2020 Sacred Heart Pioneers football team

2020 Sacred Heart Pioneers football
NEC champion
NEC Championship Game, W 34–27 ^OT vs. Duquesne
NCAA Division I First Round, L 10–19 vs. Delaware
Conference	Northeast Conference
Record	3–2 (2–1 NEC)
Head coach	Mark Nofri (9th season)
Offensive coordinator	Matt Gardner (4th season)
Defensive coordinator	Michael Cooke (4th season)
Home stadium	Campus Field

2020 Northeast Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Duquesne y		4	–	0					4	–	1
Sacred Heart y$^		2	–	1					3	–	2
LIU		2	–	2					2	–	2
Bryant		2	–	2					2	–	2
Wagner		0	–	2					0	–	2
Merrimack*		0	–	3					0	–	3
Championship: Sacred Heart 34, Duquesne 27 (OT)
$ – Conference champion y – Championship game participant ^ – FCS playoff participant Note: Due to COVID-19, the Northeast suspended the 2020 football season. * – Merrimack ineligible for NEC title and FCS postseason play due to transition to NCAA Division I Central Connecticut and Saint Francis (PA) opted out of the spring season. Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2020 Sacred Heart Pioneers football team represented Sacred Heart University as a member of the Northeast Conference (NEC) in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sacred Heart original's schedule for the fall of 2020 was cancelled, and the team played a shortened schedule in the spring of 2021 instead. Led by ninth-year head coach Mark Nofri, the Pioneers compiled an overall record of 3–2 with a mark of 2–1 in conference play, placing second in the NEC during the regular season. Sacred Heart qualified for the NEC Championship Game and defeated Duquesne to win the conference title. The Pioneers advanced to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, losing in the first round to Delaware. Sacred Heart played home games at Campus Field in Fairfield, Connecticut.

Schedule

Sacred Heart had games scheduled against Stony Brook (September 26) and Penn (October 10), which were later canceled before the start of the 2020 season.^[1][2]

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
March 7	12:00 p.m.	at Duquesne	Rooney Field Pittsburgh, PA	NEC Front Row	L 27–30
March 14	12:00 p.m.	LIU	Campus Field Fairfield, CT	ESPN3	W 35–7	400
March 21	1:00 p.m.	Merrimack	Campus Field Fairfield, CT	NEC Front Row	W 26–9
March 28	1:00 p.m.	at Wagner	Wagner College Stadium Staten Island, NY		Cancelled
April 11	2:00 p.m.	at No. 25 Duquesne*	Rooney Field Pittsburgh, PA (NEC Championship Game)	ESPN3	W 34–27 ^OT
April 24	7:00 p.m.	at No. 5 Delaware*	Delaware Stadium Newark, DE (NCAA Division I First Round)	ESPN3	L 10–19
*Non-conference game Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^[3][4]

References

1. West, Jenna. "Ivy League to Postpone Fall Athletics, No Date Set for Return". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved July 8, 2020.
2. Singelais, Mark (July 16, 2020). "Reports: CAA football won't play this fall". Times Union. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
3. "Sacred Heart Pioneers Schedule 2020". ESPN. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
4. "2020 Football Schedule". Sacred Heart University Department of Athletics. Retrieved July 24, 2024.