UTICA - The Utica College football team looks to reclaim a winning record for the 2018 season so far, and keep their hopes alive for an above .500 finish as it takes to Interstate 90 to visit Buffalo State on Saturday, Nov. 3. Opening kickoff for the Empire 8 clash is set for noon on the artificial turf surface at Coyer Field.
 
Follow The Action: Live Video and Live Stats for Saturday's game will be available at https://buffalostateathletics.com/. Live Audio may also be available from WBNY 91.3 FM in Buffalo, and their website is located at https://wbny.buffalostate.edu/
 
The Series: The Pioneers and Bengals have met six times, and the Pioneers have won four of those occasions, including last year's meeting at Gaetano Stadium by a 34-12 score. That win was the first win by the home team in series history. The Pioneers have won the last two meetings in the all-time series against Buffalo State.

Last Time Out: The Pioneers hung tough despite a tall task at hand as they fell to nationally ranked No. 3 Brockport by a 22-6 score on a rainy Senior Day at Gaetano Stadium last Saturday. The Pioneers limited an offense that had been scoring 50 points a game to just 22 points, and they posted the second closest margin of defeat among opponents against the undefeated Golden Eagles this season. An early safety on a wayward punt snap gave the Golden Eagles the early first quarter lead, and that lead was extended in the second quarter to 9-0 as Brockport quarterback Joe Germinerio slung a 25 yard touchdown pass to Joseph Ortiz. After a pivotal third down stop at midfield, the Pioneers got a late opportunity to score before halftime and were up to the task. Quarterback Logan Wilcox (Utica, NY/Proctor) and receiver Imani Vincent (Brooklyn, NY/Sheepshead Bay) were the tandem to make it happen quickly, as Wilcox hit Vincent for three passes of 26 yards or more on a five play drive capped by a 30 yard touchdown pass between the two. The ensuing point after was blocked, and the Pioneers were in business down by just three points at the break. A big third quarter squared the game away for Brockport. The Pioneers got an early glimmer of hope to take the lead when Daryl Savage (Elmira, NY/Elmira) recovered a fumble on the opening drive for the Golden Eagles, but a fake punt attempt by Utica on the next drive would be defused by Brockport and the Golden Eagles had the wind at their back the rest of the way. Brockport's ground game and stingy defense did the rest of the work as they punched in two rushing touchdowns in the third to open up their permanent lead, and the defense pitched a second half shutout to secure the road win. With the defense holding Brockport to just 22 points, defensive lineman Keanu Heedram (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta) turned in a monstrous performance with 14 tackles and 2.5 sacks, while Dehstin Smart (Paterson, NJ/Hackensack) racked up 11 stops, and Antonio Scala (Coram, NY/Longwood) chipped in with 10. Anthony Beaubrun (West Hempstead, NY/West Hempstead) added an interception. The Pioneers held Brockport to a 2-of-5 clip in the red zone for the day. On offense, Wilcox threw for 195 yards and a touchdown, and Imani Vincent (Brooklyn, NY/Sheepshead Bay) finished with a season-best 121 yards and a touchdown in the absence of top Utica target Peyton Miller (Chemung, NY/Waverly), who did not play Saturday.
 
Where We Stand: The Pioneers are presently 4-4 this season, with wins over Fisher, Alfred, Catholic, and St. Lawrence. They are 2-3 in Empire 8 conference play which currently stands in fifth place.
 
Oh, The Possibilities: With a .500 or better record, the Pioneers would qualify for potential inclusion into the 2018-19 ECAC Bowl Series. Utica is on the short list of teams who have declared for this year's bowl series, and would give itself its best chance to appear in one of the three ECAC bowl games with wins in the next two weeks.
 
Even Steven: The Pioneers are presently at the .500 mark both at home and on the road. Utica finished up its six game home schedule at 3-3, and are 1-1 when playing away from Gaetano Stadium this season.

Not Making It Easy: Even against the vaunted defensive front of Brockport that had put up 33 sacks on opposing quarterbacks prior to Saturday, the Pioneers front five held its own. They kept quarterback Logan Wilcox (Utica, NY/Proctor) relatively clean on the afternoon as Brockport was held to two sacks, their second lowest total of the season.

Total Recall: The Pioneers stand third in the Empire 8 Conference in total offense at 372.1 yards per game, and fifth in total defense at 373.1 yards per game. The Bengals rank seventh in total offense at 302.1 yards per game, and are seventh in defense this season in the Empire 8 at 446 yards against per game. 
 
And You Can Put It On The Board: The Pioneers are fifth in the Empire 8 in scoring offense at 25.6 points per game, and could be in for a big day on Saturday if they execute well, as the Bengals are surrendering 41.5 points per game this season.
 
Good Company: Freshman quarterback Logan Wilcox (Utica, NY/Proctor) now has sixteen touchdown passes for the season after adding another one on Saturday, which moves him into sole possession of fifth on the college's all-time list. With that touchdown, Wilcox has now fired the most touchdown strikes in a season of anyone in the program's history not named Andrew Benkwitt, who remains UC's career leader in every major passing category. For the season, Wilcox has completed 149 of 299 passes for 1,831 yards. His yardage total is currently eighth on the college's single season list, and he needs 544 more yards to set a new freshman mark for passing yards in a season at Utica. 637 yards would place him in the top five in school history for a single campaign. Wilcox is already fifth on the Utica College career lists in passing yards and passing touchdowns.
 
