Washington & Jefferson (0-0) vs. Utica (0-0) 

When: Saturday, September 5, 2026
Where: Utica, N. Y.
Stadium: Charles A. Gaetano Stadium
Kickoff: 12:00 p.m.

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THE SERIES: Washington & Jefferson travels to Utica, New York to take on the Utica Pioneers for the second meeting all-time between the programs. The matchup marks the backend of the program's home-and-home series. When the two teams met last season Utica used a dominant passing attack to roll to a 49-31 win over the Presidents in Washington.
 
RICH TRADITION: The Washington & Jefferson football program has won 798 games in its 132-year history (798–408–40), ranking third among NCAA Division III schools behind Mount Union (879) and Wittenberg (860). Widener (736) and Wabash (733) round out the D-III top five. Across all NCAA divisions, the Presidents' win total places them 22nd all-time. The program's 28 PAC titles stand as the most in league history and its 28 NCAA Playoff appearances are the third-most among Division III schools.
 
W&J VS. THE PAC: W&J maintains a winning record against every current PAC opponent:
 
Team                                                              Record (Pct.)
Allegheny                                                       24-20-1 (.545)
Bethany                                                         79-21 (.790)
Case Western Reserve                                  15-10 (.537)
Geneva                                                          51-19-2 (.729)
Grove City                                                     46-14 (.767)
Hiram                                                              12-7-1 (.632)
Saint Francis                                                  2-1 (.667)
Saint Vincent                                                   16-1 (.941)
Thiel                                                                 54-22-2 (.711)
Waynesburg                                                    49-4 (.925)
Westminster                                                    40-7 (.851)
Total                                                                389-126-6 (.755)
 
PASSING THE TORCH: The Presidents will look to a new signal-caller to lead the offense this season following a season from Kellan Stahl (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) that stands as one of the best in school history. The starter will be either Luke Goodworth (Mars, Pa./Mars) or Derek Burk (Gibsonia, Pa./Deer Lakes). Both will look to continue the program's rich history at the tradition, which includes the current streak of three consecutive seasons where W&J's quarterback earned PAC Offensive Player of the Year honors.
 
WIN WEEK ONE: The Presidents will look to atone for their season opening loss to Utica last season. The loss was the first in a season opener for the Presidents since 2010, ending a streak of 14 consecutive week one wins for the Red and Black. Overall, the Presidents are 20-3 (.870) in season openers under Mike Sirianni.
 
42 STRAIGHT WINNING SEASONS: Last season, W&J secured its 42nd consecutive winning season. The streak began in 1984 under John Luckhardt, when the Presidents went 10–2 and captured their first-ever playoff victory. Only Linfield (69) and Mount Union (47) have longer active streaks of consecutive winning seasons.
 
SWEET SEPTEMBER: The Presidents have had consistent success in the month of September under Mike Sirianni, going 70-14 (.833) since his arrival in 2003. The Presidents went 1-2 in September last season with losses to Utica and Hampden-Sydney before defeating Grove to end the month.
 
HALFWAY HOME: W&J has thrived under Mike Sirianni when leading at halftime, posting a 160–6 record (.964) in such games.
 
RANK & FILE: The PAC looks to be a strong league once again in 2026, after having four teams play postseason games last season. W&J was joined in the NCAA Tournament by Grove City, while Westminster and Geneva played in postseason bowl games. The Presidents were voted as the league favorite by conference coaches and media personnel in the PAC Preseason Poll.
 
2026 PAC Football Preseason Poll
School                                                             Points (first place votes)
1. Washington & Jefferson College             497 (37)
2. Grove City College                                      453 (5)
3. Westminster College                                    395 (3)
4. Case Western Reserve University               361
5. Geneva College                                           339
6. Allegheny College                                         250
7. Waynesburg University                                 222
8. Saint Vincent College                                   201
9. Hiram College                                               152
10. Thiel College                                                87
11. Bethany College                                           79 (1)
Saint Francis University - Ineligible for PAC Championship
 
NON-CONFERENCE CONFLICTS: W&J will play two non-conference games to start the 2026 season, facing off against Utica and Keystone. W&J will look to snap a four-game losing streak against non-PAC opponents. The Presidents' last non-league win came against United States Merchant Marine in the 2023 ECAC James Lynah Bowl.
 
BIG SHOES TO FILL: In the past three seasons, W&J held one of the nation's best and most accomplished wide receiver duos, as John Peduzzi (Hilton Head, S.C./Hilton Head Christian Academy) '25 and Jacob Macosko (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) '26 both bolted into the program record book. With each now gone, the unit will look to junior Joey DeSabato (Glenshaw, Pa./Shaler Area) to stabilize the receiver room. DeSabato was named All-PAC Second Team as a returner last season and was also key to the Presidents' passing attack as the third option on the outside. He totaled 435 yards and two touchdowns on 33 catches last season, despite being behind two program legends. Other players looking to produce at receiver are seniors Haden Sierocky (Ligonier, Pa./Ligonier Valley) and Marc Conti (New Castle, Pa./Mohawk), junior Ethan Wertman (Canonsburg, Pa./Peters Township), sophomore Szyair Dungee (Donora, Pa./Ringgold), and freshman AJ Alston (McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour).
 
