Football | 11/2/2018 8:56:00 AM

RPI Notes | SLU Notes | Live Video (RPI TV) | Live Stats | Live Audio (WRPI)

HOME AGAIN: RPI returns to East Campus Stadium to close out the regular season with a pair of home games ... The No. 14/15 Engineers (7-0; 3-0 Liberty League) begin by hosting St. Lawrence (2-6; 1-2 Liberty League).
 
STANDINGS: Rensselaer sits in first place in the Liberty League with a 3-0 record ... Ithaca is in second with a 3-1 mark, while Hobart is third at 2-1 ... The Engineers defeated both the Bombers and Statesmen.
 
WHAT'S AT STAKE: RPI would clinch the conference championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Playoffs with a win over the Saints ... The Engineers would remain alive to earn its second straight title even with a loss.
 
UPCOMING: Rensselaer hosts Union (5-2; 1-2 Liberty League) in the regular season finale on November 10 ... In addition to it being Senior Day, it is also the Dutchman Shoes Trophy Game ... Kickoff is noon.
 
NATIONALLY-RANKED: RPI is ranked 14th in the nation according to the latest American Football Coaches Association Poll ... It is the highest the Engineers have been on that list since being 13th on October 30, 2007.
 
D3FOOTBALL.COM POLL: The Engineers are 15th in the latest D3football.com Top 25 ... It is the highest Rensselaer has climbed since finishing the 2003 campaign ranked fifth.
 
HOME WINNING STREAK: RPI has won eight straight games at East Campus Stadium ... The Engineers were 4-0 last season with the most recent defeat coming to WPI, 19-7, on October 22, 2016.
 
SCHOOL RECORD: Rensselaer's record for home winning streak is 10 games, which it accomplished from October 30, 1993, to October 7, 1995.
 
ROAD RECORD: RPI finished its regular season road slate with a 4-0 mark ... It outscored the opposition 115-48 in total, or 28.75 to 12.0 points per game.
 
ROAD FINALE: Last week at Rochester, the Engineers were in total control from start to finish in a 42-0 victory ... RPI ran for three touchdowns, passed for two others and recovered a fumbled punt in the end zone for another score ... The defense held the Yellowjackets to an even 100 yards of total offense – 11 rushing on 23 carries and 89 passing ... The Engineers piled up 372 yards – 221 on the ground and 151 through the air.
 
OFFENSIVE STANDOUTS: George Marinopoulos completed 16 of 24 passes for 151 yards for RPI with two touchdowns and one interception (on a tipped reception) ... He threw an 11-yard scoring pass to Conor Davies midway through the first quarter for a 14-0 lead and then found Keaton Ackermann for 12 yards and a score midway through the third ... Freshman Joe Scaglione rushed for 56 yards and two TDs and senior Nick Cella led RPI on the ground with 70 yards and a TD on eight carries.
 
BALANCED DEFENSE: The Engineers had nine players with at least three tackles against the Yellowjackets ... Rensselaer recorded three sacks with seven other tackles behind the line of scrimmage for 20 yards in losses ... Damien Hall had two of RPI's six pass breakups – both at the line.
 
STREAK SNAPPED: Saturday's game was the first all season that the Engineers did not have an interception ... After picking off 11 passes in the first three games, RPI has had four in the four games since.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS STARS: Sophomore Dennis DeCicco got both the forced fumble and the recovery on a second quarter touchdown off a Rochester fumbled punt return ... Kicker Sanjay Krishnan was successful on each of his six point-after-touchdown tries and he averaged 56.3 yards on seven kickoffs (394 total yards) with two touchbacks.
 
HONORED: The Liberty League chose sophomore kicker Sanjay Krishnan as the Special Teams Performer of the Week, while freshman running back Joe Scaglione was tabbed as the Rookie of the Week.
 
STATISTICAL LEADERS: Rensselaer is first in the league in rushing offense (165.1 yards per game), interceptions (15), turnover margin (1.14), kickoff returns (27.3 yards per) and punt returns (13.8 yards per).
 
TOP 10 NATIONALLY: The Engineers are sixth in Division III in interceptions (15), seventh in defensive touchdowns (4) and ninth in kickoff returns (27.35 per).
 
