Football Set for First 2012 Road Trip at Lenoir-Rhyne Saturday Night

Davidson Wildcats (0-1) vs. Lenoir-Rhyne Bears (0-1)

Date: Sept. 8 - 7 p.m.
Site: Moretz Stadium (8,500 capacity) - Hickory, N.C.
Audio: Mark Plemmons (play-by-play) and Ryan Arnold '06 (color) call the action on the Davidson Radio Network (1350 AM, online at DavidsonWildcats.com and mobile with the TuneIn Radio App)
Video: Available at www.lrbears.com
Web sites: Davidson (DavidsonWildcats.com), Lenoir-Rhyne (LRBears.com)

The Game

• Davidson hits the road for the first time this season, visitng nearby Lenoir-Rhyne in Moretz Stadium at 7 p.m.

• Both teams were defeated in their season openers. Davidson lost at home to Georgetown, 35-14, while LR allowed 24 unanswered points in a 24-21 defeat at Concord (W. Va.).

• The Wildcats return 12 starters and 43 lettermen from last year's squad that went 4-7 overall and 2-6 in the PFL.

• Senior WR Lanny Funsten was named first-team All-America by BeyondSportsCollegeNetwork.com and second-team All-Pioneer Football League by the conference's coaches after a school-record 100-reception season a year ago, in which he led the PFL with 1,107 yards receiving. He also caught eight touchdown passes and ranked seventh in the PFL in all-purpose yards in 2011.

• Funsten was recognized as a Preseason All-PFL honoree in addition to preseason FCS All-American honors by College Sporting News, The Sports Network and BeyondSportsCollegeNetwork.com.

• The Wildcats were 0-5 on the road last season, and have lost their last six contests on the road dating back to the 2010 season finale.

• L-R returns 18 starters and 57 letterwinners from a team that finished 7-3 overall and won the South Atlantic Conference Championship.

• The Bears were 4-0 at home last season and have not lost a home opener since 2007. They have won six straight home games

• The 'Cats were picked ninth in the PFL preseason poll while L-R was picked to repeat as conference champions and No. 23 in the D2football.com National Preseason Poll.

Series Record

• The Wildcats trail the series, which began in 1910, 9-8 but have won three of the last five games.

• Prior to the 2009 meeting, the previous four games were decided by an average of 5.5 points. That stretch included a one-point Wildcat win in 2007 and a 20-16 Davidson victory at LRU in 2008.

• The Bears won five straight against Davidson from 1974 to 2005.

• Last season, Davidson quarterback Jonathan Carkhuff completed 37-of-50 passes for 357 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Wildcats to a 28-10 football victory over Lenoir-Rhyne Sept. 10.

• Since graduated Jonathan Adams caught eight passes for 95 yards and two scores for Davidson, while Lanny Funsten had eight receptions for 85 yards and a touchdown. Josh Wiggins added 60 yards on five receptions.

• Since graduated Peter Kidwell led the Davidson defense, which held Lenoir-Rhyne in check most of the night, with two interceptions to go along with nine tackles. Patrick Moynahan had 11 stops.

• Two key series in the game came right before halftime as Lenoir-Rhyne methodically moved the ball into Davidson territory trailing 14-0. Lenoir-Rhyne picked up four first downs during the drive, but on 3rd-and-9, Kidwell tackled Corron Boston five yards short of the marker, and the Bears were forced to settle for a Colin Corpe field goal with 1:20 left.

• The Wildcats made the most of that time and tacked on one final score before the half ended. A 26-yard pass from Carkhuff to Wiggins keyed the series, and the 'Cats had the ball on the LR 29-yard line with 8.8 seconds left. Davidson elected to take a shot in the end zone, and Carkhuff hooked up with Adams for a touchdown pass with no time remaining on the clock, putting Davidson ahead 21-3 at the end of the half, ending a seven-game home losing streak for the Wildcats and a two-game skid against Lenoir-Rhyne.

Leftovers from Georgetown
• Lightning delayed the kickoff 1 hour, 20 minutes
• Williams' touchdown was the second of his career and his first since last year's opener against Georgetown after injury limited his 2011 season to three games.
• Patrick Moynahan was named an FCS Honorable Mention Linebacker Performer of the Week by the College Football Performance Awards.

Air Raid Needs a Traffic Controller
• Quarterback Jonathan Carkhuff will be making his 22nd start today, and Davidson owns a 7-14 record when he starts.
• Carkhuff completed 63 percent of his passes for 3,326 yards and 18 TDs with 17 INTs last season.

Favorite Target
• Dating back to last season, WR Lanny Funsten has caught at least eight passes for at least 85 yards in his last six games. He caught 8 passes for 89 yards last week against Georgetown.

Sibling Rivalry?
• While Lanny is looking for another excellent season on the gridiron, his little sister, Melissa, is a freshman starter Davidson's field hockey team. She leads the team in scoring after four games with three goals and three assists and was named this past week's NorPac Field Hockey Conference East Division Rookie of the Week. She and the rest of the Davidson field hockey team will play next at James Madison Sunday at 1 p.m.

Veteran Defender
• Senior captain Patrick Moynahan has led the Wildcats in tackles for two consecutive seasons, logging 72 stops in 2011. He matched his career-high for tackles last week against Georgetown with 11 and posted a career-high 4.5 for loss (had 5.5 for loss all of last season). He leads the team with 23 consecutive career starts.

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