In a top 25 matchup, the St. John Fisher College football program suffered a 48-0 loss at Thomas More College on Saturday in the season opener for both teams.  

Both Fisher and Thomas More are currently ranked in the D3football.com poll.  The Cardinals are ranked 19^th nationally, while the Saints are ranked 23^rd.

The loss marks the first time Fisher has been shut out since 2001 – a span of 159 games.

Thomas More took the game's opening drive 70 yards for a touchdown to take the lead for good just 3:18 into the game.  After a 22-yard field goal on its next drive, the Saints marched 85 yards on just five plays to take a 17-0 advantage early in the second quarter.

Thomas More tacked on 10 more points in the final 1:11 of the first half to take a 27-0 lead at the half.

The second half wasn't much better for Fisher.    The Saints scored a touchdown on its first drive of the second half and added two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter to seal the win.

Thomas More finished the game with 607 yards of total offense, including 436 yards through the air (the most ever allowed by a Fisher team), while the Cardinals tallied just 205 yards.
 
Defensively, DJ Logory led the Fisher defense with 12 tackles, including two sacks.   David Carroll made seven tackles, while Anthony Lee broke up two passes.
 
Steven Stromolo led Fisher with 45 rushing yards on seven carries. Mike Collichio caught four passes for 65 yards, while Nathan Nigolian also caught four passes.

Matt Naton was 8-of-16 for 88 yards in the passing department, while Danny Catan was 6-of-12 for 40 yards.

Brandon Fuentes punted nine times, averaging 35.6 yards per kick.

Fisher is idle next week.   The Cardinals will return to action at 1 p.m. on Saturday, September 19^th as Fisher host SUNY Cortland as part of the College's Alumni Weekend.  It will be the Empire 8 Conference season for both Fisher and Cortland, marking the Red Dragons' first season as an Empire 8 affiliate.