Welcome Back, Malcolm: Senior running back Malcolm Stowe (Coram, NY/Longwood) returned to the lineup on Saturday after missing almost the entirety of the last two games for Utica. While Stowe was limited in the ground game on his ten carries on Saturday, he could make a world of difference for the Pioneers as they push for an ECAC bowl slot in the last two weeks of the year. For the season, Stowe has a team best 605 rushing yards including three 100 yard games, and a career best 211 yard performance against Cortland. His current season ranks in the top ten all-time for rushing yards in a season at Utica.
 
Catch Him If You Can: If junior wide receiver Peyton Miller (Chemung, NY/Waverly) returns to the lineup this week, he could have an opportunity to make a huge move up the single season receptions list for the Pioneers. He has a team-high 60 catches to stand in sixth place and needs two to move into a tie for fifth alongside Anthony Acevedo's 2011 season, he can move into a tie for fourth alongside Cody Elliott with five catches, twelve catches would get him into a tie for third with Acevedo's 2013 campaign, and thirteen catches would move him into second. With two weeks to go, all of those numbers are attainable for Miller. He currently has 682 receiving yards and four touchdowns. He ranks inside the top 20 nationally in receptions per game.
 
Vintage Vincent: With every passing week, Imani Vincent (Brooklyn, NY/Sheepshead Bay) looks more and more like the player who had 641 receiving yards two years ago to help lead Utica to a bowl game. Vincent now holds a career best seven touchdowns this season to go with 467 yards, and had his best yardage performance of the year against Brockport on Saturday. In his last five games with a catch, at least one of those grabs has gone for a touchdown each week.
 
Best Keanu Since The Matrix: Defensive lineman Keanu Heedram (Rochester, NY/Rush-Henrietta) put up a machine-like performance against Brockport's offense on Saturday with his team-leading 14 tackles and 2.5 sacks. The single game totals are the highest in the conference this season for a defensive lineman. Heedram stands third on the team this season with 54 tackles and is the team leader with 5.5 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks.

Leveled by the Linebackers: Utica's top two tacklers come from the linebacker position and both have showcased exceptional versatility this season. Antonio Scala (Coram, NY/Longwood) leads the Pioneers with 63 tackles including 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack, an interception, four pass breakups, and a fumble recovery. Kwasi Addo (Menands, NY/Shaker) stands second on the team with 60 stops and has five tackles for loss. Addo's 20 tackle game against Morrisville continues to be the top single game performance this year in the Empire 8.
 
Consider An Alternate Route: The Pioneers have been especially tough defensively against the ground game this season, where they have allowed just 118.3 yards per game to rank fourth in the Empire 8 conference.

And You Get A Pick, And You Get A Pick: Eight different players have at least one interception for Utica this season as the Pioneers' total of 12 is fourth in the Empire 8. Anthony Beaubrun (West Hempstead, NY/West Hempstead), Mark Taylor (Buffalo, NY/Kenmore West), Matt Stone (Rochester, NY/Brighton), and Elijah Belle (Plainfield, NJ/Plainfield) have each been credited with two interceptions for the season. The Pioneers have an interception in each of the last six weeks.
 
Fall On It: Xyier Woodard (Albany, NY/LaSalle) is just one of 29 players in the nation this season with three or more fumble recoveries. He previously ranked in the top five at one point this year.
 
It Was A Good Run: The Pioneers went the first seven games without allowing positive punt return yardage, but that came to an end on Saturday as a seven return yard day on punts for Brockport brought Utica's opponents out of the red for the season. The seven yard return came on Brockport's only return of the day, which continues to demonstrate how good the Pioneer coverage team has been at getting downfield.
 
The Buffalo Guys Are Utica Guys: The Pioneers will have a some players who will have a de facto home field advantage on Saturday, as a handful of Buffalo area natives are highly positioned on the depth chart. Dylan Sekuterski (Depew, NY/Depew), Mark Taylor (Buffalo, NY/Kenmore West), Alex Damiani (Lancaster, NY/Lancaster), and Michael Carr-Johnson (Buffalo, NY/Hutch Tech) are among those who will get a chance to play close to home on Saturday. Defensive Coordinator Will Pluff is also from Buffalo, as is Wide Receivers coach Alex Horvatits.

About Buffalo State: The Bengals are currently 1-7 under head coach and athletic director Jerry Boyes this season. In their last time out, Buffalo State spotted a 24-0 lead to Morrisville en route to a 38-14 defeat at Coyer Field. Martin Bailey had 20 carries for 59 yards and a touchdown to lead the Bengal offense, and Gino Bonagura posted the second highest single game tackles total in the conference this year with 18 stops. For the season, Kevin Torrillo has thrown for 1,619 yards and twelve touchdowns, but also has fourteen interceptions. Bailey's 414 yards and four touchdowns lead the Bengal ground game, and Jordan Evert has six receiving touchdowns. Bonagura's 80 tackles stand second in the Empire 8 conference.

What's Next: The Pioneers wrap up their regular season on Saturday, November 10th at Hartwick. Utica has won its last two meetings with the Hawks.