SUNY CORTLAND FOOTBALL NOTES
NCAA Div. III Tournament – First Round
Cortland Red Dragons (8-1) vs. Framingham St. University Rams (10-1)
Saturday, Nov. 17, 2012; Noon; SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex; Cortland, N.Y.
Game broadcast live on WXHC, Homer (101.5 FM and www.wxhc.com)
TICKETS: $8 adults/senior citizens, $4 students and children under 17
(All SUNY Cortland students/faculty/staff admitted free with valid college ID, courtesy of Cortland Athletics)

Follow the game online:
WXHC Radio Broadcast (Smartphone apps to listen to broadcast)
Live Stats


THE MATCHUP: Cortland makes its eighth NCAA Div. III tournament appearance in school history and its third in the last five years as the Red Dragons host Framingham State University of Massachusetts in a first-round contest. The Red Dragons (8-1) won the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) title to earn an NCAA automatic berth. The Rams (10-1) were the New England Football Conference (NEFC) Bogan Division champion, then defeated Salve Regina, 28-16, in the league's championship game. Framingham State is making its first NCAA showing.

The winner will face either Wesley College (Del.) or Mount Ida College (Mass.) in the second round of the 32-team national tournament Saturday, Nov. 24, at a site to be announced. The tournament continues through Dec. 15 when the Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl will be played in Salem, Va., for the national title.


THE SERIES: Cortland and Framingham State are meeting for the first time. Framingham began playing varsity football in 1974 after being a club program in 1972 and 1973. The Rams will be facing both a New York State and NJAC opponent for the first time in school history. Cortland is hosting the NEFC champion in the NCAA first round for the third time since 2008. The Red Dragons defeated Plymouth State, as well as NEFC member Curry the following week, in 2008 and defeated Endicott in 2010. Cortland has also won three ECAC bowl games versus current NEFC members (1991 home vs. Plymouth St., 1994 at Maine Maritime and 2002 home vs. Westfield State).


CORTLAND CAPSULE: Cortland started the season with a 49-31 loss at Buffalo State, but since that point has won eight straight games. The Red Dragons won all seven of their NJAC games (the final NJAC game at William Paterson was canceled due to Hurricane Sandy), and they closed the regular season last Saturday with a come-from-behind 16-10 win over visiting Ithaca in the annual “Cortaca Jug” rivalry game in front of more than 7,600 fans.

Cortland ranks in the top 30 nationally in scoring at 37.4 points per game. The tailback trio of senior Dorian Myles, sophomore Bronson Greene and junior Justin Autera averages 152.7 rushing yards per game combined. Myles has run for 731 yards and four touchdowns, in addition to catching 20 passes for 203 yards and two scores. Greene has 446 rushing yards and eight scores and Autera has rushed for 350 yards and three touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Chris Rose, in his first season as a starter after two years as the Red Dragons' backup, has completed 191-of-310 passes for 2,075 yards and 19 touchdowns. He's been intercepted 15 times, although 12 of those came in three games. Cortland's top three receivers have each caught at least 36 passes. Senior Mike Humphrey has 53 receptions for 632 yards and six touchdowns. Sophomore Kordel McInnis has made 45 catches for 569 yards and seven TDs and sophomore Jack Delahunty has 36 catches for 373 yards and a touchdown.

The defense is led by freshman safety Andre Green's 67 tackles, 5.5 for lost yardage. He's picked off two passes and has broken up three others. Senior linebacker Chris Bright and senior cornerback Pete Furey are tied for second on the team with 58 tackles each. Furey is the team leader with four interceptions and junior defensive end Gabe Ostrow paces the squad with six sacks and 10 total tackles for losses.

Junior Mike DeBole ranks sixth nationally in Div. III with 1.3 field goals made per game and 13th nationally in punting average at 40.2 yards per kick. His 12 field goals, in 17 attempts, is tied for the school record for field goals made in a season. DeBole is also 34-of-35 on point-after kicks.

Head Coach Dan MacNeill is in his 16th season with the Red Dragons. He has an overall record of 107-55 (.660) and is Cortland's career leader in victories and winning percentage. MacNeill was the NJAC Coach of the Year and a finalist for Liberty Mutual National Div. III Coach of the Year honors in 2008 after leading the Red Dragons to the league title and the NCAA quarterfinals.

