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University of New Hampshire Athletics
Make that 14 straight bids to the NCAA Division I FCS tournament.
FCS Playoffs: A Nation's-Best 14 And Counting
11/19/2017 5:15:00 PM | Football, UNH Insider
'Cats Play Central Connecticut State in Wildcat Stadium Saturday
DURHAM, N.H. – The University of New Hampshire football team's remarkable run of appearances in the NCAA Division I FCS tournament has to end someday: Maybe.
But it won't be under the watch of the 2017 Wildcats.
Head coach Sean McDonnell's team extended its streak of years in the tournament to 14 when it was selected as an at-large participant in the 24-team tournament that begins next weekend.
Better yet, the Wildcats will be opening that 14th run in the tournament with a home game. They play Central Connecticut State, the much-improved champion of the Northeast Conference, in Wildcat Stadium on 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Get Tickets Here, in person at the Whittemore Center or at 603-862-4000.
The nation's-best string of appearances that began in 2004 was in serious jeopardy. It's been a close call at times before in the past as to whether UNH was going to be invited as an at-large team, but perhaps never has it been this close a call.
The Wildcats knew they needed to beat Colonial Athletic Association rival Albany on the road Saturday afternoon to assure themselves a spot in the tournament.
Instead, they were shut out, 15-0.
The defeat made for a long bus ride home from Albany and the Wildcats were not feeling all that great about their chances as they gathered in their locker room on Sunday morning for the FCS Selection Show on ESPNU.
Within about half a dozen minutes, the mood brightened considerably.
"New Hampshire" flashed on the television screen.
"The place was nuts," McDonnell said. "The kids were out of their chairs, jumping around, excited about to the opportunity to play again after a bad game. The taste was awful after that game. We know we're better than that. We live for another day. You want to end it giving your best effort. You get beat and your hat goes off to the other team. My hat goes off to Albany. They played their tails off against us. But we didn't play our best and we've got to figure that out."
The seniors, in particular, appreciate the chance.
"I'm still shaking," said senior center and captain Jake Kennedy about a half an hour after the announcement. "I feel like I'm in a dream. That last game is not us. We're not going to go out like that. Everyone erupted when it was announced. I turned and hugged everybody. We got a second chance at life and we can't waste it. What we put on film yesterday is not the team we are."
Defensive tackle Rick Holt is another of the seniors.
"Immediately after the game I thought there was no chance and I'm not going to lie, I cried a little bit," Holt said. "I thought I had played my last game. But then I saw that some stuff during the day went our way and there were a lot of teams with seven wins. Delaware losing to Villanova was big for us. A couple of other things went our way."
In a team meeting before the selection show, McDonnell told the team he just wasn't sure.
Then came the good news.
The crying, Holt noted, was not so much about the end of his playing career.
"I know that's going to happen," he said. "It's more that you don't want to be the team that ends the streak. It's tough. You see every one of the years on the banner and stuff and it just shows how well Coach Mac has done. You don't know how he's done it for 14 years. There's parity everywhere. That he's been able to make it 14 years is testament to Coach Mac. There is a little added pressure because you don't want to be the team to end the streak."
Pressure's off now.
And the streak?
Here's a little perspective on it.
UNH has been in the playoffs for 14 straight years. No one else is even close to that mark. North Dakota State is next at eight years, Sam Houston's at seven, Jacksonville State at five and James Madison at four.
HOME COOKING
NEXT UP: CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE
QUOTABLE
"Trevor didn't have much time at all. He was under siege the whole game. We've got to figure that out real quickly."
Coach Sean McDonnell on the pressure Albany put on quarterback Trevor Knight
"The defense played good enough. We gave up a long pass after a safety and we gave up some third downs. We're better than that. At the same time we were good enough to win the game on the defensive side of the ball, but not good enough to win as a team."
Sean McDonnell
"I haven't seen them at all this year. It's been a big year for Pete and his staff. They're good people and do a great job. We've got to work on getting better and getting ready for them on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday."
Sean McDonnell
"Every team going forward now knows its season is going to end with a loss except the champion. We wanted to get in the playoffs. We had a pretty good year. The Holy Cross loss wasn't good and the Albany game was tough, but we gave JMU a good game and we beat Elon and beat Georgia Southern. I think the committee saw the value in that. And we play in the CAA, which is tough, and that helps us."
