WASHINGTON, D.C. - As the Landmark Conference opens up league play in 2024, the Cardinals host top-10 program and league favorites Susquehanna at Cardinal Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. on Family Weekend in D.C.

SERIES HISTORY: Susquehanna leads 1-0 

LAST YEAR'S MEETING

Catholic football opened up Landmark Conference play at 12th-ranked Susquehanna, falling 50-21 to the River Hawks. Catholic drops to 2-3 on the season and 0-1 in the Landmark. 

Senior quarterback Madden Lowe threw for 228 yards and three scores, leading three separate scoring drives of 66 yards or more. Lowe, the nation's leader in completions per game coming into Saturday, completed 20-of-31 throws on the day. Preston Jeffrey, Malachi Hansen, and Nole Henry each found themselves on the receiving end of a touchdown pass in the contest. 

For the River Hawks, Josh Erlich was responsible for three scores, throwing two and rushing for one, while Tommy Grabowski gained 109 yards on the ground and found the end zone. 

LAST TIME OUT -- CATHOLIC EDITION

Catholic football's two-game winning streak came to an end with a 45-15 road loss at Alfred on Saturday afternoon. The Cardinals fall to 2-2 while the Saxons improve to 2-1 with a pair of victories over Landmark Conference teams. 

The Saxons only outgained Catholic 348-291, but three turnovers hurt the Cardinals. 

Catholic's first possession of the game started with great field position as an 18-yard punt set up the Cardinals at the Alfred 39. Joey Gulbin connected with Malachi Hansen for 17 yards on the first play before Gulbin rushed for nine yards to put Catholic in the red zone. Another completion to Hansen pushed the Cardinals inside-the-five, but two incompletions and a run stuff forced Andrew Petrino to boot a 20-yard field goal to take a 3-0 lead. 

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Alfred would score the next 24 points, keeping Catholic off the board until the middle of the third quarter. 

Full Game Recap - HERE

LAST TIME OUT -- SUSQUEHANNA EDITION

The Susquehanna University football team ventured out of the region to celebrate their first road game of the 2024 season during Saturday's Week 4 matchup against Western New England with a 34-21 victory. They wrap up their non-conference season at 3-1 after coming into Saturday ranked ninth and tenth from D3football.com and AFCA, respectively. The River Hawks made it work with a balanced attack and almost identical numbers with 202 yards on the ground and 205 yards passing.

Quarterback Josh Ehrlich threw for every one of those passing yards in another hallmark day, completing 23-of-29 with two touchdown passes and running for another. He netted a game-high 91 yards rushing on nine carries, an average of 10.1 yards per carry. Ehrlich helped carry out the team's first three touchdowns, scoring the first on a two-yard run for an early 7-0 lead halfway through the first quarter. After a WNE touchdown on its ensuing drive tied it up at seven, the River Hawks went to the air as Ehrlich found Kyle Howes deep down the left side for a 40-yard touchdown connection to regain the lead to end the first quarter up 14-7. The River Hawks began the second quarter adding to their lead when at the Golden Bears' three yard line Ehrlich found running back Tommy Grabowski in the endzone and take a 21-7 lead with just over ten minutes left before halftime.

Full Game Recap - HERE


SCOUTING THE CARDS

Coming off the loss at Alfred, Catholic sits at 2-2 on the season with wins over Capital (38-20) and SUNY Morrisville (28-27). The Cardinals fell in the season opener at McDaniel (7-3) and last weekend in New York to the Saxons (45-15). 

Graduate QB Gulbin has started the last two games for Catholic after taking over on the second drive of the Capital contest. Veteran QB John Whelan started the first two contests and has seen game action in all four games this season. In three games, Gulbin has completed 69 percent of his throws for 747 yards and six scores. He also has a rushing TD to give him seven touchdowns accounted for. Gulbin threw for a career-high 303 yards in the win over SUNY Morrisville. Daequan Harvin returns to the field this week and remains the team's leading rusher with 149 yards on 34 carries (4.4). He has scored once on the ground and once through the air. Hansen leads Catholic with 262 receiving yards and a score while fellow captain Anthony Giordano has pulled in a team-high 21 catches for 221 yards. Six different players have caught a touchdown with Andrew Tabor the only with multiple touchdown receptions. 

Defensively, four Cardinals have logged 25 or more tackles this season. The linebacker trio of Carson Henry (29), Michael Hopkins (27), and Sean Finan (26) lead the way with senior captain Mason Stillwell not far behind with 25 stops. Henry is tied for the team lead in tackles for loss with Connor Jennings (5.0). Catholic has five takeaways with interceptions from Henry and Hopkins, and fumble recoveries from Henry, Tyler McVicker, and Samuel Dumas. 

Andrew Petrino and Connor Gill split the kicking duties while Gill has been one of the better punters in the country this season, ranking in the top 25 with an average of 41.4 yards per boot. Petrino is 2-2 on short field goal attempts and 5-6 on extra points while Gill has drilled a 43-yarder and is 4-4 on extra points this season. 

