Spencer King & Sienna Tejpaul

3:01 am, Oct 04, 2024

Staff Reporter & Contributing Reporter

Yale Daily News

After a tough loss to Cornell last weekend, the Yale Bulldogs (1–1, 0–1 Ivy) will face the Central Connecticut State University Blue Devils (2–2, 1–0 Northeast) in their first home game at 12 p.m. on Saturday. 

The Bulldogs will be looking to rebound after their disappointing performance last weekend in hopes of coming home with the first home win of the season. Similarly, the Blue Devils will be feeling hungry after the University of Massachusetts slipped out of their grasp late in the fourth quarter last Saturday. 

Looking at CCSU, they have played two FBS opponents, coming up with drastically different results. In August, the Blue Devils faced Central Michigan University and were crushed, with CMU winning 66–10. 

However, more recently, CCSU faced UMass and had a real chance at beating the Minutemen, taking the lead twice in the second half. In the end, however, the Blue Devils did fall short, and UMass returned for the win, 35–31. 

The Blue Devils’ offense likes to work through the air and on the ground, however, they have not been very efficient in their passing game, completing barely over 50 percent of passes thrown. However, when they are successful, their quarterback Aidan Clark tends to look for their star receiver Micheal Plaskon, who has over twice the number of receptions and receiving yards as their next best receiver. Yale will need to lock down Plaskon to stunt the Blue Devils passing game and remove their quarterback as a threat. 

CCSU likes to create movement before the snap, shifting their offense to throw the defense off of their game and adjust to a new setup. This system has been working for them as their quarterback has only been sacked twice in the four games they have played this year.  

Defensively, they prefer to keep it simple, however, they have been showing both 3-down and 4-down fronts, as well as one and two high safety looks. Their defensive line plays aggressively, moving fast and physically, allowing Yale to run the ball which they have found lots of success with this year. 

Yale and CCSU will most likely be looking to exploit underneath throws, and once they have gained some confidence, they will move to play-action shots down the field. 

For Yale, the run should be an emphasis all day long. With Josh Pitsenberger ’26 running for 70 yards last week, the Bulldogs need to keep feeding him to soften the defense. 

The run should especially focus on the question marks surrounding the quarterback situation for Yale. Grant Jordan ’25 is still returning from injury. Brogan McCaughey ’26 is also banged up, and his status is unclear for Saturday. If neither can go, it will be Marshall Howe ’26, making his first collegiate start. 

Regarding the defense, the Bulldogs need to limit the explosive plays that hurt them in their opening two games this season. Making the Blue Devils string long drives together needs to be an emphasis for Yale.

The game will be streamed live on ESPN+ and kickoff is at noon at the Yale Bowl. Next Saturday, the Bulldogs will return to the Yale Bowl, facing Dartmouth as they continue Ivy League play.