2023 NCAA DIII Football Championship - First Round Union at Delaware Valley

Saturday, Nov. 18, 2023 • Doylestown, Pa.  • 12 p.m. Robert A. Lipinski Field at James Work Memorial Stadium

Live Stats: Athletics.DelVal.edu  •  Live Video: GoMACSports.TV

Weekend Preview

Union Game Notes • Delaware Valley Game Notes

TICKET INFORMATION: For those heading to Doylestown for the game, tickets will be $10 for adults and $5 for students with college ID, while parking for all vehicles is also $5. Cash only is accepted for payment. No advance ticket sales are available.
 
LIVE COVERAGE: For those that can't make it to Doylestown, Delaware Valley will be providing live stats and live video coverage. Fans can also follow Union Football on Instagram and X for more gameday content.

Postseason Content:
Daily Gazette: Fifth-year seniors at the heart of Garnet Chargers' run to playoffs (11/16/23)
Times Union: Union football's Pete Brown nearing end of long career (11/15/23)
D3football.com: Union excited for postseason shot (11/15/23)
 
POSTSEASON HISTORY: Union is making the 13th NCAA Tournament appearance in program history and first since 2019. The Garnet Chargers are 10-12 all-time in NCAA competition and have won at least one game in seven of their 12 previous trips. Union has twice reached the Stagg Bowl in 1983 and 1989 and also made the national semifinals in 1984.
 
HAVE WE MET?: No, we haven't. Saturday's game will be the first time that Union and Delaware Valley have faced off – not just on the gridiron, but in any sport. In fact, Union football has only played one game against any of the MAC's 10 current schools, falling 33-26 to Widener in the first round of the 2000 NCAA Tournament.
 
ABOUT THE AGGIES: Like Union, Delaware Valley enters the postseason with a 9-1 record, having swept through the Middle Atlantic Conference with nine straight wins to extend its conference winning streak to 53 games dating back to the 2016 season. Also like Union, the Aggies boast a stout defensive unit that allows only 11.3 points and 197.1 yards of offense per game and averages nearly four sacks per outing. Jacquez Mabin leads the team with 12.5 sacks to rank sixth in Division III and averages two tackles for loss per game, while MAC Defensive Player of the Year Anthony Puntolillo has recorded 73 tackles and 8.5 sacks to go with two interceptions and two forced fumbles. The offense only averages 139.8 yards per game through the air but rushes for nearly 200.0 per contest, led by MAC Rookie of the Year Jack Fallon with 735 yards and 11 touchdowns.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Union defense limited Rensselaer to just 29 yards on 28 rushing attempts while posting a season-high seven sacks and a pair of interceptions as Union brought the Dutchman Shoes back home with a 13-7 win. Senior Spencer Goldstien led the charge defensively with nine tackles and a key sack on RPI's last drive of the game, while classmate Nathan Sullivan had five tackles and an interception. Senior Michael Fiore and junior Jonathan Anderson both cracked 100 yards on the ground as part of a 256-yard rushing attack, Fiore's third straight game in triple digits.
 
1K FOR MIKE: Senior Michael Fiore became the 12th player in program history to rush for 1,000 yards in a season on Senior Day, finishing the regular season with 1,031 yards on the ground to rank 13th on the school single-season list. He needs 74 yards to move into 12th place and would crack the program's top 10 with 134 yards on the ground. Fiore also is tied for seventh on the school single-season rushing touchdowns list with 15, matching Chris Coney '11 in 2009.
 
MAX ON THE MARK: Junior Max Gluck added two more field goals against Rensselaer and enters the postseason tied for second in Division III with 13 made field goals so far in 2023. The junior is tied for fourth on Union's single-season list, matching the most made kicks in a season since Cliff Eisenhut '04 knocked through 16 in 2003. Gluck ranks second in the Liberty League in scoring with 77 points, behind only Fiore's 90, and is 11th in the country in scoring among kickers. He also ranks sixth on the school single-season list with 38 extra-points made.
 
ONE-TWO PUNCH: Fiore and Anderson are one of the top running back combinations in Division III, ranking fourth in the country (behind Greenville, Berry and Springfield) with a combined 1,890 yards on the ground. The pair have combined for the most yards for a duo in program history, surpassing the 1,809 of Connor Kinzelmann '18 (950) and Jermaine Carn '17 (859) in 2016. 
 
IMMEDIATE SUCCESS: With Saturday's win, head coach Jon Poppe became the first coach in Union football history to win nine games in his first season, moving ahead of Bill Smith (8-2 in 1900) and Hall of Famer Al Bagnoli HOF '03 (8-1 in 1982). Poppe also is the first mentor in program history to start his coaching career with six straight wins, surpassing Fred Dawson (3-0-2 in 1912) for the only undefeated six-game start ever.
 
THEY'D BE HONORED: Union had 15 players named to the All-Liberty League teams on Tuesday. Jimaar Edwards earned a second All-Conference first-team honor, while Matt McCorkle and Spencer Goldstien were elevated to first team after second-team recognition last season. Michael Fiore and Max Gluck earned their first career honors on the first team as well. Kevin Dewing (2nd team) was recognized for the third straight season on the offensive line, while Donovan Pacatte (2nd team), Nathan Sullivan (2nd team), Tommy Cavallo (HM) and Garrett Cafaro (HM) earned their second career honors. Cole DaSilva (2nd team), Landers Green (2nd team), Ethan VanderBrink (2nd team), Matt Mitchell (HM) and Nick Olivola (HM) all were also recognized for the first time.
 
