PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher College football team will head into its week three matchup with a 2-0 record for the first time since 2016 as the Cardinals welcome The College of New Jersey to Growney Stadium in what will mark the two teams' first time meeting on the gridiron. Fisher, which will also be celebrating Alumni and Family Weekend, is coming off a strong showing against Bridgewater State that saw it force six turnovers while the Lions are in search of their first win.
Fans who are unable to be in attendance can still follow all of Saturday's action by clicking the links below. Do you want to learn more about both teams?
Check out this week's GAME NOTES.
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D's NUMBER DON'T LIE: Much can be said about the Cardinals' defense through two games this season. So far so good as Fisher enters week three leading all of Division III with seven interceptions to its credit. The Cardinals are tied for second in the country in turnover margin (+8) while their rushing defense is allowing just 30 yards on average - good for 13th in Division III. Take it a step further and the team's total defense is ranked 45th out of 244 teams at 268.0 yards per game. Individually,
Jason Rodriguez is tied for the Division III lead in interceptions with three while
Justin Wheeler is ninth in the country with 3.5 sacks.
John Cleary is currently ranked 12th in tackles for loss (5.5) while Wheeler is tied for 17th with five tackles for a loss on the year.
THERE'S AN APP FOR THAT: In case you missed it, Fisher Athletics launched its new mobile app last fall - SJFC Athletics - in the App Store and on Google Play. The app, which gives fans, alumni, parents and more yet another opportunity to stay-up-to-date with the latest news, highlights, schedules and more, is free and features push notifications so you never miss a beat. Speaking of apps, don't forget to download the Radio.com mobile app to listen to each and every football game - just search ESPN ROCHESTER.
SERIES HISTORY: For the second consecutive week, the Cardinals will face off with an opponent whom they've never played in their 49-year history. The College of New Jersey has had a collegiate football team since 1921 and in that span has never once made its way to Pittsford. Last weekend, Fisher hosted Bridgewater State for the first time in its history.
LAST TIME OUT: The Cardinals are coming off another impressive win after taming the Bears 35-28 last Saturday. Fisher's defense dominated the line of scrimmage as Bridgewater managed just seven rushing yards in all. Fisher finished with eight tackles for a loss including four sacks and came away with six takeaways on the day. As a team, Fisher produced 22 first downs and nearly 400 yards of offense as head coach
Paul Vosburgh's team ran 75 plays.
Hunter Walsh threw for two touchdowns including a 46-yard strike to
Pat Galer and a 49-yard bomb to
TySean Sizer while sophomore running back
Dahmir Pross found pay dirt twice to go along with a game-high 72 rushing yards. Defensively,
Jason Rodriguez had a career-high two interceptions while
Jack Fitzgerald and
Evan Strassberger each came away with one pick in the win.
WELCOME BACK ALUMNI: Saturday's game has added significance as it's Alumni and Family Weekend. Growney Stadium will be packed with graduates of the College and families of current students. To learn more about what the College has in store, please visit
https://www.sjfc.edu/special-event/.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION: Senior defensive end
John Cleary received some high praise on Tuesday as the Fairport native was named to the D3football.com Team of the Week for his performance in Fisher's win over Bridgewater last weekend. Cleary was part of a defensive unit that allowed just seven rushing yards in a 35-28 win. Cleary finished with seven tackles in the win including four for a loss and was credited with two-and-a-half sacks in the win. With Cleary on the line, Fisher all but eliminated the Bears' ground game as the Cardinals held Bridgewater to just seven rushing yards in all. Cleary, who was in the backfield all game and finished with two quarterback hurries, also forced and recovered a fumble that set up a scoring drive for the Fisher offense. To date, Cleary is among the Empire 8's leaders in sacks, forced fumbles and tackles for a loss as Fisher's defense leads the conference in rushing yards allowed per game.
AS PROSS GOES...: ...so does the Cardinals' offense. Sophomore running back
Dahmir Pross has made a habit of making people miss as the Bishop Kearney graduate has averaged nearly 100 yards on the ground through his first two games in a Fisher uniform. With 44 carries under his belt, Pross has averaged nearly 4.5 yards per carry so far and has found the endzone twice in each of the team's contests this season. To date, Pross is among the nation's leaders in rushing touchdowns as his four scores is tied for the fourth most in Division III football.
SCOUTING TCNJ: The Lions enter this weekend's matchup having played two tough opponents to begin their season. TCNJ fell to No. 8 Muhlenberg in its opener before dropping a 31-7 contest to Cortland, which is now receiving votes in the latest D3football.com national poll. Despite the losses, the Lions feature a strong passing game that ranks second in the New Jersey Athletic Conference at nearly 265 yards per game. The running game, however, hasn't kept pace as TCNJ is averaging just 32 yards on the ground this season - a trend that may continue this week given Fisher's formidable front seven.
Defensively, it's been a struggle for the Lions so far this year as head coach Casey Goff's squad ranks near the bottom of the conference in several categories. TCNJ is allowing 38.0 points to its opposition through two games and has allowed 432 yards per game on average. The Lions are giving up 136 yards on the ground and haven't been able to slow the passing game much with just one interception and only three sacks over 120 minutes of play.
Individually, quarterback Andrew Donoghue can sling it down field with nearly 500 yards to his credit and four touchdown passes. Jack Clevenger has proven to be his favorite target as the receiver has 185 yards on 10 catches including two touchdown grabs. Dave Jachera has also hauled in 10 catches for 92 total yards.
Defensively, Bryant Sanchez and Michael Siwak lead the way with 13 tackles apiece while Xavier Santos has recorded the team's lone interception.
HALL OF FAME NEWS: St. John Fisher College is set to induct eight new members into its Athletics Hall of Fame later this fall including three former football players. All-American Tim Bailey '11 will be inducted after a record-setting career under center. To date, he still ranks first in program history in completions (628), yards (8,352 – 1,500 more than second) and touchdowns with 77 while his 1010 attempts is second in team history. His 62.2 completion percentage is third all-time. On the single season list, Bailey's name appears three times in single-season attempts, yards and completions while he ranks first all-time in touchdowns for a season with 35. James Reile '08 will also be enshrined as the former running back is fourth all-time in rushing yards with over 3,100 while his 39 touchdowns are second in Fisher's storied history. Former All-American defensive end Terry Principe '80 will be inducted as well. Following his time in uniform, Principe played a significant role in helping to fundraise in order to sustain the program, which was a club at that time. Kyle Denhoff '12 (men's lacrosse), Colleen Maloney '11 (women's basketball), Sandy Spero '80 (wrestling), Luke Lennox '10 (men's soccer) and Irene Valentine '97 (softball) will also be honored.
