Football Falls, 35-24, At Duquesne In Season-Opener

GAME STAT BOOK

PITTSBURGH – It was an uphill climb throughout Saturday afternoon’s season-opener at Rooney Field for the University at Albany football team, as the Great Danes fell to Duquesne University, 35-24. UAlbany never led in the non-conference clash, falling to 0-1 on the season.

“I think it’s one thing to not play well, its another thing to not play sharp,” said head coach Bob Ford. “Even very average athletes can play intelligently, and I don’t think we did that.

“At the same time, Jerry [Schmitt] and his staff and squad have always played us the same. They’ve always played us very, very hard and I take my hat off to them,” added Ford.

The Great Danes totaled 421 yards of offense, including 354 passing yards. Junior quarterback Will Fiacchi completed a career-high 27-of-45 passes with one interception and two touchdown tosses to senior Kevin Chillis. Chillis logged a team-high nine receptions, while Presley Beauvais (41 yards) and Cole King (31 yards) each had four. Jameel Gay (64 yards) and Omar Osbourne (16) had three apiece.

On the ground, Osbourne carried the ball 21 times for a total of 79 yards and one touchdown.

Defensively, Alex Helmer’s 11 tackles, including eight unassisted, led the Danes. Michael Nicastro also stood out with seven tackles, including 2.5 for a loss and 1.5 sacks, while Andrew Smith also had 1.5 sacks and two tackles for a loss.

While UAlbany’s kicking game was an area of concern coming into the contest, punter Jonathan Martin and kicker Tom O’Riordan served as a highlight. Martin punted four times, averaging 48.8 yards, including two over 50-yards and two that pinned the Dukes within the 20-yard line. Also making his debut donning purple and gold, O’Riordan was 1-for-1 for field goals and 3-for-3 for point-after attempts.

With the Dukes winning the opening toss, the Great Danes set up to receive the 2013 season kickoff. The ball sailed into the end zone, and after a slight hesitation, Chillis carried the ball out, but was brought down at the 13-yard line. The Danes tried to rush it out of dangerous territory, but Duquesne’s Aaron Reed and the defensive line suffocated the run, resulting in a safety with just 19 ticks off the clock.

With a 2-0 lead, the Dukes added a touchdown with 9:35 remaining in the first quarter, led by freshman quarterback Dillon Buechel. Buechel completed three consecutive passes, including an 81-yarder to Dave Thomas, putting the Dukes on the 2-yard line. Running back Ryan Ho took two attempts, but pushed his way across the goal line, giving Duquesne a 9-0 head start.

After each squad punted away, the Great Danes put together their first scoring drive of the season. UAlbany started its 10-play, 28-yard drive on the 50-yard line after forcing the Dukes to punt out of their end zone. The drive featured an eight-yard first down rush by quarterback Will Fiacchi, an 11-yard pass to Chillis, and a three-yard rush by Osbourne, setting up O’Riordan’s 39-yard field goal with 2:09 remaining in the opening quarter.

The Dukes answered back with 3:45 left in the half, as Ho capped an eight-play, 74-yard drive with a 25-yard scamper into the end zone.

Trailing 16-3, the Great Danes cut the deficit to six with a successful hurried final drive in the closing 1:26 of the half. Starting on their own 33-yard line, Fiacchi connected an 11-yard pass to Chillis, a 21-yard pass to Cole King, and a drive-capping 35-yard touchdown pass back to Chillis, making the score 16-10 at the break.

Out of the locker rooms, the start of the second half belonged to the home team, as Duquesne marched down the gridiron with an opening nine-play, 78-yard drive. On the final play, Sean Brady made a spectacular one-handed catch at the goal line (27-yards), giving Duquesne a 23-10 lead with 11:03 to go in the third.

The Dukes quickly took possession of the football again after Sam Martello sacked Fiacchi and forced a fumble. One play later, Buechel threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Gianni Carter, stretching the margin to 19 points, 29-10.

However, the Great Danes battled back immediately with a five-play drive, featuring a 28-yard scamper by Beauvais, and back-to-back completed passes to Chillis. The second was a 35-yard touchdown reception, making the score 29-17 with 7:56 remaining in the third quarter.

