fb 2023 Game #14: 12/9/23 - 10PM EST at #4 Idaho (FCS Playoffs Quarterfinals)

[cwdickens]

UALBANY FOOTBALL

 

Idaho happy with move

UAlbany’s FCS playoff foe returned from FBS level in ’17

 

By Mark Singelais

Courtesy of Idaho Athletics

Kibbie Dome is the home stadium of Idaho, which played at the FBS level for 20 years before dropping back to FCS.

UALBANY AT IDAHO

When: 10 p.m. Saturday

Where: PIFCU Kibbie Dome, Moscow, Idaho

TV/Radio: ESPN+, WTMM 104.5 FM

Jim Franco/Times Union archive

UAlbany coach Greg Gattuso has said he’s glad to be playing in a domed stadium.

The University of Idaho tried for two decades to play at the highest level of college football, the Football Bowl Subdivision.

It didn’t work out.

 

Back in the friendlier ranks of the Football Championship Subdivision, fourth-seeded Idaho (9-3) is a title contender that will face No. 5 UAlbany (10-3) in a quarterfinal at 10 p.m. Saturday in Moscow, Idaho.

“It’s been good,” Idaho second-year coach Jason Eck said. “I think it’s been a really good transition and winning certainly helps. Having success, no matter what level, you’d rather be a really good FCS team than a bad FBS team.”

After the 2017 season, Idaho became the first school to drop from FBS to FCS The Vandals averaged 3.7 wins per season during their 20 years at the FBS level. The Sun Belt Conference cut loose Idaho, which opted to return to the FCS and the Big Sky Conference rather than face an uncertain future as an FBS independent.

The Vandals played in the Big Sky from1963 to1995 before moving up to FBS, which allows a maximum of 85 scholarships per team compared to the FCS’ 63.

Idaho parted ways with head coach Paul Petrino in 2021 and hired Eck, a former Wisconsin offensive lineman. Eck served as a South Dakota State assistant coach for six years and helped the Jackrabbits become a dominant FCS program.

In his first year, Eck guided the Vandals to a 7-4 record and their first FCS playoff appearance since 1995.

He was Idaho’s offensive line coach from 2004 to 2006 during its FBS days. He said the Moscow community is enjoying its return to the lower level.

“I think they’ve embraced it,” Eck said. “When I first got hired, I know they were warning me in my first press conference, ‘You might get some questions about people who are still angry we moved down. I think most people have gotten over that, or if they haven’t gotten over it, they’re not telling me that. Our attendance has been way up.”

Idaho is averaging 11,234 fans per game this season inside its 16,000-seat PIFCU Kibbie Dome, a dramatic jump from 4,878 two years ago. The Vandals drew 9,224 for last Saturday’s 20-17 overtime win over Southern Illinois in a second-round game.

“I’ve been very happy with how the community, the alumni base, the boosters have really rallied to support our team,” Eck said. “I think it’s a good fit for us. I think the Big Sky Conference is a great conference just like the CAA (UAlbany’s league) or the Missouri Valley. It’s neat to have regional rivalries where we’re playing the Montana schools or Eastern Washington. I think those are neat rivalries, no different than when you guys (Albany) play Stony Brook or Villanova or something.”

Eck noted UAlbany doesn’t play in any domed stadiums within the Coastal Athletic Association, which could work to Idaho’s advantage on Saturday. He did observetheGreatDanesplayed indoors at North Dakota State and Syracuse in 2021.

The Vandals are 4-1 this season at the Kibbie Dome, which was the smallest stadium in FBS, but is almost twice the size of UAlbany’s Casey Stadium (capacity 8,500).

“We’ve got a great challenge in front of us,” Eck said. “Obviously, the best thing we’ve got going for us is the Kibbie Dome. So we need to have a great crowd and get everybody to come out and support us. … They (UAlbany) are 4-3 on the road. All four of their road wins were in front of pretty small crowds, so I think our fans could be a factor in this game and we need you to come down.”

[jimbo]

I’m really glad we are playing the Vandals tomorrow. I have learned something new. It was my assumption that “Idaho” was a Native American word meaning “lousy football.” However, as the following newsletter from the Idaho State Historical Society attests to, it’s not so. Turns out it’s a made up word from a guy who scammed people into thinking it was an Indian word. Since Albany annually hosts a bunch of two faced scam artists, otherwise known as legislators and governors, we are familiar with these sorts of reprobates. Since this happened out in the sticks in true frontier America, they let it slide. Why we let those downstaters come to Albany every year is the true mystery. 

Go Danes!!

https://history.idaho.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/howidahogotitsname.pdf

 

Edited December 8, 2023 by jimbo

[cwdickens]

Moving back more closely to the thread:

UALBANY FOOTBALL

 

Kelly in middle of it all

Danes’ linebacker one of three finalists for FCS award

 

By Mark Singelais

UAlbany athletics

UAlbany linebacker Dylan Kelly, a former walk-on, is second in FCS with 148 tackles entering Saturday’s quarterfinal at Idaho. He’ll likely overtake McNeese’s Micah Davey on Saturday.

