Dezmund Hunter intercepts a pass in the end zone to give Cortland the overtime win against Alfred University on Sat., Oct. 14 (Darl Zehr Photography)
SUNY CORTLAND FOOTBALL NOTES
Cortland Red Dragons (6-3) vs. Ithaca College Bombers (6-3)
Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017; Noon; Butterfield Stadium; Ithaca, N.Y.
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THE MATCHUP: Cortland travels to long-time rival Ithaca for the annual Cortaca Jug game - a contest once referred to as "The Biggest Little Game in the Nation" by Sports Illustrated.
THE SERIES: This is the 59th time that Cortland and Ithaca are playing for the Cortaca Jug. The schools actually started playing in 1930 and have met every year since 1948. Ithaca leads the overall series 39-33-3. In 1959, friends and team captains Tom Decker of Cortland and Dick Carmean of Ithaca originated the Cortaca Jug as the prize for the winner of the game between the schools located about 20 miles apart on Route 13.
The original jug was purchased at a yard sale. Each year, the game's result is printed on the Jug. The first Jug ran out of room for scores in the mid-1980s, necessitating a second Jug. That Jug ran out of room for scores after the 2015 season, and a third Jug was created to list the scores beginning in 2016.
Ithaca leads the Jug series 34-24, which does not include the Bombers' 1988 NCAA playoff win over the Red Dragons. Cortland, however, is 14-7 versus the Bombers since 1996, including wins each of the last seven seasons. Cortland's seven-game winning streak is its longest in the series. The Red Dragons beat Ithaca five straight years from 1955-59, capped by a win in the inaugural Cortaca Jug game at Ithaca. The longest winning streak in the series is nine by Ithaca from 1973-81, and the Bombers also won five straight from 1983-87.
For the last two years, Cortland and Ithaca met as Empire 8 foes. Ithaca, however, is now a member of the Liberty League. Cortland joined the Empire 8 as an affiliate member in 2015 after being in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) from 2000-14 and being an independent prior to that.
Last year, Cortland defeated Ithaca in Cortland, 28-16. Brett Segala completed 27-of-46 passes for 358 yards and four touchdowns. His passing yards were the second-best ever by a Cortland QB versus Ithaca (John Simek threw for 363 yards in 1978). Segala started last season fifth on Cortland's quarterback depth chart, and he was actually the winning QB in Cortland's mid-season junior varsity victory over Ithaca before eventually moving up the varsity ranks due to injuries.
Jon Mannix, Anthony Pintabona, Josh Riley and Chris Osterman each caught TD passes. Mannix finished with 11 receptions for 190 yards, the sixth-highest single-game total in school history. Mark DeLuise recorded a game-high 12 tackles and Max Jean broke up four passes. Cortland sealed the win with four straight sacks by Tanner Olson, Dylan Ferrari, Dan Appley and Tom Hagan on Ithaca's final possession with less than four minutes remaining.
Ithaca's Tristan Brown ran 25 times for 104 yards. Wolfgang Shafer completed 17-of-26 passes for 196 yards and two touchdowns. Will Gladney caught both of those TD passes and ended with 11 receptions for 138 yards. Dan Loizos made 10 tackles, and the Bombers registered three interceptions - one each by Kenny Bradley, Jordan Schemm and Mike Miller.
In 2015, Cortland clinched the Empire 8 title with an 11-8 win at Ithaca. In 2014, Cortland won at home over the Bombers, 23-20, in one of the most wild and memorable finishes in the rivalry's history. The Red Dragons trailed 20-17 and were lining up for a potential game-tying field goal with no timeouts left and the clock winding down. Holder Luke Hinton was late getting on the field, and was actually looking back at the kicker when a low snap hit him in the leg. Hinton recovered, rolled to his left and threw the game-winning TD pass to Mannix as time expired. The play was recognized as the nation's number-three play on ESPN's SportsCenter Top 10 that evening.
