Moravian Set to Host WestConn for Family Day on October 25

BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- The Moravian University football team hosts Western Connecticut University on Saturday, October 25 for a Landmark Conference contest. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 p.m. at Rocco Calvo Field in Bethlehem as the Greyhounds host their annual Family Day game.

THE COACHES: Jeff Long (Muhlenberg '14) is in his third season as Moravian's head coach with an overall record of 11-17. In his debut campaign, Long led the Greyhounds to a 4-6 overall record and a 3-3 slate in the inaugural Landmark Conference season. Last fall, Long guided the Hounds to a 7-4 mark, a 4-2 Landmark Conference record and the 2024 Cape Charles Bowl Championship with a win over Shenandoah (Va.) University. He has coached 21 Landmark All-Conference selections including seven First Team honorees.  Long spent the previous six seasons with the Blue Streaks including the last three years as defensive coordinator. He began his time at John Carroll as the defensive line coach and has also been a secondary coach and linebackers coach. Prior to coaching at John Carroll, Long spent two seasons as a defensive line coach at Wilkes University, and he also worked as a scouting intern for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2015.
     WestConn coach Kevin Jones (Central Connecticut State) is in his first year as interim head coach.

THE SERIES: Saturday's meeting is the first contest between the schools.

GREYHOUNDS IN THE LANDMARK CONFERENCE: The Greyhounds will compete in the Landmark Conference this fall for the third straight season. The Hounds were selected second in the preseason coaches poll while the Wolves were picked fourth.

THE QUARTERBACKS: Sophomore Declan McCarthy is 33-for-82 passing for 348 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions, and he has 70 yards on 30 rushing attempts while sophomore RJ Hart is 30-for-61 for 224 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions. Graduate student Jared Jenkins has completed 23-of-34 passes for 238 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions, and Jenkins has run the ball four times for three yards while freshman Tommy Gontz has completed 10-of-25 passes for 112 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions to go with 21 yards on nine rushes. Sophomore wide receiver Ryan Bender is 3-for-5 for 13 yards while sophomore punter/kicker Jack Corrigan is 2-for-2 for 38 yards and two first downs on fake punt plays at Muhlenberg College and versus Ursinus College, and Corrigan also has 10 yards and a first down on one carry.

IN THE BACKFIELD: Sophomore Jed Bendekovits leads the Moravian rushing attack with 183 yards on 53 carries while graduate student Joey Richmond has 122 yards on 40 attempts. Freshman Dorian Thomas has gained 104 yards on 37 carries while senior Isiah Rico has added 19 yards on five carries and senior Camron Tinajero has 10 yards on 16 attempts. 

THE OFFENSIVE LINE: Moravian has one returning starter on the offensive line in junior Mason Ludlow. Senior Drew Brizan has seen action and moved into the starting lineup while sophomores Dylan Nolter and Ali Wezza and freshman Marquis Labossiere round out the starting lineup. Juniors Aris Daley and Hezakyah Hynson and freshmen Dante Downey, Kyle Borgh and Michael Longo have seen action this fall. 

THE WIDE RECEIVERS: The Greyhounds have had 16 different players catch a pass in 2025 led by junior Avery Koser, who was named the Sean Keville '94 MVP at Muhlenberg in the season opener. Koser has 21 receptions for 310 yards and four touchdowns while sophomore Josh Ludlow has 18 catches for 172 yards. Sophomore Gavyn Gennarelli has 15 catches for 149 yards and a touchdown while sophomore Chris Brown has ten catches for 86 yards and a touchdown. Senior Knaheim Bragg has nine receptions for 74 yards while senior running back Isiah Rico has six catches for 68 yards. Senior running back Camron Tinajero has caught six passes for 21 yards while graduate student tight end Jalen Jones has caught four passes for 21 yards. Sophomore running back Jed Bendekovits has four receptions for ten yards while freshman running back Dorian Thomas has two catches for 18 yards. Sophomore wide receiver Tanner Clancy has one reception for five yards while freshman wide receiver Andrei Matthews has one catch for four yards and sophomore linebacker Malachi McNeil-Harrison has added one reception for 29 yards on a fake punt at Muhlenberg and senior tight end Parker Miller has one catch for a yard and a touchdown. Graduate student running back Joey Richmond has one reception for four yards while freshman running back Derek Trinidad has added one catch for one yard and.

THE DEFENSIVE FRONT: Senior Nathan Carr leads the defensive lineman with 36 tackles with five and a half stops for loss, one and a half sacks and a fumble recovery while sophomore Kaelyb Barahona has added 29 tackles including a half a tackle for loss, a half a sack and a fumble recovery. Senior Jashon Teller has made 14 tackles while sophomore Hunter Johnson has ten tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack, one pass break-up, two quarterback hurries and a blocked field goal at Lycoming College. Senior EJ Harvey has six tackles with one and a half for loss and a quarterback hurry while sophomore Josh Doane has five stops. Freshman Brayden Lauta has posted four tackles while junior Logan Arteaga has five tackles with one for loss and a quarterback hurry. Freshman Kenny Dim has made two tackles while junior EJ Boney has one stop.