Dylan Kelly wasn’t ready to contribute the last time the University at Albany football team went out west to play a Football Championship Subdivision playoff game.

Arriving on campus as a 190-pound walk-on, Kelly redshirted as a freshman and didn’t travel when the Great Danes lost 47-21at Montana State in a second-round game in 2019.

 

“I did not, but I heard that the atmosphere was insane from teammates on the team,” Kelly said Thursday.

Kelly, a senior middle linebacker, will be in the middle of the action when the fifth-seeded Great Danes face No. 4 Idaho in the loud atmosphere of the PIFCU Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. He’s the nation’s second-leading tackler heading into Saturday night’s FCS quarterfinal.

On Tuesday, Kelly was named one of the three finalists for the Buck Buchanan Award, given to the top defensive player in the FCS. The trio are invited to the award announcement Jan. 6 in Frisco, Texas, the day before the FCS championship game.

“It was awesome,” Kelly said. “It just shows all the hard work I put in throughout the years, and then especially during the spring and summer, that pays off.”

Kelly also noted teammate Anton Juncaj, a senior defensive end, finished fifth in the voting.

While Juncaj is second in the nation with 14 sacks, Kelly serves as the backbone of the nation’s top-ranked run defense. He has a program-record 148 tackles, trailing only McNeese linebacker Micah Davey, and he should pass him on Saturday.

The 6-foot-2 Kelly has bulked up to 224 pounds, a far different player than the one who only got scholarship offers from Division II schools Edinboro (Pa.) and Findlay (Ohio) coming out of high school in Amherst, a Buffalo suburb. Kelly is the nephew of Hall of Fame Bills quarterback Jim Kelly.

Kelly instead chose UAlbany as a preferred walk-on.

“It’s just coming in as a walk-on, you kind of get that chip on your shoulder,” Kelly said. “You just want to prove everybody wrong and prove to people that you are better than what some people might have thought. Having that chip on my shoulder and getting the opportunity when two kids ahead of me transferred, and then just showing with the opportunity what I can do and having the players around me and the coaches around me to make me the player I am today.”

UAlbany coach Greg Gattuso recruited Kelly as a strong safety and moved him to outside linebacker as he got bigger. Kelly said he worked out six days a week and ate constantly. He got his chance when outside linebackers Joe Casale of Troy (Robert Morris) and Danny Damico (Villanova) transferred.

Kelly started at outside linebacker as a junior and led the team with 97 tackles. This season, he moved inside to replace Jackson Ambush, who transferred to Florida Atlantic.

Not big for a middle linebacker, Kelly said he relies on his sideline-to-sideline quickness.

Gattuso has success with walk-ons. Redshirt freshman Griffin Woodell of Glens Falls, the Coastal Athletic Association Offensive Rookie of the Year, was also a walk-on before receiving a scholarship in August. Gattuso recruited walk-ons when he was an assistant at Pittsburgh and Maryland.

“Some of these walk-ons start flashing before your eyes.” Gattuso said. “It just takes a year or two for walk-ons to jump out. … I believe in walk-ons. I just think kids take time to develop sometimes and we love our guys that walk on. They help on special teams and then they grow into these really good players and you’re seeing it with Dylan and Griffin.”

Despite his value as a defender, Kelly still plays on special teams on UAlbany’s kickoff coverage.

“I feel like just to help out the team in any way,” Kelly said. “I’ll play whatever position that helps the team out in the grand scheme of things.”

Kelly, a finance major, and his defensive teammates will try to stop an Idaho offense that averages 33.2 points per game, 13th in FCS. The UAlbany defense limits foes to 16.8 points per game, eighth in the nation.

“We know that they’re a really well-balanced offense and we’re a really, really well-balanced defense,” Kelly said. “It’s going to be a fun game.”

UALBANY AT IDAHO When: 10 p.m. Saturday Where: PIFCU Kibbie Dome, Moscow, Idaho TV/Radio: ESPN+, WTMM 104.5 FM

[ctdanes]

Rather be a really good FCS team than a bad FBS team? Oh wow, nobody tell UMass 🤣

[jimbo]

For every Boise St, JMU and App St there’s a lot of UMass stories. 
 

And…..does everyone know that Cortland is playing in the D3 football semi finals on Saturday at 12? Two SUNY schools getting it done! Go Red Dragons! 

[Eli]

1 hour ago, jimbo said:

For every Boise St, JMU and App St there’s a lot of UMass stories. 
 

And…..does everyone know that Cortland is playing in the D3 football semi finals on Saturday at 12? Two SUNY schools getting it done! Go Red Dragons! 

