UTICA, NY - The Utica University football team looks to expand its historic start to 6-0 on Saturday. The Pioneers will host Empire 8 opponent SUNY Brockport in a conference matchup that begins at 5 p.m. at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium. It will be Breast Cancer Awareness Day for the Pioneers, presented with the support of Gilroy, Kernan, and Gilroy. 
 
Getting Into The Game: Tickets are five dollars at the gate for adults, and two dollars for children and non-Utica students. 
 
Follow Along: Live video and stats will be available at portal.stretchinternet.com/utica/. The game will also be carried on WPNR 90.7 FM, Utica University Pioneer Radio, and at PioneerRadio.org.

What's The Latest: With their win over Hartwick, the football program has achieved its first-ever 5-0 start in over two decades of varsity football. They are one of three E8 teams holding an unbeaten conference record, and one of just 25 teams nationally who is undefeated out of 240 Division III football programs. The Pioneers are receiving votes in the latest D3Football.com poll released earlier this week. Utica compiled a grand total of 18 votes on the bye week, up from 11 the previous week.

Last Week: Utica continued to dominate its long-standing rivalry against Bye Week by remaining undefeated in the all-time series.

But Seriously: In their most recent contest, the Pioneers thrilled a homecoming crowd with a 57-7 rout of visiting Hartwick College to take the win in their Empire 8 opener on October 1st. Dominance on both sides of the ball was the order of the day for Utica. The Pioneers held a 494-292 advantage in total offense. The Utica offense had a season-best 234 rushing yards to go with 260 passing yards. Utica scored 21 points off turnovers over the course of the contest. The defensive unit logged a season-high five sacks and hit another high mark with two interceptions. One of those interceptions was run back for a touchdown by Anthony Fasano (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park). That is the fourteenth-longest interception return in the country this season.

The Series Against Brockport: This will be the tenth all-time meeting between Utica and Brockport. Brockport leads the series with seven wins to Utica's two. The series began in 2002 and 2003 with a pair of non-conference losses for the Pioneers. The teams did not meet again until 2014, when the Golden Eagles became an Empire 8 opponent. The Pioneers won the 2014 and 2015 contests, but have since gone on to lose the last five. Just one of those five losses was decided by more than two possessions. In the most recent meeting, Brockport prevailed by a 26-14 score in a game that had a three point margin early in the fourth quarter. The Pioneers got a rushing and passing touchdown from quarterback Sonny Badyna (Brooklyn, NY/St. Peter's), with Nate Palmer (Verona, NY/Vernon Verona Sherrill) on the receiving end of the passing score. Kwasi Addo (Menands, NY/Shaker) had fifteen total tackles. The 2015 meeting, which was Utica's lone road win in the series, featured kicker Tommy Woodburn converting five field goals on his way to an NCAA Division III record 2.2 field goals per game that season.

A Quick Study: The Pioneers are averaging 398.8 yards per game on offense this season, a figure which ranks second in the Empire 8. They are also second in points per game at 35.0, and are one of only two teams averaging over 20 points a game on offense across the conference. On defense, the team is conceding an average of 399.2 yards per game, but is holding opponents to 19 points per contest. Among its conference peers, the defense ranks seventh against the run and fifth against the pass.

Nare Time: Joey Nare (Canajoharie, NY/Canajoharie) was picked as the E8 Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance against Hartwick. While working as a return man, he put on a clinic against Hartwick during Utica's homecoming game. In a 57-7-win, Nare amassed two returns for 78 yards which included a 67-yard returning touchdown, the fifth longest in program history.

Taking Flight: Quarterback Braeden Zenelovic (Ontario Center, NY/Wayne Central ) and Wide Receiver Nate Palmer (Verona, NY/Vernon Verona Sherrill) continue to shred up the competition as the season makes its turn down the home stretch. Zenelovic, in his first season under center with Utica, has made his name as one of the conference's most efficient passers. His 66.4 percent completion percentage is second in the Empire 8, and 33rd nationally. He has thrown for 1,175 yards and nine touchdowns through five games, with both figures also ranking second in the conference. On the receiving end of eight of those touchdowns has been Palmer, who is on pace to record one of the most outstanding seasons by a receiver in the history of the program. He is sixth nationally in receiving touchdowns, and his 725 receiving yards are fifth overall in the country. He leads the E8 in both categories. Palmer was recently named the ECAC's Offensive Player of the Month, is a two-time E8 weekly award winner this season, and became the fifth player in program history to eclipse 2,000 receiving yards for a career during the Hartwick game. He has four 100 yard receiving games in five appearances this year. 

