Football Heads South to Take on #19 Elon

ALBANY, N.Y. –   The University at Albany football team returns to CAA conference play on the road. The Great Danes face the nineteenth ranked Elon University Phoenix at Rhodes Stadium in Elon, N.C. Kickoff is set for 2:00 p.m. EST with coverage on FloFootball and ESPN Radio 104.5 The Team.

Game Info

Saturday, November 5 vs. Elon 

2:00 p.m. EST 

FloFootball | 104.5 The Team | Live Stats | Media Center 

Leading the Pack

• Quarterback Reese Poffenbarger rolls into week ten being named CAA Rookie of the Week for the fifth time this season (9/19, 9/26, 10/3, 10/17, and 10/31). He continues to lead the league in passing, completing 171-of-256 pass attempts for 2,316 yards. He has tossed 20 TDs over eight games, averaging 289.5 yards per game, and has now had seven straight games with 250+ yards. 
• Todd Sibley ranks sixth in the conference in rushing and scoring. Sibley is averaging 89 yards per game, completing 114 carries for 712 yards. Against Stony Brook, he had seven carries for 64 yards and a TD. 
• Graduate student Julian Hicks led the offense against Stony Brook with 4 receptions for 52 yards, scoring a season-high 3 TDs. Hicks averages 3.2 receptions per game, hauling in 52.3 yards on average.
• Dylan Kelly ranks third in the league and leads the team in tackles with 74.0 (44 solo, 30 ast) while Jackson Ambush follows closely behind. Ambush is ranked sixth in the league and second on the team with 68 tackles (36 solo, 32 asst). 
• On special teams, Tyler Pastula is averaging 43.8 yards per punt (3rd in CAA). He recorded a season-high punt of 73 yards against Villanova. Kicker John Opalko is 7-10 on the season for field goals, hitting a long of 36 yards. 

Last Time Against Elon 

UAlbany and Elon face one another for the first time in five years. The last time the Great Danes faced the Phoenix was on Sept. 30, 2017, at Rhodes Stadium in Elon, N.C. The final score read 6-0 in favor of Elon, with the Phoenix hitting two field goals in a strong defensive matchup. 

Scouting Elon 

In nine games this season, #19 Elon (6-3 overall, 4-2 conference) remains undefeated at home with an impressive 27-7 defeat over Delaware last Saturday. After dropping a close contest against Vanderbilt to start the season, Elon went on a five-game win streak against Wofford (26-0), Gardner-Webb (30-24), William & Mary (35-31), Richmond (30-27), and Towson (27-10). Rhode Island ended the streak handing the Phoenix a 10-17 loss, and New Hampshire followed with a 22-40 defeat. 

• Offensively, the Phoenix are averaging 26.44 points per game. In nine games, the offense has totaled 3,596 yards, or 399.6 yards per game, with 1,381 yards coming from the ground and 2,215 coming through the air. 
• On the defensive side of the ball, Elon is allowing 22.0 points per game, fourth in the CAA. Opponents are averaging 3,118 yards of offense, with 1,109 from the ground and 2,009 coming through the air. 

Rookie Year to Remember

For the fifth time this season, quarterback Reese Poffenbarger has been named the CAA Rookie of the Week. He comes off a dominating performance against rival Stony Brook, a game in which the Great Danes won by a score of 59-14 to take home the Golden Apple. The rookie signal-caller went 16-21 passing for 263 yards while slinging four touchdowns, matching his career-high. He threw scoring passes of 25, 25, 5, and 15 yards as the Great Danes scored their most points in a game since 2012. He did so in just three quarters of action after being taken out of the game with a 50+ point lead.

Poffenbarger has thrown 20 TD passes with just one interception this season.

This marks the fifth time Poffenbarger has been named the conference's Rookie of the Week. The quarterback had his weekly award streak snapped last week, having claimed the honor in four consecutive games. He took home the award on Sept. 19 following a historic performance at Fordham before claiming it again on Sept. 26 after a home win against CCSU. Following a bye the week of Oct. 2, he won for the third time on Oct. 9 after playing Monmouth and again after another record-setting performance against Hampton the weekend preceding Oct. 17.

