​UAlbany linebacker Dillon Dunathan during a summer practice on Thursday, July 30, 2026, at Casey Stadium in Albany, NY. (Jim Franco/Times Union) (Jim Franco/Times Union)
ALBANY – At least Saturday’s rematch will be shorter.The University at Albany football team lost to Delaware State 37-32 last season in a game that took 7 ½ hours to complete because of two weather delays.”It’s probably the worst game that I’ve been a part of,” Great Danes junior linebacker Dillon Dunathan said of the road loss. “It was terrible.”Senior tight end Nick Petrillo remembered the marathon just as unfondly.”That was a nightmare, to say the least,” Petrillo said. “I think it was a noon start (actually 1 p.m.) and we didn’t get home until, like, 4 or 5 a.m. And with a loss, it was not a fun day.”Looking to snap a two-game losing streak, the Great Danes (2-3) will host the Hornets (3-2) of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in their nonleague finale at 3:30 p.m. Saturday in Casey Stadium. The forecast calls for sunny skies and a kickoff temperature of 66 degrees in UAlbany’s homecoming game.The Great Danes will try to regain momentum heading into their bye week before returning to Coastal Athletic Association play Oct. 17 at Stony Brook.”Obviously, it’s incredibly important, right?” head coach Tom Perkovich said. “We’ve got to get back on track.”The Great Danes are coming off a 22-0 loss at Princeton last Saturday, their first regular-season shutout defeat in nine years. UAlbany was 0 for 2 in the red zone, continuing its struggles to score inside the opponent’s 20.”I don’t think anything we’re doing is particularly wrong,” Petrillo said. “We have the right people in the right spots. We’ve just got to finish. We’ve just got to execute better.”UAlbany could be without one of its biggest targets this week. Sophomore wide receiver Tavahri Groves, who had six catches for 81 yards against Princeton, went through concussion protocols this week after hitting the turf hard on an end-zone incomplete pass in the fourth quarter.”We’re trying to figure that out, but it’s looking doubtful (for Saturday),” Perkovich said Wednesday.Groves is second on the Great Danes with 13 catches for 174 yards and a touchdown.UAlbany is also trying to sort out its offensive line. Senior Jackson Nixon has moved from center to left tackle, then back to center. Senior tackle Emmitt Harris of Shaker High came off the bench last week despite being healthy, Perkovich said.”We’re still just trying to figure that group out and where we’re at with the injuries and different things that have happened,” Perkovich said. “We’re just trying to figure out what the best lineup is and what can be the most productive.”In last year’s meeting, UAlbany’s defense couldn’t stop Delaware dual-threat quarterback Kaiden Bennett, who ran 27 yards for the winning touchdown in the final minute.Bennett graduated and is replaced by senior transfer Uli Ale, who has played at the University of Houston and Troy University