MacNeill has guided Cortland to the NCAA playoffs in 1997, 2005, 2008, 2010 and 2012, and his teams have also played in six ECAC bowl games. His 2008 squad was honored with the Lambert Meadowlands Trophy and the ECAC Div. III Team of the Year awards. MacNeill is a 1979 Cortland alumnus and played linebacker and defensive tackle from 1975-78. An assistant coach at Division I-AA Villanova University from 1984-1996, MacNeill is Cortland's 11th head coach since the school's modern era of football began in 1924. MacNeill served as linebackers coach at Villanova and was the team's defensive coordinator from 1988-96.


A LOOK AT...FRAMINGHAM STATE UNIV.: Framingham State won its first NEFC title and earned its first NCAA playoff berth with a 28-16 win over visiting Salve Regina University in the conference championship game last Saturday. Framingham won the NEFC Bogan Division title with a 7-0 record before defeating the Boyd Division champion Seahawks for the league title. Like Cortland, Framingham has not lost since falling in its season opener – a 34-7 home loss to Endicott.

Framingham also won the Bogan Division in 2011, but lost to Western New England, 20-13 in overtime, in the NEFC championship game. The Rams made their first postseason appearance in 2010 when they defeated Norwich, 27-21 in overtime, in the ECAC Northeast Bowl to cap a 9-2 season. That was the school record for wins prior to the team's current 10-1 campaign.

The Rams enter the NCAA playoffs ranked second nationally in Div. III in total defense at 212.6 yards per game allowed and fourth in both rushing defense (57.3 yards/game) and passing efficiency defense (82.6 opponent rating). Framingham has posted three shutouts and has held six opponents to less than 10 points.

Junior running back Melikke Van Alstyne ranks ninth nationally in Div. III with 142.1 rushing yards per game. He's carried 280 times for 1,563 yards and 16 touchdowns and has caught 18 passes for 300 yards and a score. Sophomore backup quarterback Matt Mangano has rushed 78 times for 373 yards and 11 touchdowns. Freshman quarterback Matt Silva is 131-of-210 passing (62.4 percent) for 1,714 yards and 18 touchdowns with 12 interceptions. Senior Alex Avery is Silva's favorite target with 40 receptions for 454 yards and six scores.

Senior defensive tackle James Muirhead leads the Rams with 77 tackles, including 53 solo stops. He also is the team leader with 10.5 sacks, 21 total tackles for losses and five forced fumbles. Junior linebacker Michael Altavesta has recorded 70 tackles. The Rams have 24 interceptions on the season, led by junior safety Brian Castellanos' six picks and senior cornerback Tyrone Notice's five.

Sophomore Phil Clain handles the team's placekicking and punting duties. He's 43-of-51 on point-after kicks and 6-of-9 on field goals, and he averages 36.4 yards per punt. Of his 48 punts, 22 have pinned opponents inside their 20-yard line.

Tom Kelley has served two stints as Framingham's head coach, most recently the last six seasons from 2007-12. Kelley is also currently in his 18th year as Framingham's Director of Athletics. A 1976 Framingham graduate, Kelley was a four-year starting defensive tackle for the Rams. He returned to the school as an assistant coach in 1978, was head coach from 1982-84. He returned to coaching as an assistant in 2001 and took over as head coach in 2007. Kelley's overall record in nine years as head coach is 45-43-1 (.511).


NOTEBOOK:


* Cortland is averaging 37.4 points per game through nine games, just missing the school record for scoring average in the regular season of 38.0 points per game set in 1990.

* Cortland has set a school record this season with four interception returns for touchdowns (one each by Pete Furey, Vaughn Labor, Andrew Tolosi and Matt Ambrose). The previous school record (dating back to 1979 when full defensive stats were first kept) was three interceptions returned for touchdowns on three occasions (2003, 2004 and 2007). Cortland has 16 interceptions in eight games this season – the school record is 24 in 10 games in 1981.

* Cortland junior Nick Daley handles the Red Dragons' kickoffs, and through nine regular-season games he recorded 24 touchbacks. The other eight NJAC schools combined finished with a total of 21 touchbacks, with the next-highest totals of five by Rowan and four by Kean and TCNJ. Nationally, only five schools in Div. III have more than 24 touchbacks this year (St. John's (Minn.) 33, Texas Lutheran 29, Birmingham-Southern 26, Mt. Union 26 and Wisconsin-Whitewater 25.)

* Senior tailback Dorian Myles is averaging 6.6 yards per carry on 111 rushes this season. While that average has dropped from 9.9 yards per carry after four games, it's still on pace to set a school record. The current school record for best yard-per-rush average (minimum 100 carries) in a season is 5.7 yards per carry by Scott Berent in 1990 (1,181 yards on 208 carries in 10 regular-season games).

