SUNY CORTLAND FOOTBALL NOTES
Cortland Red Dragons (0-1, 0-0 NJAC) vs. Western Connecticut St. Univ. Colonials (0-1, 0-0 NJAC)
Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012; 1 p.m.; SUNY Cortland Stadium Complex; Cortland, N.Y.
Game broadcast live on WXHC, Homer (101.5 FM and www.wxhc.com)
TICKETS: $6 adults, $5 students with ID (SUNY Cortland students free with ID), Children 12 and under Free

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


THE MATCHUP: Cortland opens its home schedule and its New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) slate by hosting Western Connecticut State University. Both teams were idle last week after dropping non-league road decisions two weekends ago. This year's game may be the last between the schools in the foreseeable future since Western Connecticut will leave the NJAC next season to join the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) for football only (the MASCAC is sponsoring the sport for the first time in 2013).


THE SERIES: Cortland has not lost to Western Connecticut in 11 meetings. The teams played three times from 1988 to 1990 as well as every year since the Colonials joined the NJAC as a football affiliate member in 2004. Cortland's 26-10 win in Danbury in 2004 was the first-ever NJAC game to not include a New Jersey school. The closest game in the recent series came in 2007 when Cortland rallied at home for a 27-26 win over the Colonials on a Ray Miles to Eric Hajnos touchdown pass with 12 seconds remaining.

Last season in Danbury, Cortland scored 35 second-quarter points to take a 43-3 halftime lead on the way to a 56-10 victory. Dan Pitcher completed 14-of-21 passes for 270 yards and three touchdowns and ran for a score. Chris Rose connected on 8-of-10 passes for 75 yards and Dorian Myles rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown. Bronson Greene added two 1-yard TD runs, while Mike Humphrey, Kordel McInnis and John Babin caught TD passes. Connor Tompkins and Chris Bright led the Red Dragons with eight tackles apiece. Cortland outgained the Colonials 605-143 in total offense. Western scored its points on a Brian Kelly 20-yard field goal and a Ryan Falaguerra 4-yard TD pass to Curtis Walker.


CORTLAND CAPSULE: Cortland opened the season Sept. 1 with a 49-31 loss at former NJAC and current Empire 8 member Buffalo State. The Red Dragons trailed 35-31 entering the fourth quarter. Senior quarterback Chris Rose, making his first collegiate start, completed 23-of-37 passes for 296 yards and four touchdowns, although he was intercepted five times. Senior Mike Humphrey registered career bests of eight catches for 168 yards and tied a school single-game record with three touchdown receptions. Sophomore Kordel McInnis made six catches for 40 yards and a score and senior Dorian Myles rushed for 74 yards.

Freshman safety Andre Green made 10 tackles, all solo, and forced a fumble. Sophomore linebacker Michael McCarthy recorded nine tackles, including one of Cortland's three sacks, and sophomore linebacker Anthony Bayer intercepted a pass. Junior Mike DeBole made a 32-yard field goal, connected on all four of his point-after kicks and averaged 40 yards per punt on three kicks.

Head coach Dan MacNeill is in his 16th season with the Red Dragons. His overall record of 99-55 (.643) ranks him second at Cortland in career victories and first in winning percentage. He 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 and 2010, 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...WESTERN CONNECTICUT ST. UNIV.: The Colonials opened the season Sept. 1 with a 63-17 loss at Widener as part of the first annual NJAC-MAC Challenge. Western was within 14-10 early in the second quarter after a Hunter Leili 39-yard field goal and a Will Arndt 5-yard TD pass to Connor Falaguerra. Arndt also connected with Falaguerra on a 27-yard scoring strike late in the first half.

Falaguerra earned NJAC Offensive Rookie of the Week honors. He finished with six receptions for 48 yards and returned four punts for 33 yards. Arndt completed 19-of-35 passes for 104 yards and two touchdowns with four interceptions. Halfback Octavius McKoy rushed for 81 yards on 20 carries and caught four passes for 16 yards.

Junior safety Phil Santana led the defense with eight tackles, six solo, and two pass breakups. Junior linebacker Mike Lacaria finished with seven tackles, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and an interception, while junior cornerback Vladimir Souffrant also registered seven tackles and broke up two passes.

Joe Loth enters his first season as Western Connecticut's head coach, but is no stranger to the Colonials or the NJAC. Loth was Western's defensive coordinator from 1993-97, and his first head coaching job was at Kean University from 2000-02.

Loth also served as head coach at Otterbein University, his alma mater, from 2003-11. He led the Cardinals to a school-best 9-2 record and an NCAA berth in 2008 and was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Coach of the Year for the second time. Loth worked as a guest coach in the Canadian Football League, coaching wide receivers at Winnipeg in 2010-12 and Saskatchewan in 2009. Loth graduated from Otterbein in 1991. He was a three-year starting defensive back and still holds the school record with 13 career interceptions.