What Can Ground Do For You?: The Pioneers had their best rushing performance of the season at 234 yards against Hartwick. Matt Brantley (Rochester, NY/Eastridge) led the way with 93 yards and a touchdown, James Salles (West Babylon, NY/West Babylon) tacked 46 rushing yards on the board, and Jason Haas (Holland Patent, NY/Holland Patent) finished with 42. Brantley has been the team's leading rusher this season with 248 net yards and three touchdowns. He scored a 35 yard touchdown on Saturday. Sam Florio (Port Jefferson, NY/Port Jefferson) has also contributed in a hybrid backfield role, and has three rushing scores to his name as well, including two in the Hartwick game. The Pioneers are averaging 3.9 yards per carry, and 139.0 yards per game. Their most recent performance has elevated the Utica offense to fourth in the E8 in average rushing offense at 139.0 yards per game. 
 
Get Back and Stay Back: In their last game, the Utica defense clamped down on the ground game and held Hartwick to -14 rushing yards. This marks the fourth consecutive meeting with Hartwick where the Pioneers have capped Hartwick at a negative rushing total. That is the fifteenth-best run defense performance in the country this season. This could mark the start of a tipping point for the unit against opposing rushing attacks. Opponents are averaging 190.6 yards per game on the ground against Utica this year, which puts the Pioneers seventh in the E8 in rushing defense.

In The Red Zone: Red zone leverage was an important key to homecoming victory for the Pioneers. Utica scored five times in six appearances inside the Hartwick 20, while the Hawks were turned away on turnovers in their two opportunities. This season, opponents have scored points just six times on twelve appearances in the Utica red zone, and only three of those scoring plays have been touchdowns. The Pioneers rank sixth nationally and tops in the Empire 8 in red zone percentage defense at 50 percent.

Big Gains From the Jim: Senior defensive end Jimmie Warren (Suffern, NY/Suffern) is having another season to remember, a year after landing first team All-Conference honors. Warren has four quarterback sacks to rank in a tie for third in the Empire 8 conference, and his 43 total tackles rank sixth in the conference. He leads all E8 defensive linemen in tackles. His average of 0.8 sacks per game is good for 55th nationally at the present time. Warren eclipsed 100 total tackles in his career earlier this season, and he has twelve career total quarterback sacks to rank in the top five in school history.

Get Your Kicks: Senior kicker Corey Lichtman (Bellemore, NY/Mepham) was chosen as the ECAC North Special Teams Player of the Month for September earlier this week. The award adds on to a month where he was named Empire 8 Special Teams Player of the Week as well as named to the D3football.com Team of the Week on September 20. Lichtman is 6-for-7 on field goal attempts this season and is also a perfect 21-for-21 on point after attempts. Against Western New England on September 17, Lichtman tied a school record with a 50 yard field goal while finishing that day at 3-for-3 on field goal attempts and 2-for-2 on point after attempts. Lichtman is tied for fourth in the nation in field goal percentage at 85.7 percent, and his 50 yard kick against Western New England is tied for the fifth-longest field goal in Division III this season.

About Brockport: The Golden Eagles have started the season at 3-2 under head coach Jason Mangone. They most recently took a 42-24 loss against nationally-ranked Cortland, a game in which they out-gained the Red Dragons in total offense by a narrow 327-319 margin. They are third in the conference in scoring offense and scoring defense. A sound rushing attack is churning out an average of 192.8 yards per game for the second best clip in the conference. Running back Rashad Law has rushed for 521 yards and five touchdowns. Quarterback Todd Simonds has thrown for 686 yards and four touchdowns. Run defense is a huge component of Brockport's identity, as the Green and Gold leads the E8 at just 79.6 yards allowed per game. The Golden Eagles have allowed a conference-low four rushing touchdowns. Leading tackler Ben Damiani has 34 total tackles this season. If his last name sounds familiar, you're on the right track. Ben's brother Alex started at tight end for the Pioneers and amassed 428 career receiving yards in his time with Utica. 

Up Next: The Pioneers will have a showdown with nationally-ranked Cortland on Saturday, October 22nd at Charles A. Gaetano Stadium.