Of the last 20 games in the series (1997-2016), 15 have been decided by eight points or less. In the previous 58 Cortaca Jug games, Cortland is 7-4 in games decided by 1-3 points and 11-7 in games decided by 4-8 points, but Ithaca is 8-3 when the margin is 9-16 points and 15-3 when a team wins by 17 or more.
CORTLAND CAPSULE: Cortland closed Empire 8 play with a 24-23 win over visiting Utica on Senior Day last Saturday. The Red Dragons won despite being outgained 302-162 in total offense by the Pioneers. Cortland, however, blocked two punts that led to 10 points. My-Kell Farrar blocked a punt early in the first quarter to set up a field goal, and Kyle Carlson blocked a punt with less than 12 minutes remaining that Dakym Davis returned 35 yards to put Cortland ahead 24-20.
Kyle Richard led Cortland's defense with a career-high 15 tackles, 12 solo, with a sack and three quarterback hurries. His sack on third down during Utica's final possession helped seal the victory. Richard was honored as the Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this fall, and he also was recognized on the D3football.com national Team of the Week. Mark DeLuise finished with 13 tackles, 12 solo, and Max Jean intercepted a pass that led to a late first-half touchdown.
Steven Ferreira finished 10-of-22 passing for 108 yards and two touchdowns before leaving the game with an injury late in the third quarter. Brett Segala finished the game in his first quarterback appearance of the season. Alex Wasserman caught six passes for 65 yards and a touchdown and Zach Tripodi also caught a TD pass. Nick Mongelliaveraged 41.1 yards per punt on seven kicks.
Through nine games, Ferreira is 163-of-271 passing for 2,171 yards and 20 touchdowns with six interceptions. Nick Anderson has caught 38 passes for 520 yards and seven touchdowns, and Johnnie Akins is the team's top rusher with 609 yards and seven scores in eight appearances. Mark DeLuise has recorded 78 tackles and two interceptions in nine games, followed by Richard with 60 tackles in eight contests, including 47 stops over his last four outings. Isaac Hicks has three of Cortland's 11 interceptions, while Dylan Ferrari has six of the Red Dragons' 22 sacks.
Head coach Dan MacNeill is in his 21st season with the Red Dragons. His overall record of 139-78 (.641) ranks him first at Cortland in career victories and winning percentage. He was the 2015 HERO Sports National Coach of the Year and the D3football.com East Region Coach of the Year, and he and his assistants were chosen as the Empire 8 Coaching Staff of the Year. In addition, he's been the New Jersey Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in both 2008 and 2012, and also was a finalist for Liberty Mutual National Division III Coach of the Year honors in 2008 after leading the Red Dragons to the league title and the NCAA quarterfinals.
MacNeill has guided Cortland to six NCAA playoff appearances (1997, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2012 and 2015) and eight ECAC bowl games (most recently in 2016), and will bring his team to the inaugural New York State Bowl this season. His 2008 squad was honored with the Lambert Meadowlands Trophy and the ECAC Division III Team of the Year awards. MacNeill is a 1979 Cortland alumnus and played linebacker and defensive tackle from 1975-78. Previously an assistant coach at Division I-AA Villanova University for 13 years, MacNeill is Cortland's 11th head coach since the school's modern era of football began in 1924. He joined the Villanova staff in 1984, and he served as linebackers coach and was the team's defensive coordinator from 1988-96.
A LOOK AT...ITHACA COLLEGE: Ithaca put itself in position for a possible Liberty League title and an NCAA automatic berth with a 20-3 win over visiting Union last Saturday. Ithaca needs Union to defeat RPI in the annual "Dutchman Shoes" Saturday in order to earn an NCAA bid (that result would leave Union and Ithaca tied for first, with the Bombers holding the head-to-head tiebreaker). However, if RPI beats Union, RPI will finished tied for first with Ithaca in the conference and defeated the Bombers earlier this fall.
