Top Story - The Robert Morris University football team closes out the home portion of its 2006 regular season schedule Saturday afternoon when it welcomes Albany to Joe Walton Stadium for yet another key 1:00 p.m. Northeast Conference game. The Colonials are coming off a 21-6 victory @ Stony Brook (10/28) that ran their road winning streak to four games and in the process pulled RMU into a four-way tie for first place in the league standings. The win bumped RMU up two spots to fifth in the latest I-AA mid-major rankings according to The Sports Network. Albany is coming off a 34-0 shutout of Wagner (10/28) at home and currently sits one spot ahead of the Colonials at No. 4 in the latest I-AA mid-major poll. The Great Danes are one of three teams tied atop the NEC with Robert Morris, joining Monmouth and Stony Brook. The winner of Saturday's game could have at least an inside track of claiming an NEC co-championship in 2006. Robert Morris will close out its 2006 regular season Saturday, Nov. 11, when it travels to Fairfield, Conn., for a 12:30 p.m. tilt @ Sacred Heart.

Quick Stat of the Afternoon - Looking for the name of the game Saturday? Defense. Albany enters Saturday's game leading the Northeast Conference in scoring defense against league foes, allowing just 12.0 points per game. Right behind the Great Danes in second place sits RMU, which has allowed just 12.4 points per game against conference opponents. Overall, Robert Morris enters Saturday's game ranked fifth in I-AA in total defense, yielding an average of just 240.8 yards per game. Albany, meanwhile, ranks ninth in the same category by allowing an average of 246.8 yards a contest.

Saturday's Opponent -  Saturday's game marks the eighth meeting between Robert Morris and Albany, with the Colonials holding a 4-3 advantage in the all-time series. The Great Danes have won three of the last four games between the two clubs, including a 20-17 win last year in Albany, N.Y. (11/5/05).

Albany Series Quick Outs - Last year's 20-17 victory for Albany against RMU marked the first time a contest between the two clubs was decided by three points or less ... Before that the average margin of victory for the winner was 17.0 points ... Split end Michael Rogers finished with five catches for 99 yards and a touchdown in last year's game at Albany ... Robert Morris enters the game leading the NEC in sacks with 26 but the Great Danes are leading the league in sacks against, as their offensive line has yielded just five sacks on the year.

Head Coach Joe Walton (Pittsburgh '57) - If there has been one constant associated with Robert Morris University football through the program's first 13 years, it has been Joe Walton. He was named head coach on July 27, 1993. He started the program from scratch, including everything from hiring assistant coaches to purchasing equipment to recruiting student-athletes. His fingerprints are all over the program, and to prove that, he had the University's first on-campus football stadium named in his honor. Joe Walton Stadium hosted its first football game in 2005 to rousing success, as the Colonials defeated Butler, 49-13, on Sept. 17, 2005.

“I've said this many times before, and I mean it when I say that this situation is one of the best things that has happened to me in my life,” Walton said. “It happened at the right time. Before this position became available, I felt I was too young to quit coaching, but I wasn't anxious to get back into pro football. When this came along, it was the perfect fit. This situation was the perfect opportunity for me to continue to do what I like to do, and I've loved every minute of it.”

Under Walton's tutelage, the Colonials have claimed five Northeast Conference titles and a pair of mid-major national crowns in the program's first 13 years of existence. Robert Morris is one of just two programs to claim a pair of victories in the ECAC Classic, having won it in back-to-back seasons in 1996 and 1997. The success has done nothing to dampen Walton's enthusiasm for coaching football at Robert Morris, and with him on the sideline RMU wins nearly 70 percent of the time.

Walton is RMU's only head coach ever, and he is 81-48-1 (all at Robert Morris) at the collegiate level (.627). Walton was the head coach of the New York Jets from 1983-89, when he went 53-57-1 (.482). Also included among Walton's 35 NFL seasons is two (1990-91) as offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers. A two-time All-America tight end at Pittsburgh, Walton played eight years in the NFL with the Washington Redskins and New York Giants.

Stony Brook Game Notes - Robert Morris won the battle of turnovers against the Seawolves, 4-2 ... Senior cornerback Jason Davis, a key to RMU's special teams all season, suffered an injured shoulder in the contest and is out for this week's game ... RMU entered its game against Stony Brook with just three rushing touchdowns on the year from its stable of running backs but received three in the 21-6 victory ... The one-yard plunge by senior fullback Vince Magnone in the second quarter marked the first rushing touchdown of his career.