On their next drive, Duquesne settled with a 30-yard field goal with 4:35 to go in the quarter.

With time becoming a factor for the Great Danes in the final quarter, UAlbany cut the deficit to eight points, 32-24, with 6:33 remaining. The 10-play, 44-yard drive was capped by Osbourne’s two-yard push across the goal line.

The Danes’ defense stepped up to the challenge and forced the Dukes to punt with nearly 3:00 minutes remaining in the ball game. Taking over on the eight-yard line after a well-placed boot by Aaron Fleck, Osbourne rushed 12-yards for a first down. However, after three incomplete passes, the Great Danes’ winning shot came down to 4th down. With a great deal of pressure coming from the line of scrimmage, Fiacchi’s pass up the middle was picked off by Rich Piekarski and returned 25-yards to the 10-yard line.

With 1:07 on the clock, Duquesne clinched the victory with Crimmins’ fourth-down goal line rush, making the final score, 35-24.

Buechel finished the game 21-for-28, totaling 309 passing yards and two touchdowns. Receivers Carter (103 yards) and Thomas (107 yards) both broke the 100-yard barrier to lead the Dukes, while Ho totaled 76 rushing yards and two touchdowns with 23 carries.

The Great Danes now have a 5-2 all-time record against the Dukes.

Up next, UAlbany travels to Colgate on Saturday, Sept. 7th for another non-conference contest. Kickoff is at 6:00 p.m. in Hamilton, N.Y.

Albany vs Duquesne (Aug 31, 2013 at Pittsburgh, Pa.)

Albany (0-1) vs. Duquesne (1-0)

Date: Aug 31, 2013 • Site: Pittsburgh, Pa.  • Stadium: Rooney Field  •  Attendance: 2001

Score by Quarters  1  2  3  4  Score 
Albany   3  7  7  7  24 
Duquesne   9  7  16  3  35 
SCORING SUMMARY   ALB -DUQ  
1st  14:48  DUQ   REED, Aaron safety 
           0 – 2 
  09:35  DUQ   HO, Ryan 1 yd run (CRIMMINS, A kick) 
         5 plays, 90 yards, TOP 2:16  0 – 9 
  02:09  ALB   O’Riordan, Tom 39 yd field goal 
         10 plays, 28 yards, TOP 3:59  3 – 9 
2nd  03:45  DUQ   HO, Ryan 25 yd run (CRIMMINS, A kick) 
         8 plays, 74 yards, TOP 3:24  3 – 16 
  00:22  ALB   Chillis, Kevin 35 yd pass from Fiacchi, Will (O’Riordan, Tom kick) 
         5 plays, 67 yards, TOP 1:04  10 – 16 
3rd  11:03  DUQ   BRADY, Sean 27 yd pass from BUECHEL, Dillon (CRIMMINS, A kick) 
         9 plays, 78 yards, TOP 3:48  10 – 23 
  10:03  DUQ   CARTER, Gianni 29 yd pass from BUECHEL, Dillon (CRIMMINS, A kick failed) 
         1 play, 29 yards, TOP 0:08  10 – 29 
  07:56  ALB   Chillis, Kevin 35 yd pass from Fiacchi, Will (O’Riordan, Tom kick) 
         5 plays, 75 yards, TOP 2:07  17 – 29 
  04:35  DUQ   CRIMMINS, A 30 yd field goal 
         8 plays, 57 yards, TOP 3:15  17 – 32 
4th  06:33  ALB   Osbourne, Omar 2 yd run (O’Riordan, Tom kick) 
         10 plays, 44 yards, TOP 3:22  24 – 32 
  01:04  DUQ   CRIMMINS, A 22 yd field goal 
         4 plays, 5 yards, TOP 1:07  24 – 35 
Kickoff time: 12:10 pm • End of Game: 3:00  • Total elapsed time: 2:50
Referee: Steven Keller  •  Umpire: Wilson Durisko  •  Linesman: Robert Geiss  •  Line judge: Jeffrey Osborne •  Back judge: Frank Usseglio  •  Field judge: Adam Wentworth  •  Side judge: Jose Garcia  • 
Temperature: 77  • Wind: SSW-7  • Weather: Partly cloudy

Team Statistics (Final)
The Automated ScoreBook
Albany vs Duquesne (Aug 31, 2013 at Pittsburgh, Pa.)