WHAT HAS BROWN DONE FOR US: Saturday's RPI game was the final regular-season home game for longtime Union assistant coach Pete Brown '83, who is retiring after 40 years with Union football - four as a player and 36 years as a coach. Beyond football, Brown ranks 17th in D-III history in career winning percentage during his time as Union's softball coach from 1998 to 2009, posting a 307-111-2 record (.733) in 12 seasons. Along with his wife Gina, he cheered for his kids, Christy '17 (swimming) and Packy '19 (football and lacrosse) as they competed as Union student-athletes as well.
 
BIG GAME JAMES: Junior James Gillespie recorded a pair of interceptions against Buffalo State on November 4, Union's first multi-interception game since Evan Gilland '20 picked off a pair of passes on October 5, 2019 against Hobart.
 
CARRYING THE LOAD: Senior Michael Fiore carried the ball 38 times versus Rochester, tied for Ike Irabor '22 (38 against Ithaca, November 2, 2019) for the program single-game record. He leads the Liberty League and rank 30th in Division III with 171 rushing attempts on the season.
 
END OF THE RUSH: Union allowed its first rushing touchdown of the season in the fourth quarter against Ithaca, snapping a streak of 30 straight quarters (dating back to last season) without conceding a rushing TD. That total was almost half way to Union's Division III-record 61 straight quarters from October 23, 1982 to September 29, 1984, which included the entire 1983 season.
 
SIX GAMES, SIX WINS: Union went undefeated through six games for the first time since 2019, when the team won its first 11 games before falling in the second round of the NCAA Tournament to Salisbury. This season marks the 14th time in program history that Union has started the season 6-0: in the previous 13 instances, Union posted a combined record of 133-13-1 and lost more than one game in a season only twice (two in 1983 and 1984).
 
ACCOLADES FOR ANDERSON: Junior Jonathan Anderson was named the Liberty League Offensive Player of the Week on October 9 after running for a career-best 211 yards against Rochester. He is Union's first 200-yard rusher in a game since Connor Kinzelmann '18 gained 234 yards on the ground in November 16, 2016 against Merchant Marine.
 
TWO TO THE MAX: Junior Max Gluck was named the Liberty League Special Teams Player of the Week for the second time this season on October 2 after hitting all six of his kicks against St. Lawrence, going 2-for-2 on field goals and 4-for-4 on PATs. Gluck is the first Union special teams player to be recognized twice in a season since kicker Adam Henry '12 in 2011.
 
A STRONG START: Union's 14 points allowed in the season's first five games are the fewest conceded since 1984, when the team posted shutouts over Rochester, Hobart, WPI and RPI and allowed 14 points to Colby. The 14 points are the fewest in any five-game span since 1989, when Union allowed nine points over five games (and 15 over six games) on the way to a Stagg Bowl appearance.
 
HISTORICAL MARGINS: The first five games of the 2023 season were historic in the decisiveness of Union's victories. The combined 225-point margin of victory in the five contests are the largest margin in five straight games in program history, more than the 220-20 margin put up during the first five games of the 1891 campaign.
 
CRUSHING THE NON-CONFERENCE: Union finished its non-conference slate by outscoring opponents 205-14 in four games, an average margin of victory of 47.8 points. The Garnet Chargers are 23-2 in regular-season non-conference play since 2017,  having outscored their opponents by a 909-283 margin over that span (an average of 25 ppg). Liberty League teams went a combined 21-7 in non-conference play in 2023 the most wins of any D-III conference.
 
THE LONGEST (40) YARDS: Gluck's 40-yard field goal against Springfield was the first made kick of his career and the longest by a Union kicker since Blaise Ancona '11 nailed a kick from 41 yards out against Rochester on September 25, 2010.
 
SLAM DUNC: Senior Jaden Duncan was named the Liberty League Defensive Player of the Week on September 25 after a big outing against Montclair State. The linebacker had four tackles (two for loss) and a sack, blocked a field goal in the first quarter, and also returned an interception 25 yards for a score in the fourth quarter.
 
BLOCK PARTY, PART II: After going over 14 years without a pair of blocked punts in a game, Union accomplished the feat for the second straight game at Worcester State, with senior Liam Hoye and first-year Dwayne Hinds doing the honors against the Lancers. Union ranks third in Division III with five blocked punts and ninth with six blocked kicks this season.
 
JUST FOR KICKS: Senior Andrew Lau is averaging 37.0 yards per punt on 40 boots so far in 2023. The senior's career average of 38.3 yards per punt is second-highest in program history, behind only the 39.7 average of Marc Hurlbut '66 from 1963-65.
 
YOU'RE ON THE LIST: The team's 65-0 win over Hilbert on September 2 marked the eighth-largest shutout victory in program history and the largest since a 66-0 blanking of Norwich on October 5, 1991, as well as the ninth-largest margin of victory in program history.
 
HE'D BE HONORED X2: First-year Stephen Petruzziello was named the Liberty League Rookie of the Week for the second straight week on September 11 after running for 93 yards and a touchdown at Worcester State. He is the first Union player to earn back-to-back Rookie of the Week honors since Jonathan Anderson (October 4 and 11, 2021) two seasons ago.
 
NEW YEAR, NEW NAME: Union's teams will be playing under a new name this year, as the College rebranded as the Garnet Chargers over the summer. Garnet has been Union's official school color for more than 150 years, while Chargers harkens to Schenectady's legacy as a hub of electrical innovation and invention. With the rebrand comes an additional Union "U" logo, which will be used alongside the traditional "Block U" logo that has been in place for many years.
 
WELCOME BACK: Joining Poppe on the Union sidelines this season is Greg Skjold '13, who returns to Schenectady as the team's offensive coordinator and offensive line coach. Skjold played four seasons on the offensive line at Union from 2009-12, serving as a three-year starter and earning D3football.com All-East Region honors as a senior. He joins Pete Brown '83 and T.R. Perna '92 as alumni coaches at their alma mater.