THE LINEBACKER CORPS: Senior Ethan O'Neill leads the linebackers with 33 stops and a quarterback hurry while senior Clay Basile has 26 tackles with one and a half for loss and half a sack. Senior Chris Cacace has made 25 tackles with one for loss to go with a blocked punt versus Wilkes University and a quarterback hurry while sophomore Malachi McNeil-Harrison has added 23 tackles including two and a half for loss, a sack, a pass break-up and five quarterback hurries. Sophomore linebacker Jack Tosh has made 22 tackles with four tackles for loss, one and a half sacks and two pass break-ups while freshman Jamie Gutridge has registered 17 stops with three tackles for loss and a sack. Graduate student Declan Coors has 11 tackles with one for loss and a pass break-up while freshman Dante Harrison has made seven tackles. Senior Vincent Hoffman has six tackles with a half a tackle for loss while sophomore Connor Pennington has contributed three tackles with a half a tackle for loss and a fumble recovery. 

THE DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD: Junior Aidan Lane leads the defensive backs and the Greyhounds' defense with 51 tackles including three and a half tackles for loss, a fumble recovery and an interception returned 34 yards for a touchdown at The Catholic University of America. Senior Shea Endean has 24 tackles to go with five pass break-ups while sophomore Antonio Rivera has made 21 tackles with one tackle for loss, five pass break-ups and a forced fumble. Senior Isaiah Johnson has contributed 18 stops with one and a half tackles for loss and a pass break-up while junior Antonio Bowen has registered 14 tackles to go with a forced fumble. Freshman Kam White has added 13 tackles, an interception and two passes defended while senior Dorian Gray has made seven tackles and senior defensive back Lorenzo Feliciano has contributed seven stops with a half a tackle for loss, two pass break-ups and a quarterback hurry. Freshman Keller Rupp has seven stops with a tackle for loss and a pass break-up while freshman Knowledge Young has contributed six tackles. Senior Julius Walborn has made five tackles to go with an interception while junior Anderson Louis Jeune and sophomore Sahmad Bailey both have recorded two stops.

KICKING GAME: Sophomore Jack Corrigan has punted 46 times this fall for an average of 43.7 yards with a long of 75 yards to tie the school record. Corrigan has four touchbacks, 11 fair caught and ten inside the 20-yard line, and he has kicked off 12 times for an average of 59.3 yards and one touchback. Corrigan is 7-for-9 on extra points. Graduate student Kyle Weiss has kicked off five times for an average of 54.0 yards with one touchback as he saw action for his fourth Moravian team in his career having competed for the men's soccer, men's lacrosse and men's indoor track & field teams as an undergraduate.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Freshman running back Dorian Thomas has 21 kickoff returns for 423 yards while sophomore wide receiver Josh Ludlow has seven kickoff returns for 188 yards to go with five punt returns for 32 yards. Sophomore defensive back Antonio Bowen has one kickoff return for 16 yards while sophomore wide receiver Ryan Bender has one kickoff return for 11 yards. Graduate student running back Joey Richmond has returned one kickoff for 14 yards while graduate student linebacker Declan Coors has one return for nine yards. Senior running back Camron Tinajero has recorded three special teams tackles while junior wide receiver Avery Koser and graduate student tight end Jalen Jones both have two tackles on special teams.

MILESTONE WATCH: The Greyhounds has two student-athlete closing in on milestones for his careers. Graduate student quarterback Jared Jenkins is ranked second in program history with 6,459 passing yards, and he needs 186 yards passing to become the school record holder. Jenkins is first all-time in completions with 573, fourth in program history with 875 pass attempts and first in school history with 67 touchdown passes. Sophomore punter Jack Corrigan has tied the school record with a 75-yard punt in the 2025 season opener, and he has four career punts of more than 71 yards. Corrigan has moved into 12th in program history with 91 career punts, and he is 11th all-time with 3,916 yards.

BALANCED & EXPERIENCED 'HOUNDS: Of the 99 players on the Moravian roster, 31 are freshmen, 30 are sophomores and 13 are juniors. There are 20 seniors and five graduate students on this season's squad, and the Greyhounds return 55 letterwinners and 13 starters from 2025.