Ithaca held Union to 188 yards of total offense and forced three turnovers. The Bombers trailed 3-0 in the second quarter, but tied it later in that period on a David Prudhomme 21-yard field goal and took the lead in the third on Prudhomme's 33-yard kick. Ithaca pulled away with two touchdowns in the game's final six minutes on a Tristan Brown 1-yard run and an Isaiah D'Haiti 16-yard run.
Wahid Nabi completed 30-of-40 passes for 284 yards. Two Bombers finished with double-figure receptions - Andrew Vito with 12 catches for 132 yards and Will Gladney with 10 grabs for 82 yards. Dan Loizos totaled 12 tackles and a forced fumble and Jordan Schemm made 11 stops and recovered a fumble.
In eight appearances this season, Nabi is 162-of-248 passing (65.3 percent) for 2,009 yards and nine touchdowns. Gladney has caught 66 passes for 923 yards and five touchdowns, followed by Vito with 39 receptions for 514 yards and two scores. Brown leads the ground game with 523 yards and five touchdowns. D'Haiti has rushed for seven scores.
Four Bombers have more than 60 tackles on the season. Loizos leads the way with 76 tackles, along with an interception, two forced fumbles and four pass breakups. Kenny Bradley has 65 tackles and four breakups, Brian Gill has made 64 tackles, and Pat Minogue has 63 stops. Minogue is also the team's punter, averaging 36.9 yards per kick. Prudhomme is 5-of-11 on field goal attempts, with a long of 39 yards, and is 22-of-24 on PAT kicks.
Dan Swanstrom is in his first season as Ithaca's head coach. He replaced Mike Welch, who retired after 23 seasons at the Bombers' helm. Swanstrom is the 10th head coach in program history, and only the third since 1967. The late Jim Butterfield (for whom Ithaca's field is named) coached 27 seasons before his retirement after the 1993 season.
Swanstrom was the quarterbacks coach and recruiting coordinator at Penn from 2014-16, and from 2008-13 he progressed from quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator to associate head coach at Johns Hopkins University. His collegiate coaching career began as an assistant at the University of Redlands in California from 2006-08. Swanstrom is a Texas native and a 2005 graduate of Rhodes College (Tenn.), where he was a two-time captain, the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year, and a Gagliardi Trophy finalist.
NOTEBOOK:
* Cortland's win versus Utica last Saturday, combined with Alfred's loss at Brockport, sealed the Red Dragons' berth into the inaugural New York State Bowl. The Empire 8 representative will play at the Liberty League representative, to be determined, in that bowl game Nov. 18. Cortland is no longer is a member of the ECAC and therefore is not eligible for that organization's postseason bowl games.
* Cortland quarterback Steven Ferreira ranks second on Cortland's career charts with 5,875 passing yards in just 23 games. The school record is 6,007 yards by J.J. Tutwiler from 2000-03. Ferraira also ranks second at Cortland with 53 TD passes, one shy of Dan Pitcher's 54 from 2008-11, and second in total offense with 6,393 yards (Tutwiler leads with 6,598). Ferreira has thrown at least one TD pass in 22-of-23 outings, including all nine games this season. The school record for consecutive games with a TD pass is 13, set by both Ferreira spanning 2015-16, and Pitcher in 2010-11. Ferraira is the school record-holder with eight career 300-yard passing games.
* Cortland continues to excel on scoring during its trip to the "red zone" (inside the opponents' 20-yard line). Cortland has scored on 91 percent of its attempts (32-of-35) with 23 touchdowns and nine field goals to rank eighth nationally in Division III. Only one of those three failures was due to a turnover (interception at Framingham); the other two were long missed field goals. Since the stat was first tracked at Cortland in 2000, the Red Dragons' best season success rate was 88 percent (30-of-34 with 22 TDs) in 2013, followed by 82 percent in both 2007 and 2008. Cortland is holding opponents this fall to 73 percent scoring success in the red zone (29-of-40) with 23 touchdowns and six field goals.
