THE FIRST LOOK
New Haven (5-1, 5-0 NE-10) holds Stonehill (4-2, 4-1 NE-10) this week in a battle for first place in the Northeast-10 Conference. Saturday is homecoming at Ralph F. DellaCamera Stadium and the first and only home game for UNH this month. The Chargers are winners of five straight, including a narrow 48-41 victory at Merrimack last week. After dropping its opening game at West Chester, UNH has outscored its opponents 252-108 and improved its NE-10 winning streak to a record 21 games, dating back two and a half seasons. Stonehill has won four of its last five games and came from behind last week for a 23-21 victory at Southern Connecticut State. The Skyhawks also have wins over Saint Anselm, Assumption and Bentley, while losing to American International two weeks ago and Bloomsburg in week one.

GAME COVERAGE
Saturday's game will be aired live throughout the state of Connecticut on CPTV Sports. For a complete channel listing, visit www.CPTVSports.org. The game will also be simulcast on NewHavenChargers.com with UNH alumni Craig Mortali and Pat Ryan calling the action live from Ralph F. DellaCamera Stadium. Fans will also be able to listen on 88.7 FM WNHU and follow live statistics throughout the game. Find all the links for Saturday's game on NewHavenChargers.com throughout the week and on gameday.

LAST MEETING
New Haven, ranked No. 3/6 in the nation, traveled to Easton, Mass. last season for a Thursday night showdown with Stonehill on CBS College Sports. The game went down as one of the most exciting in Charger football history, as the lead changed hands six times and the Chargers scored 14 unanswered fourth quarter points. UNH pulled off a last second come-from-behind 45-41 victory over the Skyhawks. Quarterback Ryan Osiecki completed a touchdown pass to Jason Thompson with six seconds remaining to put UNH ahead by four. The Skyhawks final hail marry attempt was batted around in the endzone, but eventually fell incomplete. New Haven amassed 550 yards of total offense off 227 rushing and 323 passing. Mike DeCaro went 110 yards on 15 carries with one touchdown, while Osiecki complete 28-of-44 attempts for 316 yards and five scores. Defensively, the Chargers held Stonehill to 51 rushing and 296 passing yards. The Skyhawks were led by quarterback Logan Meyer who amassed 296 yards and four touchdowns on 19-of-35 passing. His top receiver was Nate Robitaille with seven catches for 147 yards and two touchdowns.

ALL-TIME SERIES

This week marks the fifth meeting between New Haven and Stonehill, and the third meeting at DellaCamera Stadium. The Chargers hold a perfect 4-0 record over the Skyhawks, but the series has included a number of close matchups. On Sept. 26, 2009 New Haven defeated Stonehill 23-16 in front of a sold-out homecoming crowd of over 3,500. They watched UNH come-from-behind with a last-minute touchdown, securing the program's inaugural Northeast-10 Conference win. In the next two meetings, UNH won 49-28 and 52-23, but last season's game was another highly competitive matchup. UNH pulled off another victory in the closing seconds as Jason Thompson caught a touchdown pass with six seconds left to lift the Chargers to a 45-41 victory in Easton, Mass.
2009: New Haven - 23 | Stonehill - 16 (West Haven, Conn.)
2010: New Haven - 49 | Stonehill - 28 (Easton, Mass.)
2011: New Haven - 52 | Stonehill - 23 (West Haven, Conn.)
2012: New Haven - 45 | Stonehill - 41 (Easton, Mass.)

COMMON OPPONENTS
New Haven and Stonehill have two common opponents: Saint Anselm and Assumption. Both the Chargers and Skyhawks have unblemished 2-0 records against the teams. New Haven holds an average margin of victory of 23.5 points (+47 total points), while Stonehill holds an average margin of victory of 15.5 points (+31 total points). New Haven and Stonehill both defeated Saint Anselm in convincing fashion, while Assumption held the score within three points against both UNH and Stonehill.
New Haven Common Opponent Stonehill
W, 70-26 (9/20) Saint Anselm W, 52-24 (9/14)
W, 21-18 (10/4) Assumption W, 41-38 (OT) (9/20)

