Game #8 - Buffalo State Bengals vs. Brockport Golden Eagles (I-90 BOWL)
Saturday, Oct. 30, 2021 - 12:00 PM
Coyer Field (Buffalo, N.Y.)
LIVE STATS    VIDEO    AUDIO - 91.3FM WBNY-Buffalo & My Team Media

The Matchup…The Buffalo State football team wraps up the 2021 season with a home matchup against Liberty League foe St. Lawrence. Saturday marks the seventh matchup between the Bengals and Saints, with the teams playing between 1982-85, resuming the matchup in 2017 and 2019.
 

I Love the 80s...The Bengals will honor the "Pioneers of Bengal Football" on Saturday, as the team will honor 1980 and 1981 teams throughout the game. Just over 41 years ago on Sept. 20, 1980, Buffalo State played its first-ever football contest as a club program, traveling to Mansfield in a narrow 7-6 loss. 14 days later, the Bengals tasted victory, defeating Niagara by a 15-8 score. Under head coach Les Dugan, the 1980 Bengals posted a 3-3 record, defeating Niagara, Marist, and Hobart.
 

The passion and commitment that those Bengals displayed paid off.  On Sept. 12, 1981 Buffalo State made a trip down to Alfred University, competing as a varsity program for the first time. Despite falling to Alfred in that matchup, the Bengals would rally, finishing with a 3-3 record in their opening season with a pair of victories against Niagara, sandwiched around a victory over St. John Fisher.

Senior Day...22 Bengal seniors will be honored on Saturday, as the group looks to play on Coyer Field for the final time in their careers. The Bengals that will be honored before Saturday's contest are Matt Gouger (Hilton, NY/Hilton), Austin Gilligan (Garrison, NY/Walter Panas), Kyle Schreader (Lockport, NY/Starpoint), Omar Robinson (Arverne, NY/Abraham Lincoln), Bam Johnson (Buffalo, NY/St. Mary's), Dylan Gotay (Schenectady, NY/CBA), Brendan Cimerman (Clarence, NY/Clarence), Peyton Hill (Lagrangeville, NY/Arlington), Cole Jenkins (East Aurora, NY/East Aurora), Nas Jackson (Buffalo, NY/St. Joseph's), Praise Prawl (Jamaica, NY/Flushing), Che'Kore Moore (Niagara Falls, NY/Niagara Falls), Nate Currier (Ontario, NY/Wayne), Nick Anzalone (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island), Daveitto McKenzie (White Plains, NY/Woodlands), Bradley Toole (Sag Harbor, NY/Pierson), C.J. McBean (Spring Valley, NY/Spring Valley), Griffin Mack (North Tonawanda, NY/Starpoint), Joseph Gibson (Hornell, NY/Hornell), Josh Karmazyn (West Seneca, NY/West Seneca), Henry Palermo (Tonawanda, NY/Tonawanda), Thomas Dupee (Brownville, NY/General Brown), and Darren Thompson (Buffalo, NY/St. Joseph's).

Buffalo State 150...This year marks the 150th year of Buffalo State College. Founded in 1871, Buffalo State has grown from its humble beginnings, 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…The Bengals took an early first-quarter lead, but Liberty League foe Hobart responded with 28 unanswered first-half points in a 45-21 decision in Geneva last Saturday.

Buffalo State scored on its first drive of the game, as the offense engineered a seven-play, 68-yard drive, capped off by an 18-yard touchdown run by Dupee to take an early 7-0 lead.

Hobart took control afterwards, as the league's leading rushing team scored six consecutive touchdowns on the ground, adding a field goal to take a 45-7 lead heading into the final quarter.

The Bengals got going in the final quarter. On Buffalo State's opening drive deep in Hobart territory, quarterback Cam Sionko (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island) completed a four-play, 18-yard drive, finding receiver Prawl for a 10-yard touchdown reception. On their next drive, the Bengals completed the scoring as Sionko threw for his second touchdown, finding receiver Cam Crosier (Kenmore, NY/Kenmore West) for a 19-yard touchdown reception.

