Chuck Priore: 'Biggest game we've ever played'

After beginning the season 0-3, Stony Brook football coach Chuck Priore asked his captains if the team was tough enough to begin a seven-game countdown to the regular-season finale against Liberty. They said it was, and the Seawolves ran off seven straight wins to set up the showdown with the Flames at 3:30 Saturday afternoon at LaValle Stadium.

Both teams are 7-3 overall and 5-0 in the Big South Conference, and the winner will secure the conference title and the Big South's automatic bid to the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs, which would be a first in Stony Brook history.

"For this team, it's the biggest game we've ever played,'' Priore said. "I think we've arrived, and hopefully, we'll put the exclamation point on it Saturday.''

Priore and his players know it won't be easy. Two years ago, they upset the Flames at home for a share of the conference title, but last year at Liberty, SBU was blown out, 54-28, failing to take advantage of a huge tiebreaker advantage and losing the automatic bid even though they managed a three-way tie for the title.

Stony Brook has averaged more than 49 points in its seven-game winning streak and has scored at least 42 in the past six games.

For the second straight season, the Seawolves have a pair of 1,000-yard rushers in Miguel Maysonet (1,327 yards, 7.0 average, 15 total touchdowns) and Brock Jackolski (1,108, 6.9, 14). But last year, the Flames held the pair to 59 total rushing yards, and coach Danny Rocco sounds confident of repeating that performance.

"Their most significant strength is their ability to dominate the run game,'' Rocco said at his midweek news conference. "Their explosive runs are unbelievable. When you chart runs of 12 yards or more, I don't know if I've ever seen anything like it.

"But I like the matchups. They won't be able to do it to us like they have to other teams. Then their point production comes down, and it's manageable."

If Liberty does slow down Maysonet and Jackolski, it still must contend with quarterback Kyle Essington, who replaced injured Michael Coulter and responded by completing 58.5 percent of his passes for 1,185 yards and 13 touchdowns with only two interceptions.

"I have so much faith in the wide receivers," Essington said of Matt Brevi, Jordan Gush and Kevin Norrell. "I think our passing game is going to have a huge impact on the game.''

Countering Rocco's bold words, Priore said, "I'm confident in this team's ability to win the game however we need to win the game.''