The Albany–Stony Brook football rivalry, also known as the Battle for the Golden Apple and the Empire Clash is an American

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

rivalry A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant ...

between the

Albany Great Danes The Albany Great Danes are the NCAA Division I intercollegiate athletic programs of the University at Albany, SUNY, located in Albany, New York, United States. A member of the America East Conference, the University at Albany, SUNY sponsors tea ...

and the

Stony Brook Seawolves The Stony Brook Seawolves are the intercollegiate athletics teams that represent Stony Brook University (SBU) in Stony Brook, New York. The Seawolves play as members of the Coastal Athletic Association (formerly known as the Colonial Athletic As ...

. Both teams represent university centers of the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY ) is a system of Public education, public colleges and universities in the New York (state), State of New York. It is one of the List of largest universities and university networks by enrollment, larges ...

, and since 2013 have competed together as members of CAA Football, the legally separate football league operated by the multi-sports

Colonial Athletic Association The Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), formerly the ECAC South Conference and the Colonial Athletic Association, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA' ...

(CAA). The two teams have met 26 times on the football field, with Albany currently holding a 15–11 edge in the all-time series. Albany leads the series 12–10 since 1999, when both programs moved up to Division I. Since 2013, when both programs joined CAA Football together, they have been meeting yearly as part of their conference schedule. The rivalry game was coined the "Empire Clash" in 2013 during their first CAA Football game against each other. Starting in 2015, the winner of the game is awarded The Golden Apple Trophy. The game is traditionally played on the final week of the regular season. Albany plays home games at

Bob Ford Field at Tom & Mary Casey Stadium Bob Ford Field at Tom & Mary Casey Stadium is a football stadium in Albany, New York, owned and operated by the University at Albany, SUNY and hosts the school's football team, as well as their men's soccer, women's soccer, and women's field ho ...

(capacity 8,500, grass surface, located in Albany, NY) and Stony Brook plays home games at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium (capacity 12,300, artificial turf surface, located in Stony Brook, NY).

History

The winner of each year's game is awarded the "Golden Apple" trophy. The trophy was first awarded in 2015, when Stony Brook defeated Albany 20–2 at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium in the final week of the regular season. Stony Brook and Albany began playing each other regularly beginning in 2013, when both schools joined CAA Football. This led to the origin of the "Empire Clash" nickname, as Stony Brook turned to its fanbase to help provide a moniker for the rivalry. Both Stony Brook head coach

Chuck Priore Chuck Priore (born February 17, 1960) is an American former college football and college lacrosse coach. He was the head coach of the Stony Brook Seawolves for 18 years, from 2006 to 2023. He led Stony Brook to shares of four consecutive Big South ...

and Albany head coach

Greg Gattuso Gregory Gattuso (born May 18, 1962) is an American football coach and former player. He is currently a defensive line consultant at his alma mater, Pennsylvania State University, serving under new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles. Gattuso serv ...

admitted to feeling skeptical about the idea of the Golden Apple trophy when it was first introduced, but have since embraced the importance of its meaning to the teams and their fanbases. The rivalry game is known to have implications on the FCS playoffs; in 2018, Albany defeated No. 10 Stony Brook 25–23 on a last-second field goal for its first conference win of the season, leading Stony Brook to settle for an at-large berth. In 2019, Albany defeated Stony Brook 31–26 to secure one of the last at-large berths in the playoffs.

Notable games

In 2011, the two teams met in the first round of the FCS playoffs; it was both Stony Brook's and Albany's first playoff appearance. Albany led 28–10 in the third quarter before Stony Brook scored 21 unanswered points to take a 31–28 lead. Albany drove down to Stony Brook's three-yard line with less than a minute remaining in the fourth quarter before Stony Brook safety Dominick Reyes intercepted Albany quarterback Dan Di Lella in the end zone to secure the win for the Seawolves. The win was Stony Brook's first playoff victory. Stony Brook played in the

Big South Conference The Big South Conference is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I. Originally a non-football conference, the Big South began sponsoring football in 2002 as part of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), ...

and Albany played in the

Northeast Conference The Northeast Conference (NEC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose schools are members of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Teams in the NEC compete in Division I for all sports; football competes in the Division I Foo ...

at the time.

Game results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Albany-Stony Brook football rivalry College football rivalries in the United States Albany Great Danes football Stony Brook Seawolves football 1995 establishments in New York (state)

History

Notable games

Game results

See also

References