UALBANY FOOTBALL DEFEATS FORDHAM, 23-20

Courtesy: UAlbany Sports Information

Bronx, N.Y. -- Jason Fralicker made a 20-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter and Dave Casale recovered a fumble with less two minutes remaining in leading UAlbany to a 23-20 victory over Fordham on Saturday evening at Jack Coffey Field.

In a tense battle, UAlbany's Emerson Kinsey recovered a fumble after tailback Jonte Coven was stripped in a pile at the line of scrimmage which led to Fralicker's third field goal of the game. Fordham (1-1) would have four more offensive possessions. Mark Sheehan's sack ended a drive to midfield with less than four minutes left. Trevor DuPont then forced wide receiver Richard Rayborn to fumble, following a completed pass, and Casale gathered in the loose ball to preserve the victory.

"That was a solid team effort,” said UAlbany head coach Bob Ford. “We played well in all three phases of the game. Good teams figure out how to win the fourth quarter, and we made less errors than we did the first week."

UAlbany (1-1) took a 20-13 lead in the third period with a 12-play, 95-yard drive. The Great Danes, who rushed for 337 yards and accounted for 510 total, mixed the run and pass. Fullback Dan Beigel scored on a 1-yard run, slanting over the right side.

The Rams, who were coming off an impressive 27-23 win over Rhode Island in their opener, followed with an 11-play march to draw even. Quarterback John Skelton, who completed 20 of 43 passes for 294 yards, tossed a 6-yard TD to Coven with 5:21 left in the quarter.

David McCarty, a sophomore tailback, led UAlbany's rushing attack with 143 yards on 26 carries. Vinny Esposito, who making his second career start, threw for 173 yards by hitting on 17 of 26 attempts. Meanwhile, linebacker Colin Disch became the school's all-time tackles leader with 356, moving past Josh Bazan (1999-2002).

"Our offensive line felt they were embarrassed last week,” said Esposito. “They completely wanted to establish themselves. We came together as a team and gained confidence as we moved the ball."

The two teams played to a 13-13 halftime tie when Fordham went the length of the field in 26 seconds at the end of the second quarter. John Skelton beat the UAlbany secondary with a 51-yard bomb. He then fired a 15-yard TD strike to split end David Moore. The contest stayed even when linebacker Colin Dish broke through the middle to block Adam Danko's point-after attempt.

The Great Danes jumped out to a 10-0 lead after one quarter. Jason Fralicker booted a 35-yard field goal to cap a 13-play drive. UAlbany then marched 86 yards in 14 plays to the end zone. Omar Johnson's fourth-down run kept the sequence alive. Quarterback Vinny Esposito, rolling to his right, flipped a 10-yard touchdown pass to tight end Marcus Miles with 59 seconds left.

Fordham closed the gap to 10-7 early in the second stanza when Skelton connected with Jason Caldwell over the middle on a 52-yard scoring pass. Caldwell broke a tackle and raced up the right sideline. Fralicker would drill his second field goal, a 37-yarder, with 28 seconds left before intermission.

"We just stuck with what we do (after the first half), we didn't tackle well,” offered Trevor DuPont. “We buckled down in the second half, rose to the occasion, and came up with some key plays."