Nov. 12, 2002

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DUQUESNE DUKES 2002 MAAC CHAMPIONS

FAIRFIELD (5-5, 5-2) at #1 DUQUESNE (10-0, 7-0)
Saturday, November 16 at 12:30 p.m.
Arthur J. Rooney Athletic Field (4,500) - Pittsburgh, Pa.

Radio: Fox Sports Pittsburgh - WBGG-AM 970
On the internet at: www.redzonemedia.com

DUKES COMPLETE REGULAR SEASON VS. FAIRFIELD

Duquesne, who clinched its fourth consecutive Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Football League title with a 42-0 win at Canisius last weekend, closes out the regular season vs. Fairfield on Saturday, Nov. 16 at Rooney Field (kickoff at 12:30 p.m. - WBGG-AM 970, on the web at www.redzonemedia.com).

The Dukes, who earned a spot in the Nov. 23 ECAC Classic with the win at Canisius, are looking for their 24th consecutive league win against a team that comes to Pittsburgh with a three game win streak. Duquesne, who assumed the top spot in the Sports Network I-AA Mid-Major Poll on Sept. 30, cracked both The Sports Network (#24) and USA Today/ESPN (#25) I-AA polls for the first time in school history this week.

Duquesne, who has gone 6-1, 7-0 and 6-0 in league play over the last three seasons, is looking for its fifth unblemished MAAC season. DU was also undefeated in league play in 1995 (7-0) and 1996 (8-0).

LOOKING FOR No. 11

Duquesne is looking for its school-record 11th win of the season. Since the turn of the century, DU has posted 10 wins six times (including this season). Dukes' head coach Greg Gattuso has now coached four of the six 10-game winners.

DU STILL MID-MAJOR NO. 1

Duquesne assumed the top spot in The Sports Network I-AA Mid-Major Top 10 following its 35-28 win at then-No. 1 Dayton on Sept. 28. This is the seventh consecutive week the Dukes have hung on to the No. 1 slot. The Dukes achieved the top ranking in the poll - which was established last year - for the first time last season. DU held the No. 1 spot for three weeks last year (ending 9/24).

DUKES CRACK TOP 25

Duquesne, one of two remaining unbeaten teams at the I-AA level (No. 1 Montana, 10-0, is the other), made history this week by earning a spot in both the ESPN/USA Today Division I-AA Top 25 coaches poll and The Sports Network I-AA College Football Poll. The Dukes, who are the consensus No. 1 team at the Mid-Major level for the seventh consecutive week, are just the second Mid-Major to achieve a ranking in the polls. DU started receiving votes in both polls on Oct. 7 and steadily moved up:

Duquesne has joined Dayton as the only other I-AA Mid-Major team to ever earn a ranking in either of the polls. Dayton, a member of the Pioneer Football League, was ranked as high as No. 20 in the 1997 USA Today/ESPN poll, before finishing the season with a No. 25 ranking. The Flyers reached the No. 18 spot in The Sports Network poll before finishing the 1997 season at No. 23. Dayton also was ranked No. 24 in the final TSN poll of 1996.

ECAC CLASSIC

Duquesne earned a spot in the 2002 ECAC Classic by virtue of its MAAC-title clinching win over Canisius last weekend. The Dukes will face the winner of the Northest Conference at that team's home field on Sat., Nov. 23.

The NEC race has come down to one game - Monmouth (2-7, 2-4) at Albany (6-4, 5-1) at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. An Albany win gives the Great Danes the title outright with a 6-1 league record. If Albany loses, a three-way tie will be created with Stony Brook (7-2, 5-2) and Sacred Heart (6-3, 5-2). In this case, Stony Brook would emerge as the NEC representative due to its 2-0 composite record against Albany and Sacred Heart. The Seawolves defeated the Great Danes, 24-20 on Sept. 28, and the Pioneers, 24-14, on October 19.

THE SERIES

Duquesne leads the overall series 5-2, including a 3-1 edge in games at Pittsburgh. Two years ago, the Dukes rallied from a 20-7 fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Stags 21-20 at Rooney Field. Last year DU defeated Fairfield 51-19 at Connecticut.

HOME SWEET HOME

Duquesne is 43-12 at home under head coach Greg Gattuso. Over the last three-plus years, the Dukes are 20-2 at Rooney Field. DU saw a 14-game home win streak snapped in a 42-16 loss to Dayton last season. Duquesne owns non-conference wins over: Robert Morris (24-22 in 1998), St. John's (10-3 in 1999), Georgetown (44-20 in 2000), Lafayette (23-14 in 2000 & 23-22 this year), VMI (41-18 in 2001) and Bucknell (35-14 this season) since 1998.

MAAC ATTACK

Duquesne, 7-0 in league play, has outscored its MAAC opponents by a combined 277-27 score. Iona is the only MAAC team to score more than seven points vs. the Dukes this season.

91 IN 10

Of the 240 teams competing at the NCAA Division I-A and I-AA levels, only one team has yet to surrender 100 points. That team is ... Duquesne. The Dukes, who lead I-AA in scoring defense 9.1 ppg., have given up just 10 touchdowns on the season. Of the 10, only eight have been scored on the defense (Dayton returned a fumble for a score and Lafayette turned a blocked punt into a TD). The Dukes have posted three shutouts this season.

SENIOR DAY

Saturday will be the final home game for 12 Dukes. These seniors have provided strong play and leadership in this season's undefeated campaign. They are: