Oct. 14, 2005

Stony Brook, N.Y. -

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The Stony Brook football teams goes for its second win in a row when it hosts St. Francis (Pa.) on Saturday afternoon. The Seawolves (2-3, 1-1) have won all previous six meetings with the Red Flash (2-3, 2-0). The game will be broadcast live on the internet and on WUSB 90.1 FM.

THE SERIES WITH ST. FRANCIS: Stony Brook leads the all-time series 6-0 after a 29-21 win at St. Francis last year. The teams have played three times at home each, with the Seawolves victorious in all the contests.

LAST TIME OUT: Stony Brook topped Albany, 7-3, in the driving rain last Saturday. The Seawolves lone touchdown came when Chris Alceus picked up one of Albany's nine fumbles and returned the loose ball for six points. The Stony Brook defense held Albany to just 124 total yards on the afternoon, with only 23 coming from the aerial attack.

HOME SWEET HOME: Stony Brook is 1-2 at home this season, topping Bucknell in week 1, but falling to Georgetown and Monmouth in weeks 3 and 4.

ABOUT THE RED FLASH: The Red Flash enter Saturday's action after topping Central Connecticut, 31-28, last weekend. Junior quarterback Anthony Doria had an outstanding outing, going 35-44 for 342 yards and a touchdown. Doria became the fifth player in NEC history to throw for 5,000 yards and needs just 175 to become the school's all-time passer.

FINDING THE END ZONE: Since scoring touchdowns on its first two possessions of the season, Stony Brook has scored only 30 points in the last 19 quarters of action. The Seawolves are averaging 8.4 points a game while St. Francis is averaged 28 points a contest.

NO JOSHING AROUND: Senior wideout Josh Anderson has been redshirt-sophomore quarterback Josh Dudash's favorite target this season. Against Albany, Anderson pulled in five catches for 62 yards. He leads the team with 20 catches for 234 yards and a touchdown. He had his best game of the season against Monmouth. He caught seven passes for a team-high 99 yards and a touchdown. The TD was a 59-yard catch and run in the third quarter.

DAN THE MAN: After stepping in for the injured Chris Tomasky three weeks ago, Dan Michitsch had totaled 37 tackles in three starts, 12 of them coming last week. He snagged his first career interception against Monmouth . He ranks first on the team in tackles with 30.

SLIPPERY WHEN WET: The football was on the ground numerous times in the Albany game. The teams combined for 12 fumbles, nine by Albany and three by the Seawolves. Through five games, Stony Brook has recovered nine fumbles, the same amount they recovered all of last season. Stony Brook has fumbled the ball nine times this season, but has yet to have one recovered by the opposition.

THIRD DOWN'S NOT A CHARM: The Seawolves went 3-17 on third down conversions against Albany, while the Great Danes went 1-14. On the season, Stony Brook has a 23% conversion rate going 17-75 in the 2005 campaign.

LOOK OUT BELOW: The Seawolf secondary is prepared for the aerial attack that St. Francis is notorious for. The Red Flash average 256.6 passing yards a game while Stony Brook averages 147 yards. In terms of total offense, St. Francis averages 407.4 yards, while the Seawolves average 233.4 a game.

RICHIE RICH: Linebacker Richie Richards posted a career-high 15 tackles in the Monmouth loss. Eight of the takedowns were of the solo variety. Richards has a team-leading 32 tackles this season, his first as a starting linebacker.

WE LIKE MIKE: Wideout Mike Cosentino led all Stony Brook receivers against Georgetown with six catches for 69 yards. It was Cosentino's best single-game effort ever and the junior wideout moved into the team lead for receptions with 13.

VERSUS THE NEC: The Seawolves are 20-26 all-time in NEC action.

TIME'S NOT ON OUR SIDE: The Stony Brook defense has spent quite some time on the field this season. The Seawolf defense was on the field against Monmouth for a season-long 39:03, including a 11:12 in the third quarter.

BALL SECURITY: In Stony Brook's 27-0 win last season, the Seawolves forced seven Monmouth turnovers.

THE SERIES AT A GLANCE: Here is a look at the previous six matchups: 11/13/99 at Stony Brook 24, St. Francis 6 9/23/00 Stony Brook 60, at St. Francis 7 11/17/01 at Stony Brook 34, St. Francis 0 10/5/02 Stony Brook 24, at St. Francis 14 10/18/03 at Stony Brook 49, St. Francis 14 10/16/04 Stony Brook 29, at St. Francis 21

INJURY REPORT: Stony Brook will be withouot Anthony Casale and Shawn Broome after they were injured against Monmouth. Dan Michitsch started last week for Chris Tomasky and Mike Mounter steps into the starting lineup for Andre Jean-Pierre last week.

THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: In just over three seasons of action, the Seawolves have posted an 11-6 record at LaValle Stadium and has consistently been one of the biggest draws in the Northeast Conference. Against Georgetown, SB drew 6,028 fans to fan-friendly LaValle Stadium, the fifth largest crowd in SB's football history.

FIELD POSITION: Part of Stony Brook's problem on offense against Georgetown was field position. In the second half, SB's average drive start was its own 13-yard line before they began their final drive at their own 33.

HOT ROD: Senior running back Rod Williams spearheaded the win over Bucknell, scoring all three Seawolves touchdowns - two on the ground and one through the air. He rushed for 128 yards on 26 carries and had touchdown runs of 19 and four yards. He also caught a 16-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter that gave SB a 12-0 lead. It was the first multiple-touchdown game of his career.

WELCOME MATT: It didn't take long for freshman placekicker Matt Weeks to make a first impression. The Hampton Bays native was called on in the final seconds of the Bucknell game and drilled an 18-yard field goal to lift Stony Brook to victory.

IT'S BEEN AWHILE: Stony Brook's 55-0 loss was the first time that it has been shutout since the 1997 season. The Seawolves lost to C.W. Post 7-0 on November 15, 1997.

SPECIAL K: Sam Kornhauser's 22nd season as head coach got off to a great start, one that was punctuated with a coaching milestone. SB's win over Bucknell was Coach K's 100th as a head coach. The only varsity coach in the program's history, Coach K announced that will he will stepping down at the end of the year, making his 22nd season at Stony Brook his last. In his 21 years as head coach, Kornhauser has posted 10 winning seasons and guided Stony Brook to a program-best 8-2 season in 2002. That year saw Stony Brook make its first appearance in The Sports Network I-AA Mid-Major Top 10 Poll and climb to the No. 4 spot by season's end. Since joining the Division I level in 1999, Kornhauser has produced 25 all-conference selections, including the 2001 Northeast Conference Offensive Rookie of the Year, 12 mid-major all-america picks and last spring saw one of his players sign an NFL free agent contract.

FORCING THE ISSUE: Stony Brook forced five turnovers in the win over Bucknell - four fumbles and one interception. SB was plus-3 in the turnover battle against the Bison.

ON THE RECEIVING END: Six Stony Brook receivers caught passes versus Bucknell, led by Mike Cosentino, Joe Tarasiewicz and Rod Williams who all finished with four catches. Josh Anderson and Saladin Davis caught three balls while freshman Scott Kubrak added another.

IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED: Stony Brook's game-winning field goal versus Bucknell was its first successful attempt at putting the ball through the uprights in four tries. Its first PAT attempt was blocked, the second was missed due to a bad snap and its previous field goal attempt was also blocked. WHAT'S IN A NAME?: The 2005 roster features William Williams, Richie Richards and Rob Roberts.

AYE, AYE CAPTAINS: Stony Brook will have three captains in 2005: Ray Goodsir, Matt Smith and Rod Williams.

NOTES: Former defensive standout David Bamiro was released by the Vikings in August but is in line to play in NFL Europe next summer.

PRESEASON NOTES

No Joshing Around: Dudash's primary target may indeed be veteran wideout Josh Anderson. Anderson is coming off a career-best 44-catch season in which he racked up 675 yards and four touchdowns.

JUST FOR KICKS: Not only will the Seawolves have plenty of new faces on defense, but they will also have a new placekicker in 2005. Freshman Luke Gaddis and Matt Weeks are battling for the starting spot and it will be a gameday decision for Coach K.

IN THE SECONDARY: Stony Brook will likely have two transfers who will be starting in the defensive backfield on Saturday. Adam Barzar (Arizona Western JC) and Chris Alceus (C.W. Post) will make up two-thirds of the Seawolves secondary.

FOR THE FIRST TIME: Stony Brook will start 10 players for the first time on Saturday, eight of them on the defensive side of the ball. The entire defensive line in James Harris, Adam Soivilien, Kyle Brown and Shawn Broome along with LB Andre Jean-Pierre, LB Francis Rivera, CB Adam Barzar and S Chris Alceus. WR Joe Tarasiewicz and RG Andrew Saraga make their first starts on offense.

PASSING FANCY: The Seawolves are coming off one of their most prolific years throwing the football. Former starting quarterback T.J. Moriarty threw for a school single-season record 2,495 yards as SB staked its claim to the top passing offense in the NEC last season.

POINTS WELL TAKEN: The Seawolves averaged 24.6 points per game last season and have averaged over 26 points per game in the last two seasons.

ROD IS BACK: Senior Rod Williams is hoping to bounce back from injuries to regain the form that saw him help Stony Brook to an 8-2 record when he rushed for 428 yards on 87 carries in 2002. Beset by injuries since then, Williams is finally healthy and ready to earn the starting role this summer.

SEAWOLVES PICKED SEVENTH: Stony Brook was predicted to finish in seventh place in the Northeast Conference Preseason Poll, voted on by the league's coaches. Monmouth was chosen to win its third straight league crown. The Hawks were given four first-place votes, while Central Connecticut State, which earned a share of the conference title last year, received one first-place vote and finished second in the poll along with Robert Morris, which received two first-place votes. Albany was picked to finish fourth, followed by Sacred Heart, Wagner, Stony Brook and St. Francis (PA).

ALL-CONFERENCE PICKS: Left guard Leo Sullivan and return specialist Saladin Davis were selected to the 2005 NEC Preseason All-Conference team. Sullivan, a second-team pick following the 2004 season, has made 30 consecutive starts along the offensive line and this is his first selection to a preseason all-star team. Davis, who averaged over 27 yards per kickoff return, also made the team for the first time.

SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW: While Coach Kornhauser enters his final year with the Seawolves, Josh Dudash begins his first as the starting signal caller. The strong-armed quarterback has thrown only seven passes in his Stony Brook career but he won out a battle with Andrew Garrett for the starting job. Dudash was a standout quarterback for Toms River South High School in Toms Rivers, N.J.

PLAYING 11: Stony Brook expands its schedule to 11 games for the first time in the program's history this season. On the schedule are tough non-conference opponents in Patriot Leaguers Bucknell and Georgetown. The Seawolves will also meet Atlantic-10 power Hofstra for the second straight season and the regular season comes to an end on November 19 versus Marist.

Viking Ship: After a senior season which saw him total 10.5 sacks and take over as the all-time sacks leader in both Stony Brook and Northeast Conference history, former standout defensive end David Bamiro became the third Stony Brook player to try out for an NFL team when he was invited to the Minnesota Vikings mini-camp in April of 2005. He then attended developmental camps in May and June and signed a NFL free agent contract this summer and will have chance to make the Vikings squad in July and August. Bamiro joins former standouts Chuck Downey and David Lewis as the only Stony Brook football players who earned tryouts with NFL teams.

Others In The Pros: Former standouts T.J. Moriarty and David Charles also played professionally this summer -- in Austria. The duo competed on different teams and both are expected to return to Europe for next season.