* Senior quarterback Chris Rose's 19 touchdown passes this season are tied for the fourth-highest single-season total in school history. Dan Pitcher threw 31 TD passes last year, Ray Miles threw 23 TD passes in 2008 and 19 in 2007, and J.J. Tutwiler threw 21 TD passes in 2001.

* The Red Dragons have 21 sacks in nine games. Cortland has recorded at least 30 sacks each of the last 11 seasons, including 39 last year and 50 or more in both 2005 and 2006. Cortland's 50 sacks in 2006 were the best nationally in Division III. The Red Dragons set a school record with 52 sacks in 2005 (sacks have been officially tracked at Cortland since 1982).

* SUNY Cortland has served as the summer training camp location for the New York Jets in 2009, 2010 and 2012, and is under contract to host the Jets at least for one more year in 2013.

* Cortland has allowed 11 six sacks on 325 total pass plays (314 passes plus 11 sacks) for a 3.38 percent sack rate. The Red Dragons set a school record last year with a 2.61 percent sack rate (nine sacks in 344 pass plays), and the second-best rate was 3.58 percent in 2002. Cortland allowed five sacks versus Ithaca last week to end a streak of four straight games without giving one up.

* Cortland has scored on 79 percent of its trips into the “red zone” (inside the opponent's 20-yard line) with 22 touchdowns and 12 field goals in 43 trips. Red Dragon opponents have a 64 percent success rate in the red zone with 14 touchdowns and two field goal in 25 trips.

* Cortland is in its 13th season as a football-only member of the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC). The Red Dragons compete in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) in most of their other sports. Cortland was the first non-New Jersey school to join the NJAC for football, starting in the 2000 season, and was joined by Western Connecticut State, Buffalo State, Brockport and Morrisville. However, Buffalo State has since left the league for the Empire 8, Western Connecticut will leave after this fall to join the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) for football only, and Brockport will leave the NJAC after the 2013 season to join the Empire 8. Cortland has finished at least tied for first in the NJAC six of the last eight years (2005-08, 2010, 2012) and has earned the league's NCAA automatic bid three times (2008, 2010, 2012).

* Cortland and Framingham St. rank in the top 40 nationally in Division III in the following team and individual categories:

CORTLAND:

20th, Net Punting, 35.3 yds./punt
22nd, Turnover Margin, +1.1/game
27th, Scoring Offense, 37.4 pts./game

Mike DeBole, 6th, Field Goals, 1.3/game
Mike DeBole, 13th, Punting, 40.2 yds./punt


FRAMINGHAM ST.:

2nd, Total Defense, 212.6 yds./game
4th, Rushing Defense, 57.3 yds./game
4th, Pass Efficiency Defense, 82.6 opponent rating
6th, Scoring Defense, 12.1 pts./game
18th, Pass Defense, 155.3 yds./game
21st, Turnover Margin, +1.2/game
tied 25th, Sacks Allowed, 1.0/game
28th, Sacks, 3.1/game
35th, Rushing Offense, 225.5 yds./game

Melikke Van Alstyne, 9th, Rushing, 142.1 yds./game
James Muirhead, 14th, Tackles for Loss, 1.9/game
Melikke Van Alystne, 15th, All-Purpose Running, 169.4 yds./game
James Muirhead, 24th, Sacks, 0.95/game
Melikke Van Alstyne, 26th, Scoring, 9.3 pts./game


Cortland's Weekly Award Winners (game date/opponent in parentheses)


Troy Beddoe, Fr., Linebacker
NJAC Defensive Rookie of the Week (Sept. 29 vs. Montclair St.)
NJAC Defensive Rookie of the Week (Oct. 6 at The College of New Jersey)

Chris Bright, Sr., Linebacker
NJAC Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 22 at Morrisville St.)
D3football.com National Team of the Week (Oct. 13 vs. Brockport)

Mike DeBole, Jr., Kicker/Punter
NJAC Special Teams Player of the Week (Sept. 29 vs. Montclair St.)
ECAC Southeast Special Teams Player of the Week (Sept. 29 vs. Montclair St.)
NJAC Special Teams Player of the Week (Oct. 6 at The College of New Jersey)
ECAC Southeast Special Teams Player of the Week  (Oct. 6 at The College of New Jersey)
NJAC Special Teams Player of the Week (Oct. 20 vs. Rowan)
NJAC Special Teams Player of the Week (Nov. 10 vs. Ithaca)
ECAC Southeast Special Teams Player of the Week (Nov. 10 vs. Ithaca)

Matt Deiana, Fr., Kickoff Returner/Tailback
NJAC Special Teams Player of the Week (Sept. 15 vs. Western Conn. St.)
ECAC Southeast Special Teams Player of the Week (Sept. 15 vs. Western Conn. St.)