 Team Totals  ALB  DUQ 
FIRST DOWNS  20  17 
   Rushing  4  4 
   Passing  15  11 
   Penalty  1  2 
NET YARDS RUSHING  67  89 
   Rushing Attempts  30  38 
   Average Per Rush  2.2  2.3 
   Rushing Touchdowns  1  2 
   Yards Gained Rushing  97  125 
   Yards Lost Rushing  30  36 
NET YARDS PASSING  354  309 
   Completions-Attempts-Int  28-47-2  21-28-0 
   Average Per Attempt  7.5  11.0 
   Average Per Completion  12.6  14.7 
   Passing Touchdowns  2  2 
TOTAL OFFENSE YARDS  421  398 
   Total offense plays  77  66 
   Average Gain Per Play  5.5  6.0 
Fumbles: Number-Lost  1-1  0-0 
Penalties: Number-Yards  9-80  4-29 
PUNTS-YARDS  4-195  7-233 
   Average Yards Per Punt  48.8  33.3 
   Net Yards Per Punt  49.0  32.6 
   Inside 20  2  3 
   50+ Yards  2  0 
   Touchbacks  0  0 
   Fair catch  1  1 
KICKOFFS-YARDS  6-313  7-435 
   Average Yards Per Kickoff  52.2  62.1 
   Net Yards Per Kickoff  39.2  40.9 
   Touchbacks  0  3 
Punt returns: Number-Yards-TD  1-5-0  1–1-0 
   Average Per Return  5.0  -1.0 
Kickoff returns: Number-Yds-TD  4-74-0  6-78-0 
   Average Per Return  18.5  13.0 
Interceptions: Number-Yds-TD  0-0-0  2-25-0 
Fumble Returns: Number-Yds-TD  0-0-0  0-0-0 
Miscellaneous Yards  0  0 
Possession Time  28:06  31:54 
   1st Quarter  7:55  7:05 
   2nd Quarter  7:48  7:12 
   3rd Quarter  4:20  10:40 
   4th Quarter  8:03  6:57 
Third-Down Conversions  4 of 14  6 of 16 
Fourth-Down Conversions  1 of 4  1 of 1 
Red-Zone Scores-Chances  1-1  3-3 
   Touchdowns  1-1  1-3 
   Field goals  0-1  2-3 
Sacks By: Number-Yards  3-23  1-5 
PAT Kicks  3-3  3-4 
Field Goals  1-1  2-2 
 

Individual Statistics

Individual Statistics (Final)
The Automated ScoreBook
Albany vs Duquesne (Aug 31, 2013 at Pittsburgh, Pa.)

Albany    Duquesne
RUSHING  No.  Gain  Loss  Net  TD  Lg  Avg. 
Osbourne, Omar   21  79  0  79  1  12  3.8 
Meek, Jake   1  8  0  8  0  8  8.0 
Beauvais, P.   1  2  0  2  0  2  2.0 
Fiacchi, Will   4  8  10  -2  0  8  -0.5 
King, Cole   1  0  7  -7  0  0  -7.0 
Chillis, Kevin   2  0  13  -13  0  0  -6.5 
Totals…  30  97  30  67  1  12  2.2 
  
  
RUSHING  No.  Gain  Loss  Net  TD  Lg  Avg. 
HO, Ryan   23  84  8  76  2  25  3.3 
JOHNSON, Juan   2  7  0  7  0  4  3.5 
FLECK, Aaron   1  7  0  7  0  7  7.0 
DOUGLAS, Jason   3  6  0  6  0  6  2.0 
RAWLINS, Chavas  1  3  0  3  0  3  3.0 
Team   1  0  2  -2  0  0  -2.0 
BUECHEL, Dillon  7  18  26  -8  0  10  -1.1 
Totals…  38  125  36  89  2  25  2.3 
 
PASSING  Cmp-Att-Int  Yds  TD  Long  Sack 
Fiacchi, Will   27-45-1  346  2  35  1 
Smith, Ryan   1-2-1  8  0  8  0 
Totals…  28-47-2  354  2  35  1 
  
