2009 NEC Football 16-21 Albany 46-51 Robert Morris Can Bob Ford’s Great Danes be the first to an outright three-peat? Are the young Colonials ready for a return to the top? 22-27 Bryant 52-57 Sacred Heart Where will the Bulldogs finish during their inaugural NEC season? 28-33 Central Connecticut State Can the Pioneers follow up the NEC’s top turnaround with a title? Is a sixth-straight winning conference record in the cards? 58-63 Saint Francis (PA) 34-39 Duquesne Will the Red Flash take the next step toward contention? Do the Dukes rebound from an uncharacteristic 3-7 record? 64-69 Wagner 40-45 Monmouth Does a 22nd winning season await Walt Hameline and Wagner? Slotted second in poll again, can the Hawks take back the title? Albany Back-to-Back NEC Champions Table Of Contents Great Danes 2008 Gridiron Classic Champions 2-3 About The NEC/Membership 4 NEC Scholar-Athletes/Alumni 5 Composite Schedule 6 NEC Directory/Presidents 7 NEC Office Staff 8 Commissioner’s Cup 9 NEC Television 10 All-Americans in the NEC 11 Legaue News & Notes 12 Postseason Play 13 Preseason Poll/Preview 14 Officiating 16-69 NEC Team-By-Team Reports 70-84 NEC Seasons In Review 85-90 NEC Football Record Book 91 Driving Directions To NEC Institutions Northeast Conference 399 Campus Drive, First Floor Somerset, NJ 08873 (732) 469-0440 • Fax: (732) 469-0744 www.northeastconference.org NEC Football Media Contact: Ralph Ventre Credits Editing, Design and Layout: Ralph Ventre Editorial Assistance: Ron Ratner, Andrew Alia, Jackie Swierc, NEC SIDs Photos: NFL, James D. Smith, Dave Saffran, Greg Vedder, Bob Ewell, Steve Slade, George Kien, Jason Cohn, J.D. Cavrich, Paul Bereswill, Bob O’Rourke, J. Gregory Raymond and Steve Smith www.northeastconference.org Visit the official league website for standings, stats, notes, releases and the latest in the world of NEC football. 2009 Northeast Conference Football About The NEC/Conference Membership NEC History As it strives toward becoming a NCAA Division I leader for athletic achievement, academic integrity, and sportsmanship, the Northeast Conference continues to ensure that the personal development of its student-athletes is its highest priority. Now in its 29th year of service, the NEC aims for a greater national presence while remain- ing committed to the local communities of its member institutions. The NEC can trace its roots back to 1981, when the league was first established as the men's basketball-only ECAC-Metro Conference. A single-sport entity at its inception, even the league's most ardent supporters during its formative years could not have envisioned a transformation into a burgeoning 12-member, 22-sport conference. The remarkable success story of the conference began to unfold in 1985, when the league began sponsoring additional sports. Three years later, a change of name was in order and the Northeast Conference as we know it today was born. With membership and sport sponsorship continuing to grow over the next decade and beyond, the NEC now enjoys qualification or play-in access to 13 different NCAA Championships (baseball, men's and women's basketball, field hockey, men's and women's golf, women's lacrosse, men's and women's soccer, softball, men's and women's tennis and women's volleyball). Though the NEC has featured various looks since its inception, charter members Fairleigh Dickinson, Long Island, Robert Morris, St. Francis (NY), Saint Francis (PA) and Wagner remain part of the current 12- school alignment. They are joined by Monmouth (admitted in 1985), Mount St. Mary's (1989), Central Connecticut State (1997), Quinnipiac (1998) and Sacred Heart (1999). NEC expansion continues with the addition of Bryant University in 2012 as the league's 12th member, which will give the league a six- state geographic footprint with access to such major media markets as New York City, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Hartford and Providence. NEC member institutions now compete in 22 championship sports: baseball, men's and women's basketball, women's bowling, men's and women's cross country, field hockey, football, men's and Northeast Conference Membership women's golf, men's and women's indoor track and field, women's lacrosse, men's and women's Though the NEC has featured various incarnations since its inception, outdoor track and field, men's and women's soccer, softball, women's swimming, men's and women's charter members Fairleigh Dickinson, Long Island, Robert Morris, St. Fran- tennis, and women's volleyball. Men's lacrosse will become the league's 23rd sport in 2010-11. cis (NY), Saint Francis (PA) and Wagner remain part of the current 11- Evolving and Expanding school alignment. They are joined by Monmouth (admitted in 1985), Mount St. Mary’s (1989), Central Connecticut State (1997), Quinnipiac The past half decade has seen the Northeast Conference take aim at upgrading