Football | 10/20/2022 12:02:00 PM
The Utica University football program sets its sights on the third seven win regular season in the history of the program, and its first 7-0 start this weekend. The Pioneers, who are receiving votes nationally, are set to host nationally-ranked No. 13 SUNY Cortland in a battle of unbeatens on Saturday, October 22nd, as Cortland enters with a perfect 6-0 record. Kickoff for the conference game is set for 1 p.m. at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium, as the winner moves into sole possession of first place in the Empire 8 standings.
Follow Along: Live video and stats for the contest will be available at portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/. Additionally, the game will be available on WPNR 90.7 FM, Utica University Pioneer Radio.
Getting Into The Game: Tickets are five dollars at the gate for adults, and two dollars for children and non-Utica students. Saturday's game is also Youth Sports Day, presented by First Source Federal Credit Union. Any child wearing their jersey from a youth sports organization will receive complimentary admission.
For The Record: Utica sits at a perfect 6-0 record, with four wins at home and a pair of wins on the road. They have won eight of their last ten games dating back to last season, when they advanced into the ECAC Bowl Series for the fourth time in program history. The program has secured its seventh winning season, with six of those winning seasons happening in the 15 year tenure of current head coach Blaise Faggiano. With the program's best start in tow, they set their sights on a seventh win, that would tie the program record for wins in a season.
At Stake: The winner of Saturday's game leaves the field with sole possession of the Empire 8 lead, and will also be the only unbeaten squad remaining in the conference entering week nine. In addition, the attention of poll voters will also be firmly locked on this game, as Cortland sits at #13, and the Pioneers are the top vote-getter outside of the D3football.com Top 25.
Last Time Out: The Pioneers led 21-7 at halftime, and rebounded from a game-tying rally by Brockport in the second half with two fourth quarter touchdowns to top the Golden Eagles by a 35-21 score at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium. The Pioneers had 427 yards of total offense, led by quarterback Braeden Zenelovic's five touchdown effort. The offense was 7-of-13 on third downs, while holding the visiting side to just two third down conversions.
Award Tour: Quarterback Braeden Zenelovic has been stacking up hardware this week after his performance against Brockport. He was named the Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Week, and was also selected as the D3Football.com Team of the Week quarterback earlier this week. Zenelovic accounted for each of Utica's five touchdowns in Saturday's 35-21 win over Brockport to help the team reach 6-0 for the first time in program history. The senior threw for four touchdowns of 17, 25 and two for 39 yards while also using his legs for an 8-yard touchdown run to break a 21-21 tie. He also set career highs with 324 passing yards, four touchdown passes, five total touchdowns and a 76.9 completion percentage (20-for-24). The signal caller currently ranks second in the Empire 8 with 1,499 passing yards, 13 touchdown passes, a 68.2 completion percentage and a 176.0 efficiency rating. His efficiency rating also ranks 17th in Division III while he is 18th in completion percentage, tied for 41st in passing yards, and tied for 50th in touchdown passes. Zenelovic ranks second in the E8 in virtually every statistical passing category. He is the tenth D3Football Team of the Week selection in program history. The Team of the Week program honors the best performance in the nation at each position each week throughout the season.
Warren Wins It: Jimmie Warren was selected as the Empire 8 Conference's Co-Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. Warren strung together his best single game performance of the season as the Pioneers cruised to victory over SUNY Brockport. Warren led the Pioneers in tackles with 11, including six solo tackles. He also set a new season high with three sacks, with his final one coming on 2nd and 16 during Brockport's final drive. Warren also set a new season high in tackles for a loss with 3.5. This season, he has 54 total tackles to lead the team, and is tenth in the nation with an average of 1.17 sacks per contest.
