This season's Northern Lehigh football team is certainly different than the Bulldogs of a year ago.

And you don't have to go far beyond the standings to see that shift.

When Salisbury (1-4) travels to Bulldog Stadium on Friday night, the Falcons will look to keep the Bulldogs (0-4) winless as the midway mark of the Colonial League season approaches.

Entering their matchup last season, a 38-6 victory for Northern Lehigh, the Bulldogs were 3-1 and had outscored opponents 75-61. Through four games this season, the Bulldogs have given up 134 points.

"They're a well-coached football team," head coach Andy Cerco said. "They play hard on special teams as well. It's definitely a winnable game for us. Every game we play should be a winnable game.

"But they present a different challenge in the fact that they're well-coached and they play hard."

One main ingredient the Bulldogs are missing is former running back/receiver Caleb Johnson, who is now playing at Harvard University. Johnson rushed for 1,064 yards and 15 touchdowns on 157 carries last year. He also tallied 368 receiving yards and four more touchdowns.

While Johnson is no longer taking carries this season, their running style figures to remain similar when the Falcons come to town.

"Their running game is similar to what they did last year," said Cerco. "The style is similar. They have a plan of what they want to do and they're continuing to do the same things they did last year."

The Bulldogs are most certainly a team that wants to run the ball, but Cerco and the Falcons are aware of the opportunities that running game can open up.

"Offensively, they like to run the ball," Cerco said. "They run a little bit of an option scheme, which any time you face an option scheme your players need to be assignment-football related.

"Whenever you face a team that primarily likes to run the ball and go to double tight end situations, the passing game is a little bit dangerous."

After starting off the season with a victory against Bangor, the Falcons are eager to put an end to their three-game losing skid, which most recently includes a 58-14 defeat to Catasauqua.

"Defensively, they get to the football," Cerco said. "They tackle well. They're hard-nosed players. Front-wise, they run both an even and an odd front, which we've seen all year."