haggyland

SUNY Poly is searching for a president. SUNY Albany is searching for a president. The two schools have a shared history and are located across the street from each other.

 

Hmmm. Maybe it's time to merge the schools back?

So did Kaloyeros ever hold the position of professor explicitly for SUNY Poly? If not, then the title he should bump back down to should be physics professor...at the University at Albany.....

Football is actually 2-1 at home this year..so even better.

Nice...I always forget Holy Cross.

Post corrected. Of note is that the women's soccer loss was against Seton Hall and the football loss was against the 6th ranked team in the country, in 3 OTs.

Amazing what happens when you can play them at our place.

Fall sports at home so far this season:

Men's Soccer: 4-0-1

Women's Soccer: 3-1

Field Hockey: 7-0

Volleyball: 2-0

Football: 2-1

Total: 18-2-1 or a 0.881 winning percentage...

I saw, at the soccer game tonight, some additional bleachers set up on the northeast corner of the berm.

South side should have room too...start pushing it to 10K!!!

I was trying to figure out who had the job of wrangling Blitz out onto the field. Anybody know? I think it's a very nice touch.

Gattuso posted a photo on Twitter with a caption of "Great job by Blitz and Steven Duncan leading the Great Danes out onto the field for our hard fought 20-9 win!"

No idea who he is, though!

Gattuso thinks it was a cheap shot: "It's not (Nicastro's) knee, which is a good thing," Gattuso said. "I thought it was an exceptionally cheap shot."

Sussman not impressed with SFU either: ""I think Saint Francis is a bunch of sore losers," Sussman said."

Nicastro was taken off on a cart. Did not look good. Huge scrum at the end. Never saw that at a UA game. Sussman hit Roberson in stride earlier in the game...long bomb...Zee dropped it. Hanks dropped one too. Yeah...Alston is FAST!

Ball to Zee was 50 yards in the air, with good zip on it.

Roberson has to make that catch, but if he was like the people in my row he was likely surprised to see such a well-thrown ball.

Oh, and although early indications hint otherwise, I offer well wishes to Michael Nicastro in being healthy.

After last year's questionable hit in Buffalo, and now tonight's occurrence, he needs to catch a break.

Go watch the replay. It was not the SFU player's fault. UA player shoved him and he went flying into Nicastro's leg. Not a cheap shot. I have no clue what the flags were for honestly after watching the replay several times.

 

Replay link:

 

http://www.ualbanysports.com/mediaPortal/player.dbml?&db_oem_id=15800

 

First, let me say how great it is to have access to free replays of these games, with the links posted so expeditiously. Only criticism I have (and I have to have at least one) is that the scroll bar doesn't have enough sensitivity; it is too difficult to get to a specific part of the game.

Looks like you are right, DrG...not a deliberate act.

From my perspective: SFU had gotten increasingly chippy throughout the game, and was talking a lot of trash after they fell behind. The hit happened in front of the UA bench, to the team leader on defense, so it amplified the accusations. After the game, besides UA fans berating SFU players, many of the UA players were talking about the play in question, with one even talking about how the SFU player "torpedoed Michael". And this occurred after a shoving match on the field, an ear chewing by GG to his players, and an extended delay in leaving the field so as not to intermingle with the SFU players...I still say that is the last we see of that NEC team for a while.

And just like that UAlbany will never schedule St. Francis (PA) again.

A lot of bad blood after the Nicastro late hit. I thought the SFU player should have been ejected.

Along the walkway back to the locker room there was a lot of chatter from UA fans to SFU players...the bad energy in the air was palpable.

StFU needs to STFU.

 

 

FUBAR...it's ok, I'll go there, lol

Naaah...sounds more like a SNAFU.

I was going for cluster@$&!.

 

Ahhh, yes. The old "CF" for the win.

Mongolian, when used by Carlin.

FUBAR...it's ok, I'll go there, lol

Naaah...sounds more like a SNAFU.

Condensed version:

-Defense was spectacular to watch.

-URI program is idiotic for baking its players.

-Free parking and free tickets are good things.

