McDaniel trying to end on positive note

McDaniel's last chance to salvage something from this lost season comes today when the Green Terror visit Johns Hopkins, where the Blue Jays will be trying to win the Centennial Conference and lock up an automatic NCAA playoff berth.

Hopkins (8-1, 7-1 Centennial) is ranked 21st in the country in the latest d3football.com poll, but the Jays are coming off a 14-12 loss to Franklin & Marshall that gave today's rivalry game a little more meaning. McDaniel coach Mike Hoyt is well aware of the significance as the Terror look to snap a 12-game losing streak on the road and end the Blue Jays' run of 11 in a row in the all-time series.

"This is a must-win for them, so you know they're going to bring their best game," Hoyt said. "This is Hopkins, this is what our guys talk about all during the offseason. I told them, 'If I've got to get you jacked up to play this game, you don't have a heartbeat.'"

McDaniel (0-9, 0-8) needs a victory to avoid its first winless season since 1986, when the Terror were in the midst of a 25-game slide. Currently, the Green Terror have dropped 11 straight dating back to last year.

And today's tilt at Homewood Field will likely pose a challenge to McDaniel.

Blue Jays senior running back Jonathan Rigaud leads the Centennial with 1,173 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns. McDaniel held down Rigaud in last year's meeting (13 carries, 67 yards) but the Blue Jays prevailed 28-24 despite committing six turnovers.

The Green Terror counter with junior back Joe Rollins, who ran his way to third place on McDaniel's all-time rushing list with 266 yards last week Susquehanna. Rollins' 1,100 yards are second most in the conference, and he shared Centennial offensive player of the week honors for his performance against the Crusaders.

If McDaniel wants to compete today, Rollins needs to put forth another strong effort. And he'll be facing a defense that allows less than 16 points per game, and 90.9 rushing yards per game.

Hopkins quarterback Robbie Matey, a junior, completes 70 percent of his passes and has 1,811 yards and nine touchdowns. One of Matey's targets is senior receiver Scott Cremens, a Westminster High graduate, who has 26 catches for 322 yards and three touchdowns.

"They're very good top to bottom, personnel-wise," Hoyt said. "We've got to be ready for them to be good across the board."

McDaniel bids farewell to 18 seniors after today's game, including team captains Tyler Lloyd, Tim McLister, and Kevin White. The Green Terror have been beset with injuries throughout the season, losing several starters for the season, but Hoyt said the objective remains the same as it has each week.

"We'll try to match their intensity," said Hoyt, who wants nothing more than his first career win to come at this stage of the season. "It will set the tone for the offseason, for our recruiting and conditioning, and everything we do. When you win the last game of the year, as crazy as it sounds, it really does carry over and go a long way."