Albany Great Danes football
| Albany Great Danes | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|||
 |
|||
| First season | 1973 | ||
| Head coach |
Greg Gattuso 3rd year, 17–17 (.500) |
||
| Stadium | Bob Ford Field | ||
| Seating capacity | 8,500 | ||
| Field surface | Grass | ||
| Location | Albany, New York | ||
| NCAA division | Division I FCS | ||
| Conference | CAA | ||
| Conference titles | 6 | ||
| Colors | Purple and Gold |
||
| Rivals | Stony Brook Seawolves | ||
| Website | UAlbanySports.com | ||
The Albany Great Danes football program is the intercollegiate American football team for the University at Albany located in the U.S. state of New York. The team competes in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) as a football-only member of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA). The 2013 season was the Great Danes' first in the CAA, following a 14-year tenure in the Northeast Conference.
Albany played football as a club sport in the 1920s, but dropped that program in 1924. The modern era of Albany football began in 1970, when the school restored football as a club sport. The team was upgraded to full varsity status in 1973. From the revival of football in 1970 through 2012, the team played its home games at the 10,000 seat University Field in Albany, New York. Albany opened a new 8,500-seat stadium, Bob Ford Field, for the 2013 season. The stadium is named after Bob Ford, who was the Great Danes' head coach from 1970 through 2013.
During the late 1900s one of the most well known coaches at the university was football coach Bob Ford. The architect of the University at Albany's football program, Ford was Albany's only head coach from the reinstatement of the program after a 46-year absence until his retirement at the end of the 2013 season. Ford joined the program in 1970 when it was a club. After only three seasons at the club level, the program was upgraded to varsity status in 1973, and finished with a 7–2 record. In 1974, the team finished 9–0, the school's only undefeated season. Ford put together a record of 256-169 with the Great Danes. Ford recorded his 250th career win with a 38-10 victory against Duquesne on October 8, 2011.
During his time with Albany, Ford led the Great Danes to one ECAC North Championships (D-III), one Division III Playoff appearance, two East Football Conference Championships and three Northeast Conference Championships (two Co-Championship).
...
Wikipedia