Sionko came off the bench to complete 18 of 31 passes for 189 yards and two touchdowns. Dupee led the team in rushing with 46 yards and a touchdowns. Crosier broke out with 10 receptions for 108 yards and a touchdown, his first 10-catch and 100-yard output of his collegaite career. Defensively, linebacker Justin Jones (Amherst, NY/Canisius) led the team with 12 tackles, six solo, while safety Ethan Biscaro (Batavia, NY/Batavia) added six tackles, four solo.

Bengal Leaders...Sionko leads the team in passing, completing 125 of 220 passes for 1,177 yards and seven touchdowns. On the receiving end, Tariq Nelson (Brooklyn, N.Y./Boys and Girls) leads the team with 537 yards on 42 receptions, while Crosier has a team-leading 46 receptions for 500 yards. Both lead the team with three touchdowns. Robinson leads the team with 355 yards on 109 carries, scoring once in seven games played. 

On the defensive end, Jones leads the team with 68 tackles and nine tackles for loss. Cimerman leads the team with 3.5 sacks, with Seth Penn (Angola, NY/Lake Shore) right behind with three sacks. Four different Bengals (Jones, Biscaro, Brandon Barksdale (Buffalo, NY/Bennett) and McKenzie) have recorded an interception, with Jones leading the way with two.

Nick Sciandra (North Tonawanda, NY/North Tonawanda) has been a dynamo on the special teams' front. The rookie has made 4-of-5 field goals this year, with a long of 39 yards, and has also converted three of four onside kicks.

Inside the Numbers...Barksdale is third in the conference with 1.1 passes defensed per game...Jones leads the confeence with 8.5 tackles per game, with Mike Glinski (Buffalo, NY/West Seneca West) right behind with 8.4 tackles per game...Jackson is second in the conference with 16.9 yards per kick return...Prawl is second in the league with 309 kick return yards...Crosier is third with 5.1 receptions per game...Nelson is third in receiving yards (537) and receiving yards per game (59.7).

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)

Oct. 23 - Daveitto McKenzie (Liberty League Honor Roll)

Scouting the Saints...St. Lawrence comes into the season finale with a 4-5 record, and are looking to finish at .500 for the second consecutive season. The Saints have lost four of the last five games, but have been competitive against quality Liberty League opponents. Last week, St. Lawrence suffered a double-overtime loss to RPI at home by a 22-20 score. Before that, the Saints had a late lead against Hobart but fell, 17-13 in Geneva. 

The Saints are led offensively by Tyler Grochot, who has completed 98 of 185 passes for 1,136 yards, throwing 11 touchdowns and seven interceptions. His favorite target is Andrew Murphy, who has 33 receptions for 444 yards and four touchdowns. TJ Cornacchia also leads the team with four touchdown receptions, on 24 receptions and 300 yards. On the ground, Peyton Schmitt leads with 532 yards on 104 carries, with four touchdowns. On defense, Jacob Dreisbach leads the way with 60 tackles (22 solo). Reece Gillette each lead with three sacks. Victor Gamberoni, Grady Harrington, and Ryan Watson each have two interceptions.

Last Time We Met...Despite a record-setting performance from Jordan Evert with a school-record 19 receptions for 256 yards and two touchdowns, St. Lawrence outlasted Buffalo State in a 31-26 victory on Nov. 16, 2019.

Both teams scored in its first two possessions, as the Bengals held a 12-9 lead after one. The Saints added a second-quarter field goal, and both teams remained scoreless entering what would be a wild final quarter. St. Lawrence struck first, connecting on a 68-yard scoring strike to lead 19-12. The Bengals answered less than two minutes later with a 10-yard slant from Zak Ciezki to Evert. Following a second blocked extra point, Buffalo State still trailed 19-18. Jamie Battaglia scored on a 4-yard touchdown run for the Saints just 1:37 later, but this time the Saints hit the upright on the extra point try, making their lead 25-18. 'State went back to work and found the end zone again with 2:23 left in regulation on a 13-yard pass to Evert, then converted on a two-point conversion to take a 26-25 lead. The Saints needed just 1:18 to go 70 yards, The Saints scored the game-winning touchdown with 1:05 remaining, taking a five-point lead. The Bengals had a minute to attempt to answer and got to the Saints' 20, but Ciezki was intercepted at the goal line, ending the contest.

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.