Defensive tackle Rick Holt
"I take a responsibility for that as an offensive lineman. We didn't protect Trevor well enough. We couldn't find our rhythm. When we're good, we're really good. When we protect Trevor and give him the opportunity to do things, he's special. We've got to work on that this week and ultimately win on Saturday."
Senior center Jake Kennedy
"It's unbelievable to know we have another opportunity to play at home in the Dungeon, stay at home and in our locker room. It's an unbelievable playoff run and when we step we realize we're here because of the people who played before us. It falls on our shoulders to carry on that legacy. We play for each other and for the guys who came before us and set the table and we're glad we can carry on that legacy."
Senior center Jake Kennedy
UNH BY THE NUMBERS
WILDCAT NOTES
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
But it won't be under the watch of the 2017 Wildcats.
Head coach Sean McDonnell's team extended its streak of years in the tournament to 14 when it was selected as an at-large participant in the 24-team tournament that begins next weekend.
Better yet, the Wildcats will be opening that 14th run in the tournament with a home game. They play Central Connecticut State, the much-improved champion of the Northeast Conference, in Wildcat Stadium on 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Get Tickets Here, in person at the Whittemore Center or at 603-862-4000.
The nation's-best string of appearances that began in 2004 was in serious jeopardy. It's been a close call at times before in the past as to whether UNH was going to be invited as an at-large team, but perhaps never has it been this close a call.
The Wildcats knew they needed to beat Colonial Athletic Association rival Albany on the road Saturday afternoon to assure themselves a spot in the tournament.
Instead, they were shut out, 15-0.
The defeat made for a long bus ride home from Albany and the Wildcats were not feeling all that great about their chances as they gathered in their locker room on Sunday morning for the FCS Selection Show on ESPNU.
Within about half a dozen minutes, the mood brightened considerably.
"New Hampshire" flashed on the television screen.
"The place was nuts," McDonnell said. "The kids were out of their chairs, jumping around, excited about to the opportunity to play again after a bad game. The taste was awful after that game. We know we're better than that. We live for another day. You want to end it giving your best effort. You get beat and your hat goes off to the other team. My hat goes off to Albany. They played their tails off against us. But we didn't play our best and we've got to figure that out."
The seniors, in particular, appreciate the chance.
"I'm still shaking," said senior center and captain Jake Kennedy about a half an hour after the announcement. "I feel like I'm in a dream. That last game is not us. We're not going to go out like that. Everyone erupted when it was announced. I turned and hugged everybody. We got a second chance at life and we can't waste it. What we put on film yesterday is not the team we are."
Defensive tackle Rick Holt is another of the seniors.
"Immediately after the game I thought there was no chance and I'm not going to lie, I cried a little bit," Holt said. "I thought I had played my last game. But then I saw that some stuff during the day went our way and there were a lot of teams with seven wins. Delaware losing to Villanova was big for us. A couple of other things went our way."
In a team meeting before the selection show, McDonnell told the team he just wasn't sure.
Then came the good news.
The crying, Holt noted, was not so much about the end of his playing career.
"I know that's going to happen," he said. "It's more that you don't want to be the team that ends the streak. It's tough. You see every one of the years on the banner and stuff and it just shows how well Coach Mac has done. You don't know how he's done it for 14 years. There's parity everywhere. That he's been able to make it 14 years is testament to Coach Mac. There is a little added pressure because you don't want to be the team to end the streak."
Pressure's off now.
And the streak?
Here's a little perspective on it.
UNH has been in the playoffs for 14 straight years. No one else is even close to that mark. North Dakota State is next at eight years, Sam Houston's at seven, Jacksonville State at five and James Madison at four.
HOME COOKING
- The Wildcats are 5-0 this season in Wildcat Stadium.
- They are 56-8 in home games since the start of the 2007 season.
- UNH played Lehigh at home in a first-round playoff game last season and won, 64-21.
NEXT UP: CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE
- The Blue Devils finished off a break-through regular season with a 42-14 win over Robert Morris on Saturday.
- Central Connecticut was 8-3 overall and 6-0 in the Northeast Conference.
- The Blue Devils are in the FCS playoffs for the first time.
- They lost their first three games to Syracuse, Fordham and Youngstown State and have won eight straight since.
- The Blue Devils were 2-9 overall and 1-5 in the league last year.
- This is their first winning season since they went 8-3 in 2010.
- UNH is 8-0 against Central Connecticut.
- The Wildcats won the last meeting between the teams, 57-14, on Sept. 26, 2015.