PASSING  Cmp-Att-Int  Yds  TD  Long  Sack 
BUECHEL, Dillon  21-28-0  309  2  81  3 
Totals…  21-28-0  309  2  81  3 
  
 
RECEIVING  No.  Yds  TD  Lg 
Chillis, Kevin   9  135  2  35 
Beauvais, P.   4  41  0  28 
King, Cole   4  31  0  21 
Gay, Jameel   3  64  0  25 
Osbourne, Omar   3  16  0  8 
Malloy, Kevin   2  31  0  22 
Lewis, Cameron   2  18  0  11 
Lawrence, M.   1  18  0  18 
Totals…  28  354  2  35 
  
RECEIVING  No.  Yds  TD  Lg 
CARTER, Gianni   6  103  1  29 
THOMAS, Dave   5  107  0  81 
BRADY, Sean   4  60  1  28 
KING, Chris   2  12  0  9 
ENRIGHT, Kevin   1  13  0  13 
POMMERER, Brian  1  7  0  7 
RAWLINS, Chavas  1  4  0  4 
ODUHO, Noel   1  3  0  3 
Totals…  21  309  2  81 
 
PUNTING  No.  Yds  Avg  Long  In20  TB 
Martin, Jon   4  195  48.8  64  2  0 
Totals…  4  195  48.8  64  2  0 
  
PUNTING  No.  Yds  Avg  Long  In20  TB 
FLECK, Aaron   7  233  33.3  42  3  0 
Totals…  7  233  33.3  42  3  0 
 
   Punts  Kickoffs  Intercept 
ALL RETURNS  No  Yds  Lg  No  Yds  Lg  No  Yds  Lg 
Chillis, Kevin   1  5  5  1  13  13  0  0  0 
Harris, Clay   0  0  0  2  46  23  0  0  0 
Meek, Jake   0  0  0  1  15  15  0  0  0 
Totals…  1  5  5  4  74  23  0  0  0 
  
  
  
   Punts  Kickoffs  Intercept 
ALL RETURNS  No  Yds  Lg  No  Yds  Lg  No  Yds  Lg 
THOMAS, Dave   1  -1  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
MANIA, Paul   0  0  0  1  0  0  0  0  0 
HO, Ryan   0  0  0  1  17  17  0  0  0 
PIEKARSKI, Rich  0  0  0  0  0  0  2  25  25 
DOUGLAS, Jason   0  0  0  4  61  24  0  0  0 
Totals…  1  -1  0  6  78  24  2  25  25 
 
ALL PURPOSE  Rush  Rcv  KR  PR  IR  Total 
Chillis, Kevin   -13  135  13  5  0  140 
Osbourne, Omar   79  16  0  0  0  95 
Gay, Jameel   0  64  0  0  0  64 
Harris, Clay   0  0  46  0  0  46 
Beauvais, P.   2  41  0  0  0  43 
Malloy, Kevin   0  31  0  0  0  31 
King, Cole   -7  31  0  0  0  24 
Meek, Jake   8  0  15  0  0  23 
Lewis, Cameron   0  18  0  0  0  18 
Lawrence, M.   0  18  0  0  0  18 
Fiacchi, Will   -2  0  0  0  0  -2 
Totals…  67  354  74  5  0  500 
  
  
  
  
  
ALL PURPOSE  Rush  Rcv  KR  PR  IR  Total 
THOMAS, Dave   0  107  0  -1  0  106 
CARTER, Gianni   0  103  0  0  0  103 
HO, Ryan   76  0  17  0  0  93 
DOUGLAS, Jason   6  0  61  0  0  67 
BRADY, Sean   0  60  0  0  0  60 
PIEKARSKI, Rich  0  0  0  0  25  25 
ENRIGHT, Kevin   0  13  0  0  0  13 
KING, Chris   0  12  0  0  0  12 
RAWLINS, Chavas  3  4  0  0  0  7 
POMMERER, Brian  0  7  0  0  0  7 
JOHNSON, Juan   7  0  0  0  0  7 
FLECK, Aaron   7  0  0  0  0  7 
ODUHO, Noel   0  3  0  0  0  3 
Team   -2  0  0  0  0  -2 
BUECHEL, Dillon  -8  0  0  0  0  -8 
Totals…  89  309  78  -1  25  500 
 
