GAME #7 – ITHACA BOMBERS AT BUFFALO STATE BENGALS
Friday, Oct. 21, 2022 – 7:00 PM
Coyer Field – Buffalo, NY

FOLLOW ALONG…
 
LIVE STATS
VIDEO

THE MATCHUP… Buffalo State heads into its seventh game of the season, and fourth Liberty League contest against one of the top teams in the country in the Ithaca Bombers, ranked #12 in the most recent D3football.com poll after a 6-0 start to the year. This will be the 29^th meeting of the sides all-time, and third consecutive season after Buffalo State's move to join the Liberty League. Ithaca holds a 18-10 advantage in the series, including victories in three straight meetings.
 
THE BENGALS' LAST GAME… Tariq Nelson had a career day for the Buffalo State football team, but it wasn't enough for the Bengals to avoid defeat on the road to Rochester in a 12-6 defensive struggle in Liberty League action on Saturday afternoon.

The Rochester offense moved the ball down the field on its opening drive, but the Bengals tightened up just outside the red zone to force a 38-yard field goal by Jordan Laudani for a 3-0 lead. Buffalo State responded by driving down the field and into the red zone, but turned the ball over on downs after Phaybian Livingston (Buffalo, NY/St. Joe's) was stopped short of the line to gain from the three-yard line.

Each team was forced to punt on its next two drives, with the Yellowjackets picking up three first downs combined while Buffalo State picked up two.

Rochester went on an eight-play, 61-yard touchdown drive, capped by a Daniel Papantonis 6-yard rushing touchdown. Alex Westcott (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) blocked the ensuing extra point to keep the score at 9-0.

After Cam Sionko's (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island) pass was intercepted on the next Buffalo State drive, Rochester moved into scoring position, but Laudani's 37-yard field goal attempt was no good as the score remained 9-0 into halftime.

Buffalo State moved the ball past midfield to start the second half, but Livingston was stopped short once again on fourth down at the Rochester 43-yard line. After the Buffalo State defense forced the Yellowjackets to punt, Sionko was intercepted for a second time, leading to a 30-yard field goal for a 12-0 Rochester lead.

Tom Delgado (Bayside, NY/Bayside) came on in relief of Sionko, but was intercepted on his first pass attempt. Biscaro returned the favor five plays later, intercepting his third pass of the season at the Buffalo State 14-yard line.

On the second play from scrimmage of the fourth quarter, Delgado was intercepted again, but the Bengals forced a three-and-out to give the ball back to the offense. The next Buffalo State drive covered 66 yards in 12 plays, but ended in another interception at the Rochester 14-yard line.

Buffalo State forced another stop on defense, and then drove down the field, with Ale Wilson (Bronx, NY/Kipp College Prep) rushing it in for a four-yard touchdown with 2:08 remaining.

Nick Sciandra's (N. Tonawanda, NY/N. Tonawanda) extra point was unsuccessful, and after Rochester recovered the ensuing onside kick, the Yellowjackets were able to gain one first down and run the rest of the clock out.

Nelson finished the game with career-highs in receptions (13) and receiving yards (157) to add to his lead atop the Liberty League rankings.
 
LAST TIME WE MET… Quarterback Thomas Dupee tallied 150 all-purpose yards, including the lone touchdown of the game for the Buffalo State football team, as it dropped a Liberty League contest to No. 16/14 Ithaca College by a 51-7 score on Saturday, October 23, 2021.

Ithaca scored on its first possession, as A.J. Wingfield threw to Andrew Vito for a 33-yard touchdown. Buffalo State drove down the field in its first possession, getting down to the Ithaca 35-yard line, but a pair of penalties stalled the drive, and a 3rd-and-18 pass attempt by Cam Sionko was intercepted by Akap Takor and brought into Bengal territory.

Ithaca took advantage on the ensuing drive, as Wingfield finished the four-play drive with a nine-yard touchdown run. The Bombers turned Buffalo State over later in the period, as Jalen Martinez recovered a Sionko fumble. The Buffalo State defense held strong, forcing Nicholas Bahamonde to kick a 28-yard field goal as Ithaca led, 17-0.

Ithaca forced two consecutive Buffalo State turnovers, leading to two Ithaca touchdowns, including a Derek Slywka 31-yard interception return for a touchdown, giving Ithaca a 31-0 lead in the second quarter.

The Bombers added to the lead on their next drive, with Wingfield finding Jacob Cooney for a 13-yard touchdown pass. The Bengal defense made a big play on the Bombers' next drive, as Davietto McKenzie intercepted a Wingfield pass in the end zone for a touchback. Ithaca finished the half with Bahamonde's second field goal, this time from 21-yards as the Bombers led 41-0.

Ithaca made it 48-0 midway through the third quarter, as Jake Williams finished an eight-play drive with a two-yard touchdown. Buffalo State drove down the field on its next drive, but Nick Sciandra's 29-yard field goal was blocked at the line by Shaye McKenna.

Buffalo State went right back to work on its next offensive drive, as Dylan Gotay began with a 39-yard run. Four plays later, Dupee finished the drive with a two-yard touchdown run as the Bengals trailed 48-7.

Bahamonde finished the scoring for Ithaca, as his third field goal of the game, this time from 22 yards, gave the Bombers a 51-7 advantage.

A CUT ABOVE… Tariq Nelson (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) leads the conference is multiple receiving categories, and by a significant margin. His 43 catches are 12 more than the next closest receiver, and 509 receiving yards are 119 more than second. Nelson is averaging 84.8 receiving yards, while his 7.2 receptions per game are 12th-most in the country.

