Entering week number five, the Kutztown Golden Bears will look to get back in the win column as the team travels west for a 6 p.m. showdown at Slippery Rock on Saturday, September 29.

COMPLETE GAME NOTES
 
In search of his milestone 40th win, head coach Raymond Monica is poised to get his group on the right track. Picking up win number 40 would be an accomplishment that only two other coaches in program history have done.
 
Leading the charge behind center, making his second start will be freshman quarterback Josh Luckenbaugh (York, Pa./Dallastown). In his first collegiate start last week against a one-loss team, the Dallastown, Pa. native had an impressive outing, eclipsing the 300-yard mark while hitting 11 different receivers. He also set a school record, completing 36 passes in the loss.
 
His backfield mate, running back Curtis Wortham (Philadelphia, PA/Father Judge) will get the nod, replacing the injured senior Josh Mastromatto (Fort Washington, PA/Upper Dublin). The junior has been off to a hot start this season rushing for 100 yards twice and 90 yards last week against West Chester on University Field. Sophomore Adrian Sterling (East Stroudsburg, PA/East Stroudsburg North) will serve as the backup this week. Sterling went for 52 yards against Saint Anselm in week one and caught his first pass of the year last week for six yards.
 
With all the injured athletes, opportunities have been presented to a few younger Golden Bears. Taking advantage of his situation, sophomore Shahaid Smith (Ridley, PA/Ridley) has stepped into the role of a consistent receiver. Smith has hauled in 12 passes each of the past two weeks to lead the Maroon and Gold. No Kutztown receiver had brought in 12 catches even once in a game since the 2007 season.
 
Sophomore Kodi Reed (Hanover, Pa./Delone Catholic) has also stepped up to helped the freshman quarterback as he put together a 100-yard receiving performance against Bloomsburg two weeks ago. Reed also caught a 25-yard touchdown last week against the Golden Rams.
 
Pacing the receiving group, senior Colby Tuell (Columbia, PA/Columbia) has four touchdowns on the year to match his team-leading 315 yards. Also on the outside, freshman Brett Fox (Laureldale, Pa./Muhlenburg) has been a threat, scoring twice on 12 catches while senior Zach Snyder (Lititz, PA/Warwick) has caught 10 passes of his own.
 
Moving into the starting role of middle linebacker this season, senior Matt Connors (Mechanicsburg, PA/Trinity) has done a fine job controlling the defense, making seven stops against West Chester. Also behind the line, sophomore Sam Dixon-Dugan has stepped into his starting role effectively as he led KU in tackles last week with eight.
 
Up front for the defense, the line is anchored by sophomore Zach Greenwald (Gibbstown, N.J./Paulsboro). Greenwald's 2012 campaign is highlighted by his three forced fumbles at Bloomsburg. He also registered his second sack of the year last week and added another tackle behind the line of scrimmage. Sophomore Jamie Crawford (Reading, PA/Reading) has provided some strength on the line as he made a career-high six tackles against Bloomsburg.
 
In the defensive backfield that has been plagued by injury, sophomore Greg Carroll (Unionville, PA/Unionville) has delivered a much needed spark. Carroll posted a career high 17 tackles at Bloomsburg, the most by a Golden Bear since Brian Bingnear had 17.5 in 2007. On the outside, freshman Alex Nicolino (Ridley, PA/Ridley) made a career-high seven tackles while freshman Kali Smith (Darby, PA/Penn Wood) made five stops of his own. Roaming the secondary will also be Seniors Cary Darby and Jason Ulmer (Feasterville, PA/Neshaminy) who have become mainstays on the defense with their consistent play.
 
In charge of Slippery Rock, head coach George Mihalik is in his 25th season. Last year he led the team to a 8-3 record and is currently sporting a 2-2 record coming into this week five match-up. Mihalik tops the record books at SRU with a lifetime record of 161-98-4, making him the winningest coach in Slippery Rock football history and third most among active coaches in the PSAC.
 
Slippery Rock brings a high powered scoring offense to the table, posting 148 points in four games this season. Led by the arm and legs of quarterback Jared Buck, the offense goes as he goes. Buck averages 139 yards through the air, while he has accounted for six touchdowns through the air on a completion percentage over 60 percent. As SRU's second leading rusher, he has also scored four times rushing the ball.
 
As for the receiving corps, three have reached double-digit receptions as John Schademan leads the group with 171 yards and three scores.   
 
On the defensive end of the field, Slippery Rock has been causing problems to opposing offenses all season. It sits second in the conference with eight interceptions as two have been brought back for touchdowns and fourth in sacks with 11 for losses of 71 yards. The Rock defense has also done a great job on third downs, holding opponents to under a 30 percent conversion rate.
 
Much of the credit goes to veteran free safety Isaiah Colman, who two weeks ago was tabbed the PSAC West Defensive Player of the Week. His 21 tackles, one sack and one intercepted pass make quarterbacks aware of where he is on the field at all times.
 
Helping him out, Gary Allen leads the SRU defense in tackles, piling up 36 this season to go with one sack.