Football Visits Cornell for Final Non-Conference Matchup of 2024

ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at Albany football team heads back out on the road to Ithaca, N.Y., this weekend to take on Cornell University.  Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m. ET with coverage on ESPN+ and 104.5 The Team ESPN Radio in Albany.   

Game Info 

Saturday, Oct. 5 vs. Cornell 

Schoellkopf Field in Ithaca, N.Y. 

1:00 p.m. 

Live Stats | ESPN+ | 104.5 The Team | UAlbany Football Weekly

Leading the Pack 

• Last week, quarterback Myles Burkett threw for 202 yards and two touchdowns, his first multi-TD game of the season. Burkett is fifth in the CAA in passing yards on the season with 963. His 240.8 passing yards per game is good enough for fourth in the CAA.  
• Seven McGee was Burkett’s top target yet again against Maine, leading the team with 72 receiving yards and two touchdowns. His 337 receiving yards is good for fourth in the CAA, and his 84.3 yards per game is fifth in the CAA.  
• On the ground, Jojo Uga scored his first colligate touchdown on Saturday, taking a handoff two yards to the end zone. He also had the highest yards per carry last week, averaging five per attempt. 
• On the defensive side of the ball, Dontae Lunan is leading the CAA with 45 total tackles. He is averaging 11.2 tackles per game, which also leads the CAA and is fourth in the FCS. Last week he recorded two sacks, which leads the team.  
• Ron Holmes led the team last week with 12 total tackles. He also recorded a sack and a season high three TFLs against the Black Bears. 
• Ibrahim Sanogo leads the secondary with two PBUs, also collecting a TFL.  
• Kicker John Opalko is 4-5 on field goals this year, with his longest being a 42 yarder against the LIU Sharks. He is also 8-9 on PATs.  

Long Time No See  

The last time the Great Danes took on Cornell was 18 years ago, in 2006. Much has changed since then, including UAlbany’s football program moving to the CAA and the opening of Tom and Mary Casey Stadium.    

Scouting Cornell 

Cornell is coming off of a 47-23 rout of the reigning Ivy League champion Yale Bulldogs. Cornell is 1-1 on the year, with their only other game this season being a 41-24 loss to Colgate.  

Quarterback Jameson Wang is 47-66 on the year, throwing for 591 yards and seven touchdowns with a rating just over 181. He also leads the team with 96 rushing yards and has found the end zone once on the ground. Receivers Brendan Lee and Samuel Musungu both have two touchdown catches on the year. Lee leads the team in receiving yards (200) and Musungu leads in receptions (12).  

On the defensive side of the ball, senior linebacker Luke Banbury leads the team with 15 total tackles and one and a half TFLs. Cornerbacks Howard Braylon and Rick Coleman Jr. have both recorded a pair of PBUs. 

Saturday’s game will be Cornell’s second game of a three-game home stand, the last of those three being against Harvard.  

First Collegiate Touchdown  

Last week against Maine, Jojo Uga found the end zone for the first time in his college career on a two-yard carry early in the second quarter. This marks the first of many to come for the freshman running back. 

Looking Back

Last year, quarterback Reese Poffenbarger broke the UAlbany record for single season passing yards with 3,603 on the year. Through four games last year, he recorded 676 passing yards. Through four games this season, Myles Burkett has 963 passing yards.  

Dylan Kelly also recorded a single-season record last year, recording a new record of 159 tackles throughout the season. Through four games last year, Kelly had 49 tackles, only four more than Dontae Lunan’s 45 so far this season. 

Play Like AJ

The team will honor former Great Dane Amitral "AJ" Simon during the 2024 season with a special number dedication in each game.

In April of 2024, while preparing for the NFL Draft, Simon was tragically taken from us – sending shockwaves through both the UAlbany and football communities.

Before each contest in 2024, the UAlbany coaching staff will designate one defensive player to wear the number eight jersey, in game, to honor their fallen brother. The individual chosen will be one who best exemplifies Simon's work ethic and preparation in that week's practices. The football program will announce their selection on Thursdays leading up to games.

This Saturday, Ron Holmes will have the special honor of wearing #8 in game. 

For a full list of this year’s recipients, see below. 

Aug. 31 vs. LIU – Ghassan Chehade

Sept. 7 at WVU – Donte Lunan

Sept. 14 at No. 4 Idaho – Dasean Dixon

Sept. 28 vs. Maine – Denzel Patrick

Oct. 5 vs. Cornell – Ron Holmes

Leadership Council

Before week one, head coach Greg Gattuso named 10 players as part of this year’s Leadership Council – as voted on by members of the team. This year’s Leadership Council includes returners Ozzie Hutchinson (OL), Scott Houseman (OL), Will Marotta (OL), Brad Igweike (DB), DaeSean Winston (DB), Trey Lindsey (QB), MarQeese Dietz (WR), and Faysal Aden (RB). In addition, newcomers Dasean Dixon (DL) and Seven McGee (WR) were voted in by their peers. 

A Historic Season

The 2023 UAlbany football season was the best in program history. The Great Danes finished with an 11-4 overall record, going 7-1 in CAA action. Under Gattuso and his staff, the team claimed its first ever conference title, sharing it with Villanova and Richmond. The Great Danes defeated Villanova midway through the season, 31-10 at home, and took down Richmond in the Second Round of the FCS Playoffs, 41-13 at home.

UAlbany was awarded the NCAA's #5 seed in the playoffs, the highest the team has ever been ranked, while also receiving a First Round bye. The team's Second Round win over Richmond cemented the furthest the Great Danes had ever reached in the postseason, having previously reached the Second Round in 2019. In the Quarterfinals, UAlbany flew across the country to #4 Idaho – taking down the Vandals, 30-22, in the Kibbie Dome to advance to the Semifinals before falling to South Dakota State, the top seed and eventual National Champions.

The UAlbany football program joined Field Hockey (2014) and Men's Lacrosse (2018) as the only programs in school history to reach an NCAA Division I National Semifinal.

UAlbany Football Weekly

Head to UAlbanySports.com every Saturday morning at 10:00 for UAlbany Football Weekly, the only show that covers ALL THINGS UAlbany football. 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. 

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