Pioneers Travel to U of Rochester Saturday
Posted: Sep 13, 2017

Pioneers Travel to U of Rochester Saturday

Alfred State at Rochester

Saturday, September 16, 2017 * Noon * Pioneer Stadium (Alfred, NY)

History between Teams: 5th meeting, Rochester leads series 4-0, Rochester defeated Alfred State 55-27 last season.

Common Opponents: None

Players to Watch:

Alfred State

 Rochester
WR #81 Joe Moscato QB # 10 Matt Gallagher
C #70 Devon Clark/LG #79 Todd Capen WR #2 Dan Bronson
LB #52 Justin Espinal RB #9 Harry Calmar
DE #55 John Lauretti LB #51 Ricky Simcic
FS #8 Jamal Little SS #24 Ryan Henry

Tale of the Tape:

Alfred State   Rochester
0-2 2017 Record 0-1

3.5 ppg & 142.5 yards per game

(140 passing & 2.5 rushing)

3rd Down Conversion: 5 of 27

Red Zone: 1 of 1 - 1 TD

 Offensive Stats

14 ppg & 263 yards per game

(113 passing & 150 rushing)

3rd Down Conversion: 6 of 18

Red Zone: 2 of 2 - 2 TD's

39.5 ppg & 456.5 yards per game

(274.5 passing & 182 rushing)

3rd Down Conversion: 7 of 21

Red Zone: 9 of 12 - 6 TD's, 3 FG's

 Defensive Stats

42 ppg & 511 yards per game

(192 passing & 319 rushing)

3rd Down Conversion: 4 of 7

Red Zone: 2 of 2 - 2 TD's

Turnover Ratio: -2 (4 turnovers/2 takeaways)

Time of Possession: 30:53

Penalties: 9 for 73 yards

 Team Stats Turnover Ratio: +2 (1 turnovers/3 takeaways)

Time of Possession: 36:41

Penalties: 5 for 40 yards

Scouting the Pioneers:

  • Alfred State renews their series with the U of Rochester. The teams have met in each of the last five seasons. Last season, the contest was tied at 20-20 at half and the Pioneers retook the lead early in the 2nd half 27-20 but U of R put together five 2nd half touchdown drives to take control of the game. Justin Espinal made 12 tackles and Brandon Davis had 11. Zack Goodwin connected on 2 of his 3 field goal attempts (24 and 35 yards). Dan Bronson, who is listed as a wide receiver this year after starting at quarterback vs. Alfred State last year, was 14 for 23 for 237 yards and two scores and rushed for 145 yards and three scores on 21 carries. 
  • In their final non league contest, the Pioneers will look to bounce back from a 45-0 loss in their home opener vs. Hartwick. The Pioneers offense only gained 77 yards while the Hawks were able to get offensive contributions in the running game (258 yards) and the passing game (309 yards). The blue & gold lost the turnover battle (-2) and was 1 of 13 on 3rd downs. 
  • The Pioneers rushed for 157 yards last year vs. U of R and will look to get that side of the offense going stronger this week. U of R allowed 319 yards rushing last week vs. Carnegie Mellon. The Pioneers were held to -18 yards last week (5 sacks allowed) in their contest vs. Hartwick.
  • Brandon Davis, the 2nd leading tackler from 2016, led the team with 11 tackles last week and is second on the team with 14 total tackles.
  • Hunter Evingham and Eli Frantz have both seen time behind center in both games. The battle for playing time will most likely continue this weekend.
  • Creating big plays in all facets of the game will be a key to success. The Pioneers longest play from scrimmage this year has been 34 yards. 

Scouting the Yellowjackets:

  • Member of the Liberty League, 2016 Record: 1-8
  • The Yellowjackets are coming off a 42-14 loss at Carnegie Mellon last weekend to open up their season. The Tartans rushed for 319 total yards in the contest as they jumped out to a 42-0 lead at the half. The duo of Matt Gallagher and Josh Brown took the snaps at quarterback as Daniel Bronson, last year's starter, has moved to wide receiver. Harry Calmar led the rushing attack with 78 yards on 19 carries. Ricky Simcic led the defense with nine tackles and Ryan Henry intercepted two passed and broke out a total of four pass plays.
  • The athletic ability of the quarterbacks at the University of Rochester has been a key factor in all the meetings between the two schools. 
  • Stopping Alfred State on 3rd down will be a point of emphasis as Carnegie Melon was 4 of 7 last week. Limiting sacks will be key as well - the Yellowjackets allowed seven sacks last week.

Game Day Information:

Next Up:

Alfred State has next weekend off but returns to action on September 30th when they open up ECFC play at SUNY Maritime. Kickoff is slated for 1 p.m.

Rochester travels to Alfred University next Saturday at 1 p.m.