41-7; Home
11/16/02 - L, 7-14 (OT); Away
9/27/03 - W, 36-6; Home
10/2/04 - W, 28-10; Away
10/1/05 - L, 28-35; Home
9/30/06 - W, 45-13; Away
9/15/07 - W, 28-13; Home
11/15/08 - W, 35-20; Away
10/17/09 - W, 28-0; Home
10/2/10 - W, 35-14; Awaye
@ Moon Township, Pa. - RMU, 7-1
@ Loretto, Pa. - RMU, 7-1-1

Robert Morris 2011 Quick Outs - Robert Morris 2011 Quick Outs - RMU was picked third in the 2011 Northeast Conference preseason coaches poll, trailing only preseason favorite Central Connecticut State and Duquesne ... The Blue Devils earned five first-place votes in the NEC preseason coaches poll, the Dukes garnered two while RMU and Bryant each finished with one ... Senior tight end Shadrae King has caught at least one pass in 23 straight games dating back to the 2009 campaign, a school record ... King also owns 115 career receptions, a new Robert Morris school record ... Junior defensive lineman Nolan Nearhoof is RMU's active leader in tackles (97), tackles for loss (17) and sacks (11) ... Nearhoof is just three tackles shy of 100 for his career and needs just half a sack to move into the top 10 all-time at Robert Morris ... A total of 16 Colonials have earned their first career start through the first four games of the 2011 campaign.

 

Head Coach Joe Walton (18th Season; Pittsburgh '57) - At the forefront of the football renaissance at Robert Morris University throughout its 17-year history is Joe Walton, who has built the Colonials from a fledgling program into one of the top Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) teams in the region.

The one constant associated with the program, Walton was named the first head coach July 27, 1993. He started the program from scratch, completing everything from hiring assistant coaches to purchasing equipment to recruiting student-athletes for the team's inaugural season in 1994. He owns an overall record of 104-73-1 (.587).

Walton's fingerprints are all over the football program, and to prove that, RMU has played its home games since 2005 in a stadium that bears his name. During his tenure, Walton has led Robert Morris to the first Northeast Conference championship in 1996, guided RMU to a perfect 10-0 season in 2000 and in 2010 helped lead the Colonials to the NEC's inaugural bid to the NCAA FCS Playoffs with their league-high sixth regular-season championship.

“It's hard to believe,” Walton speaks on how fast time has elapsed. “I've said this many times before, and I mean it when I say that this situation is one of the best things that has ever happened to me in my life. It happened at the right time. Before this position became available, I felt I was too young to quit coaching, but I wasn't anxious to get back into pro football. When this came along, it was the perfect fit. This situation was the perfect opportunity for me to continue to do what I like to do, and I've loved every minute of it.”

Under Walton's tutelage, the Colonials have claimed outright NEC regular-season titles three times (1997, 1999, 2000) while sharing three others (1996, 1998, 2010). Walton led Robert Morris to back-to-back ECAC Bowl victories in 1996 and 1997, and in 1999 and 2000 he guided RMU to a pair of NCAA I-AA mid-major national crowns according to Don Hansen's National Weekly Football Gazette.

In 2010, Walton added to his legacy by engineering the Colonials on an eight-game winning streak for a share of the NEC regular-season title and the NEC's first bid in the NCAA FCS Playoffs. In the process he picked up his 100th career victory in the collegiate ranks.

Monmouth Game Notes - Robert Morris won its third straight over Monmouth and has won four of the last five meetings to take a 10-7 (.588) advantage in the all-time series ... Nine of the 17 meetings between the Colonials and Hawks have been decided by a touchdown or less, including five by a field goal or less ... In three career games against the Hawks, junior quarterback Jeff Sinclair has completed 68.3 percent (41-for-60) of his passes for 487 yards, five touchdowns and one interception ... Monmouth was penalized 13 times for 136 yards on the afternoon ... Sinclair suffered four more sacks as the Hawks posted 11 tackles for losses that totaled 62 yards ... Senior wide receiver Anthony Coleman finished with 127 all-purpose yards to move into seventh place all-time at Robert Morris with 2,729 for his career.

Did You Know? Thanks to a 23-20 victory over Monmouth in their 2011 Northeast Conference opener, the Colonials enter Saturday's game against Saint Francis winners of 13 of their last 14 games against league foes dating back to the 2009 campaign. Over that span, Robert Morris has has averaged 27.4 points per game while allowing just 13.4 points per contest, a scoring margin of two touchdowns (+14).