FACING THE EMPIRE 8: W&J holds a 9-5 (.643) record in all-time matchups against current Empire 8 football programs:
 
Team                                 Record Against (Pct.)
Alfred                                  2-0 (1.000)
Alfred St.                             0-0 (.000)
Brockport                           1-1 (.500)
Cortland                              4-1 (.800)
Hartwick                              0-0 (.000)
Morrisville                           0-0 (.000)
St. John Fisher                   2-2 (.500)
Utica                                  0-1 (.000)
Total                                  9-5 (.643)
 
PRESIDENTIAL PRESSURE: One of W&J's biggest strengths in 2025 was its defensive end pairing of Antoine Smith (Pittsburgh, Pa./Serra Catholic) and Nathaniel Kadosh-Harris (Irwin, Pa./Norwin), both of whom return for the 2026 season. Smith finished the season tied for third in the conference with seven sacks while Kadosh-Harris was fourth in the conference with three fumbles forced, including two in a key conference victory over Case Western Reserve. On the interior, the Presidents boast a duo of brothers in Alex and Matt Boyce (McDonald, Pa./South Fayette), who both played in rotational roles last season. Owen Sinclair (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional), Connor Reeves (Ellicott City, Md./Glenelg), Aidan Shaffer (New Castle, Pa./Neshannock), Tyler Bender (Tarentum, Pa./Highlands), and Paul Williamson (Houston, Pa./Chartiers Houston) add to the rotation up front for W&J.
 
DERUBBO'S DOMAIN: When in need of a key play or takeaway in 2025, W&J looked to Dante DeRubbo (Washington, Pa./Trinity). During his sophomore campaign, DeRubbo played in the secondary at multiple positions, lining up mostly in the slot but also spending some time both outside and at safety. The All-Region selection intercepted seven passes, which tied for fifth most in a single season in program history.
 
SCOUTING UTICA: The Utica Pioneers had a strong showing in the 2025 season, going 8-3 and finishing second in the Empire 8. The Pioneers were successful largely due to their dominant passing offense led by Gagliardi trophy semifinalist Tyler Szalkowski. The former Division I passer finished top five in the country in multiple passing statistics, including his average of 330.7 passing yards per game. Utica also had an excellent defense last season, allowing 274.5 yards per game, which ranked 33rd. The Pioneers also boasted a strong special teams unit, ranking second in the nation with 10 blocked kicks.
 
THE OPENING ACT: Out of the sophomore pair of Luke Goodworth (Mars, Pa./Mars) or Derek Burk (Gibsonia, Pa./Deer Lakes), one will make their first career start this week against Utica. In last season's opener against the Pioneers, Kellan Stahl (Johnstown, Pa./Richland) became the first Presidents quarterback to lose his first career start since 2006, when Bobby Swallow '09 dropped his debut. Both passers did atone for the setbacks later on with legendary efforts, as Stahl had one of the best single season performances in school history that same season, and Swallow became one of the best passers in school history and was inducted into the W&J Hall of Fame in 2014.
 
CREGAN COORDINATION: The Red and Black have made an addition to the coaching staff by adding former Baldwin Wallace quarterbacks coach Andrew Cregan as offensive coordinator. The B-W alum was on the staff for four seasons at his alma mater, helping the Yellow Jackets to an impressive 8-2 record last year.
 
POUND THE ROCK: W&J enters 2026 with a running back room that has a clear leader in Andrew Sharp (Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin). The junior totaled 622 yards rushing on 151 carries with 12 touchdowns on the ground in 2025. Sharp added 189 yards and a score in the receiving game. He is joined by senior Luke Edwards (New Wilmington, Pa./Wilmington), who picked up 188 yards on the ground as the Presidents' third back last season. The depth is supplemented at the position by a pair of freshmen with Robert Preston (Frederick, Md./Urbana) and Connor Whapham (Northfield, Ohio/Nordonia) joining the room.
 
CAN'T BLOCK BROCK: Brock Sherman (Copley, Ohio/Walsh Jesuit) broke out last season in his first season starting at inside linebacker for the Red and Black. Sherman had an All-PAC First Team season and uses his athleticism to attack the football no matter who has it. Sherman had 97 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, and three sacks in his 2025 sophomore campaign, and will look to keep stuffing the stat sheet in his junior season as one of the defense's most tenured starters.