No Point to Continue Saturday Looks Good

ITHACA, N.Y. – The nationally ranked No. 12/13 Ithaca College football team is set to host the University of Rochester at 1 p.m. on October 8 at Butterfield Stadium. The Bombers, which are 4-0 overall and 1-0 in the Liberty League, will look to continue their unbeaten start to the season. Rochester is 1-3 through four games.

GAME COVERAGE

WATCH | LISTEN | LIVE STATS | GAME NOTES

ALL-TIME SERIES/TODAY'S GAME: Ithaca and Rochester will play for the fifth all-time meeting on Saturday at Butterfield Stadium. The Bombers are 4-0 against the Yellowjackets and have only allowed 23 points in those contests, whiling scoring 170.

IC topped UR last season, 37-14, in Rochester as the Bombers racked up 577 yards of offense.

DEFENSE EQUALS OFFENSE: Ithaca has six takeaways on the season through four games and two of those were returned for touchdowns – a 21-yard fumble return by Jason Haber against Hobart and a 32-yard interception return by Jason Green against Alfred. Two other takeaways led to scores by the offense, and IC has one safety so far this season.

RECAP FROM HOBART: Ithaca put up 21 points in the second quarter at Hobart last Saturday and never looked back as the Bombers came away with a 31-7 win in both teams' Liberty League opener.

Jalen Hines got IC on the board with a 1-yard run on the opening play of the second quarter and then the Bombers scored twice in a matter of 15 seconds as Derek Slywka brought an interception by 35 yards and then Billy Tedeschi connected with Jalen Leonard-Osbourne for a 30-yard touchdown pass. Hobart then sent a snap over its quarterback's head and Haber took it back 21 yards for the score. Ithaca added 10 more points in the third quarter on a 1-yard run by A.J. Wingfield and a 48-yard field goal from Nicholas Bahamonde.

TWELVE QUARTERS OR 190:59: Ithaca surrendered its first touchdown in nearly three games as Hobart scored with 4:57 remaining in the contest last weekend. After a score by Bridgewater State with 56 seconds remaining in the third quarter of the opening contest this season, IC did not allow a touchdown for 12 quarters, or 190:59 minutes.

NATIONAL RANKING UPDATE: The Bombers moved up to No. 12 in the D3football.com Top 25 Poll, but the voters are beginning to distribute votes among the nation's elite as North Central has 18 votes, followed by five for Mount Union and one each for Whitewater and Mary Hardin-Baylor. IC remained at 12th in the AFCA poll.

WHERE TO BOMBERS STACK UP IN DIVISION III: The Bombers now rank within the top 20 nationally in the following team categories.

3rd – Kick Return Average (32.1)
6th – Defensive Touchdowns (2)
7th – Turnovers Lost (2)
7th – Passing Efficiency Defense (81.0)
8th – Scoring Defense (6.0)
8th – Fewest Penalties Per Game (3.3)
10th – Sacks Allowed Per Game (.5)
10th – Fewest Penalties (13)
14th – Third Down Defense (.246)
15th – Fourth Down Conversion (.778)
17th – Total Defense (225.5)
19th – Third Down Offense (.517)

HALL OF FAME RECOGNITION: On Friday evening, Ithaca College will hold its 52nd Hall of Fame ceremony in Emerson Suites to induct its newest class. The 2022 class consists of the 2002 national championship softball team, Janos 'Jim' Benedek '66, Bob Durocher '81, Steve Graham '89, Adam Grossman '01, Mike Matheny, Marcia McCord Cobrand '11, Dara Porterfield Dalmata '99 and Heather Stafford Piper '98.

This group will also be honored during halftime on Saturday.

NATIONAL CHAMPIONS: Also at halftime on Saturday, IC will celebrate the department's three national champions from the 2021-22 academic year – Meghan Matheny, women's track & field; Jalen Leonard-Osbourne, men's track & field and Ava Lowell, women's swimming & diving.

SCOUTING ROCHESTER: UR enters Saturday's game with a 1-3 overall record and 0-1 mark in the Liberty League. The Yellowjackets are averaging 16 points and 249 yards rushing per game, while allowing 28.5 points.

UR's 249 rushing yards per game ranks 13th in Division III and a major reason for that output is running back Daniel Papantonis, who is No. 1 in DIII with 733 yards on the ground for an average of 183.2 yards a game. Papantonis has scored seven touchdowns on the year but has been kept out of the end zone each of the past two games for the Yellowjackets.

Will Varney has contributed 262 yards to UR's rushing attack on 48 carries, while Ryan Rose has thrown for 434 yards over four games.

Caden Cole leads the defense with 41 total tackles, while Bradley Beckwith (26), Simon Weeren (23), Andy Kristian (20) and Jack Yensel (20) will all be factors in stopping Ithaca's offensive attack.

UP NEXT: Ithaca will remain at home next Saturday, October 15 for a 1 p.m. kickoff against St. Lawrence University.

Players Mentioned

#48 Nicholas Bahamonde

K

6' 1"

160 lbs

Senior

#90 Jason Green

DL

6' 3"

245 lbs

Junior

#27 Jason Haber

LB

6' 0"

205 lbs

Senior

#33 Jalen Hines

RB

5' 8"

195 lbs

Junior

#14 Jalen Leonard-Osbourne

RB

5' 8"

185 lbs

Junior

#31 Derek Slywka

DB

6' 3"

200 lbs

Senior

#8 Billy Tedeschi

WR

5' 10"

170 lbs

Senior

#6 A.J. Wingfield

QB

5' 11"

180 lbs

Senior

Players Mentioned

#48 Nicholas Bahamonde

6' 1"

160 lbs

Senior

K

#90 Jason Green

6' 3"

245 lbs

Junior

DL

#27 Jason Haber

6' 0"

205 lbs

Senior

LB

#33 Jalen Hines

5' 8"

195 lbs

Junior

RB

#14 Jalen Leonard-Osbourne

5' 8"

185 lbs

Junior

RB

#31 Derek Slywka

6' 3"

200 lbs

Senior

DB

#8 Billy Tedeschi

5' 10"

170 lbs

Senior

WR

#6 A.J. Wingfield

5' 11"

180 lbs

Senior

QB

ballardhicithe.blogspot.com

Source: https://athletics.ithaca.edu/news/2022/10/5/no-12-13-football-looks-to-continue-winning-streak-vs-rochester-on-saturday.aspx

Share this post