2020 Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football team

2020 Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football
CAA champion
CAA North Division champion
ConferenceColonial Athletic Association
DivisionNorth Division
Ranking
STATSNo. 5
FCS CoachesNo. 5
Record7–1 (4–0 CAA)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJared Ambrose (2nd season)
Defensive coordinatorManny Rojas (1st season)
Home stadiumDelaware Stadium
Seasons
← 2019
2021 →
2020 Colonial Athletic Association football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
North Division
No. 4 Delaware x$^   4 – 0     7 – 1  
No. 18 Rhode Island †   2 – 1     2 – 1  
No. 16 Villanova   2 – 2     2 – 2  
Maine   2 – 2     2 – 2  
Stony Brook   1 – 3     1 – 3  
Albany †   1 – 3     1 – 3  
New Hampshire †   0 – 1     0 – 1  
South Division
No. 3 James Madison x^   3 – 0     7 – 1  
No. 15 Richmond   3 – 1     3 – 1  
William & Mary   1 – 2     1 – 2  
Elon   0 – 4     1 – 5  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • ^ – FCS playoff participant
  • Notes: Due to COVID-19, the CAA suspended the fall 2020 football season.
    Towson opted out of the spring football season.
    † – Albany, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island opted out of the remainder of the spring season on March 31, April 6, and April 7 respectively.
Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2020 Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens football team represented the University of Delaware as a member of the North Division of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Danny Rocco, the Fightin' Blue Hens compiled an overall record of 7–1 with a mark of 4–0 in conference play, winning the CAA and CAA North Division titles. Delaware advanced to the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs, the Fightin' Blue Hens beat Sacred Heart in the first round and Jacksonville State in the quarterfinals before losing to eventual national runner-up, South Dakota State, in the semifinals. The team played home games at Delaware Stadium in Newark, Delaware.

On July 17, 2020, the CAA announced that it would not play fall sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Although the conference allowed the option for teams to play as independents for the 2020 season if they still wish to play in the fall,[1] the Blue Hens postponed their season until spring 2021.

Schedule

Delaware originally had a game scheduled against Delaware State (November 21), but it was canceled on July 16 due to the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC)'s decision to cancel fall sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[2] The CAA released its spring conference schedule on October 27, 2020.[3]

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
March 6, 2021 12:00 p.m. Maine No. 25
FloFootball W 37–0
March 13, 2021 12:00 p.m. Stony Brook No. 19
  • Delaware Stadium
  • Newark, DE
 FloFootball W 31–3 1,800 [4]
March 20, 2021 12:00 p.m. at No. 20 New Hampshire No. 12
FloFootball Canceled [5]
March 27, 2021 12:00 p.m. at No. 18 Rhode Island No. 11
FloFootball W 35–21
April 3, 2021 12:00 p.m. Albany No. 8
  • Delaware Stadium
  • Newark, DE
 FloFootball Canceled [6]
April 10, 2021 6:00 p.m. at Delaware State* No. 8
ESPN2 W 34–14
April 17, 2021 1:00 p.m. at No. 10 Villanova No. 7
FloFootball W 27–20
April 24, 2021 7:00 p.m. Sacred Heart* No. 5
ESPN3 W 19–10
May 2, 2021 3:00 p.m. at No. 8 Jacksonville State* No. 5
ESPN3 W 20–14
May 8, 2021 12:00 p.m. at No. 2 South Dakota State* No. 5
ESPN L 3–33

[7][8][9]

Coaching staff

Name Position Year Alma mater
Danny Rocco Head coach 4th Wake Forest (1984)
Jared Ambrose Offensive coordinator 4th Shepherd (2007)
Bryan Stinespring Assistant head coach/offensive line 1st James Madison (1985)
Levern Belin Defensive line coach 4th Wake Forest (1991)
Holman Copeland Cornerbacks coach 2nd Clarion (2006)
Jalen Kindle Defensive assistant coach 3rd Delaware (2017)
Dave Legg Outside Linebackers/special teams coordinator 2nd
Greg Meyer Running backs coach 3rd Buffalo State (2009)
Bill Polin Tight ends coach/recruiting coordinator 4th Colby (2000)
Alex Wood Wide receivers coach 3rd Iowa (1978)
Tony Palmieri Video coordinator 4th North Florida (2009)
Carl Kotz Director of football operations 4th Clemson (2003)
Chris Stewart Strength and conditioning 4th Western Carolina (1998)

References

  1. ^ Singelais, Mark (July 16, 2020). "Reports: CAA football won't play this fall". Times Union. Retrieved July 17, 2020.
  2. ^ "MEAC suspends all fall sports for indefinite period". ESPN.com. July 16, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
  3. ^ Kelley, Kevin (October 27, 2020). "CAA releases Spring 2021 football schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved October 28, 2020.
  4. ^ "2021 Delaware Spring Football" (PDF). University of Delaware. March 13, 2021. p. 6.
  5. ^ Tresolini, Kevin (March 17, 2021). "No football game Saturday for University of Delaware due to COVID-19". The News Journal. The University of Delaware's football game at New Hampshire on Saturday has been called off because of COVID-19 protocols at UNH
  6. ^ "UAlbany Football Opts Out Of The Remainder Of The Season". Colonial Athletic Association. March 31, 2021.
  7. ^ "Delaware Blue Hens Schedule 2020". ESPN. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  8. ^ "2020 Football Schedule". Delaware Blue Hens. Retrieved November 9, 2022.
  9. ^ "2020 Delaware Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved April 5, 2020.