UAlbany Football Weekly

Turn the channel to MY4 Albany every Saturday morning at 11:30 for UAlbany Football Weekly, presented by Mohawk Chevrolet. See Coach Gattuso and players in studio, hear special mic’d up segments, and learn about the team with weekly feature stories. It’s all UAlbany football, every Saturday, all season long. 

Around the CAA

CAA Football topped all FCA conferences with six nationally ranked teams in the latest Stats Perform and AFCA Coaches FCA Top 25 polls that were released on Monday. William & Mary (7-1) rose to No. 8 in the Stats Perform poll and No. 9 in the AFCA Coaches poll after edging nationally ranked Rhode Island, 31-30, last Saturday. It’s the highest ranking since 2015 for the Tribe, which makes the short trip to Hampton this week. Richmond (6-2) jumped to No. 14 in both polls following a 31-21 victory at Maine last week. The Spiders host nationally ranked New Hampshire on Saturday. Delaware (6-2) slid to No. 16 in the AFCA poll and No. 18 in the Stats poll following a 27-7 setback at Elon last week. The Blue Hens entertain Monmouth on Saturday afternoon. New Hampshire (6-2) was off last Saturday but climbed to No. 17 in the Stats poll and No. 21 in the AFCA poll. The Wildcats travel to No. 14 Richmond in a key CAA contest on Saturday. Rhode Island (5-3) dropped to No. 22 in the AFCA poll and No. 23 in the Stats Perform rankings after it narrow 31-30 loss at William & Mary last Saturday. The Rams entertain Maine this week. Elon (6-3) moved back into both polls after knocking off Delaware, 27-7, last week, slotting at No. 19 in the Stats rankings and No. 23 in the AFCA rankings. The Phoenix are back at home on Saturday against UAlbany. Villanova (5-3), which defeated Hampton 24-10 last week, continued to receive votes in both polls this week.

This week’s matchups include:

• William & Mary* at Hampton*
• Morgan State at Stony Brook 
• Maine* at Rhode Island*
• Monmouth* at Delaware*
• UAlbany* at Elon* 
• Villanova* at Towson* 
• New Hampshire* at Richmond* 

*Denotes CAA Team

Meet the Leadership Council

Every year, the UAlbany players and coaching staff elect a “Leadership Council” comprised of guys who show an extortionary level of leadership both on and off the field. This year’s council is comprised of eight total student-athletes, five coming from the offensive side of the ball and three coming from the defensive side. Players on this year’s council include offensive lineman Scott Houseman, quarterback Joey Carino, tight end Thomas Greaney, center Kobe Thomas, linebacker Jackson Ambush, linebacker AJ Mistler, running back Todd Sibley, and defensive back Larry Walker Jr.

Preseason Honors

UAlbany was picked to finish in 12th place in this year’s CAA Preseason Coaches’ Poll. The low mark comes as no surprise as the team comes off a year in which they went 2-9. The last time the Great Danes finished with a similar record was in 2018, when the team finished with a 3-8 mark. The next year though? The Great Danes went 9-5 overall and won their first ever postseason game, a 42-14 clobbering against CCSU. 

Linebacker Jackson Ambush (Defense) and punter Tyler Pastula (Special Teams) both received preseason conference honors. In addition, defensive lineman Anthony Lang was named Honorable Mention. Ambush led the team in total tackles last season as a freshman. Pastula transferred from CAA foe Delaware, but not before being named All-CAA First Team and collecting two Special Teams Player of the Week awards in 2021. 

Season Schedule

Click here for UAlbany’s full 2022 online season schedule. 

Sept. 3             at No. 10 Baylor          L, 10-69

Sept. 10           NEW HAMPSHIRE*     L, 23-28

Sept. 17           at Fordham                 L, 45-48

Sept. 24           CCSU                           W, 45-26

Oct. 1              BYE

Oct. 8              at Monmouth*           L, 31,38

Oct. 15            HAMPTON*                L, 37-38

Oct. 22            at Villanova*              L, 29-31

Oct. 29            STONY BROOK*           W, 59-14

Nov. 5              at Elon*

Nov. 12            MAINE*

Nov. 19            at Rhode Island* 

* Denotes CAA Matchup

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