- UNH and Central Connecticut have played one common opponent this season.
- The Wildcats beat Bryant, 45-17, on Sept. 30.
- CCSU beat Bryant, a Northeast Conference rival, 31-14, on Oct. 21.
- The Blue Devils score 32 points a game and allow 27.2.
- They balance their offense with 189.8 yards rushing a game and 182.5 passing.
- Pete Rossomando is in his fourth season as head coach.
QUOTABLE
"Trevor didn't have much time at all. He was under siege the whole game. We've got to figure that out real quickly."
Coach Sean McDonnell on the pressure Albany put on quarterback Trevor Knight
"The defense played good enough. We gave up a long pass after a safety and we gave up some third downs. We're better than that. At the same time we were good enough to win the game on the defensive side of the ball, but not good enough to win as a team."
Sean McDonnell
"I haven't seen them at all this year. It's been a big year for Pete and his staff. They're good people and do a great job. We've got to work on getting better and getting ready for them on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday."
Sean McDonnell
"Every team going forward now knows its season is going to end with a loss except the champion. We wanted to get in the playoffs. We had a pretty good year. The Holy Cross loss wasn't good and the Albany game was tough, but we gave JMU a good game and we beat Elon and beat Georgia Southern. I think the committee saw the value in that. And we play in the CAA, which is tough, and that helps us."
Defensive tackle Rick Holt
"I take a responsibility for that as an offensive lineman. We didn't protect Trevor well enough. We couldn't find our rhythm. When we're good, we're really good. When we protect Trevor and give him the opportunity to do things, he's special. We've got to work on that this week and ultimately win on Saturday."
Senior center Jake Kennedy
"It's unbelievable to know we have another opportunity to play at home in the Dungeon, stay at home and in our locker room. It's an unbelievable playoff run and when we step we realize we're here because of the people who played before us. It falls on our shoulders to carry on that legacy. We play for each other and for the guys who came before us and set the table and we're glad we can carry on that legacy."
Senior center Jake Kennedy
UNH BY THE NUMBERS
- Sophomore linebacker Quinlen Dean led UNH with a career-high 15 tackles.
- Junior linebacker Jared Kuehl had a career-high 12 tackles.
- Kuehl also forced a fumble and had a quarterback sack.
- Sophomore linebacker Isiah Perkins returned an interception 52 yards.
- Perkins leads the 'Cats team with four interceptions.
- Junior quarterback Trevor Knight completed 18 of his 31 passes for 133 yards.
- Junior receiver Neil O'Connor caught nine passes for 88 yards.
- His 117.4 receiving yards a game leads the CAA.
- O'Connor has 87 catches for 1,291 yards this season.
- The 87 catches total is tied for the third-best single season total at UNH.
- David Ball had 87 in 2005 and 93 in 2006.
- R.J. Harris is No. 1 on the list with 100 catches in 2014.
- O'Connor moved past Joey Orlando into the No. 9 spot on the career receiving yards list on Saturday.
- O'Connor is at 2,198 yards.
- Orlando (2009-12) had 2,131 yards.
- Keith LeVan (2004-07) is at No. 8 with 2,234 yards.
- UNH had minus-11 yards rushing in the game, thanks in large part to eight Albany sacks.
- Sophomore receiver Malik Love had seven catches for 34 yards.
- Knight has passed for 23 touchdowns with six interceptions this season.
- It's the most TD passes for a Wildcat quarterback since R.J. Toman had 28 in 2008.
- Knight has completed 239 of his 381 passes for 2,851 yards.
- Knight moved into the No. 7 spot for completions for a season.
- He passed Mike Granieri (2003) with 237.
- Bob Jean (1988) is at No. 6 with 246.
- Knight is now seventh on the career completions list with 428.
- He passed Jim Stayer (1992-95) and his 419 on Saturday.
- Granieri (2000-04) is No. 6 with 564.
WILDCAT NOTES
- This is the fourth straight year four CAA teams have made the playoffs.
- Defending FCS champion James Madison is 11-0 overall and 8-0 in the league and is the No. 1 seed in the tournament.
- The Dukes have a first-round bye.
- The other two CAA teams play first-round home games.
- Furman (7-4) is at Elon (8-3).
- Lehigh (8-3) is at Stony Brook (9-2).
- The winner of the UNH-Central Connecticut game plays a second-round game at No. 4 Central Arkansas on Saturday, Dec. 2.
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
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