SCOUTING THE OPPOSITION

The preseason Landmark favorite and defending champ, Susquehanna comes to D.C. with a 3-1 record and a spot in the top 10 of both the AFCA and D3football rankings. The River Hawks will play their second straight road contest after opening the campaign with three straight at home. 

Susquehanna has win over Bridgewater (41-7), SUNY Brockport (27-21), and Western New England (34-21) with its lone loss coming in a thriller against #2 SUNY Cortland (40-38). At the helm for Susquehanna is the reigning Landmark Offensive Player of the Week Josh Ehrlich. Ehrlich is completing 68 percent of his throws for 1,026 yards and 10 TDs in four games. A dual-threat, he also has 263 rushing yards and a pair of scores on the ground. The backfield is led by freshman Rahshan La Mons who averages 6.6 yards per carry and has found the end zone five times. He is also second on the team with 17 receptions for 249 yards and two more scores. Kyle Howes is the leading receiver with 357 yards and four touchdowns so far this year. Howes had 100+ yards vs. Brockport and Cortland and has scored in all four games. 

Defensively, Garrett Carter leads the team with 32 tackles and 5.5 TFLs. Brian Layton (3.5) and Jake Schultes (3.0) have also gotten into the backfield for the River Hawks and have 15+ tackles each. Layton leads the team with 2.5 sacks. Susquehanna has come away with seven turnovers in four games with Schultes logging an interception and a fumble recovery. Drew Robinson, Ben Mongare, and Steven Williams III all have interceptions. 

Christian Colasurdo handled kicking and punting for the River Hawks, converting on three-of-four field goal tries with a long of 39. He has also punted 11 times, averaging 40.2 yards per boot with a long of 56. 

WEEK THREE STANDOUTS

• Giordano | Senior | Wide Receiver - 5 receptions, 91 yards, 1 TD
• Tabor | Junior | Wide Receiver - 3 receptions, 27 yards, 1 TD
• Stillwell | Senior | Safety - 5 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 FF

SPREADING THE LOVE

So far in 2024, all six of Catholic's seven touchdown passes have been caught by different players. The Cardinals have also had 12 different pass catchers in three games this season with five different players logging five or more receptions to this point. Malachi Hansen, Daequan Harvin, Andrew Tabor, Cade Chrebet, Zach Williams, and Anthony Giordano have each found the end zone through the air. Hansen, Giordano, and Tabor all have 120+ yards this season.

MILESTONES REACHED

Henry joined the 200 tackle club in week one at McDaniel, logging 11 stops to give him 202 for his career. Henry reached double digit tackles for the first time since September 23, 2023 vs. Alfred. Henry now has four games with 10 or more tackles for his career. 

Senior captain Stillwell reached 150 career tackles with four in the opener. The senior safety had a career-high 62 tackles in 2022, following it up with 55 stops last season. He also has six career interceptions. 

Junior linebacker Hopkins went over 150 tackles for his career with eight versus Morrisville on Saturday. He has 21 tackles on the year, raising his career average to 6.4 tackles per game. He recorded a career-high 78 tackles in 2023. 

Hansen's 46-yard touchdown reception vs. Morrisville marked the 10th of his career. He has a receiving touchdown in each season of his career with a career-high six of them coming in 2022. 

MILESTONE WATCH

• #11 Anthony Giordano is 61 yards shy of 1,000 for his career after logging a career-high 379 yards on 40 catches a year ago. He is up to 221 yards through four games in 2024. Giordano is also three receptions shy of 100 for his career. 
• #33 Malachi Hansen is three receptions shy of 100 for his career and 135 yards shy of 1,500 receiving yards. 
• #21 Zach Williams has logged 991 yards from scrimmage for his career (761 rush, 230 receiving) leaving him just nine shy of 1,000. 

WHAT'S NEW IN '24

The Catholic football staff will feature some familiar faces in new roles this season. Former Assistant Head Coach & Special Teams Coordinator Jonathan Rutledge earned a promotion to Associate Head Coach and will take over play-calling duties as the program's offensive coordinator in 2024. 

Also moving up the ranks is seventh-year assistant Brandon Beech who will serve as Assistant Head Coach in 2024 after taking over as the Defensive Coordinator in 2023. 

Also joining the staff for the upcoming season is George Coles who will coach the offensive line after leading the running backs at Wilkes University in 2023. Coles helped develop All-Landmark First Team running back Elijah Jules and helped the Colonels to a bowl game in '23. 

Catholic will feature fresh faces at several key positions on offense in 2024 after the departure of Madden Lowe, Preston Jeffrey, Javier Oliver, Grant Wicks, and John Diaz. Defensively, Catholic will look to replace the production of Luke Brautigan in the front seven. Also departed are Aidan Long and Jack Baldridge from the back end. 

