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Bronx, NY - The Wagner College football team will open the 2023 season at Fordham on Saturday, September 2. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
A New Look On Offense
The Seahawks will enter the 2023 season with a number of newcomers on offense. FBS transfer
Steven Krajewski will lead Wagner at quarterback after a strong showing in the spring and fall camp. The veteran signal caller spent four years at UConn before transferring to Georgia State for the 2022 season. In 2021, Krajewski appeared in 11 games for the Huskies, passing for 1,217 yards and seven touchdowns on 122 completions while rushing for 173 yards and three touchdowns.
Taking over as the Seahawks' play-caller is new offensive coordinator Stephen Matos. Matos arrived on Grymes Hill this spring after most recently serving as a senior offensive analyst for head coach Lance Leipold at Kansas. Prior to his time with the Jayhawks, Matos worked under Leipold at Buffalo, where he worked as an offensive line and defensive line graduate assistant. No stranger to the Northeast Conference (NEC), Matos coached tight ends at Sacred Heart during the 2018-19 season.
Among Wagner's returners, running backs
Rickey Spruill and
Zachary Palmer-Smith along with tight ends
Chase Stafford and
Justin Wolf return after seeing significant action a year ago. Phil Steele Preseason All-NEC selections
Antonio Williams and
Brady Anderson will anchor the Seahawks' offensive line.
A Fresh Start On Defense
Head Coach
Tom Masella will serve as the defensive coordinator for the 2023 campaign. Prior to taking over as Wagner's head coach, Masella was the defensive coordinator at Bryant. Masella is a member of the Wagner College Athletics Hall of Fame for his efforts as a defensive back for the Seahawks.
The defensive unit will be led by the experienced linebackers
John Gioia and
Junior Wily, who were both elected as team captains by their peers.
While the Seahawk defense will be without NFL star
Titus Leo for the first time since the 2017 season, the unit features a number of seasoned veterans across the front seven and in the secondary, as seven starters from last year's defense return in 2023.
Scouting The Rams
Fordham suffered a 34-13 loss to Albany in the Rams' season opener this past Saturday. The Rams lost quarterback Tim DeMorat and linebacker Ryan Greenhagen to graduation, both of whom pursued professional playing careers this offseason.
The Rams' season-opener marked the first game since 2018 without DeMorat at quarterback. Over the past nine years, the Rams are 26-18 in non-conference play.
In 2022, Fordham earned a 9-3 record and a spot in the NCAA FCS Playoffs.
Wagner In Season Openers
The Seahawks will look for their first season-opening win since 2018, when Wagner stormed past Bowie State by a score of 40-23. Saturday's opener marks only the second time since 2011 that Wagner has opened the fall season against an FCS opponent. In 2011, Wagner earned a 38-28 win over Saint Francis U. The Green and White will open the season against Fordham for the second straight season.
The Series
The Seahawks and Rams will meet for the third time since 1987, when the Seahawks beat the Rams 21-0 in the NCAA Division III Playoffs.
Wagner holds an 8-5 lead in the all-time series and has won six of the last eight meetings between the two schools.
Saturday's game marks the second consecutive year the Seahawks will meet the Rams in week one. A season ago, Wagner took a 28-20 lead with 7:39 to play in the third quarter, but Fordham fought back to come up with a 48-31 victory at Hameline Field.
The Captains
Graduate students
Steven Krajewski and
John Gioia along with seniors
Antonio Williams and
Junior Wily were chosen by their teammates to lead the Seahawks in 2023.
"We're very excited about our four captains heading into the season," Masella commented. "They've displayed tremendous leadership throughout the spring and preseason camp and we can't wait to see them lead us on and off the field this season."
Williams and Wily will lead the team for the second consecutive year, with Gioia and Krajewski earning the honor for the first time in their respective Seahawk careers.
A versatile athlete, Williams can play all five positions along the offensive line and will anchor a unit that is returning four players with significant playing experience on Grymes Hill.
Wily returns to Wagner for his second season in 2023. In 2022, Wily was named NEC Defensive Player of the Week following the Seahawks' win over LIU. The Hawaii native recorded 39 total tackles and three total tackles for loss throughout the season.
Gioia is Wagner's leading returner in tackles after making 58 total stops a season ago. The graduate student recorded a career-high 10 tackles apiece against Columbia and CCSU in 2022.
Krajewski will start at quarterback for the Seahawks after transferring this spring. The veteran signal caller spent four years at UConn before transferring to Georgia State for the 2022 season. In 2021, Krajewski appeared in 11 games for the Huskies, passing for 1,217 yards and seven touchdowns on 122 completions while rushing for 173 yards and three touchdowns.
Masella's Homecoming
Head coach
Tom Masella was the head coach at Fordham between 2006-2011. Masella's Rams won the 2007 Patriot League title after an 8-4 season, earning him Patriot League Coach of the Year honors. Masella was also a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award, which is given to the top FCS coach in the country. The Rams featured 12 all-league players that season.
Wagner In The NFL
Four former Seahawks competed in NFL training camps this summer, while a plethora of former coaches continue to make an impact in the National Football League.
Former All-American
Titus Leo entered his first NFL camp with the Indianapolis Colts this August. Leo was selected by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft in April, becoming the highest draft pick in school history. The Brooklyn native was selected with the 211th overall pick by the Colts and saw significant action in preseason for the Colts, coming up with his first NFL sack in his second-ever preseason game.