Pete Furey, Sr., Cornerback
NJAC Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 13 vs. Brockport)
ECAC Southeast Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 13 vs. Brockport)
NJAC Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 27 at Kean)
ECAC Southeast Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 27 at Kean)

Andre Green, Fr., Safety
NJAC Defensive Rookie of the Week (Sept. 22 at Morrisville St.)
NJAC Defensive Rookie of the Week (Oct. 20 vs. Rowan)
NJAC Defensive Rookie of the Week (Oct. 27 at Kean)
D3football.com National Team of the Week (Oct. 27 at Kean)
D3football.com National Team of the Week (Nov. 10 vs. Ithaca)

Bronson Greene, So., Tailback
NJAC Offensive Player of the Week (Oct. 13 vs. Brockport)
ECAC Southeast Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 13 vs. Brockport)

Dorian Myles, Sr., Tailback
NJAC Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 15 vs. Western Conn. St.)
ECAC Southeast Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 15 vs. Western Conn. St.)

DJ Spencer, Fr., Wide Receiver
NJAC Offensive Rookie of the Week (Oct. 20 vs. Rowan)


SCHEDULES/RESULTS:

CORTLAND (8-1)

Sept. 1      at Buffalo St.                             L 31-49
Sept. 15    * WESTERN CONN. ST.               W 72-14
Sept. 22    * at Morrisville St.                      W 56-14
Sept. 29    * MONTCLAIR ST. (NJ)                W 20-0
Oct. 6        * at The College of New Jersey   W 42-28
Oct. 13      * BROCKPORT                            W 45-27
Oct. 20      * ROWAN (NJ)                           W 24-21
Oct. 27      * at Kean (NJ)                            W 31-17
Nov. 3       * at William Paterson                   canceled
Nov. 10     ITHACA                                      W 16-10
Nov. 17     # FRAMINGHAM (MA)                   12:00

* NJAC game (7-0)
# NCAA Div. III Tournament
HOME GAMES IN CAPS


FRAMINGHAM ST. (10-1)

Sept. 1      ENDICOTT (MA)                        L 7-34
Sept. 7      at Nichols (MA)                         W 34-6
Sept. 15    UMASS DARTMOUTH                 W 30-0
Sept. 21    * at Bridgewater St. (MA)          W 16-0
Sept. 29    * MASS. MARITIME                   W 35-28 (OT)
Oct. 6       * at Fitchburg St. (MA)              W 39-9
Oct. 13     * MAINE MARITIME                   W 56-0
Oct. 20     * at Westfield St. (MA)               W 30-16
Oct. 27     * at Coast Guard (CT)                W 39-3
Nov. 3      * WORCESTER ST. (MA)             W 65-21
Nov. 10    % SALVE REGINA (RI)                W 28-16
Nov. 17     # at Cortland                             12:00

* NEFC Bogan Div. game (7-0)
% NEFC Championship Game
# NCAA Div. III Tournament
HOME GAMES IN CAPS


CORTLAND vs. FRAMINGHAM ST. – SERIES RECORD

First meeting in 2012


CORTLAND NCAA PLAYOFF HISTORY

2010 (Tied for 9th):
First Round – Cortland 49, Endicott 35 (at Cortland)
Second Round – Alfred 34, Cortland 20 (at Cortland)

2008 (Tied for 5th):
First Round – Cortland 31, Plymouth St. 14 (at Cortland)
Second Round – Cortland 42, Curry 0 (at Cortland)
Quarterfinals – Mount Union 41, Cortland 14 (at Mount Union)

2005 (Tied for 17th):
First Round – Hobart 23, Cortland 22 (at Hobart)

1997 (Tied for 9th):
First Round – The College of New Jersey 34, Cortland 30 (at Cortland)

1990 (Tied for 9th):
First Round – Hofstra 35, Cortland 9 (at Hofstra)

1989 (Tied for 9th):
First Round – Union 42, Cortland 14 (at Union)

1988 (Tied for 5th):
First Round – Cortland 32, Hofstra 27 (at Cortland)
Quarterfinals – Ithaca 24, Cortland 17 (at Ithaca)