Game #7 - Buffalo State Bengals at Ithaca Bombers
Saturday, Oct. 23, 2021 - 2:00 PM
Butterfield Stadium (Ithaca, N.Y.)
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The Matchup…The Buffalo State football team travels to the Finger Lakes to take on Liberty League foe Ithaca College this Saturday. Ithaca, ranked 16th in the D3Football.com and 14th in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) poll, holds a 17-10 advantage all-time in the series between the two teams, which began in 1988.
 

The "Ruby" Season...Buffalo State Football embarks on its 40th season of varsity competition in 2021. Sept. 12, 1981 was the first varsity football game for the Bengals, falling to Alfred. The Bengals finished 3-3 in their opening season, defeating Niagara twice, sandwiched around a victory over St. John Fisher by a 16-7 score. The Bengals originally started as a club program in 1980, before earning varsity status the next year.

Buffalo State 150...This year marks the 150th year of Buffalo State College. Founded in 1871, Buffalo State has grown tremendously, and is now the largest comprehensive four-year college in the State University of New York system, educating over 9,000 undergraduate and graduate students each year.

The Bengals' Last Game…A pair of late Rochester scores were the difference as the Bengals dropped a 14-7 decision to the Yellowjackets on Oct. 16. 

It was a defensive struggle from the start, as Brandon Barksdale (Buffalo, N.Y./Bennett) picked off a Sean Casey pass on 2nd-and-6, returning to the Buffalo 42-yard line in Rochester's first possession. Later in the quarter, it was the Rochester special teams' unit that made a play, as Tommy Wunder recovered a muffed Buffalo State punt at the Bengals' 39-yard line.

Rochester got into the redzone in the second quarter, but the 20-yard field goal attempt by Shane Bombace was pushed wide right. Beginning the second half, Rochester went on a 13-play, 66-yard drive, but Jordan Laudani missed a 21-yard field goal to keep the game scoreless.

'State took advantage on the next possession, as Cam Sionko (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island) found Tariq Nelson (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) on a screen pass, as he raced 42 yards to the Rochester 40-yard line. Four plays later, Sionko scrambled 19 yards for the touchdown as the Bengals took a 7-0 lead.

On Buffalo's first play from scrimmage in the fourth quarter, the Bengals attempted a flea-flicker that was fumbled and recovered by Rochester's Joe DeBonis at the Buffalo State 27-yard line. The Yellowjackets took advantage 11 plays later, as Will Varney plunged ahead for a one-yard touchdown to tie the game at seven.

Later in the quarter, Rochester took a 14-7 lead on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Rose to Daniel Papantonis with 4:15 to go. With the ball down seven, the Bengals were unable to convert a fourth-down play at the Bengals' 47-yard line, as Sionko's pass to Nelson fell incomplete. Rochester gained one more first down to run out the clock. 

The Buffalo State defense was excellent, led by Ethan Biscaro's (Batavia, N.Y./Batavia) career-high 16 tackles (0.5 for loss). Peyton Hill (Lagrangeville, N.Y./Arlington) recorded a sack and added 15 tackles, 1.5 for loss, Mike Glinski (Buffalo, N.Y./West Seneca West) added 13 tackles (four solo, 2 for loss), Seth Penn (Angola, N.Y./Lake Shore) forced a fumble and added 10 tackles and a sack, and Brendan Cimerman (Clarence, N.Y./Clarence) led the team with 1.5 sacks, recording nine tackles (three for loss).

Offensively, Nelson led the receiving corps with four receptions for 66 yards, while Sionko completed 9 of 18 passes for 88 yards. He also rushed for 10 yards and a touchdown.

National Leaders...Buffalo State is the least penalized team in the conference, with just 29 on the season...Barksdale leads the conference with 1.3 passes defensed per game...Glinski also leads the league and is 22nd nationally with 10.2 tackles per game. Justin Jones (Amherst, N.Y./Canisius) is second in the conference and 81st nationally with 8.6 tackles per game...Che'Kore Moore (Niagara Falls, NY/Niagara Falls) is second in the conference with 15.9 yards per reception...Cam Crosier (Kenmore, N.Y./Kenmore West) is third in the league with 4.8 receptions per game.