Stick Em - One Colonial that has really stepped up his play since Northeast Conference play began is junior outside linebacker Chad Wengert. After posting just 15 tackles in RMU's first four games of the season, all non-conference tilts, Wengert has done an about face. He's posted 48 tackles in RMU's five league games, an average of 9.6 stops per game that ranks third in the league behind only Rolando Garcia (10.8 tackles per game) and Jon Wilson (10.2 tackles per game) of Sacred Heart. Wengert enters this week's game against Albany second on the club in tackles with 63.

Plug the Hole - While a lot of attention has been paid to the play of senior defensive lineman Ray Gensler in 2006, one can't go long without pointing out the contributions of fellow senior defensive lineman Colyn “Plug” Haugh. In a 21-6 victory @ Stony Brook (10/28), Haugh finished with four tackles but more importantly one and-a-half sacks. Thanks to his performance against the Seawolves Haugh has pushed his season total of sacks to five, which ranks second on the club behind Gensler (9.5) as well as second in the Northeast Conference.

Senior Salute - You certainly couldn't ask anything more of the senior class on the defensive side of the ball thus far in 2006 for Robert Morris. A quick glance at the Northeast Conference leaderboard, and three of the top four and four of the top six players ranked in tackles for loss are Colonials. Senior defensive lineman Ray Gensler leads the NEC and ranks 12th in I-AA with an average of 1.50 tackles for loss per game, while senior defensive lineman Matt Brunck ranks second in the league (1.28 per game). In fourth place is senior linebacker Jeff Rommes (0.94 per game), while senior defensive lineman Colyn Haugh ranks sixth (0.89 per game).

Defense Wins Championships - All this talk about the emergence of the Robert Morris defense in 2006 has the Colonials putting together one of their finest defensive seasons in school history. RMU is allowing an average of 13.8 points per game thus far in 2006, a total that currently ranks third in the Northeast Conference behind only Monmouth (11.1 ppg) and Albany (13.1 ppg). The Robert Morris school record for scoring defense is 12.9 ppg back in 1996, when the Colonials allowed just 142 points in 11 games, posting three shutouts as well as three other games where the defense allowed less than 10 points.

Pick Pocket - One can point to senior cornerback Mike Niklos as a key for the Colonial secondary in 2006. After missing the 2005 campaign with an ankle injury, Niklos has come back strong for RMU this season. He garnered the second weekly honor of his career by being named NEC Defensive Player of the Week (10/30) after registering two interceptions as well as four tackles in RMU's 21-6 win @ Stony Brook (10/28). The pair of picks pushed his season total to five, which leads the NEC and ranks tied for third in I-AA behind Brent Webber of Sacramento State and Bobbie Williams of Bethune-Cookman, who each have six interceptions on the year. Niklos also ranks eighth in I-AA in interceptions per game (0.56). Niklos owns a career total of 13 picks, which currently ranks third all-time at RMU as well as fourth all-time in NEC annals. A look at RMU's and the NEC's all-time interception leaders:

Flip Flop - One could say that sophomore quarterback Erik Cwalinski doesn't have a favorite target to pass to, as on any given day a number of Colonial wideouts could step up. In RMU's 21-6 win @ Stony Brook (10/28), Cwalinski's favorite target was senior tight end Jarvis Powers, who caught four balls for 43 yards. A week earlier against Monmouth (10/21), it was junior flanker Mario Hines, who finished with four receptions for 63 yards and a touchdown. In all, six different Colonial receivers have led the club in either receptions or receiving yards so far this season. Powers leads the club in receptions with 26, while senior split end Michael Rogers owns a team-high 353 yards receiving.

Defensive Line Dominance - To continue to talk about the results of the defensive line in 2006 may be overkill, but this group deserves it. Entering Saturday's key showdown with Albany at Joe Walton Stadium, senior Matt Brunck leads the defensive line with 58 tackles, a total that ranks third on the team. Following Brunck is senior Ray Gensler, who has posted 54 tackles to rank fifth on the team. The pair each have a good shot of eclipsing the single-season school record for tackles by a defensive lineman, which was set in 2003 by former Colonial Will Weathers (2000-03) with 71 stops.