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Letter to the Editor: Constitution Week has been a mid-September observation since the 1950s

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Winning an Emmy: Nanticoke native proves dreams do come true

If Misericordia&#8217;s first football victory over Wilkes last season has done anything to change the series between the two teams, neither coach is saying.Misericordia remains the relative newcomer taking on the more established program, but when the teams meet Saturday at Wilkes at 1 p.m., it will be the Colonels trying to avenge a loss for the first time in the series.&#8220;It hasn&#8217;t changed anything for me,&#8221; Misericordia coach Mark Ross said. &#8220;That&#8217;s last year. It&#8217;s over. It&#8217;s done with it.&#8220;Any time, we play King&#8217;s or Wilkes, I think it&#8217;s always a big deal. It&#8217;s the backyard. You want to do well in the local games for sure.&#8221;Wilkes coach Trey Brown said Misericordia was the more physical team last year, a fact he said will be referenced &#8220;on some level.&#8221;However, after 0-2 starts by both teams, there&#8217;s more concern about the season as a whole, not just Saturday&#8217;s rivalry matchup.&#8220;Where you&#8217;re at right now is a lot more important, as far as the current issues and the things you need to do better,&#8221; Brown said. &#8220;For us right now, that&#8217;s our turnover situation and our penalty situation.&#8220;It&#8217;s not good right now. We&#8217;re playing very undisciplined football.&#8221;Misericordia coaches and players are also aware that the number of big plays being allowed by the defense and special teams are problems that have to be addressed.&#8220;If we&#8217;re not being successful, we have to evaluate on a daily basis,&#8221; Ross said. &#8220;If someone can do it better, we owe it to the team to give them that opportunity.&#8221;Misericordia lost to Utica and Delaware Valley by a total of 89-13 to begin the program&#8217;s fifth season.Like the Cougars, the Colonels are 0-1 in the Middle Atlantic Conference. Wilkes has been more productive offensively, losing to Muhlenberg, 29-22, and conference opponent Lebanon Valley, 38-20.Wilkes quarterback Ryan Dailey surpassed the 5,000-yard mark for his career in the loss to Lebanon Valley. Ranked fourth in school history in passing yards, Dailey is 38 for 62 for 397 yards and three touchdowns this season.A young Misericordia secondary has allowed 583 yards passing.&#8220;The quarterback&#8217;s a good player,&#8221; Ross said. &#8220;He extends plays and makes big plays in the pass game. They make you tackle in space.&#8220;We&#8217;ve got to continue to improve in those two areas. We&#8217;ve given up too many big plays.&#8221;Misericordia has run for just 129 yards in two games, but Brown sees the Cougars having the potential to change that.&#8220;They&#8217;re much bigger than they were in my first year,&#8221; Brown said. &#8220;This is only my third year playing them, but in the first year they did not look anywhere near the size they are now.&#8220;So, obviously they&#8217;ve done a nice job recruiting to get bigger and have probably done a nice job in the weight room. All of those things are critically important.&#8221;Wilkes linebacker Tanner Stengel and safety Isaiah Robinson rank second and third in the MAC in tackles with 20 and 19, respectively.DELAWARE VALLEY AT KING&#8217;SKing&#8217;s College will try to follow up last week&#8217;s upset win of a nationally ranked team when they play their home opener Saturday at 1 p.m. against Delaware Valley.Both King&#8217;s (1-1 overall) and Delaware Valley (2-0) won their MAC openers last week. The 41-28 victory over Lycoming College was the first by King&#8217;s since resuming its football program in 1993.Operating from a no-huddle attack, King&#8217;s is ranked seventh in the nation among NCAA Division III teams with 407 passing yards per game, the highest ranking in program history.Zach Whitehead is 70 for 109 for 814 yards and five touchdowns.Tyler Marroni and Mike Palmer, a returning all-MAC receiver, each have 17 catches.The King&#8217;s defense has allowed 476 yards per game despite sophomore linebacker Bruce Damon&#8217;s league-high 28 tackles. That total includes 19 solo stops, 4 tackles for losses and 3 sacks.Delaware Valley, ranked 14th in the nation by d3football.com, has been more balanced offensively.Dashawn Darden his hit almost 72 percent of his passes (28 of 39) and the ground game has supplied 341 yards in two games.The Aggies defense has come up with seven sacks.<style>
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<div class="neCaption">Wilkes football coach Trey Brown said Misericordia was the more physical team in last year&#8217;s matchup. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/web1_wilkes_muhlenberg03.jpg</photo0><caption0>Wilkes football coach Trey Brown said Misericordia was the more physical team in last year&#8217;s matchup. </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Tom RobinsonFor the Times Leader</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta>IF YOU GOSaturdayCollege footballMisericordia at Wilkes, 1 p.m.Delaware Valley at King&#8217;s, 1 p.m.</factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach Times Leader sports at 570-829-7143 or on Twitter @tlsports.</shirttailMeta></div>

Backyard rivalry between Wilkes and Misericordia football continues