* In eight of Cortland's first nine games this fall, the teams have been within seven points of each other in the fourth quarter. The only game not within that margin in the fourth quarter was the Red Dragons' 38-12 win at Buffalo State. Cortland was tied 31-31 after three quarters with Empire 8 champion Brockport, won in overtime versus 2016 league champ Alfred, won by two versus Augustana and by one against Hartwick on fourth-quarter field goals, and trailed by two in the fourth quarter in a loss at Framingham State.
* Cortland ranks fourth nationally in Division III with eight blocked kicks this season - four PAT blocks by Dan Appley, two field goal blocks by Travis Alvarez, and two blocked punts last week versus Utica by My-Kell Farrar and Kyle Carlson.
Wisconsin-Eau Claire leads the nation with 11 blocks, followed by Wesley and Husson with nine each. Cortland's team record is nine blocks in a season three times, including last year.
Appley is currently in a five-way tie for second nationally with his four blocks, two behind Husson's Jean Gabriel. The school single-season record is six blocks by Josh Jablonski in 2005. Through two seasons, Alvarez has seven career blocks, two away from tying Jablonski's school record of nine (2002-06, 08) and one shy of the second-place eight by R-Kal Truluck (1992, 94-96). Truluck played in the NFL for four seasons (Chiefs 2002-03, Packers 2004, Cardinals 2005).
* Former Cortland tight end Tyreek Burwell is the second former Cortland player to play in the NFL, after R-Kal Truluck (see note above). He played for Cortland from 2010-11, and eventually transferred to the University of Cincinnati and was an offensive lineman for the Bearcats from 2013-14. He signed as an undrafted rookie with the San Diego Chargers and played in 11 games in 2015 and five in 2016. He was signed to the Indianapolis Colts' practice squad this past September, and was moved to the Colts' active roster on November 2. Burwell caught one pass as a Red Dragon - a 2-yard TD reception at Ithaca in the 2011 Cortaca Jug game.
* Cortland is 6-4 all-time in overtime games, including a 20-17 win at home versus Alfred this year. All 10 of those overtime games were decided in the first extra session. Cortland and Ithaca have played two overtime games, with Cortland winning 37-30 at Ithaca in 2005 on an Alex Smith TD pass to Anthony Morat, followed by a Stef Sair interception, and 23-20 at home in 2006 when Bill Hauser picked off a pass and Matthew Mintz made a 40-yard field goal.
* Cortland is outscoring its opponents 261-250 this year despite being outscored in the first quarter (77-69), third quarter (48-17) and fourth quarter (77-62). The Red Dragons hold a 110-48 scoring advantage in the second quarter, and 3-0 in overtime.
* William Holscher is 33-for-33 on PAT kicks this season and 9-of-11 on field goal attempts. The senior had not attempted any placekicks in 2015 or 2016, and was a member of Cortland's soccer team as a freshman in 2014. The last Cortland kicker to go an entire season without missing a PAT kick (minimum 25 made) was Matthew Mintz (35-of-35) in 2006.
* Cortland is in its third season in the Empire 8 this fall. The Red Dragons joined the league in 2015 after 15 seasons in the New Jersey Athletic Conference. Cortland finished in at least a tie for first in the NJAC six times (2005-08, 2010, 2012) and shared the Empire 8 crown last season. Four current Empire 8 members - Cortland, Brockport, Buffalo State and Morrisville State - at one point played in the NJAC and are affiliate members of the E8 in football only. The other league teams - Alfred, Hartwick, St. John Fisher and Utica - are full conference members. Ithaca left the Empire 8 after last year to become a member of the Liberty League.
* Cortland and Ithaca rank in the top 40 nationally in Division III in the following team and individual categories:
CORTLAND:
4th, Blocked Kicks (Punts/FG/PAT), 8
8th, Red Zone Offense, 91.4 pct.
16th, Blocked Punts, 2
31st, Fewest Blocked Kicks Allowed (Punts/FG/PAT), 1
40th, Fewest Passes Had Intercepted, 6
Dan Appley, 2nd, Blocked Kicks, 4
Dakym Davis, 3rd, Punt Return Touchdowns, 1
William Holscher, 14th, Field Goal Percentage, 81.8 pct.
