UTICA, NY - The Utica College football team will open its 21st season of varsity football on Saturday, September 4th as it visits Alfred State College for a non-conference matchup. The game will kick at 5 p.m. at Pioneer Stadium in Alfred, NY.

Follow Along: Live video and stats for the contest will be made available courtesy of Alfred State College Athletic Communications. Live video can be found at https://alfredstate.prestosports.com/links/rdg2su, and live stats will appear at https://alfredstate.prestosports.com/sports/fball/2021-22/boxscores/20210904_zni3.xml. 

Own A Piece of Pioneer Football Tradition: On Monday, the Utica College football team unveiled its retro jerseys in commemoration of the College's 75th anniversary.  The Pioneers will be wearing special uniforms modeled after the club football jerseys of the 1950s for their game against Union College on Sept. 25. The team is currently auctioning off these limited-edition uniforms with all proceeds being donated to the Believe 271 Foundation and the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge. For more details on the jersey auction, please visit the Auction page HERE.

Patch Weekend: The Utica coaching staff will be participating in the fifth annual American Football Coaches' Association "Patch Weekend" on Saturday. The staff, along with many others around the country, will wear patches on their sleeves to celebrate the football coaching profession. 

Recapping Last Season: Utica split a two-game spring twinbill with Alfred University for a record of 1-1, and a 1-0 record in officially denoted Empire 8 competition. Each team won the home leg of their series. In Utica's 30-17 win, running back LaMont McGriff had a career day with 114 rushing yards and two touchdowns.  The Utica defense intercepted three passes, and held the Saxon offense to a 1-of-15 conversion rate on third down. In a 17-10 loss at Alfred, the Saxons scored on a one-yard touchdown run with 5:00 to go to break a 10-10 tie. The Utica touchdown belonged to Matt Brantley (Rochester, NY/Eastridge), who hauled in a pass in the end zone from Sonny Badyna (Brooklyn, NY/St. Peter's) for a first quarter score.

In the Last Full Season: The Pioneers finished the 2019 season with a record of 5-5 overall. They were also an even 3-3 in the Empire 8 Conference. The team had wins over St. Lawrence, Buffalo State, St. John Fisher, Alfred, and Hartwick. They were an impressive 4-1 at home and were just four points away from an undefeated home record. The Pioneers were fourth in the final Empire 8 Conference Standings. In 2019, Utica was third in the Empire 8 in scoring offense at 29.4 points per game, and fourth in scoring defense at 26.8 points per game. They were sixth in total offense at 340.6 yards per game, while ranking fifth in rushing and passing offense. They were fourth in total defense at 362.8 yards per game. They ranked fifth in the conference against the run, and the pass.

Leg-atron: Graduate student kicking specialist Maki Medici (Watervliet, NY/Shaker) has been chosen as a second team D3football preseason All-American. He was named to the preseason All-America teams for the second consecutive year after earning a third team nod the year prior.  As a junior, Medici was named an honorable mention All-American, Empire 8 Special Teams Player of the Year, a double All-Conference selection as a kicker and punter, a second team All-ECAC honoree, and first team All-East Region by D3football.com. He went 15-of-19 on field goal attempts in 2019, and was 13-of-14 on attempts inside 40 yards. He converted 78.9 percent of his field goal opportunities. Medici did not miss a field goal inside of 40 yards in the first nine games of the season. He also succeeded on 31-of-35 extra point tries. Medici ranked second in the nation in field goals per game for 2019 at 1.50 field goals per game. He had the fourth-best field goal percentage for a single season in program history, and the second best among kickers with more than 10 attempts. He led the conference in field goals made, field goals attempted, and field goal percentage. He was also fifteenth nationally in field goal percentage.

In the Passing Game: Junior Sonny Badyna (Brooklyn, NY/St. Peter's) has emerged as the likely starter at quarterback exiting preseason camp. Senior wide receiver Nate Palmer (Verona, NY/Vernon Verona Sherrill) stands as Badyna's most experienced starting target downfield and was Utica's leading receiver in both games this spring. He had two straight seasons with over 300 yards and two touchdowns to begin his career. Joey Nare will also be a top threat out wide after a tremendous preseason camp, and FCS transfer Elijah Parker (New London, CT/New London) is looking forward to his first full season with the Pioneers after joining the team for last year's shortened season. Parker previously played tight end at Central Connecticut State University. At tight end, sophomore Jordan Kalberer (Glen Cove, NY/Glen Cove) has been the emergent presence among a very deep group of players, and locally-grown rookie Logan Kraft (New Hartford, NY/New Hartford) could also slide into the mix. 