Settling In - After a rough start to the 2011 campaign, junior quarterback Jeff Sinclair seemed to snap out of his slump in a 23-20 victory @ Monmouth (10/1). Sinclair finished 18-for-24 passing for 211 yards and two touchdowns against the Hawks, and his completion percentage of 75 percent ranks as the fifth highest in RMU single-game history. For Sinclair, it marked his second straight stellar performance at Kessler Field in West Long Branch, N.J. As a freshman, Sinclair finished 13-for-17 passing in a 23-9 win over Monmouth Nov. 21, 2009, with his completion percentage of 76.5 percent in that contest ranking as the third highest in the Colonial single-game record book.

Two Pair - Quarterback Jeff Sinclair tossed a pair of touchdown passes to senior tight end Shadrae King in a 23-20 victory @ Monmouth (10/1), the first time this season Sinclair has thrown multiple touchdown passes in a game. Thanks to the two scores through the air from Sinclair, Robert Morris improved to 9-2 (.818) when he tosses two or more touchdown passes in a game.

A New No. 1 - Senior tight end Shadrae King tied a career high with nine receptions in a 23-20 victory @ Monmouth (10/1), compiling 104 yards receiving and a pair of touchdowns. In addition to recording his third career 100-yard receiving game, King became the program's all-time leading receiver. He enters Saturday's game against Saint Francis with 115 career catches, which eclipsed the record of 112 that was held by former wide receiver Tyjuan Massey (2002-05). King also owns career totals of 18 touchdown catches and 1,373 career receiving yards, which rank third and fifth, respectively, all-time at Robert Morris. King enters Saturday's game against Saint Francis ranked third in the Northeast Conference in receptions per game (5.25) and eighth in receiving yards (49.8) per contest.

Stuffing The Run - Just four games into the 2011 season, and the Robert Morris defense is again proving to be stingy in regard to the opposing running game. Opponents have averaged just 90.5 yards rushing against the Colonials so far this year, which leads the Northeast Conference while ranking 13th in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). The school record for rushing defense is held by the 2006 Colonials, which allowed an average of 99.8 yards per game. Overall, RMU enters Saturday's game against Saint Francis ranked second in the NEC and ninth in the country in total defense, yielding an average of just 285.3 yards per contest.

Action Jackson - Junior wide receiver Rickeem Jackson has established himself as a go-to receiver for Robert Morris in the last two games. In RMU's final final non-conference game of the 2011 campaign @ Morgan State (9/17), Jackson caught his first collegiate touchdown with a seven-yard reception in the fourth quarter. In a 23-20 win @ Monmouth (10/1), Jackson was key in RMU's eventual game-winning drive, hauling in a 26-yard catch that moved the ball to the 25-yard line of the Hawks. Over the last two games, Jackson owns seven receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown, an average of 14.7 yards per catch. Overall on the 2011 campaign, Jackson's average of 14.1 yards per catch ranks seventh in the Northeast Conference.

Dr. Dre - Senior tight end Shadrae King led the Robert Morris receiving corps in a 23-20 victory @ Monmouth (10/1), tying a career high with nine receptions for 104 yards and a pair of touchdowns. It marked the 23rd straight game dating back to the 2009 campaign that King has recorded at least one reception, a new school record. King eclipsed the mark of former wide receiver Opio Gary (1998-2000), who closed out his Robert Morris career by posting at least one reception in each of his final 22 games.

Pick Pockets - Robert Morris wouldn't have been able to pick up its first victory of the 2011 campaign with a 23-20 win @ Monmouth (10/1) without the contributions it received from the secondary. Senior cornerback Alex Tarr and junior safety Cameron Chadwick led the Colonials in tackles against the Hawks, finishing with nine and eight, respectively. More importantly, the pair each recorded an interception and returned it 39 yards, with Chadwick's setting up RMU's second touchdown of the afternoon, a nine-yard run by freshman running back Justin Brooks. In the win over the Monmouth, a total of 30 of RMU's 65 (46.2 percent) tackles came courtesy of the secondary.

200 MPH - For quarterback Jeff Sinclair, his 211-yard passing performance in a 23-20 victory @ Monmouth (10/1) marked just the fifth time in his career he's eclipsed 200 yards passing in a game and the first time in 11 games dating back to last season. However, Robert Morris owns a record of 4-1 (.800) when Sinclair passes for 200 or more yards in a contest.
Print Friendly Version