-I would like to see another passing TD before the season ends.

-Rhode Island is still a nice place to visit.

Some thoughts after a trip to URI:

1) All week I thought I was going to Smithfield, RI (home of Bryant), and I only had a 2.5 hour drive. When I plugged Meade Stadium into the GPS I got greeted with another half hour of travel time...d'oh!

2) My travel error meant I listened to most of the first quarter on URI radio...typical homer stuff. Parking around URI was free and when I went to buy tickets there was a UA player will-call near the box office. My friend and I were decked out in purple and gold, and we were called over to the will-call as we entered the building. I informed the gent I wasn't on his list, but he comped me two tickets anyhow...damn it feels good to be a gangster.

3) We walked to the far side of the field (from the box office), and climbed a central staircase under the bleachers to an opening at the 50 yard line. We were 40 rows back in a set of old wooden bleachers that extended another 15 rows behind us to the press box, and we sat in the scorching sun.

4) '72 says URI changed sidelines this year. If so, big mistake...they may be closer to the student section when they are in front of the older stands, but there is no shade, and on a day like Saturday where the sun was shining and there was no breeze, everyone baked in the sun. Games in cooler weather won't have much of a temperature difference, but the URI players were left to roast, especially when compared to the UA players.

5) Half-time comes and we seek a respite from the heat. We head to the other side of the field (I had been denied entry when I arrived), and we walk past a wood-fired pizza vendor and a local restaurant that has set up a vendor booth, who is selling lobster sliders and oyster shooters, among other things....gotta love the Ocean State. The opposite side of the stands from the wooden erector set side includes some stands with seats, steel bleachers, and air-conditioned concessions on the outer rim of the stands to the basketball arena that is attached to the football stadium.

6) I get a $5 footlong (it is actually $5.25, and it is a hot dog, but whatever), and we get a seat in the third row, behind the UA bench...in the shade! This is when I become cognizant of the advantage the "basketball side" has, and I wonder how URI staff can handicap their own team in this manner.

7) With a great vantage point to the action I don't realize how badly Sussman is struggling. There is one play-action pass that is called perfectly by the OC, and executed perfectly, but it ends in an incompletion when Sussman does his best impression of our placekicker and misses an obvious target with a ball that sails way wide.

8) I can see the ball is not moving well on offense but Gattuso is a former defensive player, and there are no major injuries to that unit, so I am following their actions more closely than those of the offense. Another poster mentioned a "vanilla" offense. I find the description apt, and I find that most of the excitement is generated on the other side of the ball...and then the defensive excitement gets amplified ten-fold!

9) After a few years of watching vanilla offense and hamstrung defense (through injuries and adjustments to talent level) in the CAA, we all get treated to a display of defensive excellence. I can't remember the last UA "Pick 6" I have seen. If it happened as a member of the CAA it either wasn't a game-changer or it didn't elicit a memory, and I can only draw back to NEC days for a reminder of the excitement that play-type generates. Anyhow, in the span of a few minutes I see two "Pick 6"s that have me happy to be wearing purple that day.

10) Crook comes into the game, and knowing that he had the job once and lost it, and thinking it has more to do with the game getting out of hand than it does with Sussman struggling (again, he is so "vanilla" to watch I pay more attention to the defense), I start watching Brunson on the sidelines. I remember the rave reports of his arm, and I want to see how he carries himself. He is energetic and enthusiastic, but I want to know if he can hit the open man with a hard throw from a quick release. He gets into the game, and hands the ball off once, and then gets into victory formation.

11) The ref's microphone doesn't work but the UA defense seems to be getting called with excessive celebration calls (which could also be called young college kids enjoying themselves.)

12) In the fourth quarter the URI bench is screaming about UA having 12 men in the huddle, and then I am pretty sure they call a time-out in the last minute, down 28, forcing a punt...stay classy, Kingston, RI!

13) From the perspective of a fan that has seen some poor defense, the fourth quarter is easily one of the most entertaining quarters of UA football I have ever seen. With no offense meant to those that built the program, there is an extra excitement added when you hear the hit or see an interception against a team that plays in one of the best conferences in the "championship series" of college football, even if they are inept to the point that they let their players bake in a scorching sun.