About Cortland: The Red Dragons are 6-0 and ranked thirteenth in the latest D3football.com Top 25. They have won seventeen of their last eighteen games under head coach Curt Fitzpatrick. Before becoming a head coach at Morrisville and Cortland, Fitzpatrick was Utica's offensive coordinator for five years. Saturday's visiting team has dominated opponents all season. They have outscored opponents 316-80, and have not had a margin of victory thinner than 20 points this season. The Red Dragons are fifth in the nation in total offense at 531.8 yards per game, and are third in the nation averaging 52.7 points per game. Quarterback Zac Boyes is completing 71 percent of his passes for 1,610 yards and fourteen touchdowns, and he leads the nation in passer efficiency. Boyes is the son of former Buffalo State head coach Jerry Boyes. Running back Jaden Alfanostjohn has 678 net rushing yards and 11 touchdowns this year. JJ Laap has 582 receiving yards and four touchdowns, while Cole Burgess has made six receiving trips to the end zone. Zack Thuesen has 40 total tackles to lead the defense, and Josh Cordero has picked off six passes.
Return Policy: A strong return game has played to Utica's benefit this season. The Pioneers are eighth in the nation in punt return average at 21.50 per return, and a solid 43rd in kickoff return average at 22.04 per return. Jamel Smith is 29th nationally at returning kickoffs with an average of 25.7 yards per runback. Additionally, the Pioneers are one of just twelve teams in the nation with multiple punt return touchdowns this year, as Joey Nare and Nate Palmer have one apiece.
Speaking Of….: Joey Nare and Nate Palmer each caught a touchdown pass on Saturday, and have emerged as Utica's top two downfield targets over the course of the campaign. Palmer has 887 receiving yards, and eleven receiving touchdowns. Both figures rank third in the nation at the present time. On a per-game basis, he averages just over 147 yards per game to rank second in the nation. Five out of Palmer's six performances this season have gone for over 100 yards, and the one time he didn't hit the century mark, he still recorded 92 yards and had a huge touchdown in a win over nationally-ranked Union. Nare has seen his development pay off into an important receiving role this season, as he has 232 yards and a touchdown. He is averaging just north of ten yards per catch.
In The Run Game: On Saturday, the Pioneers became just the third team this season to rush for over 100 yards against Brockport. Sam Florio led the way with 42 net yards on twelve carries as part of a committee approach with six different ball carriers. Matt Brantley leads the team with 255 net yards this year to go with three touchdowns. He is averaging 7.1 yards per carry. James Salles has 238 net yards and a touchdown, while Florio has rushed for three scores himself. The Pioneer offense has risen up to fourth in the conference in rushing offense with 133 yards per game.
Don't Believe Everything You Read: The Pioneers currently sit fifth in the conference in sacks allowed with eleven, but the total doesn't tell the full story in painting a picture of the offensive line's pass protection performance this year. Six of the eleven came in a single game against Kean. In all other games this season, the Pioneers have held opponents to two or less.
Seeing Red: The Pioneers continue to irritate opposing offenses in the red zone this season, as they lead the conference and rank fifth nationally in red zone defense. Opponents are only scoring 43.8 percent of the time when they reach the Utica 20 yard line, with seven scoring plays occurring on sixteen opportunities. Of those seven scoring plays, just four have been touchdowns.
Dan the Man: Dan Amady has had a solid, well-rounded season in Utica's defensive backfield. In five appearances this year, he has 31 total tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, two pass breakups, and an interception. His average of 6.2 tackles per game ranks twelfth in the Empire 8 Conference.
Swat Team: Defensive Backs Terrance Toussaint and Jamel Smith are having another strong year defending the pass for Utica. Toussaint holds the team lead with seven pass breakups, while Smith adds on another five. Both rank in the top ten in the E8 for that category, with Toussaint sitting just one redirect off the pace.
In The Lead: After his three sack performance over the weekend, Jimmie Warren has surged into the conference lead in sacks with seven. He is the only player in the conference averaging over a sack per game.
Up Next: The Pioneers will head to Morrisville on Saturday, October 29th for a noon matchup. Cortland heads to Alfred University on October 29th at 1 p.m.