the caliber of the league's championship sports and enhancing the opportunities and experiences for the more than 4,000 (1998) and Sacred Heart (1999). student-athletes that compete in the conference. Set to become the NEC's 12th full-time member, Bryant has begun competition within the conference as it moves through the NCAA reclassification NEC expansion continues with the addition of Bryant University in 2012 process. The Conference has also secured automatic access to the NCAA Division I Football Champion- as the league’s 12th member, which will give the league a six-state geo- ship playoffs beginning in 2010, making football the 14th team sport in which NEC student-athletes are graphic footprint with access to such major media markets as New York guaranteed a chance to compete for the NCAA crown. New sport sponsorship in women's bowling and City, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Hartford and Providence. men's lacrosse (2010-11) will create further opportunities for NEC student-athletes. Set to embark on a number of branding, sportsmanship and community initiatives as part of the league's Strategic Plan, the NEC and its member institutions are committed to the future growth of the Conference. Institution Joined NEC NEC Website/Television Bryant University 2012 Central Connecticut State University 1997 More widely-recognized than ever, the NEC is providing a number of new ways in which its growing fan Fairleigh Dickinson University 1981 base can follow the action. The Conference began by fulfilling its strategic plan-driven new media Long Island University 1981 initiatives in 2008-09 when it launched its own YouTube channel, created NEC On The Run podcast Monmouth University 1985 segments, and added NEC Flashbacks, a video on-demand archive, to its website. More recently, the Mount St. Mary’s University 1989 league dove into the social media arena by launching a Facebook page and offering periodic news Quinnipiac University 1998 updates via Twitter. Robert Morris University 1981 To supplement one of the premier regional basketball television packages in the country, the confer- Sacred Heart University 1999 ence also produces a football package and a preseason basketball show entitled NEC Countdown to St. Francis (NY) College 1981 Tipoff. Over the last five years, the Conference has televised nearly 150 events, as the league's coverage Saint Francis (PA) University 1981 area expanded to 40 million homes plus coverage internationally. Along with flagship station MSG Wagner College 1981 Network, other regional television partners include MSG Plus (formerly FSN-New York), FSN-Pittsburgh, MASN, Fox College Sports, Cox Cable and the Connecticut Sports Network. In 2009, ESPN broadcast the Associate Members men's basketball championship game for the 22nd straight year, while ESPNU carried the women's championship game, marking the second time in as many years that the women's contest reached a Football Bowling nationwide audience. Further enhancing its multimedia efforts, the league will begin webstreaming a Albany, Duquesne Adelphi, Kutztown, Saint Peter’s women's basketball game of the week in 2009-10, and raise the number of NEC championship webcasts from five to eight. Field Hockey Lock Haven, Rider, Siena 2 About the NEC Educating Student-Athletes and Providing Opportunity On & Off Field Athletic Success Reinforcing its presence on a national stage, the Northeast Conference sent representatives to NCAA Championship events in 14 different team sports while NEC student-athletes 2009-10 NEC Championship Dates individually qualified to compete for an NCAA title in men's outdoor track & field and women's swimming. In its longstanding effort to increase student-athlete opportunities, Championship Date Host Site the Conference began sponsoring women's bowling as a championship sport and immedi- M/W Cross Country Oct. 31 Hamden, CT ately grabbed national headlines for its successful inaugural season. Five of the league's Field Hockey Nov. 6-7 High Seed seven bowling members occupied a spot in the final regular season edition of the NTCA Women’s Soccer Nov. 6 & 8 High Seed Top-20 Poll with No. 2 Fairleigh Dickinson defeating top-seeded Nebraska to advance all Men’s Soccer Nov. 13 & 15 High Seed the way to the semifinal round of the NCAA Women's Bowling Championship. Lock Haven Women’s Volleyball Nov. 21-22 High Seed found itself ranked amongst the nation's Top-25 as it marched toward its third consecutive M/W Indoor Track Feb. 20-21 P.G. County Sports Complex (Landover, MD) NEC field hockey title. M/W Swimming Feb. 11-13 Yale University (New Haven, CT) In football, Albany became the first NEC team in nearly a decade to post back-to-back Men’s Basketball Mar. 4, 7 & 10 High Seeds undefeated seasons within league play. In a game televised nationally on the YES Network, Women’s Basketball Mar.