SCOUTING THE CHARGERS
The Chargers have won five straight overall and 21 straight against the Northeast-10 Conference as they host Stonehill at Ralph F. DellaCamera Stadium. UNH held on for a 48-41 victory at Merrimack last week, while taking a narrow 21-18 game at Assumption two weeks ago. This week marks the first of three home games in the final four weeks of the 2013 regular season for New Haven and it's homecoming at DellaCamera Stadium. Senior quarterback Ronnie Nelson leads the New Haven offense this season with 313.7 yards of total offense per game. He's thrown for 1,510 yards and 16 touchdowns on 92-of-145 passing. The Stuart, Fla. native adds 62.0 yards per game and seven touchdowns on the ground. Senior Mike DeCaro is the team's top rusher with 73.5 yards per game and six touchdowns. He also leads the team with 17 receptions for 284 yards and three receiving touchdowns. Tight end Michael Flacco is tied with senior Nick Music as the team's second-most receptions with 16. Flacco adds a team-high six receiving touchdowns. Defensively, New Haven is anchored by rookie cornerback Najae Brown with a team-high 44 tackles and two interceptions. Senior linebacker Matthew Fallico adds 39 total tackles while 10 other Chargers have at least 20 tackles this season.

    New Haven Special Teams Key to the Game: Stonehill has some of the best special teams in the conference and winning this phase of the game is crucial to success on Saturday.

    New Haven Offensive Key to the Game: The Chargers must concentrate on establishing the ground game in order to keeps Stonehill's offense off the field on Saturday.

    New Haven Defensive Key to the Game: The New Haven secondary must play discipline on Saturday. Stonehill quarterback Logan Meyer has shown his ability throughout the season and following assignments will again play a big part in Saturday's outcome.

SCOUTING THE SKYHAWKS
Picked to finish seventh in the Northeast-10 Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll, Stonehill has surprised a few teams this season with a 4-1 conference record and is currently tied for second place in the standings. The Skyhawks have wins over Saint Anselm, Assumption, Bentley and Southern Connecticut, while dropping its only conference game to American International two weeks ago. Stonehill also lost its opening weekend non-conference matchup at Bloomsburg.

    The Stonehill Offense: Led by senior quarterback Logan Meyer and senior tailback Jamal Johnson, the Skyhawks offense is relatively spread out. Stonehill averages 104.7 rushing and 255.5 passing yards per game. Meyer averages 245.5 yards per game with 17 passing touchdowns this season. His favorite receiver is Nate Robitaille who leads the team with 52 receptions for 116.2 yards per game and five touchdowns. Johnson adds 93.0 yards per game and three rushing touchdowns.

    The Stonehill Defense: Stonehill's 4-3 defensive front is all about junior middle linebacker Brian Harrington. The Rockland, Mass. native ranks second in NCAA Division II and first in the NE-10 with 82 total tackles (13.7 per game). Harrington is a four-time NE-10 Defensive Player of the Week this season and anchors a defense which allows 221.5 rushing and 220.5 passing yards per game.

ALL-AROUND SUCCESS
Preseason All-America selection and senior running back Mike DeCaro has put together one of the most impressive all-around seasons for any Charger this season. He became the fifth player in New Haven football history to rush for 2,000 career yards and accomplished that feat week three at Saint Anselm. His career total now stands at 2,307 yards, 29 yards away from eclipsing Corey Jones' mark of 2,335 which he set during his career from 1996-99. He adds 27 rushing touchdowns and just last week crossed the 5,000 all-purpose yards mark. He has eluded defenses all season as a triple threat in the backfield, catching the ball and returning the ball. This season, he's averaging 202.5 all-purpose yards per game, ranking him sixth in NCAA Division II and first in the NE-10. He's also scored 1.67 touchdowns per game and is one of only two NE-10 players with a rushing, receiving and return touchdown this season. Over the last four years specifically against Stonehill, DeCaro has averaged 90.25 yards per game, 6.7 yards per carry and one touchdown per game.

DEFENSIVE STANDS
While they didn't shutout the Warriors last week, the New Haven defense came up huge when needed. Leading by seven late in the fourth quarter, the Chargers needed to keep Merrimack out of the endzone twice to ensure the victory. The Warriors made it all the way inside New Haven's 1-yard line before UNH made back-to-back plays to keep the seven point lead. After a quick three-and-out by the UNH offense, the Chargers took the field again with nearly two minutes left in the fourth quarter. The Warriors again made their way inside the red zone, but tough defense allowed them no closer than the 9-yard line. To the contrary, since the return of Charger football in 2009, the New Haven defense has held its opponents scoreless on four different occasions. In week two's 65-0 shutout, UNH came one point shy of the largest margin of victory in program history and the set the record for the largest since 2009. Last season's 45-0 victory over Saint Anselm was the third shutout since 2009 and the first at home since week two of the 2010 season. That season, the Chargers managed two shutouts, blanking Lincoln (Pa.) and American International.

