Football | 11/13/2023 3:59:00 PM
The Cortland football team, ranked 11th nationally in Division III, will travel to 14th-ranked Endicott College in Beverly, Mass., for the opening round of the 2023 NCAA Division III playoffs on Saturday, Nov. 18. Game time is scheduled for noon.
Cortland (9-1) is one of 32 teams competing in the tournament field. The Red Dragons earned an automatic bid into the playoffs after winning the Empire 8 conference title with a 6-0 mark for the third straight season.
The winner of Saturday's game advances to the second round on Saturday, Nov. 25, and will face either Susquehanna University (10-0) or Grove City College (10-0) at a site to be determined. The quarterfinals are scheduled for Saturday, December 2 and the semifinals on Saturday, Dec. 9. The Division III national championship game, the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, is Friday, Dec. 15 in Salem, Va.
Cortland is led by head coach Curt Fitzpatrick, who is in his fourth year with the Red Dragons but coaching in his third season as the 2020 season was canceled. His overall record with the Red Dragons is 29-4, including an 11-1 mark in 2021 and a 9-2 record in 2022.
Cortland is making its 12th NCAA playoff appearance and third straight. Last season, Cortland lost in the opening round at Randolph-Macon, 35-28. In 2021, Cortland defeated Springfield in the opening round before losing to RPI in the second round, both at home. The only other time Cortland has made three straight NCAA tournament appearances was between 1988-90.
The Red Dragons have advanced to the national quarterfinals twice - as part of a 16-team playoff field in 1988 and as part of a 32-team field in 2008. The Red Dragons are 7-11 in NCAA play, including wins in five of their last six first-round games (2008, 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2021, all at home). Cortland is 7-3 at home in the NCAAs and 0-8 on the road.
Endicott won its third straight Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) title with a 5-0 record. The Gulls also boast a 37-10 home win over then-fifth ranked Hardin-Simmons of Texas on Sept. 22. Endicott's lone loss came at home versus Ithaca, 20-17, on Sept. 9. Endicott has hosted NCAA first-round games each of the past two seasons, falling to Springfield last year, 17-14, and to RPI, 20-14, in 2021. Endicott has also appeared in the NCAAs in 2010 (losing at Cortland, 49-35, in the first round) and 2013 (losing at Rowan, 24-0).
Tickets for the game are $10 (children 2 and under free) and can be purchased online at:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ncaa-diii-football-endicott-vs-cortland-tickets-757878654457?aff=oddtdtcreator
ABOUT THE EMPIRE 8 CONFERENCE
The members of the Empire 8 Conference are committed first and foremost to the pursuit of academic excellence and the league is regarded as an outstanding NCAA Division III conference. The membership has distinguished itself among its peer group for its quality institutions, spirited and sportsmanlike competition, outstanding services and highly ethical policies and practices. Its commitment to serve the educational needs of its student-athletes is the hallmark of the E8. For more on the Empire 8 visit
www.empire8.com.
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