Football Seeks Program’s 500th Victory at Wittenberg

(PITTSBURGH, Pa.) – The Carnegie Mellon University football team will travel to Wittenberg University to take on the Tigers at 1:00 pm on Saturday, October 22nd.  The Tartans will also take the field with a program milestone up for grabs.  A win over 6-1 Wittenberg would put Carnegie Mellon at the 500 win mark.

In 2010, Carnegie Mellon hosted Wittenberg who was at the time the seventh-ranked team in the country.  The Tartans lost a heartbreaker 27-21 in overtime to the Tigers.  Carnegie Mellon will travel to Ohio looking to reverse last year's outcome.

The Tartans are coming off a much needed bye week where the players were able to rest up for one of their tougher games on the schedule.  With two weeks to prepare for Wittenberg, the Carnegie Mellon football team will look for its marquee win.

The Tigers bring a potent passing game into Saturday's meeting.  Led by senior quarterback Ben Zoeller, Wittenberg has averaged 34.7 points per game with 295.4 yards through the air.  Zoeller is assisted by his two fellow senior wide receivers Josh McKee and Michael Cooper.  McKee is 15th nationally in receiving yards, and Cooper is 21st.

Head coach Rich Lackner's Tartans have their own powerful offensive attack, but it comes through the way of the running game.  Carnegie Mellon has reached the 300-yard milestone in its past three games.  The Cardinal and Gray average 265.7 yards per game on the ground placing them 14th nationally in total rushing.

The Tartans are riding a three game winning streak into the game against Wittenberg.  They will be counting on a strong performance from the running game and will be looking to reverse a bad trend of losing their last four games following a bye week.

Lackner discussed what the off week meant for his players and what his team will need to do to win in Saturday's showdown.