The Utica College Pioneers were just a building program back in 2002, my freshman year. Things hardly ever went our way and we took more beatings than Whitney Houston. Playing against top D-III competition, Ithaca, St. John Fisher, Cortland and RPI, we got stomped out so many times. Wins were limited and it was extremely exciting when it happened. Times have changed and Utica College has become a very competitive program after getting the kinks out and putting in the hard work and hours of preparation.
In the season opener, head coach Blaise Faggiano led the Pioneers to their largest blowout victory in the teams history when the put 64 points on the board over Becker College. The nine touchdowns scored is less as important as the stat of only 5 offensive yards allowed by Utica in the first half. The final total for Becker was a mere 129 yards gained from scrimmage. Linebackers coach Will Pluff must be extremely proud of that accomplishment.
Actions Speak Louder Than Words
A large number of young men put everything they had into the Utica College football program and may not have had quite the chance to reap the benefits of that hard work. To those of you out there, this is what our hard work has done. The morning runs, the off-season workouts and all the practices where we worked our asses off. The future of the team was what we put our stock in.
I didn't expect to play much, I didn't expect to amount to a professional athlete, but I knew why I was there. To see where this team has come from winless seasons and no one in the crowd other than our parents, Utica College is getting bigger on the map gentlemen, and it's all thanks to everyone that was there from the beginning.
Josh, I want to thank you for writing such a powerful article. One of the “traditions” we have started are Friday Night Meetings after practice. The players/captains first speak without the coaches about the upcoming game and what it means to be a Pioneer. After the players finish I come in and share a few thoughts. I was proud to read your blog to the team. Although our history is short in regards to Division III football we have much respect for all of the players that have played at UC! Fear the Moose… Hope you can catch a game.
Coach Faggiano