14) URI, being in Kingston, and not Smithfield, RI, is only a 30 minute drive to Newport. So, I cross the Narragansett Bay in a heavy ocean-driven fog, and sit down to a nice Thai dinner where I watch some Twitter highlights of the defense, and refresh the balance on my sports betting account...

On to Holy Cross:

-It would be great to get to 3-0...we should be ranked going into the game.

-Need to see how the QB situation plays out. My early money is on Crook starting the game.

-Home opener + free shirts = Great atmosphere.

-I will be in the woods, and won't even get to listen to the game, so I'll cross my fingers for a balanced attack and another "W". I'll rest easier knowing that the team is at its full allotment of scholarships, and that it is mostly healthy.

-If you have to lose a player I guess it's better it is a wide receiver than another position. Harris is a great player, but until we get Sussman to the optometrist, or find another option at the position, Harris isn't going to wrack up much better numbers playing as opposed to being on the sideline. Maybe they can get a 2-for-1 deal and bring the placekicker.

.

 

 

 

Why not give Brunson a few snaps?

Sideline observation of Sussman: when he spits on the sideline he quickly rubs it clean with his foot.... you are welcome.

Any word on if he's been able to hit the ground with his spit?

Multi-tasking.... meant Brunson again....

Sussman taking snaps on the sideline.... Sorry....BRUNSON!

Why not give Brunson a few snaps?

Sideline observation of Sussman: when he spits on the sideline he quickly rubs it clean with his foot.... you are welcome.

Bernard Clark just scared the crap out of me when screaming for a substitute to "Get his butt over here.".... dude is still intense!

At URI....This half is freaking sweet!!!!!!

That's a little crazy they have a bio up...and they don't even mention that she was the National POY?

Just to stir the pot on this one a little, the following is from a tweet from 8/22:

"HC Joanna McNamee University of Albany America East Conference looking for home game Dec 12,2016. Would consider D2 possibilities."

Is it a consolation that the women's team will only "slum down" to the D2 level???

I don't really know why but I was thinking of our UA field hockey team and I didn't see any board discussion for this season.

Of note:

*Pre-season #9 in the country.

*Former national player of the year Paula Heuser's last year.

*Stand-out goaltender Maxi Primus's last year.

*A new highly regarded German defensive recruit bringing the number of German players to four, including improving sophomore middie Frederike Helmke.

*3-0 start to the year with wins against Hofstra, Bryant, and Dartmouth.

*Tough recent loss to Penn State, who was pre-season #18 but is now #1 in RPI.

*Tough conference schedule with a strong Maine team to play, an improved New Hampshire team, and a potential championship game on the west coast this year against potentially Stanford or Cal (And I know it's field hockey, but I get a major kick out of being in any conference with these two programs. One of my good buddies has an advanced degree from Stanford, and field hockey might be the only area to which I can claim dominance (even if it is not the result of direct participation!)

Oh, yeah, and also of note is that Phil Sykes somehow snuck the 2015 HS National Player of the Year onto this year's roster!...Dana Bozek. No announcement of signing her NLOI, and not even announced until four games into the season, but she has already played in three games and started two, while registering two shots and taking four corners. I don't know how the national POY was available, but she looks like a great get, and she stays in New York and we keep another "hot-shot" high school recruit from going to Syracuse (although I don't know if they even offered!)

http://www.ualbanysports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=15800&ATCLID=211160796&KEY=

UA Pollyanna time again! A special thank you to the UB Bulls for allowing themselves to be outplayed last Friday, temporarily restoring my hope in this athletic program's growth and direction! With so many suspensions of good players I feared we could be over-prioritizing character, but maybe that wasn't the right line of thinking!

Women's team just received a verbal from 5'11" SF Dejah Williams from Imhotep in Philadelphia.

Her teammate, Sierra DaCosta, is a freshman at Hartford this year.

Holy freaking crapoley!

Maybe Gattuso can stay.