Cam Gill, the NEC's all-time sack leader, impressed in camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after missing the entirety of the 2022 season due to injury. Following a record-setting collegiate career that saw him earn NEC Defensive Player of the Year and All-America honors, Gill was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Buccaneers following the 2020 NFL draft and earned a spot on Tampa Bay's roster in training camp before winning Super Bowl LV in memorable fashion.
Gill made a tackle on a kickoff with 7:25 to play in the third quarter, before combining with defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh in taking down Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes for a sack with five minutes remaining in the game. Gill was also credited with a forced fumble on the play.
Defensive tackle Chris Williams signed with the Kansas City Chiefs earlier this offseason and competed with the Chiefs in training camp.
The former All-NEC defensive tackle appeared in five games for the Indianapolis Colts during the 2022 season, making two tackles in the process. Williams will enter his third NFL season in 2023. He's appeared in 13 games with the Colts over three seasons, with 107 total defensive snaps and 13 special teams snaps. During that span, he recorded six total tackles and one quarterback hit.
The fourth Seahawk to see action this camp is former two-sport standout Greg Senat, who returned to the New York Jets this offseason. Senat closed out last season with the Jets after being claimed off waivers in early January, but did not appear in any games.
Prior to his stint with the Jets, Senat spent parts of the 2021 season with the Cleveland Browns and Indianapolis Colts. Senat won the Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2020 after being drafted by Baltimore in the sixth round of the 2018 NFL Draft and spending his first NFL season with the Ravens.
A four-year member of the Seahawk men's basketball team, Senat went on football scholarship prior to the 2016 season and became a fixture on the Seahawk offensive line, starting all 22 games that he played in during his two-year gridiron career.
Big Play = Big Hat
The Wagner sideline will feature a new attraction for the 2023 season. The Seahawks will sport the "Big Play Hat" after touchdowns, turnovers, and other impactful plays. The supersized accessory was introduced to the public at Wagner's preseason media day.
Preseason Honors
Six Seahawks were named to the Phil Steele Preseason All-NEC team. Defensively, graduate student
John Gioia earned First Team honors, with fellow linebacker
Junior Wily earning a spot on the Second Team and senior
Christian Davis picking up Third Team honors.
Offensively, junior running back
Rickey Spruill joins offensive linemen
Antonio Williams and
Brady Anderson on the third team.
The Schedule
Following the season opener at Fordham, the Seahawks will travel to FBS member Navy. The Northeast Conference (NEC) opener is set for September 16, when the Seahawks travel to Sacred Heart.
This year's home opener will take place on September 23, when Wagner hosts Merrimack at Hameline Field.
The penultimate non-conference game of the season will take place on September 30, when the Seahawks travel to Rutgers for the second consecutive season. Wagner has played 15 games against FBS teams and faced off against at least one opponent from college football's highest division in each of the last 11 fall seasons.
Wagner will play two FBS opponents for the sixth time in program history in 2023. In 2015, the Seahawks played at Rice and at BYU while in 2016 the Green & White traveled to UMass and Boston College. In 2019, Wagner faced UConn and Florida Atlantic. During the 2021 fall season, Wagner took on Buffalo and Temple. Last season, Wagner faced off against Rutgers and Syracuse.
The Seahawks nearly pulled off their first upset of an FBS opponent in the 2019 opener against UConn, standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the Huskies before falling 24-21. Thanks to an interception return for a touchdown by defensive back Myron Morris and two rushing touchdowns by Dymitri McKenzie, the Seahawks were within striking distance late in the fourth quarter but fell short in the final minutes.
In their first-ever meeting against an 85-scholarship opponent, the 2012 Seahawks dropped a hard-fought 7-3 contest at FAU in Boca Raton. That 2012 Wagner team opened the season 0-3, before reeling off nine straight wins en route to the program's first-ever Northeast Conference (NEC) championship and an ensuing NCAA FCS first-round playoff win over Colgate.
Following a bye week, the Seahawks will play five straight conference games. After a road contest at Saint Francis U, Wagner will host three straight home games against CCSU (10/21), Stonehill (10/28), and Duquesne (11/4), before traveling to LIU on November 11 for the final conference contest of the season.
The Seahawks will round out the 2023 season against Post University on November 18 at Hameline Field.
Wagner On National TV
Wagner's matchup at Saint Francis U will air on CBS Sports Network as part of the NEC's tv package.
The Seahawks and Red Flash will now play on Thursday, October 12, with kickoff set for 7:00 pm.
This marks the NEC's first-ever nationally televised linear football game. Wagner's game at Navy on September 9 will also air on CBSSN.
Soto Earns NFL Opportunity
Wide receivers coach Juan Soto was one of the recipients of this year's Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship. As part of the program, Soto worked with the Green Bay Packers this summer.
"In his short time at Wagner, Coach Soto has had a big impact on our wide receivers as well as our entire team," head coach
Tom Masella commented. "He is a talented young coach who is passionate about the game of football and makes people around him better on and off the field. We're very excited to see him gain valuable experience with the Packers, expand his network, and become the latest member of the Wagner Football family to be associated with the NFL."
The program objective is to use NFL clubs training camps, offseason camps and mini camps to give talented coaches opportunities to observe, participate, gain experience, and ultimately gain a full time NFL coaching position.
Designed as a vocational tool to increase the number of full-time NFL minority coaches, all 32 NFL clubs participate each year. Specific aspects of the program — including hiring, compensation and coaching duties — are administered on a club-by-club basis.
The Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship was established in 2012.
Soto joined the Wagner Football staff in the spring of 2023. He brings a plethora of coaching experience to Grymes Hill. He has worked with Saginaw Valley State University, Ventura College, Kent State University, and most recently Yale University as an Offensive Quality Control / Wide Receivers Coach.