FIELD GOAL ATTEMPTS 
O’Riordan, Tom  1st  02:09  39 yards  Good 
  
  
FIELD GOAL ATTEMPTS 
CRIMMINS, A  3rd  04:35  30 yards  Good 
CRIMMINS, A  4th  01:04  22 yards  Good 
 
KICKOFFS  No.  Yds  TB  OB  Avg. 
Martin, Jon   6  313  0  0  52.2 
  
KICKOFFS  No.  Yds  TB  OB  Avg. 
CRIMMINS, A   7  435  3  0  62.1 
 
FUMBLES: Albany-Fiacchi, Will 1-1. Duquesne-None.
 

Defensive Statistics

Defensive Statistics (Final)
The Automated ScoreBook
Albany vs Duquesne (Aug 31, 2013 at Pittsburgh, Pa.)

##  Albany   Solo  Ast  Total  TFL/Yds  FF  FR-Yds  Int-Yds  BrUp  Blkd  Sack/Yds  QBH 
21  Helmer, Alex   8  3  11  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
11  Nicastro, M.   6  1  7  2.5/13   .  .   .   .  .  1.5/10   . 
1   Idowu, Olatunji  4  1  5  1.0/1   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
58  Greenhagen, C.   3  2  5  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
98  Morton, Zach   3  1  4  .   .  .   .   1  .  .   . 
59  Smith, Andrew   2  2  4  2.0/13   .  .   .   .  .  1.5/13   . 
36  Morrison, Neil   3  .  3  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
54  Dwyer, Jake   2  1  3  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
6   Exantus, R.   2  1  3  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
91  Troutman, Zach   2  1  3  1.5/7   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
22  Polk, Dorian   2  .  2  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
17  Mbongue-Muna, P  1  1  2  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
25  Harris, Clay   1  1  2  .   .  .   .   1  .  .   . 
94  Kologrivov, Tim  1  1  2  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
90  Bradley, Tom   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
35  LaDucer, Mat   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
97  Gray, Samuel   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
24  Beach, Nick   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
19  Baylor, Brandon  1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
33  Dorsey, C.   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
TM  TEAM   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
8   McClary, Jojo   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   1  .  .   . 
5   Wilson, T.   .  1  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
4   Wiggins, R.   .  1  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
52  Fasano, Joe   .  1  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
53  Russell, T.   .  1  1  .   .  .   .   1  .  .   . 
##  Duquesne   Solo  Ast  Total  TFL/Yds  FF  FR-Yds  Int-Yds  BrUp  Blkd  Sack/Yds  QBH 
56  REED, Aaron   5  4  9  1.5/14   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
43  KUNTZ, C   2  5  7  1.5/4   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
45  EILAND, Reggie   2  4  6  0.5/0   .  .   .   .  .  .   1 
48  MARTELLO, Sam   4  1  5  1.0/5   1  .   .   .  .  1.0/5   . 
6   WILLIAMS, Devin  4  1  5  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
13  PIEKARSKI, Rich  3  2  5  0.5/4   .  .   2-25  1  .  .   . 
20  PARKS, Sterling  1  3  4  .   .  .   .   1  .  .   . 
97  QUINTANA, Luis   3  .  3  1.0/2   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
29  JORDAN, Josh   3  .  3  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
31  KOSEC, E.J.   2  1  3  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
90  O’DRISCOLL, D   .  3  3  .   .  .   .   1  .  .   . 
7   BELL, Dorian   .  3  3  .   .  1-0   .   .  .  .   2 
52  EGAN, Kyle   2  .  2  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
69  ZIDIAN, Zach   2  .  2  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
4   JOHNSON, Chris   1  1  2  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
9   HUGHES, Marcus   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
55  OSLEY, William   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
25  POMMERER, Brian  1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
94  RADZIUKINAS, J   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
TM  Team   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
80  BEREXA, Tommy   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
3   BRADY, Sean   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
19  KING, Chris   1  .  1  .   .  .   .   .  .  .   . 
92  WHALEN, Austin   .  .  .  .   .  .   .   1  .  .   .