CAREER HIGH
Senior linebacker Jaylen Johnson has stepped into the lineup for New Haven and last week boasted a career-best 12 total tackles at Merrimack. He recorded eight solo stops and applied the pressure to Merrimack quarterback Joe Clancy on the final play of the game, forcing an intentional grounding penalty and giving the Chargers possession with under one minute remaining. To date, the Linden, N.J. native has started one game and is sixth on the team with 29 tackles and adds 1.5 tackles-for-loss.

IMMEDIATE IMPACT ROOKIE
One of the team's leading tacklers, Najae Brown has made his presence known early in the 2013 season as a freshman cornerback. He leads the team with 44 total tackles and 33 solo stops. In the Chargers' win at Merrimack, he tied his early season total of 11 tackles and set a new personal best with 10 solo stops.

FROM THE DIAMOND TO THE GRIDIRON
Tight end Michael Flacco currently ranks second on the team with 16 receptions, while boasting a team-high six touchdown catches. The sophomore from Audobon, N.J. hasn't always caught passes on the football field. Flacco spent the last four seasons in the MLB minor leagues. A quarterback in high school, Flacco transitioned to his tight end position during the preseason.

COMING OUT OF NOWHERE
Sophomore Courtney Moshood, in his first year of eligibility, has emerged as one of the Chargers' top offensive threats this season and for his efforts two weeks ago, he was named the Northeast-10 Conference Rookie of the Week. Moshood has 300 yards and three touchdowns off eight catches. The emergence  of Moshood becomes even more astonishing given the fact he was on the defensive side of the ball as recently as the 2013 preseason.

CALLING HIS OWN NUMBER
Senior quarterback Ronnie Nelson has led the UNH offense throughout the 2013 season as he's picked apart defenses through the air and on the ground. He currently ranks sixth in Division II and first in the NE-10 with a 183.1 passing efficiency rating. Nelson's numbers include 1,510 yards, 16 touchdowns and just five interceptions on 92-of-145 passing. In nine games as the starting quarterback in his career, he is 144-for-220 for 2,281 yards with 31 touchdowns and eight interceptions. The only 3,000-yard passer and 1,000-yard rusher in New Haven football history, Nelson's career numbers include 3,006 passing yards and 1,096 rushing yards. The senior put together one of the most impressive individual performances in Charger football history against Saint Anselm in week three. The Stuart, Fla. native set a record for total offensive yards in a game and was the first quarterback to throw for more than 300 yards and rush for more than 100 yards in a game. He threw for a career-best 364 yards on 18-of-25 in week four against LIU Post.

PROGRAM FIRSTS
Two players will become the first players in program history to accomplish very elite numbers. Quarterback Ronnie Nelson, became the first 3,000-yard passer and 1,000-yard rusher in program history last week, while Mike DeCaro is on pace to be the only Charger with 2,000 yards rushing and 1,000 yards receiving. He needs 231 receiving yards to accomplish the feat this season.

SCORING SPREE
One of just four teams in NCAA Division II with two 65-plus point performances this season, New Haven scored 65-plus points in back-to-back games for the first time and tied the highest two-game scoring total in program history in weeks two and three. The 135 points scored against Pace and Saint Anselm tied a two-game stretch from 1992 against Virginia Union and Central Connecticut. On the season, The Chargers rank 12th in NCAA Division II and first in the NE-10 in scoring offense with 44.3 points per game.

SPREADING OUT THE SCORES
Eleven different players have scored for UNH this season, including seven players with 18-or-more points and 10 players have scored touchdowns. During a three-week stretch from week two to week four, the Chargers had six different players score touchdowns in each of their three wins.

ICE-BERG ANCHORS D-LINE
Senior defensive tackle Sean Berglund has stepped in to the starting role and excelled throughout the 2013 season. Despite missing one game due to injury, he's second on the defensive line with 25 total tackles and leads the team with 8.0 tackles-for-loss and four sacks. He posted a career-high seven total tackles in each of the first two games this season. He registered a career-best four tackles-for-loss and three sacks against Pace in week two, while also forcing a fumble and recovering another loose ball. At Assumption in week five, he blocked his first career field goal and in the meantime set up a Chargers' scoring drive.