Travis Alvarez, 21st, Blocked Kicks, 2
William Holscher, 30th, Field Goals, 1.0/game
Dan Appley, 35th, Fumbles Recovered, 2
Kyle Richard, 35th, Fumbles Recovered, 2
Steven Ferreira, 40th, Passing Touchdowns, 20
ITHACA:
10th, Kickoff Return Defense, 15.1 yds./return
16th, Blocked Punts, 2
25th, Fewest Fumbles Lost, 4
26th, Scoring Defense, 14.6 pts./game
29th, Passing Efficiency Defense, 104.0 opponent rating
31st, Completion Percentage, 63.4 pct.
33rd, Total Defense, 286.1 yds./game
38th, Blocked Kicks (Punts/FG/PAT), 4
Ryan Bronson, 3rd, Punt Return Touchdowns, 1
Will Gladney, 20th, Receptions, 7.3/game
Wahid Nabi, 24th, Completion Percentage, 65.3 pct.
Will Gladney, 28th, Receiving Yards, 102.6 yds./game
Brian Gill, 35th, Fumbles Recovered, 2
Tyler Kishbaugh, 35th, Fumbles Recovered, 2
Wahid Nabi, 36th, Completions, 20.3/game
2017 Cortland Weekly Award Winners (game date/opponent in parentheses)
Dan Appley, Defensive Line/Special Teams
D3football.com National Team of the Week (Special Teams) (Oct. 7 at Buffalo St.)
Mark DeLuise, Linebacker
Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Week (Sept. 2 vs. Augustana)
D3football.com National Team of the Week (Sept. 2 vs. Augustana)
William Holscher, Kicker
Empire 8 Special Teams Player of the Week (Sept. 2 vs. Augustana)
Kyle Richard, Linebacker
Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Week (Oct. 14 vs. Alfred)
Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Week (Nov. 4 vs. Utica)
D3football.com National Team of the Week (Nov. 4 vs. Utica)
D'monte Woody, Defensive Back/Special Teams
D3football.com National Team of the Week (Special Teams) (Oct. 21 at Morrisville St.)
SCHEDULES/RESULTS:
CORTLAND (6-3)
Sept. 2 AUGUSTANA (IL).............................. W 34-32
Sept. 9 at Framingham St. (MA)..................... L 14-29
Sept. 16 * HARTWICK..................................... W 31-30
Sept. 30 * BROCKPORT................................... L 38-52
Oct. 7 * at Buffalo St. ................................... W 38-12
Oct. 14 * ALFRED........................................... W 20-17 (OT)
Oct. 21 * at Morrisville St. ...............................W 34-20
Oct. 28 * at St. John Fisher............................... L 28-35
Nov. 4 * UTICA................................................ W 24-23
Nov. 11 at Ithaca.............................................. 12:00
* Empire 8 game (5-2) HOME GAMES IN CAPS
ITHACA (6-3)
Sept. 2 ALFRED............................................... L 17-20
Sept. 9 at Brockport.......................................... L 0-31
Sept. 16 * at St. Lawrence.................................. W 24-13
Sept. 30 * HOBART............................................. W 24-21
Oct. 7 * at Rochester....................................... W 46-6
Oct. 14 * at RPI................................................. L 14-27
Oct. 21 ST. JOHN FISHER............................... W 35-10
Oct. 28 at Utica.................................................. W 14-0
Nov. 4 * UNION................................................ W 20-3
Nov. 11 CORTLAND.......................................... 12:00
* Liberty League game (4-1) HOME GAMES IN CAPS
CORTLAND vs. ITHACA - SERIES RECORD
(Ithaca leads overall series 39-33-3 and Cortaca Jug series (1959-present) 34-24)
Year Winner............................. Score Site
1930 Cortland........................ 12-0 Cortland
1931 Ithaca............................ 12-6 Ithaca
1932 Tie.................................. 0-0 Ithaca
1933 Tie.................................. 6-6 Cortland
1934 Ithaca............................. 7-0 Ithaca
1948 Cortland........................ 19-0 Cortland