THE NEWCOMERS

The Cardinals welcome 34 new faces into the program and welcome back one old face in 2024. The freshman class includes: Julian Fresen (QB), Augustine Howard (WR), Tyler McVicker (DT), Omid Aliaskari (DB), Khamari Wilson (RB), Ja'Khi Boulware (DB), Latevias Cunningham (DB), Carter Virsik (DB), Malachi McIver (WR), Isaiah Green (WR), Roman Landamia (RB), George Mekras (RB), Justin LaMorte (K), Duron Bruce (DB), Caden Lopez (LB), Daniel Moore (LB), Alexander Saunders (LB), Charles Beckwith III (LB), Jake McGowan (DE), Gavin Drescher (DT), Mark Enamorado (DE), Ethan Carmichael (OL), James Varellas (DE), Dalton Orsak (TE), Shan Azamy (WR), Adrian Fresen (WR), Jake Melograna (WR), Tory Scott (DE), and Storm Haney (DT). Other newcomers include: Daequan Harvin (RB), Tabari Muhammad (WR), Joshua Mun (RB), Hugh Connell (DE), and Joe Gulbin (QB). Returning back after a year away from the team is Nicholas Chang (DB).

WE'RE BACK!

While a number of key pieces are gone, Catholic returns a strong core from last year's 5-5 team. Leading rusher Zach Williams returns for a fifth year after a breakout campaign that saw him total over 800 yards from scrimmage and score five touchdowns. 

Despite losing 871 yards from Jeffrey, Catholic returns 2,180 receiving yards, including seven players who logged at least 150. Anthony Giordano is the top returner with 379 yards, Tabor returns the most receptions with 59, and Maynes returns the most touchdowns with five. 

Hopkins (78) and Carson Henry (72) return, giving the Cardinals their top two tacklers back. Henry also led the team with 14.0 TFLs. Conor Jennings is back after a strong freshman campaign that saw him log 32 tackles, 7.5 TFLs, and 4.0 sacks. Eight of Catholic's 10 interceptions a year ago return with Hopkins, Tyler Donnelly, and Ryan Creston each logging two. Stillwell captains the defense along with Henry in 2024. 

Catholic returns plenty of experience on special teams as both Connor Gill and Andrew Petrino are back in 2024. Gill made six field goals a year ago and averaged 39 yards per punt while Petrino made two field goals and was a perfect 9-9 on extra points. A three-time all-conference returner, Hansen is also expected to return kicks and punts in 2024. 

SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM

After the 2023 season, Catholic placed a program-record five student-athletes on the College Sports Communicators Academic All-District Team. To be eligible for nomination, a student-athlete must; be at least a sophomore academically and athletically, maintain at least a 3.50 cumulative grade point average, play in at least 90 percent of the team's games OR start at least 66 percent of the team's games. 

Earning the honor for Catholic were Samuel Dumas, Giordano, Hopkins, Connor James, and Wicks. Dumas, Giordano, and Hopkins are all back and will have a chance to be in the mix for the honor again this season. 

.500 OR BETTER

Catholic has finished each of the past three seasons with a winning percentage or .500 or better. After a 2-5 start, the Cardinals rallied to finish 5-5 to keep the streak alive, giving them three such seasons in a row for the first time since Tom Clark did it seven years in a row, finishing in 2001. 

Catholic went 6-4 in 2021, 6-5 in 2022, and 5-5 in 2023. The Cardinals spent the 2021 and 2022 seasons in the NEWMAC before the Landmark launched its inaugural football season this past year. The Cardinals reached the New England Bowl in 2022. Gutelius has four seasons of .500 or better ball under his watch, matching Dave Dunn. 

HALL OF FAME REPRESENTATION

On September 20, former running back Matt Taylor will be inducted into the Catholic Athletics Hall of Fame. An All-American in 1996, Taylor is second in program history with 3,802 yards and 52 touchdowns. He holds the program record with 22 rushing touchdowns in a single season. He joins former teammates Kevin Ricca (Class of '20 inductee) and Jeff Clay (Class of '16 inductee) in the Hall of Fame. 

ALL-CONFERENCE RETURNERS

Catholic returns four players from the seven that earned all-conference honors in the first season of Landmark football. Stillwell, a senior captain, was a first-team all-conference defensive back in 2023 after totaling 55 tackles, an interception, a fumble recovery, and six PBUs. For his career, Stillwell has 147 career tackles, six interceptions and 16 PBUs. 

A second-team linebacker in 2023, Henry is back as well after tallying a career-high 14 TFLs to go with 72 tackles and two sacks. Henry is nine tackles shy of 200 for his career. 

Fellow linebacker, Hopkins, was an All-Landmark Honorable Mention choice at linebacker. As a sophomore, he led the team with 78 tackles, adding seven TFLs, and picked off two passes. Playing in all 21 games of his career, he has totaled 133 tackles and 13.5 TFLs. 

Finally, despite missing time, Hansen was respected as an all-conference return man, marking the third straight year in which a conference honored his return ability. He averaged 32 yards per kick return in the eight games he saw action in.