A SPECIALIST
Junior place kicker and punter Anthony Greenfield has boasted impressive numbers throughout the first half of the 2013 season. He's converted 34-of-37 extra points, averaged 42.0 yards per punt and pinned opponents inside the 20-yard line seven times. In week three at Saint Anselm, Greenfield came one extra point short of tying New Haven's all-time record of 11 conversions. He connected on 10-of-10 attempts. In week two against Pace, Greenfield booted a 64-yard punt late in the fourth quarter to seal the late-game shutout for UNH. The punt was the longest of his career and the first punt over 60 yards since the Chargers returned to the gridiron in 2009. The last punt longer than 64 yards came in 2002 when Lars Anderson kicked a 65-yard punt on Sept. 21 at Indiana (Pa.). The Chargers' longest punt ever belongs to John Cerra, who booted a 75-yard punt against Southern Connecticut State in 1996.

THE COACHES - COLLEGE TEAMMATES
The 2012 Liberty Mutual Division II Coach of the Year and three-time Northeast-10 Conference Coach of the Year, Peter Rossomando is in his fifth season as head coach for the Chargers, although he was hired in January of 2008 to start rebuilding the program. In four short years, Rossomando has brought the Charger football program back into the national spotlight as one of the premier programs in Division II. He previously spent seven seasons at the University at Albany and five seasons at UNH, as an assistant under current Oakland Raiders offensive line coach Tony Sparano. Entering his seventh season at the helm of the Stonehill football program, Robert Talley was named the 2013 D2Football.com NE-10 Coach of the Year. He's the school's all-time winningest coach and one of three African-American head coaches in Division II football out of 133 schools and one of 33 in NCAA football overall. Rossomando and Talley both hail from Staten Island, N.Y. and are former teammates from Boston University. Talley was an All-America selection at linebacker for the Terriers in 1990, during Rossomando's freshman year. Rossomando, a defensive lineman went on to lead the Terriers to the 1993 Yankee Conference Championship. Rossomando currently holds the head-to-head lead with a 3-0 record since 2009.

THREE OF A KIND
Rossomando has gradually worked his way up the all-time wins list at the University of New Haven over the last five seasons. With a win this week, the fifth-year head coach will become the third coach in program history to cross the 40-win plateau. Mark Whipple (1988-93) is the winningest coach with a 48-17 record in his six seasons. Tony Sparano (1994-98) is second on the list, and two ahead of Rossomando, with a 41-14 all-time record.
Coach                         Wins    Losses     Ties          Pct.      Years

Mark Whipple               48           17            0          0.738      1988-93
Tony Sparano              41           14            1          0.741      1994-98
Peter Rossomando   39            11           0           0.780     2009-Pres.

FOOTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
The University of New Haven football coaches will be selecting Players of the Week every week throughout the 2013 season. Head Coach Peter Rossomando and his assistants chose five student-athletes for the week six awards:
Offensive Player of the Week: Mike DeCaro
Defensive Player of the Week: David Nooks
Special Teams Player of the Week: Rishawn Harris
Offensive Scout Player of the Week: Geoff Fairbanks
Defensive Scout Player of the Week: Luis Mercer

GAMEDAY FORECAST
The forecast for Saturday in West Haven, Conn. has high temperatures in the mid-60s and mostly cloudy skies. A 10-percent chance of rain does exist with winds out of the west up to 10 mph.

UP NEXT
New Haven travels to crosstown rival Southern Connecticut State on Friday, Oct. 25 for another NE-10 showdown and the battle for the Elm City Trophy. Kickoff at Jess Dow Field is set for 7 p.m. UNH returns home for its final two regular season games starting Saturday, Nov. 2 against American International.

NATIONAL RECOGNITION
The Beyond Sports Network (BSN) recognized the New Haven offensive line and running back Mike DeCaro as national players of the week during week four. Punter Anthony Greenfield and defensive back Carlos Lozada were both named to the teams during week three. BSN recognizes national award winners for the top performances in the FBS, FCS, Division II, Division III, and NAIA. The Beyond Sports Network staff hands out awards for Offensive Line of the Week, Defense of the Week, Offensive Players of the Week, Defensive Players of the Week, and Special Teams Players of the Week.

