WATCH | Live Stats | Game Notes
Staten Island, NY - Following the bye week, the Wagner College football team will return to Hameline Field on Saturday, October 23, as the Seahawks will take on Northeast Conference (NEC) rival Bryant at noon.
Leo Leads The Way
Senior captain
Titus Leo continues to be among the nation's best at his position. The reigning NEC Defensive Player of the Year is first in the NEC in tackles for loss with 1.6 stops behind the line of scrimmage per game, which is also good for 15th in the nation. Leo is currently also fourth in the conference in sacks (.67 per game) and fifth in the NEC in total tackles (6.5 per game).
Familiar Faces
Saturday's contest will feature a number of familiar faces on both sides of the football. Head coach
Tom Masella previously served as the Bulldogs' defensive coordinator during the 2019 season.
Former Bryant players on Wagner's sideline include
CJ Demers, who served as a defensive lineman for the Bulldogs, and
Logi Portugal, who played in 42 games at defensive back for Bryant and was a captain during the 2019 season.
On the other side, current Bryant offensive line coach and recruiting coordinator Steven Ciocci won the 2012 NEC title as a player for the Seahawks before helping the Green and White win a share of the 2014 NEC title as an assistant coach.
Last Time Out
In their final non-conference game of the season, the Seahawks fell at crosstown rival Fordham on October 9. Wagner's lone score of the afternoon came on a run by quarterback
Jaalon Frazier, who capped a nine-play, 74-yard drive with a two-yard scamper up the middle with 2:17 to play in the first half.
Taking Care Of The Ball
On average, Wagner's offense holds the ball for 33:41 minutes per game, which is good for eighth in the country. The Seahawks have had more time of possession than their opponents in four out of six games this season.
Applying Pressure
The Seahawks' defensive front has frequently made plays in opponents' backfields. Wagner ranks 15th in the country and first in the NEC in tackles for loss, racking up 7.3 stops behind the line of scrimmage per game. Wagner's 18 tackles for loss against Delaware State still rank as the most by any team in the country this season.
Explosive Plays
On the first play from scrimmage in Wagner's contest at Delaware State, Simmons took a quick pass from freshman quarterback
Guenson Alexis and turned it into a 74-yard touchdown reception.
Simmons' reception was the second touchdown catch of 70 or more yards on the season for Wagner, with freshman
Randy Fizer's 82-yard catch and run at Saint Francis U still tied for the fourth-longest reception in the country this season.
Wagner has had an offensive explosive play of 50 or more yards in three of its six games this season.
Scouting The Bulldogs
Bryant enters Saturday's game with a 4-3 overall record after a last-minute 18-17 comeback victory over Saint Francis U last Saturday. The Bulldogs have won three of their last four games and are 2-1 in NEC play.
Senat Signs With Indianapolis
The Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League (NFL) have signed former Wagner College two-sport standout Greg Senat to their practice squad.
Senat joins former Seahawk defensive tackle Chris Williams, who is also a member of the Colts organization.
Most recently, Senat signed a one-year deal with the Cleveland Browns and competed for a roster spot in Cleveland during training camp, but was placed on the injured reserve list and waived by the Browns in September.
The Series
The Seahawks and Bulldogs have met 13 times with Bryant holding an 8-5 lead in the head-to-head series. The last Wagner win over the Bulldogs came in 2018, when All-American running back Ryan Fulse ran for 218 yards on 38 carries and three touchdowns, and added a fourth receiving, while fifth-year senior quarterback T.J. Linta passed for 167 yards and three scores in leading the Seahawks to a 52-36 victory. Overall, in this series, Bryant won the first two games played between the teams, in 2008 and 2009, and has come out on top in four of the last five meetings. In between, Wagner went 3-2 vs. Bryant, capped by a 23-20 come-from-behind road win in 2014 which clinched a tie for the NEC title that season.
This game also marked the end of
Walt Hameline's 34-year tenure as head coach. Two years earlier, en route to claiming the 2012 NEC title outright, the Seahawks earned a 31-21 home win over the Bulldogs.
The Schedule
Following Saturday's game, Home contests against Merrimack (November 6), and Duquesne (November 20), as well as road matchups at LIU (October 30) and Sacred Heart (November 13) will round out Wagner's 2021 season.
