Unbeaten Engineers host Hobart Saturday
Following a bye week, the No. 17/19 RPI Engineers (5-0; 1-0 Liberty League) host first place Hobart College (4-2; 2-0 Liberty League) in a conference contest on Family Weekend at East Campus Stadium in Troy.
NATIONALLY-RANKED: RPI is ranked 17th in Division III, according to the latest American Football Coaches Association Poll ... It is the highest the Engineers have been on that list since being 17th on November 4, 2008.
D3FOOTBALL.COM POLL: The Engineers are 19th in the latest D3football.com Top 25 ... RPI was last inside the top 20 after Week 2 in 2004 when it was 17th.
FIRST IN FOUR WEEKS: Rensselaer is back at East Campus Stadium for the first time since September 22 when it defeated Buffalo State, 44-14 ... Since that game, RPI had a bye, a game at Ithaca and a second bye.
HOME FIELD: Rensselaer plays three of its final four games at East Campus Stadium.
HOME WINNING STREAK: RPI has won seven straight games at East Campus Stadium ... The Engineers were 4-0 last season with the most recent defeat coming on October 22, 2016, to WPI (19-7).
SCHOOL RECORD: Rensselaer’s record for home winning streak is 10 games, which it accomplished from October 30, 1993 to October 7, 1995.
UNBEATEN IN NON-LEAGUE: Rensselaer was 4-0 against nonconference opponents, marking the first time since 2013 it had done so ... The Engineers were 3-0 that season.
LEAGUE PLAY: The Engineers began playing Liberty League opponents two weeks ago when they won at Ithaca, 10-9 ... Rensselaer’s final four games are against conference foes.
STANDINGS: Hobart sits in first place in the conference with a 2-0 record ... RPI and St. Lawrence are both 1-0 and Ithaca is 1-1 ... Union and Rochester have lost their first two league games.
LAST TWO CHAMPS: The Engineers are the defending Liberty League champions, while the Statesmen won the conference crown in both 2016 and 2015.
STATISTICAL LEADERS: Rensselaer is first in the league in five team categories, including rushing offense (156.2 yards per game), pass defense efficiency (96.3), interceptinos (13), kickoff returns (24.1 yards per) and punt returns (21.7 yards per) ... Hobart is first in points per game (38.3), field goals (7 of 7), punting (40.5 yards per), sacks allowed (6) and third down conversions (40.8%).
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS: Hobart’s Ryan Hofmann leads the conference in total offense with 263.2 yards per game ... Rensselaer’s Nick Cella is second in rushing yards per game at 62.2.
SPECIAL SPECIAL TEAMERS: Sanjay Krishnan, the Engineers’ kicker, is tied for first in the Liberty League in field goals with seven ... He is second in scoring among kickers with 6.8 points per game ... Kyle Hackett of Hobart is first in scoring among kickers and second overall (8.2) ... He is tied with Krishnan with seven
field goals.
NOTHING IN COMMON: Though in the same conference, Rensselaer and Hobart do not have any common opponents to this point in the season.
ALL-TIME VS. HOBART: RPI and Hobart have played 61 times with the series tied, 30-30-1 ... The first meeting was October 15, 1910, a 6-5 Hobart victory in Troy.
RECENTLY: The Statesmen blanked Rensselaer last season, 30-0 ... RPI won the previous two meetings, 21-20 in 2015 and 21-17 in 2016 ... The Engineers are 4-6 in their last 10 contests with the Statesmen.
CLOSE CONTESTS: In the seven games between 2005 and 2011, Hobart outscored RPI by only 20 points (190-170) ... Six contests were decided by one score, including four games by three points or fewer ... The two games in 2015 and 2016 were decided by a combined five points.
LAST 10 IN TROY: In the last 10 meetings between RPI and Hobart in Troy dating back to 1999, the Engineers are 4-6.
AT HOME ALL-TIME: In 33 all-time meetings in the Capital District, RPI is 18-15 versus Hobart.
IN LEAGUE PLAY: Rensselaer is 10-13 in Liberty League play against the Statesmen ... The Engineers were 10-16-1 in ICAC games with Hobart ... They both competed in the ICAC from 1964 to 1990.
IN THE RECORDS: Rensselaer’s 30 wins against the Statesmen ranks fourth against any one school, trailing WPI (60), Rochester (31) and Union (31).
OVERTIME: Rensselaer has played seven overtime games in school history and two have been against Hobart, both in Geneva ... The Engineers lost 36-35 in 1996 (Nov. 16) and were defeated 56-48 in 2005 (Sept. 24).
LAST SEASON: Hobart scored 24 points in the second half while controlling the clock throughout on its way to a 30-0 win over the Engineers ... Running back Mike Tivinis had 10 carries for 50 yards for RPI ... He was also the team’s leading receiver with four catches for 33 yards ... Defensive back Bryan Hayes made a game-high 15 tackles ... Defensive tackle Zackary Robak led the Statesmen with seven tackles, including one of the team’s three sacks ... Almamy Conde added four stops, including a sack, with a fumble recovery and an interception ... Jedh Downey chipped in five tackles and an interception ... Quarterback Shane Sweeney led the offense, completing 29 of 45 passes for 297 yards and two touchdowns.
BYE WEEK: Rensselaer had a bye prior to playing Hobart during the 2017 season.
LAST TIME IN TROY: Quarterback Ed Trimpert threw two touchdown passes and ran for the game-winning score with only 20 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to lead RPI to a 21-17 victory over No. 22 Hobart ... Trailing by three points with just over a minute remaining following a seven-yard touchdown pass by Hobart’s Shane Sweeney with 1:12 left in the fourth frame, Rensselaer gained excellent field position on the ensuing kickoff ... Six plays later, Trimpert dropped back to pass but was flushed from the pocket