For Immediate Release
October 6, 2011
South Easton, Mass. – The Northeast-10 Conference office takes an in-depth look at Friday night's crucial football game between the Chargers of the University of New Haven and the Owls of Southern Connecticut State University.
THE GAME: Jess Dow Field in New Haven, Conn. will provide the setting for the most anticipated matchup of the Northeast-10 Conference football schedule this fall on Friday night, as No. 21 New Haven (4-1, 2-0 NE-10) visits So. Connecticut (4-1, 3-0 NE-10) at 7:00 p.m.
THE MATCHUP: New Haven will make the short trip to So. Connecticut having appeared in the American Football Coaches' Association (AFCA) Top-25 each of the last four weeks. The Chargers' lone defeat came September 17 on the road at the hands of FCS school William & Mary, a 13-10 setback that actually saw the two teams tied with 5:28 remaining in the contest. New Haven has responded with back-to-back conference wins over Assumption and Stonehill, outscoring the two opponents by a combined 43 points in the two victories.
The Owls, while not yet cracking the AFCA rankings, did receive votes in the poll for the first time this season. The team's lone blemish came in its opening game of the season, a 35-21 loss at Central Connecticut State. Since the week one loss, the Owls have reeled off four straight wins – including three on the road – scoring 185 points during the stretch. Their most recent victory was a 38-24 come- from-behind win at Assumption last Saturday. The Owls scored 31 second-half points to overcome a two-touchdown deficit at halftime.
THE COACHES: Peter Rossomondo is in his third season as head coach at New Haven, and is the reigning Northeast-10 Conference Coach of the Year. For So. Connecticut, Rich Cavanaugh is in his 27th season at the helm of the Owls and has led his teams to 10 straight winning seasons.
NEW HAVEN: The Chargers have been led offensively by junior quarterback Ryan Osiecki (Seymour, Conn.). Osiecki leads the NE-10 with 14 touchdown passes through five games and is third with an average of 234.8 yards passing per game. Last week in a 52-23 win over Stonehill, Osiecki had arguably his best game of the season, throwing for 252 yards on 15-of-20 passing and five touchdowns. The week prior, Osiecki was 22-of-32 for 321 yards and accounted for all three of his team's scores in a 21-7 victory at Assumption. The University of Louisville transfer also received Week 2 Player of the Week honors earlier this season after accounting for four total touchdowns in a 50-14 victory over Saint Augustine's.
Sophomore Mike DeCaro (Weston, Fla.) has served as the Chargers' primary ball carrier, averaging 75.0 yards per game on the ground in five contests. Twice this year he has gone over the 100-yard mark, rushing for 100 yards on 11 carries Sept. 10 against Saint Augustine's and for 139 yards and a touchdown in last week's win over the Skyhawks.
Osiecki's receiving corps does not feature a true No. 1 receiver, but does consist of four notable wideouts. Josh Smart (New Haven, Conn.), Chris Ruffin (New York, N.Y.), Demetrius Washington-Ellington (Rahway, N.J.), and Jason Thompson (Stuart, Fla.) have all accounted for over 200 yards on the season. Washington-Ellington leads the group, which has combined for 12 total scores, with five touchdowns.
Defensively, Charlie Hatchett (Bridgeport, Conn.) leads the team with 41 total tackles, while Tom Herd (Sparta, N.J.) has added four sacks. Junior defensive back Bernard Risco (Philadelphia, Pa.) received Defensive Player of the Week honors earlier this season following a 21-7 win over Assumption in which he totaled 10 tackles and forced two fumbles. The Chargers also have five interceptions as a team on the season.
SO. CONNECTICUT: Much of the success of the So. Connecticut offense can be attributed to senior running back Rashaad Slowley (Mount Vernon, N.Y.), a two-time NE-10 Player of the Week through five weeks this season. Slowley leads all Division II running backs in rushing touchdowns (15) and has found the end zone 12 times in the past three weeks. His 15 scores are ten more than any other rusher in the conference. He is also fifth in the nation in both rushing yards (770) and rushing yards per game (154.0).
On Sept. 17, the senior rushed for 205 yards and a school record six touchdowns in a 59-34 shutout at Saint Anselm and then followed up that performance with a two-score, 113-yard effort on the ground Sept. 23 in a 61-0 shutout of Pace. In last week's comeback win, he continued his offensive surge by scoring four more times – all in the second half – while rushing for a career-high 288 yards on 34 carries.
Senior quarterback Kevin Lynch (Medfield, Mass.) is fourth in the NE-10 with 228.0 yards passing per contest. Lynch has also completed 58.5 percent of his passes, and has thrown for nine touchdowns on the season. He has once gone over the 300-yard mark through the air, throwing for 314 yards and two touchdowns at Saint Anselm on Sept. 17.
Senior wide receiver Andre Privott (Middletown, Conn.) has also put together a stellar season so far in 2011. He is currently second in the NE-10 with 94.6 receiving yards per game, and has twice appeared on the conference's weekly honor roll. He had a 10-catch, 155-yard performance with a touchdown against Saint Anselm and followed up with eight receptions for 136 yards and another score against Pace. Privott also serves as So. Connecticut's primary playmaker on special teams, averaging 12.9 yards per return on eight punts and 18.1 yards per return on 14 kickoffs.
Junior wideout Willie Epps (Norwalk, Conn.) has added five touchdowns for the Owls, which is good for second in the NE-10 among receivers.
Defensively, Ike Igbinosun (Rahway, N.J.) is fourth in the conference in sacks (4) while Michael Escobar (Danbury, Conn.) and Steven Teague (Hamden, Conn.) have three interceptions apiece.
WHAT'S TO FOLLOW: New Haven returns home October 15 for a 1:00 p.m. matchup with American International while So. Connecticut hits the road later the same afternoon (2:00 p.m.) for a contest with Bentley.
The Northeast-10 is an association of 16 NCAA Division II colleges and universities located in New England and New York that is committed to supporting balanced academic and athletic opportunities for more than 5,500 student-athletes. Each year, 4,000 of those student-athletes compete in Conference championships in 23 sports, making the NE-10 the largest DII conference in the country. Leading the way in the classroom, on the field and within the community, the Northeast-10 is proud of its comprehensive program and the experience it provides student-athletes.
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