BEVERLY, Mass. – The Endicott football team will conclude their remarkable, record-breaking 2011 season by hosting Mount Ida in the ECAC North Atlantic Bowl on Saturday, November 19^th at Endicott Stadium.  Kickoff is at 1:00 pm.

Endicott’s bid into an ECAC Bowl marks the second season in-a-row that the Gulls have made additional postseason play.  Last year, the Blue and Green earned the automatic qualifier into the NCAA Tournament after capturing the NEFC Championship.  With a win over the Mustangs, the Gulls would achieve a program-best 10 wins, surpassing their historic 9-3 season in 2010.

The Gulls and Mustangs have had two common opponents this season in Plymouth State and UMass Dartmouth.  Endicott had their only shutout of the season in a 49-0 dominating performance over Plymouth State on October 15^th and one week later handed UMass Dartmouth a 27-14 loss.  Both games were at home.   In first two weeks of the 2011 season, Mount Ida suffered close losses to both of those teams with a 24-21 defeat on the road to UMass Dartmouth in week one and a 19-13 home loss to Plymouth State one week later.     

The Gulls have shattered numerous individual and team records across all facets of the game in 2011.  Senior quarterback Phil  Konopka (Shelton, Mass.) has eclipsed his own personal records in passing yards (2,450), passing yards per game (245.0), touchdowns (25), and completion percentage (66.2).  His efforts have led to receiving records for senior Ryan Carino (Stratford, Conn.) with nine touchdowns and junior Mike Murphy (Chelmsford, Mass.) who has 759 receiving yards.    

Endicott’s run game, headlined by senior tailback Mike Lane (Medfield, Mass.), has barreled over opposing defenses all season long.  Lane has already set Endicott’s single-season rushing record with 1.424 yards and touchdown mark with 12 end zone scores.  Juniors Mike Wheeler (Hanover, Mass.) and Jared DiBiase (Cranston, R.I.) as well as senior Topher Pochebit (Portland, Maine) have all contributed to the Gulls 204.6 rushing yards per game average this season.

The defense has been near the top of the nation’s rankings all season long and currently sit seventh in total defense and in rush defense.  Senior defensive end Kevin Eagan (West Hartford, Conn.) ranks tied for eighth in the nation in tackles for a loss per game (2.10).  Eagan has 94 tackles this season, including Endicott records in solo tackles (48) and tackles for a loss (21.0). Defensive backs Jason Silva (Maynard, Mass.) and Bill Hickey (Walpole, Mass.) have provided tremendous coverage with a combined 10 interceptions.   

The kicking game has been exceptional as well with sophomore placekicker Dylan Rushe (Palos Verdes, Calif.) setting all-time record for field goals in a season (16) by any New England football program.  He is ranked second in the nation in kicking.  Rushe is 16-of-23 on the season, including 4-of-5 from 40+ with his season-high coming in at 55 yards.  Rushe has also been effective on kickoffs, averaging 53.8 yards per kickoff with seven touchbacks.  

Mount Ida, a member of the Eastern Collegiate Football Conference (ECFC), has a 6-4 record this season and comes into Saturday’s bowl riding a three-game winning streak.  The Mustangs outscored their opponents by double-digits in each of those games beating Becker, Gallaudet and Castleton State. 

The Mustangs average 26.9 points per game while allowing their opponents to score an average of 15.1 points per game against them.  Mount Ida has done much of their offensive damage on the ground this year with 1,000-yard rusher Johrone Bunch (Meriden, Conn.) averaging 5.8 yards per carry with eight total touchdowns on the season.  Mount Ida quarterback Scott Drosendahl (East Aurora, N.Y.) has thrown 14 touchdowns to just five interceptions, finding senior Nick Lynch (Hampton Bays, N.Y.) five times in the end zone.  

Defensively for the Mustangs, Kyle Knibbs (Spotswood, N.J.) has had a standout junior season with 10.0 tackles for a loss including a team-high six sacks.  Freshman defensive back Jovan Wilkins (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) has made four picks this season while serving as the team’s primary kickoff and punt returner.  Mount Ida also relies on leading tackler, linebacker Jah-son Johnson (Windsor, Conn.) to provide defensive stops and the freshman has responded with 54 total tackles including a team-high 13.0 for a loss of yardage.