Cortland was also in the National Collegiate Rugby finale. SUNY's representin on many levels.

(I don't watch rugby, but someone I know's daugher is on the team and I saw his FB posts in Houston)

Edited December 8, 2023 by Eli

[jimbo]

3 hours ago, Eli said:

Cortland was also in the National Collegiate Rugby finale. SUNY's representin on many levels.

(I don't watch rugby, but someone I know's daugher is on the team and I saw his FB posts in Houston)

Talking about rugby...uh oh, we need CW to get us back to the thread. Next thing you know we'll be talking about pickleball.....

[cwdickens]

UALBANY FOOTBALL

 

Special teams could prove critical

Idaho has highly ranked players at key positions

 

By Mark Singelais

Jim Franco/Times Union archive

UAlbany senior safety Larry Walker Jr., besides being a valued defensive starter, is also a member of the special teams coverage units.

ALBANY — Special teams were a weakness for the University at Albany football team during its struggles in recent seasons. Their improvement has played a role in the Great Danes’ surge into a Football Championship Subdivision contender.

The kicking and punting games could be major factors in Saturday’s FCS quarterfinal at Idaho, which prides itself on “outstanding” special teams.

 

“It’s huge,” UAlbany coach Greg Gattuso said. “You can’t lose the kicking battle. You want to win the kicking battle, but at the end of the day, a tie in the kicking battle. Just do your jobs and don’t give up big plays in the kicking game makes a big difference.”

Idaho probably wouldn’t still be playing if not for game-changing plays by its special teams in a 20-17 overtime victory over Southern Illinois last Saturday. Redshirt senior Jermaine Jackson returned a punt 86 yards for a touchdown to tie the score at 10 in the third quarter.

Vandals freshman linebacker Xe’ree Alexander blocked a 41-yard field goal attempt by Southern Illinois for the win as time expired in regulation. Idaho senior Ricardo Chavez kicked a 29-yard field goal to end the game.

Jackson ranks third in FCS in punt return average at 16.7 yards per return, including a touchdown in each of the past two games. He’s 17th in kickoff return average at 24.9 with a long of 84 yards.

Chavez is 16-for-18 on field goals, tied for fifth in the country at 88.9 percent. He has made three attempts of 50 yards or longer. Chavez is also the punter and his 48.1-yard average would lead the country if he had enough punts to qualify.

“They’ve been outstanding,” Idaho coach Jason Eck said. “I think we’ve won the special-teams battle in most of our games. We take a lot of pride in those. We put a lot of importance in that with the players. That’s how we start most days, with a special-teams meeting and everybody in there. I think we have a lot of buy-in.”

Eck pointed out his special teams are a combination of starters and reserves who are mostly special-teamers. The same holds true for UAlbany, which uses defensive starters such as senior safety Larry Walker Jr., senior linebacker Dylan Kelly and graduate safety Isaac Duffy on coverage teams. Gattuso said that experience has helped the special teams.

“It’s playoff football, so everything matters, from offense, defense and special teams,” Walker said. “Special teams is definitely, definitely more important than they’ve ever been because it’s the second part of the season.”

UAlbany junior kicker John Opalko has improved from a year ago. He’s made 12 of 16 field goals, including five of six between 40 and 49 yards, after going 9-for-16 a year ago with a long of 36. He hasn’t attempted a field goal the past two games as UAlbany rolled over Monmouth and Richmond.

Great Danes senior punter Tyler Pastula, a Delaware transfer, has remained steady with a 42.2-yard average and 15 placed inside the 20.

UAlbany had a couple of shaky moments in the win over Richmond. Sophomore Levi Wentz muffed a punt that led to Richmond’s first touchdown and Kelly was offsides to negate a UAlbany recovery of a muffed Richmond kickoff return.

“We’ve improved solid throughout the year,” special teams coach Joe Bernard said. “We’ve had a few missteps along the way, but (Gattuso) always talks about being all in and the kids this year are really all in to all three phases and we have a lot of depth.”

Note: Gattuso finished second in the voting for the Eddie Robinson Award, which goes to the FCS national Coach of the Year. The winner was Jimmy Rogers, rookie head coach of defending national champion South Dakota State (12-0), the No. 1 seed in this year’s playoffs. Rogers received 16 first-place votes and 144 points to Gattuso’s nine and 130.

[cwdickens]

UALBANY FOOTBALL

 

‘Battle-tested’ Danes set

No. 5 seed UAlbany meets No. 4 Idaho in FCS quarterfinal

 

By Mark Singelais

UALBANY VS. IDAHO

When: 10 p.m. Saturday

Where: P1FCU Kibbie Dome, Moscow, Idaho

TV/Radio: ESPN+, WTMM 104.5 FM

Jim Franco/Times Union

UAlbany football coach Greg Gattuso said his team is “battle-tested” and shouldn't be fazed going across the country to play Idaho on Saturday in an FCS quarterfinal.

