Hartford, Conn. - The Trinity College football team, which trounced Amherst, 49-7, over the weekend, will close the 2021 season with its annual local battle against the Wesleyan University Cardinals on Saturday, November 13 at noon in Middletown, Connecticut.  The Bantams are seeking not only revenge for its 28-20 setback at home against the Cardinals in the most recent meeting two autumns ago but also a share of the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Championship title if they win and Amherst wins at home against Williams the same day.  Trinity, coached by Jeff Devanney (16th Season, 103-20), have previously won at least a share of the NESCAC Football Championship title in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2017 and 2018.  The Bantams, which hold a 62-54-1 record in the 136-year history between the teams, is ranked No. 4 and Wesleyan is No. 10 in the New England Football Writers Division III Poll: 1. Williams (8-0), 2. Endicott (7-2), 3. Framingham State (7-2), 4. TRINITY (7-1), 5. Husson (7-2), 6. Salve Regina (8-2), T7. Mass.-Dartmouth (7-2), T7th. Western New England (6-3), 9. Springfield (6-3), 10. Wesleyan (6-2).

In the rout against Amherst, Trinity dominated the game from start to finish, totaling 472 yards of total offense and yielding just 116 yards.  Senior captain WR DeVante Reid (London, England) scored the first of his three touchdowns less than five minutes into the game on a nine-yard pass from junior QB Spencer Fetter (Winter Park, Fla.).  The Bantams scored twice more in the opening stanza, once on a three-yard run by sophomore William Kirby (Darien, Conn.) and again on a 45-yard pass from Fetter to Reid.  Fetter threw two touchdown tosses of three yards apiece to senior TE Thomas Walsh (Pelham, N.Y.) and to senior captain WR Jonathan Girard (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.) to give the Bantams a 35-0 lead at the half. Reid scored on a four-yard shovel pass in the third quarter, and Fetter found Walsh again, this time from 28 yards out, in the fourth quarter.  Fetter finished 26-for-32 passing for 345 yards and tied the Bantam single-game record with six touchdowns, while Kirby rushed 18 times for 92 yards.  Reid and Girard had nine catches each with Reid totaling 157 yards and Girard finishing with 102 yards. Girard also became Trinity's all-time leading receiver with 158 career catches on his ninth reception of the day.  Defensively, Trinity held Amherst to 116 total yards, 34 rushing yards on 27 carries, and seven first downs.  Senior Joe Cappiello (Hartsdale, N.Y.) paced Trinity with five tackles and classmate Aidan Kennedy (East Longmeadow, Mass.) had two tackles, an interception, and a pass breakup.

Trinity tops the NESCAC in total defense (255.5 ypg), rushing defense (89.9), passing offense (298.1), pass efficiency (183.2 QB rating), sacks allowed (9-43), and opponent 3rd-down conversion (31.2%). Fetter leads the league in passing (290.5 ypg), and is second in total offense (304.2 ypg), and has 26 touchdown tosses to just two interceptions. Kirby is third in the conference with 694 rushing yards including 11 touchdowns. Reid and Girard are among the conference's top three in both receptions and receiving yards with 114 catches for 1,639 yards between them, while Girard adds a league-best 11 touchdown catches. Kirby also ranks fourth in all-purpose yards with 881, followed by Reid in fifth with 862, and Girard in seventh with 782.  Trinity defensive line has been disruptive, as senior Noah Glantz (Scarsdale, N.Y.) and junior Cooper Mandel (Ramsey, N.J.) are tied for fourth in the NESCAC with four sacks apiece, followed by junior Joseph Lepore (Winchester, Mass.) in 10th with 3.5 (tied), and Glantz is also fourth in tackles for loss with 10. Senior captain LB Brian Casagrande (Madison, Conn.) has a team-high 38 tackles (29 solo), and Kennedy is tied for sixth in the NESCAC in passes defensed with seven.

Wesleyan, under the direction of Head Coach Dan DiCenzo, is 6-2 this season with both of its losses coming in the last two weeks, 16-14, in seven overtimes against Amherst and, 25-0, at Williams last week.  The Cardinals boast a versatile rushing attack led by QB David Estevez, who currently is second in the league with 729 yards. Logan Tomlinson has had a productive year receiving with 758 yards, fourth in the NESCAC. Cardinal DBs Danny Banks and Jack Nally are tied for NESCAC lead in interceptions with three a piece, and the defense is well-balanced with six players over 30 tackles. Daniel Yoon is perfect kicking field goals with six made in six tries.