Liberty League Honors...The following Buffalo State student-athletes have earned Liberty League weekly honors this season:

Sept. 7 - Tariq Nelson (Liberty League Honor Roll)

Oct. 4 - Mike Glinski & Justin Jones (Liberty League Honor Roll)

Scouting Ithaca...Ithaca enters Saturday's contest with a 6-0 record, sitting atop the Liberty League standings with a 3-0 record. Last week, the Bomber 'D' stood strong, shutting out St. Lawrence by a 17-0 score for their second shutout of the season. 

Defensively, the Bombers are among the national leaders in scoring defense (ninth), passing efficiency defense (fifth), red zone defense (ninth), and third down conversion defense (18th). Offensively, they're second nationally in completion percentage (.730).

Individually, A.J. Wingfield has completed 135 of 185 passes (.730) for 1,561 yards and 11 touchdowns to six interceptions. Wingfield is sixth nationally in completion percentage, and also leads the league in passing yards, total offense (278.2 yards), and yards per pass attempt (8.44). His top target is Andrew Vito, who has 41 receptions for 460 yards and three touchdowns. Michael Anderson leads the team in yards (471) and touchdowns (six) on 28 receptions. On the ground, Jalen Hines has earned a majority of the carries for Ithaca, with 83 carries for 411 yards and four touchdowns. Defensively, Michael Roumes leads the way with 27 tackles, 1.5 for loss. He also has two interceptions. Anthony Robinson has a team-leading three picks, with 22 tackles. Antonio Valle is the team's sack leader with three. On the special teams front, Nicholas Bahamonde is 8 for 10 in field goals, with a long of 42 yards.

Last Time We Met...Nationally-ranked No. 10 Ithaca scored 38 first-half points and piled up 305 first-half yards en route to a 48-14 victory over visiting Buffalo State in the Bengals' first-ever Liberty League contest on Oct. 12, 2019.

Ithaca began the game with an onside kick, jumping on the board with a one-yard touchdown on the ensuing drive by QB Joe Germinerio. The Bombers would double up the score after Buffalo State's fake punt try failed, leading to a touchdown pass to Vito.

'State cut the deficit in half with a big passing play, as Zak Ciezki found Jordan Evert for 49 yards. The Bombers then scored four consecutive touchdowns in the first and second quarter, as they entered halftime with a 38-7 lead. 

In the second half, Bahamonde converted on a 32-yard field goal as the Bombers led 41-7, but the Bengals responded with another Ciezki-Evert touchdown connection, this time from 28 yards out. Ithaca ended the scoring late in the third as Kendall Anderson rushed it in from nine yards out. 

Buffalo State had one final opportunity to cut into the lead as it used a 15-play, 52-yard drive that put itself on the Ithaca 11-yard line, but the Bengals failed to capitalize as the Bomber's defense forces two incompletions and a tackle for a loss. 

Ithaca finished with 483 yards of total offense, including 342 passing yards, compared to 358 yards of total offense for Buffalo State.

The Wizard of 'Oz'...Christian Ozolins was promoted to interim head football coach on Nov. 16, 2019 and will serve in that capacity through the 2021 season.

Ozolins joined the Bengals' coaching staff in 2003 and was promoted to assistant head coach and offensive coordinator in 2013. He also served as the offensive backs coach and the recruiting and academic coordinator.

His previous college coaching experience includes stints at Maryville, Methodist, Alfred University and Hamilton. As a player, he played in the NAIA National Championship Game for Cumberland University in Tennessee.

He earned his bachelor's in education from Cumberland and completed a master's degree from Alfred University. Christian also serves as the recreation and intramurals manager on campus. He and his wife Sharon reside in South Buffalo with their son CJ who played football at Canisius High School.

Looking Ahead…The annual I-90 Bowl returns, as the Bengals host rival Brockport State from Coyer Field on Saturday, Oct. 30 at noon.