2018 Sacred Heart Pioneers football team

The 2018 Sacred Heart Pioneers football team represented Sacred Heart University as a member of the Northeast Conference (NEC) during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by seventh-year head coach Mark Nofri, the Pioneers compiled an overall record of 7–4 with a mark of 5–1 in conference play, sharing the NEC title with Duquesne. Due to a head-to-head win over Sacred Heart, Duquesne earned the NEC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I Football Championship plays. The Pioneers did not received an at-large bid. Sacred Heart played home games at Campus Field in Fairfield, Connecticut.

2018 Sacred Heart Pioneers football
NEC co-champion
ConferenceNortheast Conference
Record7–4 (5–1 NEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorMatt Gardner (2nd season)
Defensive coordinatorMichael Cooke (2nd season)
Home stadiumCampus Field
Seasons
← 2017
2019 →
2018 Northeast Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 21 Duquesne +^   5 1     8 3  
Sacred Heart +   5 1     7 4  
Central Connecticut   4 2     6 5  
Wagner   3 3     4 7  
Saint Francis (PA)   2 4     4 7  
Bryant   2 4     6 5  
Robert Morris   0 6     2 9  
  • + – Conference co-champions
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
Rankings from STATS Poll

Preseason

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NEC coaches poll

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The NEC released their preseason coaches poll on July 24, 2018, with the Pioneers predicted to finish in sixth place.[1] They did not place any players on the preseason all-NEC team.

Predicted finish Team
1 Central Connecticut
2 Duquesne
3 Bryant
4 Saint Francis
5 Wagner
6 Sacred Heart
7 Robert Morris

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentSiteResultAttendance
September 16:00 p.m.Lafayette*W 35–64,157
September 83:30 p.m.at Bucknell*W 30–141,872
September 226:00 p.m.at WagnerW 41–143,178
September 291:00 p.m.at Cornell*L 24–433,620
October 63:00 p.m.Penn* 
  • Campus Field
  • Fairfield, CT
L 27–314,503
October 136:00 p.m.at Dartmouth*L 0–423,138
October 201:00 p.m.at Central ConnecticutW 28–255,117
October 271:00 p.m.Bryant
  • Campus Field
  • Fairfield, CT
W 49–261,678
November 312:00 p.m.Robert Morris
  • Campus Field
  • Fairfield, CT
W 38–71,556
November 1012:00 p.m.at DuquesneL 24–281,304
November 1712:00 p.m.Saint Francis (PA)
  • Campus Field
  • Fairfield, CT
W 13–71,852
  • *Non-conference game
  •  Homecoming
  • All times are in Eastern time

[2][3]

Game summaries

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Lafayette

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1 2 3 4 Total
Leopards 3 0 3 0 6
Pioneers 7 14 7 7 35

At Bucknell

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1 2 3 4 Total
Pioneers 7 7 7 9 30
Bison 0 14 0 0 14

At Wagner

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1 2 3 4 Total
Pioneers 7 21 6 7 41
Seahawks 0 7 7 0 14

At Cornell

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1 2 3 4 Total
Pioneers 3 7 7 7 24
Big Red 16 20 7 0 43

Penn

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1 2 3 4 Total
Quakers 7 10 7 7 31
Pioneers 0 0 21 6 27

At Dartmouth

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1 2 3 4 Total
Pioneers 0 0 0 0 0
Big Green 21 14 7 0 42

At Central Connecticut

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1 2 3 4 Total
Pioneers 7 0 14 7 28
Blue Devils 3 14 0 8 25

Bryant

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1 2 3 4 Total
Bulldogs 14 6 0 6 26
Pioneers 14 13 13 9 49

Robert Morris

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1 2 3 4 Total
Colonials 0 0 7 0 7
Pioneers 21 14 0 3 38

At Duquesne

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1 2 3 4 Total
Pioneers 0 7 14 3 24
Dukes 14 7 7 0 28

Saint Francis (PA)

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1 2 3 4 Total
Red Flash 0 7 0 0 7
Pioneers 3 3 7 0 13

References

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  1. ^ "Northeast Conference - Defending Champ CCSU Tops Preseason Coaches' Poll, Places League-high Seven on All-NEC Team". www.northeastconference.org.
  2. ^ "Sacred Heart Pioneers Schedule 2018". ESPN. Retrieved July 24, 2024.
  3. ^ "2018 Football Schedule". Sacred Heart University Department of Athletics. Retrieved July 24, 2024.