VIDEO TRANSCRIPT: SUNY Cortland looking to repeat as DIII national champions
Peter Elliott: The most successful program in college football over the last year is right here in Central New York. Welcome into sports, I’m Peter Elliott. No, it’s not the Orange, though Fran Brown has SU trending in the right direction. I’m talking about SUNY Cortland. The Red Dragons are the defending Division III national champions and have won their last 22 games dating back to September of last year. That is remarkable. It is the longest active win streak at any level of college football. Fifth-year quarterback Zac Boyes is a big reason why, on your screen there. He’s helped the Red Dragons outscore opponents by a combined 381 points this year and shattered just about every program passing record. Frank Rossi is the host of “In the Division III Football Huddle.” He’s followed the team closely this year and thinks they’ve got a good shot at repeating as champions.
Frank Rossi: This is a team that if they could make the run last year, they could make this run this year as well. We’ll see how it goes. Did I ever expect to be talking about a New York State team having a 20-plus game winning streak in my day and age being in Division III? No, I didn’t, and here it is.
Peter Elliott: As the first round of the NCAA playoffs gets underway this weekend, the Red Dragons will be resting, having earned a bye. They’ll face the winner of Endicott and Alfred State next weekend.
CORTLAND, N.Y. (NCC News) — The most successful team in college football over the last year is in Central New York.
SUNY Cortland is looking to win its second straight Division III national title, while also keeping a remarkable streak alive. The Red Dragons have won 22 straight games, dating back to September of last year. It’s the longest active win streak at any level of college football.
As the Division III football playoffs start this weekend, Cortland has its sights on repeating as champions, having cruised into a No. 1 seed berth with a 10-0 record, having outscored opponents by a combined 381 points this year.
The Red Dragons have this Saturday off, with a well-earned first round bye. They’ll face the winner of Alfred State and Endicott next Saturday at home.
The Division III football championship is like a whole second season: 40 teams weeding each other out over the course of six rounds, all culminating with the Stagg Bowl on Jan. 5.
Frank Rossi is a co-host of “In the D3 FB Huddle” who has seen the Red Dragons play several times this season.
“This is a team that if they could make the run last year, they could make this run this year as well,” said Rossi. “We’ll see how it goes. Did I ever expect to be talking about a New York State team having a 20-plus game winning streak in my day and age being in Division III? No, I didn’t, and here it is.
For Cortland, the bracket presents a potential early rematch of last year’s Stagg Bowl with North Central in the quarterfinals, a feature of this year’s tournament that fans and media alike are displeased with.
“This is a big disappointment across the country,” said Rossi. “There are things you can like about the brackets and hate about the brackets, sure. This is about universally thumbs down across the country as we’ve digested this.”
North Central College, located in the Chicago suburb of Naperville, has played in the Stagg Bowl every year it has been held since 2019.
The Red Dragons edged past the two-time champion Cardinals in a 38-37 thriller in last year’s championship.
Fifth-year senior quarterback Zac Boyes is a big reason for the team’s success over the last two years. He’s shattered just about every program passing record, and hadn’t thrown an interception this season until more than eight weeks in.
“Right now, my sole focus is getting back to that stage,” said Boyes. “And getting back to the caliber of football we were playing at the end of the year last year, so, it’s in us. We know it.”
Head coach Curt Fitzpatrick believes his quarterback could’ve played at a higher level after last season.
“He could play at multiple Division I schools right now, he’s a tremendous football player,” said Fitzpatrick. “This is his program and he wanted to finish out where he started with these guys and to try and repeat as national champions.”
Football is a family affair for Boyes. His father, Jerry, played football at Cortland’s arch-rival, Ithaca College. He later went on to serve as the head coach and athletic director at Buffalo State for a combined 34 years.