RIDING SOLO… The Bengals have two of the top three, and four of the top 10 leaders in the conference in solo tackles. Michael Drywa (West Babylon, NY/East Islip) leads the Liberty League with 34 solo tackles, while Kenneth Mosley (Buffalo, NY/Kenmore West) is third, and Anderson Osei-Gyimah (Bronx, NY/New Visions) and Ethan Biscaro (Batavia, NY/Batavia) are tied for eighth.

ROLL CALL… Buffalo State has had one player recognized on the Liberty League Honor Roll in three consecutive weeks. Tariq Nelson's 157 receiving yards and 13 receptions against Rochester were enough to earn him the most recent plaudits from the conference. Ethan Biscaro and Michael Drywa had earned the distinction in the two weeks prior.  

GOING FOR THREE IN A ROW… Ethan Biscaro will look to be the first Bengal since Gino Bonagura in the 2019 season to record an interception in three consecutive games. Biscaro has snagged three picks in his last two games.

With another interception this season, Biscaro would also be the first Bengal since Tiquan Simpkins in 2017 to record four interceptions in a single season.

TOP FIVE… Nicholas Moore (Buffalo, NY/Buffalo Academy of Science) is fifth in the Liberty League in tackles for loss. The freshman defensive end has 6.0 total tackles for loss, and has been part of a tackle for loss in four of five games that he has played this year.

AIRING IT OUT… The Buffalo State passing offense set its season high in passing yards in the last game against Rochester. Cam Sionko (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island) and Tom Delgado (Bayside, NY/Bayside) combined to throw for 297 yards, while also completing a season-high 24 passes.

COMMON OPPONENTS… Both Buffalo State and Ithaca have met with Rochester this season, with Ithaca coming away with a 56-10 victory. In addition to the Liberty League opponents that each will end up facing by the end of the season, the teams share a pair of non-conference opponents in Brockport and Cortland.

FROM THE BRONX TO BUFFALO… Lazarus Morgan was appointed as the sixth head coach in the history of the Buffalo State football program In January 2022.

A native of the Bronx, Morgan was a defensive back at Utica from 2006-08, then began his coaching career at his alma mater from 2009-13. He then moved to Alfred University from 2014-19, serving as the Saxon's defensive coordinator in the final four seasons.

He arrives to Buffalo after serving as the defensive coordinator at SUNY Cortland during the 2021 season, where he oversaw the fifth-ranked overall defense in NCAA Division III, helping guide the Red Dragons to an 11-1 record, an Empire 8 title and a trip to the NCAA playoffs.

CAPTAINS OF MORGAN... Four players will lead Buffalo State in 2022 as team captains. Seth Penn (Angola, NY/Lake Shore) and Anderson Osei-Gyimah (Bronx, NY/New Visions) will lead the Buffalo State defense, with Tariq Nelson (Brooklyn, NY/Boys and Girls) and Alex Westcott (Orchard Park, NY/Orchard Park) serving as offensive captains.

BOMBERS FLYING HIGH…  Ithaca enters the game as one of only 21 undefeated teams remaining in Division III. The Bombers also have a 3-0 record in conference contests, and are one of the top teams in the nation and the favorites to lift the Liberty League title at the end of the season.

Ithaca leads the conference in both scoring offense and scoring defense, having scored 254 (42.3 points per game) while only allowing 34 points (5.7 points per game) this season. The Ithaca scoring offense is 19^th in the country, while the scoring defense is fifth-best in the nation.

The Ithaca offense has been strong this season, and led by an efficient passing game that leads the conference in passing yardage. Quarterback A.J. Wingfield is completing 67.8% of his passes, for 1,094 yards and 11 touchdowns. Three different Bomber receivers have multiple touchdown catches.

On defense, Matt DeSimpliciis leads Ithaca with 45.0 total tackles. The passing defense has allowed an average of only 114.7 yards through the air, best in the Liberty league. Ithaca has allowed just two passing touchdowns out of the four touchdowns allowed overall, and have recorded eight interceptions on the year.

SCHEDULES/RESULTS…

BUFFALO STATE (0-6, 0-3 Liberty League)
Sept. 3            at St. John Fisher............................... L 62-21
Sept. 17          #15 SUNY CORTLAND………………........... L 66-7
Sept. 24          MORRISVILLE STATE (Homecoming)..L 31-10
Oct. 1              * at Union……………………........................... L 45-0
Oct. 8              * RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC............ L 45-14
Oct. 15            * at Rochester....................................... L 12-6
Oct. 21            * #12 ITHACA............................................ 7:00
Oct. 29            at Brockport........................................... 12:00
Nov. 5             * HOBART……………….................................. 1:00
Nov. 12           * at St. Lawrence……………......................... 1:00
 
* Liberty League 8 game      HOME GAMES IN CAPS


Ithaca (6-0, 3-0 Liberty League)
Sept. 3              at Bridgewater St. (MA).................... W 51-14
Sept. 10            BROCKPORT.……….………………..........  W 24-0
Sept. 17            ALFRED U…...................................... W 52-3
Oct. 1             * at Hobart………………………………............ W 31-7
Oct. 8             * ROCHESTER .................................... W 56-10
Oct. 15           * ST. LAWRENCE.…............................ W 40-0
Oct. 21           * at Buffalo State……............................ 7:00
Oct. 29           * RPI…………………....................................1:00
Nov. 5            * at Union………..................................... 1:00
Nov. 12             CORTLAND (Yankee Stadium) .......12:00
 
* Liberty League game      HOME GAMES IN CAPS