1949 Cortland........................ 32-7 Ithaca
1950 Ithaca.............................. 7-6 Cortland
1951 Ithaca.......,................... 13-6 Ithaca
1952 Cortland........................ 39-6 Cortland
1953 Cortland........................ 32-0 Ithaca
1954 Tie................................ 13-13 Cortland
1955 Cortland........................ 28-0 Ithaca
1956 Cortland........................ 37-0 Cortland
1957 Cortland........................ 32-13 Ithaca
1958 Cortland........................ 16-6 Cortland
1959 Cortland........................ 13-7 Ithaca
1960 Ithaca............................ 12-6 Cortland
1961 Ithaca............................ 34-0 Ithaca
1962 Ithaca............................ 24-12 Cortland
1963 Ithaca............................ 22-7 Ithaca
1964 Cortland........................ 16-0 Cortland
1965 Ithaca............................ 13-12 Ithaca
1966 Cortland........................ 24-11 Cortland
1967 Cortland........................ 11-7 Ithaca
1968 Cortland........................ 34-13 Cortland
1969 Ithaca............................ 36-28 Ithaca
1970 Cortland.......................... 7-0 Cortland
1971 Ithaca............................ 21-13 Ithaca
1972 Cortland........................ 21-16 Cortland
1973 Ithaca............................ 41-33 Ithaca
1974 Ithaca............................ 34-33 Cortland
1975 Ithaca............................ 21-6 Ithaca
1976 Ithaca............................ 28-12 Cortland
1977 Ithaca........................... 38-17 Ithaca
1978 Ithaca............................ 27-13 Cortland
1979 Ithaca............................ 42-7 Ithaca
1980 Ithaca............................ 24-7 Cortland
1981 Ithaca............................ 42-0 Ithaca
1982 Cortland........................ 21-17 Cortland
1983 Ithaca............................ 49-26 Ithaca
1984 Ithaca............................ 42-6 Cortland
1985 Ithaca............................ 41-0 Ithaca
1986 Ithaca............................ 40-12 Cortland
1987 Ithaca............................ 37-15 Ithaca
1988 Cortland........................ 21-20 Cortland
1988 # Ithaca......................... 24-17 Ithaca
1989 Ithaca............................ 28-0 Ithaca
1990 Ithaca............................ 28-14 Cortland
1991 Ithaca............................ 23-14 Ithaca
1992 Cortland........................ 22-20 Cortland
1993 Ithaca............................ 32-14 Ithaca
1994 Ithaca........................... 15-13 Cortland
1995 Ithaca............................ 35-19 Ithaca
1996 Cortland........................ 41-13 Cortland
1997 Cortland........................ 33-28 Ithaca
1998 Ithaca............................ 37-29 Cortland
1999 Cortland........................ 26-21 Ithaca
2000 Ithaca............................ 19-14 Cortland
2001 Ithaca............................. 21-14 Ithaca
2002 Cortland........................ 16-12 Cortland
2003 Cortland........................ 16-15 Ithaca
2004 Ithaca............................ 47-22 Cortland
2005 Cortland........................ 37-30 (OT) Ithaca
2006 Cortland........................ 23-20 (OT) Cortland
2007 Ithaca............................ 40-17 Ithaca
2008 Ithaca............................ 35-13 Cortland
2009 Ithaca............................ 23-20 Ithaca
2010 Cortland....................... 20-17 Cortland
2011 Cortland....................... 27-3 Ithaca
2012 Cortland...................... 16-10 Cortland
2013 Cortland...................... 28-24 Ithaca
2014 Cortland...................... 23-20 Cortland
2015 Cortland.......................11-8 Ithaca
2016 Cortland.......................28-16 Cortland
# NCAA quarterfinals (not included in Cortaca series record)