NOTEBOOK:

* Chris Rose's 296 passing yards at Buffalo State two weeks ago are both the most ever by a Cortland quarterback in his first start. Rose also tied the school record for most TD passes by a quarterback in his first start with four, matching the mark set by Jeff Humble vs. St. Lawrence in 1998. Rose served as the backup quarterback to Dan Pitcher each of the last two seasons and played off the bench at Hobart College in 2009.

* The Red Dragons posted three sacks in their season opener at Buffalo State. 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).

* Among the rule changes for NCAA football this season are new rules regarding kickoffs. The kickoff spot is being moved from the 30-yard line to the 35-yard line, and the members of the kicking team can not be lined up more than five yards behind the kickoff spot to avoid players getting too much of a running start. In addition, a touchback on a kickoff will now result in the ball being placed on the 25-yard line to start the ensuing drive (touchbacks on punts and interceptions will still be brought out to the 20-yard line). These rules have been put into effect on all NCAA levels this fall to help improve player safety on kickoffs.

* 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 (the MASCAC is sponsoring the sport for the first time in 2013), 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 five of the last seven years (2005-08, 2010). The Red Dragons tied for second last year with a 7-2 record.

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

CORTLAND:

11th, Net Punting, 40.0 yds./punt
31st, Passing Offense, 296.0 yds./game
31st, Kickoff Returns, 26.5 yds./return

Mike Humphrey, 3rd, Receiving Yards, 168.0 yds./game
Mike Humphrey, tied 4th, Scoring, 18.0 pts./game
Anthony Bayer, tied 16th, Interceptions, 1.0/game
Justin Autera, 17th, All-Purpose Yardage, 187.0 yds./game
Mike Humphrey, 33rd, All-Purpose Yardage, 168.0 yds./game
Mike DeBole, tied 17th, Field Goals, 1.0/game
Mike Humphrey, tied 21st, Receptions, 8.0/game
Justin Autera, 27th, Kickoff Returns, 27.2 yds./return
Chris Rose, 38th, Total Offense, 290.0 yds./game

WESTERN CONN. ST.:

Ryan Falaguerra, 16th, Punting, 42.0 yds./punt
Michael Lacaria, tied 16th, Interceptions, 1.0/game
Hunter Leili, tied 17th, Field Goals, 1.0/game
Connor Falaguerra, tied 22nd, Scoring, 12.0 pts./game
Samod Cooley, tied 38th, Kickoff Returns, 25.5 yds./return


SCHEDULES/RESULTS:

CORTLAND (0-1, 0-0 NJAC)

Sept. 1      at Buffalo St.                            L 31-49
Sept. 15    * WESTERN CONN. ST.               1:00
Sept. 22    * at Morrisville St.                     7:00
Sept. 29    * MONTCLAIR ST. (NJ)                1:00
Oct. 6        * at The College of New Jersey   12:00
Oct. 13      * BROCKPORT                            1:00
Oct. 20      * ROWAN (NJ)                           12:00
Oct. 27      * at Kean (NJ)                            1:00
Nov. 3       * at William Paterson                   1:00
Nov. 10     ITHACA                                      12:00

* NJAC game      HOME GAMES IN CAPS

WESTERN CONN. ST. (0-1, 0-0 NJAC)

Sept. 1        at Widener (PA)                       L 17-63
Sept. 15    * at Cortland                             1:00
Sept. 22    * ROWAN (NJ)                           12:00
Sept. 29    * THE COLLEGE of NEW JERSEY  12:00
Oct. 6        * at Kean (NJ)                           1:00
Oct. 13      * MORRISVILLE ST.                    12:00
Oct. 20      * at Brockport                            1:00
Oct. 27      * MONTCLAIR ST. (NJ)                 1:00
Nov. 10     * at William Paterson (NJ)           1:00

* NJAC game      HOME GAMES IN CAPS

CORTLAND vs. WESTERN CONN. ST. – SERIES HISTORY
(Cortland leads 11-0)

Year                  Winner                    Score             Site
1988                  Cortland                  24-21              Cortland
1989                  Cortland                  21-0                West Conn
1990                  Cortland                  45-14              Cortland
2004                  Cortland                  26-10              West Conn
2005                  Cortland                  26-7                Cortland
2006                  Cortland                  49-21              West Conn
2007                  Cortland                  27-26              Cortland
2008                  Cortland                  41-14              West Conn
2009                  Cortland                  35-6                Cortland
2010                  Cortland                  45-0                West Conn
2011                  Cortland                  56-10              West Conn