THREE-TIMES AS GREAT
Against Pace in week two, Ronnie Nelson, Anthony Greenfield and Joey Bradley all threw touchdown passes in the Chargers' 65-0 victory - the first time three different players threw scoring strikes since Nov. 5, 2011. Ryan Osiecki, Ronnie Nelson and Brice DeRosa helped lead UNH to another 60-plus point performance and win over Pace. This season, four different players have thrown passes for the Chargers, including DeeJay White who tossed a 41-yard strike against LIU Post.

THE REMAINING SCHEDULE
The Chargers host homecoming at DellaCamera Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 19 against Stonehill College. New Haven has held the upper hand in the four year series with the Skyhawks, but last year's game in Easton, Mass. went down to the final seconds as UNH scored the go-ahead touchdown with six second on the clock. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. The Elm City Trophy will be awarded in week eight with the Chargers traveling to crosstown rival Southern Connecticut State University on Friday, Oct. 25. The third night game on the schedule will kickoff at 7 p.m. at Jess Dow Field. UNH and SCSU have a storied history dating back to 1981. New Haven holds a 16-6-1 record against the Owls, including three straight wins. The November schedule includes two NE-10 home games for the Chargers. American International travels to West Haven on Saturday, Nov. 2 at 1 p.m. The Chargers and Yellow Jackets have met 18 times since 1983 with UNH holding a 12-6 advantage in the series. Bentley University will round out the regular season for the Chargers on Saturday, Nov. 9 at DellaCamera Stadium. UNH and Bentley have also met every year since 2009 and the Chargers hold a 3-1 record against the Falcons. For the second straight season, the NE-10 Conference will host a championship weekend on Saturday, Nov. 16. The top seeded team will host the second seed in a true championship game format. The remaining teams will also play games in the final weekend of the regular season. The third, fourth, fifth and sixth seeded teams will host the seventh, eighth, ninth and 10th seeded teams, respectively. The NCAA Division II Football Championship tournament begins on Saturday, Nov. 23 with the first round, while the Division II Champion will be crowded on Saturday, Dec. 21 at Braly Municipal Stadium in Florence, Ala.

A WIN FOR THE AGES
In week three's 70-26 victory at Saint Anselm, the Chargers set one program record, but many more numbers were the most since 2009 when the Chargers' return to the gridiron. The win also ranked among the best in NCAA Division II this season, tying for fifth place in points scored, coming in second in total offense and third in rushing yards. Here's a complete list:
Individual
  Most rushing yards - Mike DeCaro, 205
  Most total offensive yards gained - Ronnie Nelson, 483 (*all-time record)
  Most all-purpose yards - Mike DeCaro, 286
  Most extra point conversions - Anthony Greenfield, 10
Team
  Most rushing yards - 509
  Most yards per rush (min. 20 attempts) - 9.6
  Most rushing touchdowns - 7
  Most total offensive yards - 821
  Most all-purpose yards - 907
  Most points scored - 70
  Most touchdowns - 10

NE-10 PRESEASON RESULTS
The No. 12 University of New Haven football team has been selected to finish second in the Northeast-10 Football Coaches' Preseason Poll, which was released today by the conference office. The nationally-ranked Chargers received three of 10 first-place votes. The three-time defending Northeast-10 Champion, New Haven garnered 73 total points on the preseason ledger. American International was tabbed as the favorite by the conference's 10 head coaches, collecting five first-place tallies to edge the Chargers with 75 total points. Bentley nabbed 61 points, LIU Post had 60 – including the two remaining first-place votes – and Merrimack rounds out the top half of the poll with 44 points. Southern Connecticut, Stonehill, Assumption, Saint Anselm and Pace rounded out the preseason poll.
2013 Northeast-10 Football Coaches Preseason Poll
    1. American International – 75 (5)
    2. New Haven – 73 (3)
    3. Bentley – 61
    4. LIU Post – 60 (2)
    5. Merrimack – 44
    6. Southern Connecticut – 42
    7. Stonehill – 41
    8. Assumption – 24
    9. Saint Anselm – 21
    10. Pace – 9
    * - first-place votes in parentheses

COMPLETE NEW HAVEN GAME NOTES (PDF)