Football | 9/14/2017 11:05:00 AM

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher College football team will make its home debut on Saturday as the Cardinals take on nationally-ranked The College at Brockport in Courage Bowl XIII at Growney Stadium.  The meeting, which marks the 23rd time these two programs clash on the gridiron, has extra meaning as all proceeds will directly benefit Camp Good Days – a not-for-profit organization that has provided care for children afflicted with cancer.  The stakes are also higher for both teams as Saturday's matchup is an Empire 8 Conference pairing.
 
Fans unable to make their way to Fisher's campus can still catch all of the action as the contest will be televised on Spectrum channel 98 throughout the Greater Rochester area and will be televised on channel 87 throughout the Buffalo area.  Fans can also follow by clicking the links below:
   
RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME?: Both teams enter this weekend's matchup at different ends of the spectrum.  Fisher is playing in front of its home fans with an 0-2 record for the first time since 2015 while Brockport enters having posted back-to-back convincing wins, which marks the first time it enters week three unbeaten since 2015 as well.  This Saturday, however, marks the first time the Cardinals have played in front of their home fans, which, if we stick with the 2015 theme, could bode well for Fisher.  That year, the Cardinals picked up their first win of the season with a thrilling 42-41 win over Brockport in overtime.
 
THE STAKES ARE HIGHER: Yes, this is an important game for both teams and yes, the conference standings will be impacted, but there's a much more important storyline at play during this week's game as it's the 13th annual Courage Bowl to benefits Camp Good Days.  The Courage Bowl, which has become one of Division III's most anticipated contests, directly benefits Camp Good Days, which is a not-for-profit organization that provides thousands of children with cancer the opportunity to come together in a residential camping experience to be with the only ones who could truly understand what they were going through – other children with cancer.  Since its founding by Fisher assistant coach Gary Mervis, Camp Good Days has impacted more than 45,000 campers from 22 states and 29 countries.  With a small group of paid employees, Camp Good Days is a volunteer-based organization.  To avoid placing any additional financial burden on the families served, all of the programs are offered free of charge for the participants.
 
RECENT HISTORY IS ON OUR SIDE: These two teams have clashed a total of 22 times dating back to their first meeting in 1989.  In that span, Fisher owns an 8-14 record, however, the Cardinals have beaten
Brockport in their last eight games.  In 2016, Fisher and Brockport played a game for the ages after the Cardinals overcame a 21-point deficit at halftime en route to a 42-38 win in Courage Bowl XII.  Take it a step further and Fisher has not lost in the Courage Bowl in 12 previous appearances.
 
LAST TIME OUT: Fisher faced another challenge on the road last week as the Cardinals traveled east on I-90 to Geneva for a date with Hobart College.  Head coach PAUL VOSBURGH'S team moved the chains early and headed into halftime trailing 10-3, but from there, Hobart reeled off 21 unanswered points to claim a 31-3 non-conference win.  Fisher tallied 280 yards of total offense including 91 on the ground.  JAMES CHAMBERS led the rushing attack with 77 yards on 14 carries.  The team was 7-for-13 (.538) on third down and had the ball for just over 27 minutes of play.

DON'T LETTA HIM OUTTA YOUR SIGHT: Freshman signal caller JOHNATHAN LETTA made his debut last week at Hobart and showed that he can be versatile in and out of the pocket.  The Hilton native threw for 75 yards and kept the defense honest with his ability to scramble when needed.  In fact, Hobart had to keep its eye on Letta as he actually rushed nearly half the time he dropped back (eight rushes/13 pass attempts).
 
HARRINGTON HAULS IT IN: Of Fisher's 16 completions last week, eight went to sophomore
DYLAN HARRINGTON.  The Rochester native caught eight passes including three on third down for a team-high 72 yards.  In just two games this season, Harrington leads the team in receptions (13) and receiving yards (144).  Last season, Harrington caught 34 passes in 11 games with 13 of those coming in the ECAC Asa S. Bushnell Bowl Championship. 
 