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS: Senior Conor Davies is first in the conference in all purpose yards (139.50 per) and kickoff returns (28.5 yards per) ... Sanjay Krishnan leads in field goals per game (1.14) and Zac Montrief is first in punting (38.8 per kick).
 
RANKED SECOND: Senior running back Nick Cella is second in the Liberty League in rushing yards (461) and rushing yards per game (65.9) ... Linebacker Jack Hoggard, also a senior, is second in tackles (9.9 per game).
 
ALL-TIME: Rensselaer and St. Lawrence have faced each other 63 times ... RPI won the first meeting, 14-0 in Troy on October 14, 1916, but is 27-34-2 (.444) in the all-time series with the Saints.
 
IN THE RECORD BOOK: RPI's 63 games against SLU are the fourth most against any one opponent … The 27 wins and 34 losses are both fifth in those respective categories.
 
STREAKS: After the Engineers went unbeaten in the first five games with SLU (4-0-1), the Saints won the next eight contests from 1925 to 1961 and 22 of 23 from 1925 to 1982 ... Rensselaer is 22-12-1 since the 1982 meeting, including losses in four of the past five meetings.
 
RECENTLY: The Engineers are 5-5 (.500) in their last 10 games with the Saints, including 3-2 in Troy in that span ... SLU has won the past two meeting here at East Campus Stadium, 24-10 in 2015 and 20-14 in 2016.
 
SEPTEMBER 24, 2016: Quarterback Sean Richardson threw for 249 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 97 yards and another score to lead St. Lawrence to a 20-14 victory in Troy ... The Engineers jumped out in front on its first possession when quarterback Ed Trimpert scored on a two yard run ... The Saints answered with a touchdown on its next possession and eventually built a 20-7 advantage before Keaton Ackermann went 60 yards for a TD on what turned out to be RPI's final possession ... Trimpert was RPI's top runner with 83 yards, including a 37-yard long, on 15 carries ... He was 5 for 17 for 101 yards throwing ... Ackermann had two receptions for 72 yards ... Linebackers Oliver Kaija and Alexander Greenidge had 12 tackles apiece.
 
LAST SEASON: George Marinopoulos found Marc Meislahn in the end zone from seven yards out with 17 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to give RPI a 21-17 victory at St. Lawrence ... Mike Tivinis, who rushed 15 times for 109 yards, had RPI's two other touchdowns, both on the ground (31 & 4 yards) ... He also caught two passes for 27 yards, both on the final drive ... The Engineers responded to a Saints touchdown with just 2:06 left with an 11-play, 71-yard drive, culminated with Marinopoulos threading a pass through three St. Lawrence defenders to Meislahn at the back of the end zone ... RPI held the Saints to 43 yards on the ground ... Linebacker Jack Hoggard made a team-high (tied) seven tackles, including four unassisted and two sacks for a total loss of 17 yards ... He also intercepted a pass and had a pass breakup.
 
ALL-TIME IN CANTON: In 29 road games against St. Lawrence, the Engineers are 9-19-1 (.328).
 
AT HOME VS. SLU: Rensselaer has gone 18-15-1 (.544) when hosting the Saints ... RPI's last home victory was in 2012 (46-27).
 
LEAGUE PLAY: RPI is 16-7 (.696) all-time against the Saints in Liberty League games ... The two programs were previously members of the ICAC, in which St. Lawrence held an 18-4-1 (.803) advantage in head-to-head conference matchups from 1964 to 1990.
 
COMMON OPPONENTS: Rensselaer and St. Lawrence have three common opponents ... RPI defeated Utica (23-20 2OT), Rochester (42-0) and Ithaca (10-9) ... The Saints lost to the Pioneers (9-6 OT) and Bombers (28-6), but defeated the Yellowjackets (38-24).
 
ST. LAWRENCE TO DATE: The Saints opened the season with an overtime loss to Utica, but bounced back to beat Norwich, 40-7 ... They dropped their next three games before defeating Rochester on the road, 38-24, in the league opener ... SLU has since lost to Union (29-7) and at Ithaca ... Its last game of the season is home against Hobart.