No. 24/25 Bulldogs host CCSU on ESPN3 Saturday (12p)

FULL GAME NOTES

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The No. 24/25 Bryant University football team will take to the national stage this weekend as it welcomes Central Connecticut to Bulldog Stadium in a game that will be aired live on ESPN3.

GAME INFORMATION:
Date: Saturday, Nov. 1
Time: 12:00 p.m.
Listen: WOON 1240 (onworldwide.com)
Watch: ESPN3.com
Stats: Live Stats

LAST TIME OUT: BULLDOGS ROLL PAST ROBERT MORRIS
Bryant's offense continued to churn out the points and the defense did the rest in a convincing 42-9 victory over Robert Morris last Saturday. The Bulldogs put up 470 yards of total offense, including 310 yards on the ground. Paul Canevari rushed for a career-high 177 yards and Ricardo McCray added a career-high 130 yards to lead Bryant's ground attack. Dalton Easton threw for a pair of scores and also scored on a one-yard keeper. Bryant's defense allowed just 152 yards of total offense and forced four turnovers. The win improved the Black and Gold to 2-0 in the NEC and into a tie for first place.

SCOUTING THE BLUE DEVILS
Central Connecticut enters todays contest on the heels of three-straight conference losses. The Blue Devils have been in all three games, dropping the opener to Duquesne in the final moments before letting an 18-point lead slip away against Robert Morris. They fell 20-10 to Wagner last weekend at home. CCSU opened its season with a victory over 2013 national runner-up Towson.

The offense begins and ends with one of the most explosive running backs in the country, Rob Hollomon. A preseason All-American and a member of the Walter Payton Award Watch List, Hollomon is averaging 5.1 yards per carry and 116 yards per game on the ground. He became CCSU's all-time leading rusher at Robert Morris and enters the game with 3,484 yards. Hollomon is also a feared all-purpose player, averaging 186.4 yards per game. QB Nick SanGiacomo has thrown for 1,530 yards, six TDs and nine INTs.

CCSU's defense has shown promise this season and has allowed only 23.8 points per game this season. The Blue Devils have allowed 188 passing yards per game and 345 yards of total offense per game. Chris Abner leads the team with 62 tackles and two interceptions, while David Campbell has broken up 10 passes on the year. Asia Bolling leads the team with 3.5 sacks.

INSIDE THE SERIES
Bryant and Central Connecticut will be meeting for the seventh time this afternoon at Bulldog Stadium. The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 4-2 but the Black and Gold have won each of the last two meetings. After dropping the first four games, the Bulldogs have responded with back-to-back wins in New Britain, 28-25 in 2012 and 29-16 to end last season. Last year, the Bulldogs used a 15-point fourth-quarter to rally against the Blue Devils. Then-junior Tyriq DeShields hauled in a program-record 82-yard pass to give them the lead.

BULLDOGS MOVE UP IN NATIONAL POLLS
Off to their best start in program history, the Bulldogs moved up in the national polls this week. Bryant moved up to No. 24 in the FCS Coaches' poll and cracked the Sports Network poll for the first time in school history, appearing at No. 25 this week. The Bulldogs are the only NEC team ranked.

CANEVARI AGAINST THE NEC
With his second-straight 100-yard game against Northeast Conference competition, Paul Canevari has now registered over 100 yards rushing in all three career games against league opponents. Last season in his only league game of the year, Canevari rushed for 173 yards and three touchdowns against Wagner. This season, he rushed for 107 against Saint Francis and 177 last weekend.