SCOUTING WESTERN CONNECTICUT UNIVERSITY: The Wolves enter the game at 4-2 overall and 1-1 in Landmark Conference action after a 42-24 loss versus Lycoming College last Saturday. Junior quarterback Dylan Jackson leads the WestConn offense on the field having completed 104-of-176 passes for 1,503 yards to go with 14 touchdowns and seven interceptions, and he has added 48 yards and a touchdown on 34 carries. Jackson's top targets have been junior wide receiver Markus Faucett, who has 29 receptions for 539 yards and six touchdowns, junior wideout Serge Lagardere, who has 22 catches for 217 yards, junior wide receiver Thomas Schiavoni, who has caught 12 passes for 197 yards and a score, freshman wide receiver Tamarion LaFortune, who has eight receptions for 194 yards and three touchdowns, and sophomore wideout Jayden Leroy, who has five catches for 126 yards and three scores. Senior running back Kamryn Holmes leads the Wolves' rushing attack with 295 yards and five touchdowns on 68 carries to go with 11 receptions for 56 yards while junior running back Quasim Benson has added 226 yards and three touchdowns on 47 carries and sophomore running back Antwan Davis has rushed for 136 yards and a touchdown on 35 attempts. Lagardere has returned 11 kickoffs for 236 yards and nine punts for 160 yards with one touchdown while LaFortune has five kickoff returns for 119 yards. Graduate student John Fitzmaurice has punted 28 times for an average of 37.14 yards with a long of 59 yards, three touchbacks, five fair caught and five inside the 20-yard line. Sophomore Marciel Do Amaral is 20-for-23 on extra-points, and he is 9-for-10 on field goals with a long of 37 yards to go along with nine kickoffs for an average of 49.6 yards. Freshman Gavin Damboise has kicked off 30 times for an average of 59.9 yards with 12 touchbacks. Junior linebacker Eamon Moran leads the WestConn defense with 37 tackles including four tackles for loss, two and a half sacks, two forced fumbles and a pass break-up while sophomore defensive back Tafari Johnson has added 29 tackles with one for loss, half a sack, two fumble recoveries and a pass break-up. Junior defensive back Ryan Rondeau has made 28 stopes with one for loss, a sack, a pass break-up and a forced fumble while junior linebacker Jandiel Jimenez has registered 27 tackles with four for loss, a half a sack and four pass break-ups. Senior linebacker Justin Ingebrigtsen has posted 26 tackles with six for loss, one and a half sacks, three quarterback hurries, one pass break-up and a forced fumble while senior defensive lineman Nick Simons has 25 stops with two and a half tackles for loss, two sacks, a fumble recovery and a forced fumble. Graduate student defensive lineman Kile Jackson leads the Wolves with six sacks to go with 22 tackles, six tackles for loss, an interception, three quarterback hurries, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick.

THE LAST TIME THEY MET: Saturday's meeting is the first between the programs.

2025 CAPTAINS: The Hounds named graduate student quarterback Jared Jenkins, senior defensive lineman Nathan Carr, senior defensive back Isaiah Johnson and junior wide receiver Avery Koser as captains for the 2025 season. 

OVERTIME 'HOUNDS: Moravian has played a total of 13 overtime games since the NCAA instituted the rule for the 1996 season and is 9-4 all-time in the extra-session after falling to The Catholic of University of America, 26-20, in overtime on October 18, 2025 in the Hounds' first overtime contest since 2021. Five of those 12 overtime games have been against Juniata College with the Greyhounds going 4-1 in those games. Moravian's contest in Huntingdon in 2008 marked the first time in the Greyhounds' have needed more than one overtime session in a game. The 2021 season marked the fourth year that Moravian has played at least two overtimes games in one season, the other years were 2008 when the Hounds played two overtime contests, 1999 when the Greyhounds played three overtime games and 1997 when Moravian played two overtime contests.

THE LANDMARK CONFERENCE STATISTICAL RANKINGS: The Greyhounds are seventh in the Landmark Conference in total offense at 212.0 yards per game, and the squad is seventh in rushing yards per game at 73.0 and sixth in passing at 139.0. Defensively, the Hounds are fifth overall at 370.4 yards allowed per game including fifth in rushing defense at 194.7 and first in passing defense at 175.7. The Blue & Grey are tied for the lead in the conference in fumble recoveries with five fumble recoveries in seven games. Sophomore quarterback Declan McCarthy is seventh in the conference in passing yards per game at 69.6, and he is seventh in passing efficiency with a 77.2 rating. Junior wide receiver Avery Koser is third in receiving yards per contest at 44.3 and seventh in receptions per contest at 3.0. Sophomore wide receiver Josh Ludlow is first in the conference in kickoff returns with an average of 26.9 yards per return while freshman running back Dorian Thomas is sixth at 20.1 yards per return. Sophomore Jack Corrigan ranks first in the Landmark Conference in punting average at 42.8 yards while junior defensive back Aidan Lane is eighth at 7.4 tackles per game. Senior defensive lineman Nathan Carr is tenth in tackle for loss per contest at 0.86 while sophomore defensive back Antonio Rivera is tied for sixth in passes defended at 0.83 per game and senior defensive back Shea Endean is tenth at 0.71 break-ups per outing.