Former Lancaster Catholic standout Bobby Bushong has helped Muhlenberg to a 6-0 start; F&M visits Saturday
Bobby Bushong was a key cog on Lancaster Catholic’s 2005 District 3 Double-A title team.
The speedy wideout was one of Nick Downey’s favorite weapons, and he helped the Crusaders to a couple of undefeated regular-season runs.
Bushong took his speed game to Muhlenberg, which has been a terror in the Centennial Conference for the last year and half.
The Mules went 10-0 in the regular season and won their first outright CC crown last fall, before falling in the second round of the NCAA Division 3 playoffs.
Muhlenberg has picked up right where it left off last season, streaking to a 6-0 start, including a 4-0 mark in the CC. The Mules will host Franklin & Marshall on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Bushong, who was also an outstanding javelin thrower for Catholic, has appeared in every game, and he has five catches for 52 yards and a TD for the Mules, who are ranked No. 5 in the nation.
I caught up with Bushong this week, and we chatted about his success at Muhlenberg, about some of his favorite memories from Lancaster Catholic, and about this week’s game against F&M.
You can listen to the interview by clicking on the ‘play’ button above.
You can also download the Podcast and listen to it on your favorite mp3 player by clicking here.
And please continue reading for my F&M-Muhlenberg preview grid …
THE GAME: F&M (2-2 Centennial Conference, 3-3 overall) @ Muhlenberg (4-0 Centennial Conference, 6-0 overall), Saturday, 1 p.m.
CHECK THE RANKINGS: Muhlenberg, which finished 8th in the country last season after winning a first-round NCAA Division III game, is currently ranked 5th in the polls.
ONLINE: B2 Networks will handle the broadcast.
THE SERIES: This is the 90th meeting between F&M and Muhlenberg, dating back 106 years (F&M won the first game 69-0, if you must know). … F&M won via shutout the first four times these schools hooked up. Muhlenberg returned the favor with five shutout wins in a row. … There have been 25 shutouts in the series – including a 0-0 tie in 1930. … F&M has won three out of the last four in the series, that on the heels of a five-game winning streak by Muhlenberg. … F&M leads 14-11 in Centennial Conference games, including a 7-5 mark in Allentown. … Last year, Muhlenberg blanked F&M 31-0 in Lancaster behind John DeLuca, who rushed for 188 yards and a pair of scores. It was the Mules’ fourth win via shutout last season.
THE COACHES: F&M’s John Troxell is in his third season with the Diplomats. His teams are 10-16 overall and 8-10 in the Centennial Conference. … Mike Donnelly is in his 12th season with Muhlenberg. He is the winningest coach in the history of the program with a 78-45 mark. Muhlenberg won 18 games in the eight years prior to Donnelly coming on board.
NOTABLE: Troxell coached under Donnelly from 1997-2000. Troxell was the Mules’ special teams coach and he also helped out with the wideouts and quarterbacks under Donnelly.
ABOUT FRANKLIN & MARSHALL: Stinging a bit after gut-wrenching 23-20 loss to Moravian, which snapped the Diplomats’ modest two-game winning streak. … Freshman QB John Harrison had a career-best 24 completions against Moravian – nine to former Manheim Township standout George Eager, who turned in a season-high effort for grabs. … WR Jay Ridinger, another former Township standout, had seven catches last Saturday. … Marc Surma and Alex Pastore each registered their first sacks of the season against Moravian. … F&M Stat of the Week – The Diplomats have had two sacks in each of the last two games. They had just one sack through the first four games this season. … F&M has not allowed a touchdown in the third quarter this season. Interesting.
ABOUT MUHLENBERG: Defending Centennial Conference champs went 10-0 in the regular season last year, then won a first-round playoff game before finishing 11-1 overall – and 8th in the country. It was the first undefeated regular season in the 106-year history of the program. … Coming off a 49-6 win over McDaniel, when DeLuca rushed for a career-high 242 yards and three touchdowns. … DeLuca is the reigning CC Offensive Player of the Week.
TROXELL SAYS: “This is an opportunity to play a team that is ranked fifth in the country. We’re better prepared to face that challenge then we were a year ago. … (Muhlenberg) is loaded with offensive weapons, and we need to be prepared mentally and physically. The team is well coached and pays attention to detail. They’ll throw anything and everything at you and execute it well when they do.”
THE PICK: This Muhlenberg outfit sounds pretty intimidating. Tall task for F&M here. I think the Diplomats will definitely put up a good fight. But the Mules sounds awfully gnarly. Muhlenberg 38-13.