THE KILLER "Cs": In last season's 42-38 comeback win over Brockport, MIKE COLLICHIO, WILLIAM COON and JAMES CHAMBERS had a big impact on the outcome as the three combined to produce 271 of Fisher's 501 yards of offense.  Coon had a breakout game after hauling in five catches for what was then a career-high 140 yards and two touchdowns while Collichio grabbed eight passes for 62 yards.  James Chambers helped establish Fisher's ground game with 19 rushes overall for 69 yards.  Heading into a critical week three matchup, Fisher will need them to have another big outing to ground the Golden Eagles. 
 
LET ME TACKLE THIS ONE: Defensively, Fisher doesn't miss many tackles.  Entering Saturday's showdown, the Cardinals boast five players that rank in the top 12 in the Empire 8 in total tackles.  EVAN MAJEWSKI, JUSTIN RIVERA and MICHAEL CHASE have each come up with 17 stops - good for fifth-most in the conference.  CAMERON BELLINO and BRENNAN THOMPSON have each made 13 tackles while COLE ANSLEY-PURPURA has been credited with 11 tackles on the year.
 
SEEING RED: Through two games, Fisher has had its fair share of trips inside the red zone.  The Cardinals broke into their opponent's 20-yard line a total of eight times this season, four times at Washington and Jefferson and four times at Hobart, however, they've only managed to come away with points three times.  Opponents on the other hand, have had 10 red zone opportunities and have put points on the board nine times. 
 
SCOUTING BROCKPORT: The Golden Eagles are included in this week's D3football.com national poll as head coach Jason Mangone's team holds the No. 22 ranking at 2-0. The Golden Eagles are riding high after coming off two straight wins including a 34-20 decision over then No. 14 Hobart and a 31-0 drubbing of Ithaca last Saturday. Offensively, Brockport ranks third in the conference in scoring offense at 32.5 points per game while its 522.5 total yards per game is the second-highest total in the Empire 8. Sophomore quarterback JOE GERMINERIO, who was named the Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Week on Monday, has thrown for 628 yards and three scores this season while adding another 146 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Germinerio has several weapons at his disposal with three wide receivers who have caught at least nine passes this season led by JOSEPH ORTIZ'S 14 receptions. DAQUAN HUBBARD leads the team with 245 yards and two scores while TYREE BROWN had added 152 yards through the air and one touchdown. At the running back position, Brockport features JUSTIN MORRISON who has picked up 232 yards (116.0/game) on 42 carries for an average of 5.5 yards per attempt.
 
Defensively, the Golden Eagles have surrendered just 10.0 points per game this season, which leads the Empire 8. Additionally, they've given up just 282 yards of total offense per game - albeit in a short sample size. JAKE O'CONNELL, MATT SZYMANSKI, TIM TERRY and RASHAD BAKER have each made at least 10 tackles. 
 
As a team, Brockport has shown the ability to bring the pressure, and as a result, has come away with five sacks in two games and a conference-leading five interceptions including two by JULIUS BRUNSON, however, the team isn't without its faults as the Golden Eagles have also fumbled the ball four times.          
 
HALL OF FAME NEWS: The St. John Fisher College Athletics Hall of Fame will see two former football players enshrined during an induction ceremony on November 3 at the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa as Noah Fehrenbach '06 and Gene Lang '07 will each be honored.  A three-time All-Conference honoree and an All-American selection in 2005, Fehrenbach rewrote the record books at Fisher and is still the program's all-time leader in receiving yards with 3,083 (nearly 1,500 yards more than second place), receptions (205) and touchdowns (36).  A two-time All-American, Lang was named to the Third-Team All-Decade Team by D3football.com at the conclusion of his career at linebacker.  To date, he still ranks third all-time in total tackles with 325.  Lang is a two-time First-Team All-Conference selection by the Empire 8 and was named the conference's Defensive Player of the Year in 2006 – the conference's first-ever player to earn that award.  Furthermore, he was named All East Region by D3football.com twice and went on to be named the 2006 Don Hansen Gazette Linebacker of the Year.
 
ON THE HORIZON:  Fisher's time at home will be short-lived as the Cardinals head to Oneonta on
Saturday, September 23 to take on the high-powered Hartwick Hawks in another pivotal Empire 8 matchup.  Through two games, Hartwick has put up some serious passing numbers as the Hawks lead the conference and are among the national leaders with 578.0 yards of offense per game.  Quarterback BILLY PINE set a conference record in week one with seven passing touchdowns.

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