The University at Albany football program has it all there for the taking on Saturday night.

First win in a dome. First victory outside the Eastern time zone. First trip to the Football Championship Subdivision semifinals.

 

While recognizing the importance of this FCS quarterfinal at Idaho, University at Albany red-shirt sophomore quarterback Reese Poffenbarger said the team isn’t overwhelmed by the moment.

“It’s awesome because you’ve got your best friends out at practice every single day and you’re out chasing the same goal and it makes it that much better,” Poffenbarger said. “I don’t think we’ve put too much thought into making it bigger than it is. ‘Oh, if we win this game, we’re doing something we’ve never done.’ After the game, it’s a fun thing to talk about. When you’re preparing and during the event itself, it’s not something you think about.”

Making their first quarterfinal appearance, the fifth-seeded Great Danes (10-3) bring a six-game winning streak into the matchup with the No. 4 Vandals (9-3) of the Big Sky Conference inside the P1FCU Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho.

The Great Danes, who won their first Coastal Athletic Association title, have beaten their last six opponents by at least 16 points each. They’re coming off a 41-13 rout of CAA rival Richmond in a second-round game.

UAlbany is listed as a four-point underdog on Saturday.

“We have proved to ourselves and everybody else that we can play wherever and play with whoever and win,” said UAlbany senior linebacker Dylan Kelly, the CAA Defensive Player of the Year. “So we’re very confident in this game.”

The Great Danes are accustomed to long road trips. They flew to Marshall and Hawaii on back-to-back weeks in September and also bused twice to Baltimore for victories at Morgan State (in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Ophelia) and Towson.

“Nothing really fazes them,” UAlbany head coach Greg Gattuso said. “We’ve played in a hurricane. We’ve traveled to Hawaii. We’ve been battle-tested, I think, in every way you can. So that’s why flying across country isn’t going to make us blink at all.”

The Great Danes are 0-8 in program history in games played outside the Eastern time zone, including this year’s competitive defeats at Marshall and Hawaii of the Football Bowl Subdivision. They’re 0-3 at Big Sky programs with losses at Montana in 2002 and 2007 and an FCS second-round defeat at Montana State in 2019.

UAlbany senior safety Larry Walker Jr. and senior long snapper Stephen Sokach-Minnick are the only remaining Great Danes who played in that Montana State loss.

Walker acknowledged this UAlbany team is better than the one that lost 47-21 in Bozeman, Mont.

“When we were going out to Montana, it was our first playoff berth, so we didn’t know what to expect,” Walker said. “Now since all the away games this year, and we know who we are and we know what it takes to win, especially on the road, it’s like more comfortable to go to Idaho.”

The Great Danes are aiming for their first dome victory. They lost at North Dakota State and Syracuse indoors in 2021.

Poffenbarger, who wasn’t on the team two years ago, said the team will be ready for the noise in the 16,000-seat Kibbie Dome.

“We prepared for it with Marshall, we prepared for it with Baylor (last year) and it wasn’t a factor in either of those games,’ ” Poffenbarger said. “I think the noise level could be very similar to the sold-out Baylor game we played last year. It’s going to be interesting, but we’re definitely prepared for whatever happens.”

The game features a quarterback matchup of Poffenbarger, who leads the FCS with 33 touchdown passes, and Idaho redshirt sophomore quarterback Gevani McCoy. Gattuso and Idaho coach Jason Eck likened the quarterbacks for their ability to extend plays with their legs.

UAlbany’s defense, ranked No. 1 in the country against the run at 75.9 yards per game and first with 49 sacks, will face Mc-Coy, junior wide receiver Hayden Hatten (81 catches) and sophomore running back Anthony Woods (1,051 rushing yards).

Great Danes freshman running back Griffin Woo-dell of Glens Falls (790 yards) will try to find room against an Idaho defense that allows 125.1 rushing yards per game.

The winner of Saturday’s game faces the victor of another Saturday quarterfinal between No. 8 Villanova and No. 1 South Dakota State. If UAlbany wins, the Great Danes would travel next weekend to South Dakota State for a semifinal, or Villanova would come to Casey Stadium.

[mainejeff]

Good luck today guys!  Get that W!

[DanesRGood]

Wake up!!!!  It's game day!!!!!  Let's win the effing game!!!!!

[alum73]

3 hours ago, DanesRGood said:

Wake up!!!!  It's game day!!!!!  Let's win the effing game!!!!!

And.. Go Villanova!

[jimbo]

Nova down 3-0 after 1. 29 degrees, 25 mph wind gusting to 45! 

[jimbo]

Nova down 10-9 at the half. Cortland up 35-0 at the half. 

[jimbo]

Nova put up a good fight. Cortland won big.