UTICA, N.Y. – Jaden Alfanostjohn (Westhampton/Westhampton Beach) ran for 162 yards and two touchdowns on only 12 carries and Zac Boyes (Buffalo/Kenmore West) completed 13-of-18 passes for 211 yards and four scores as nationally ranked Cortland defeated host Utica University, 48-21, in a battle of unbeaten teams.
Cortland, ranked 11th nationally by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) and 13th by D3football.com, improved to 7-0 overall and 4-0 in Empire 8 play. The Red Dragons can clinch their second straight E8 title and NCAA automatic berth with either a win next Saturday at Alfred or at home versus St. John Fisher on Nov. 5. Cortland has won 17 straight regular-season games dating back to the start of the 2021 season.
Utica, among the top "others receiving votes" teams in both national polls, dropped to 6-1 overall and 2-1 in the conference.
Cortland, which hasn't trailed in a game this season, stopped Utica on the game's opening series when Samuel Maddi (Binghamton) blocked Corey Lichtman's 45-yard field goal attempt after the Pioneers drove 54 yards to the Cortland 28-yard line. Cortland then proceeded to march 72 yards on seven plays for the game's first score. Alfanostjohn ran 20 yards on 2nd-and-3 from the Cortland 48, and two plays later Boyes hit Cole Burgess (Greenwich) on a slant pass for a 27-yard touchdown.
Cortland went up 14-0 early in the second quarter when Alfanostjohn burst up the middle untouched for a 66-yard touchdown run. The Red Dragons' next possession started on the Utica 49-yard line after a 9-yard punt, and three plays later Boyes hit Burgess for a 31-yard TD to make it 21-0. Utica was forced to punt from its own 2-yard line on its next series, setting up the Red Dragons on the Pioneers' 27-yard line after Rashad Tucker's (Freeport) 18-yard return, and it took only two plays for Cortland to find the end zone, this time on a 19-yard pass from Boyes to CJ Messina (Sayville) with 8:30 left before halftime.
Utica's Jamel Smith and Terrance Toussaint intercepted Boyes on Cortland's next two possessions, and the Pioneers cashed in on the second pick with a 4-play, 23-yard touchdown drive capped by Brendan Belott's 1-yard scoring run with 1:13 left in the half. Cortland, however, drove 67 yards on just five plays, starting with Tucker's 17-yard reception and capped by Tucker's 26-yard TD grab, the last five after bouncing off a tackler, with 19 seconds left and the Red Dragons led 34-7 at halftime.
The second half strangely featured only five combined possessions between the teams – the first four resulting in touchdowns. Cortland opened the second half with a 7-play, 73-yard drive that featured an Alfanostjohn 41-yard run along with his 4-yard TD rush. Utica answered with a 15-play, 75-yard drive that culminated in Nate Palmer's 2-yard TD run. Messina returned the ensuing kickoff 49 yards to the Utica 44-yard line, and seven plays later Ashton Capone (Saratoga Springs) ran in from four yards out to put Cortland up 48-14.
Utica took more than six minutes off the clock on its next drive, covering 76 yards on 11 plays and scoring on a 23-yard pass from Braeden Zenelovic to Travis Decker. Cortland ran out the game's final 10:31 with a 15-play drive that started at its own 11-yard line and ended with the Red Dragons taking a knee at the Utica 3-yard line.
Cortland finished with a 498-281 advantage in total offense. The Red Dragons gained 287 yards on the ground, and the only lost yardage of the day came on the final kneel-down. In addition to Alfanostjohn's 162 yards (13.5 per carry), Capone ran for 72 yards on 14 attempts and Boyes had seven rushes for 54 yards. Devin McArthur (Saratoga Springs) led Cortland with 12 tackles, Craig Ackerman (Seaford) made 10 stops, and JC Mertz (Wanaque, NJ/Lakeland Regional) had eight tackles.
Zenelovic was 16-of-24 passing for 187 yards and one touchdown for Utica. Joey Nare caught six passes for 81 yards and Travis Decker had four catches for 54 yards. Palmer, who entered the game ranked in the top 20 nationally with 6.8 receptions per game, was held to three catches for 18 yards. Anthony Fasano led the Pioneers defensively with eight tackles.
Cortland did not punt for the third time in seven games this season. The Red Dragons built their 34-7 halftime lead despite possessing the ball for only 8:30 during the first half. Cortland's final possession time of 26:27 included the final 10:31 series, and the longest time for any of the Red Dragons' seven touchdown drives was 3:53.
#13 Cortland Takes Control of E8 Standings with Emphatic 48-21 Win at Utica
/seasons/2022/boxscores/20221022_6ac6.xml
2022
Cortland
48
Utica
21
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. 17 Cortland (7-0) | 7 | 27 | 14 | 0 | 48 |
| Utica (6-1) | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
Oct 22, 2022