Three Headed Monster: One of the areas where the Pioneers should be most confident is with their stable of running backs returning. Three of their top five 2019 rushers are still on the roster this Fall in the form of upperclassmen Tim Hogan (Glen Cove, NY/Glen Cove), Lamont McGriff (Yonkers, NY/Iona Prep), and Jamarious Morgan (Utica, NY/Thomas R. Proctor). Morgan was the team's leading rusher in 2019 with 536 yards and five touchdowns, and had the longest carry of that season at 62 yards. Hogan had twelve carries in 2019 for 112 yards. McGriff had an explosive day with his first 100 yard performance in a Spring win over Alfred University. McGriff and Hogan both played a major role in shouldering the rushing load for Utica's 2018 Bowl Championship team, and Hogan is also noted for his work on special teams over the years. Rookies Jimmy Polito (Hull, MA/Hull) and James Salles (West Babylon, NY/West Babylon) have also warranted some attention during their first preseason. Any way you slice it, the Pioneers should have no problem keeping fresh legs in the backfield at all times. 

The Battle Up Front: Utica will sport one of its youngest offensive lines in recent memory. After trotting out an all-senior starting unit in the first game of the spring, a host of younger players have stepped in to battle for time in the offensive line rotation. John Aliberti (Bellmore, NY/Mepham), Jihad Burroughs (Elmwood Park, NJ/Paramus Catholic ), Daniel Pearo (Holtsville, NY/Sachem East), Alex Levitskiy (Brooklyn, NY/Fort Hamilton), and Ben Helfeld (Syracuse, NY/Westhill) stand amongst the young talent looking to settle into starting jobs.

Defense Wins Championships: Just four starters return for a Utica defense that showed significant potential this past spring, holding Alfred University to just 17 points twice. After missing the spring, graduate student Kwasi Addo (Menands, NY/Shaker) returns to his command post at the inside linebacker position to spearhead a deep and balanced group of linebackers. The multiple-time All-Conference pick piled up 97 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, and 3.5 sacks in 2019. Joining Addo in the linebacking corps is the spring's leading tackler, Daryl Savage (Elmira, NY/Elmira), who had 13 stops in two games. James Prastio, Joey Lipani (Rochester, NY/Hilton), Jimmie Warren (Suffern, NY/Suffern), Anthony McDonald (Huntington, NY/Huntington), and Anthony Fasano (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park) are among the other familiar faces in that area of the field. Super sophomore defensive ends Jordan Weaver (Goshen, NY/Goshen High School) and John Stroughn (Baldwin, NY/Holy Trinity) bookend the defensive front around senior defensive tackle Marquez Lott-Douglas (Rochester, NY/Greece Athena). Stroughn had 2.5 sacks to lead the defense in the spring, and Weaver had an interception that he returned for a touchdown in the team's win over Alfred University. Terrance Toussaint (West Orange, NJ/West Orange), Dan Amady (Suffern, NY/Suffern), Mike Campbell (Florida, NY/Warwick Valley), and Devin Bryant (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) form the nucleus of the secondary. 

A Look at the Schedule: The Pioneers will have four home games and six away games this season. Back-to-back non-conference road games open the schedule with Utica battling Alfred State this week, and Kean University next week. From there, Utica balances out the month of September with a pair of non-conference home dates. The 2021 Fall home opener will be on Saturday, September 18th against Western New England, and the Pioneers follow with a Saturday, September 25th home game against an improved Union College team. Utica opens the conference slate with three straight road games against Hartwick, Brockport, and Cortland. They return home again on October 30th for the Believe Bowl game against Morrisville State. Utica will be on the road on November 6th against Alfred, before wrapping up at home with Senior Day against Fisher on November 13th.

On The Sidelines: Head Coach Blaise Faggiano enters his fourteenth season with a record of 60-65. Utica's second head coach has had a record of .500 or better in four of the last five years, and achieved his 60th career win this Spring. 

Alfred, Alfred, and More Alfred: Dating back to the 2019 season, Utica's game Saturday will mark the fourth time in a six-game period that they have played a team from Alfred, NY.

On The Other Side of the Street: Utica has a long-running conference rivalry with E8 foe Alfred University, but many recent followers of the program may not know about Utica's history with Alfred State. Utica played its first-ever varsity football game against Alfred State in 2001, a game in which the debuting Pioneers defeated their two-year college namesake by a 29-7 score in a non-NCAA contest. This will be the first meeting since that day.

The Other Pioneers: Alfred State did not compete in the last academic year due to SUNY restrictions. They finished the 2019 season with a 4-6 overall record, while navigating their ECFC slate at 2-3. They have been chosen to finish fourth in the ECFC Preseason Poll. Shy'rel Broadwater is the team's returning offensive leader at wide receiver, as he totaled seven receiving touchdowns in 2019. Star dual-threat quarterback Dashown Wilson was a senior in 2019, leaving Alfred State with a hole to fill at the signal caller spot. 2019 leading tackler Rylie Van Fleet returns to pace the defense. Some Utica fans may also notice a familiar face on the Alfred State sidelines, as former UC offensive lineman Zach Handy enters his first year as offensive coordinator.

Up Next: The Pioneers head to the Garden State to battle Kean University on Saturday, September 11th. Kickoff in Union, New Jersey is set for 1 p.m.