KICKING THINGS OFF

• The 129th season of Rhode Island football begins on Saturday, Aug. 31 opposite Holy Cross.
• URI is coming off of four straight winning seasons, a feat that has not been achieved since the Rams strung together five from 1981-85.  
• Last year's squad went 6-5 with a 4-4 mark in CAA Football play while putting together a 4-1 advantage at Meade Stadium.
• The 2023 Rams spent seven weeks ranked in the top 25, climbing as high as 17th in the Stats Perform poll and 18th in the AFCA Coaches Top 25.
• In head coach Jim Fleming's 10th year, the Rams broke numerous records highlighted by quarterback Kasim Hill surpassing URI great Tom Ehrhardt to become the program's all-time leader in yards of total offense at 8,863. 
• The offense also shined when running back Ja'Den McKenzie broke a nearly 70-year-old record by rushing for 13 touchdowns. Pat Abbruzzi (1954) and Marques DeShields (2022) held the previous mark of 12.

RHODE ISLAND VS. HOLY CROSS - SERIES NOTES

• Saturday night's game will mark the 11th meeting all-time between the Rams and the Crusaders.
• Holy Cross enters with a 9-1 advantage dating back to 1917. 
• URI's lone victory in the spread was also the only game that the teams have played in Kingston: a Sept. 17, 1977 clash which the Rams claimed, 14-0. 
• Holy Cross received preseason votes in both the FCS Coaches Poll (20 votes) and the Stats Perform Top 25 (17 votes). 
• A year ago, the team put together a 7-4 record to go along with a 5-1 mark in Patriot League play. 
• The Crusaders have established themselves as a national power, having appeared in the NCAA FCS playoffs for four straight seasons, from 2019-22. 
• In that stretch, the team also captured as many Patriot League Championship titles. 
• The Rams have some familiar ties to Holy Cross, as offensive coordinator Patrick Murphy held the same position with the Crusaders from 2018-19.
• Additionally, transfer quarterback Hunter Helms was committed to the program before deciding to walk on at Clemson. 

SLOAT, NEAL NAMED TEAM CAPTAINS

• Head coach Jim Fleming announced that the team has selected two captains ahead of the 2024 season in running back Gabe Sloat and defensive lineman Westley Neal, Jr. 
• A North Kingstown native, Sloat has been a member of the team since 2019 and has steadily seen his role increase from walk-on to starter. 
• He appeared in all 11 games for the Rams a season ago and tallied 175 punt return yards on 21 attempts.
• Sloat also rushed for 225 yards with two touchdowns on 61 carries. 
• For his effort on special teams, he was awarded a spot on the All-CAA Football Third Team. 
• Neal is a fifth-year senior who originally committed to URI as a four-star recruit out of Gulliver Prep (Fla.). 
• He enters his redshirt senior season with 100 career tackles.
• In 2023, Neal totaled 25 stops with five TFLs and a blocked PAT. 

FORMER RAMS EARN NFL OPPORTUNITIES

• Following the 2023 season, five different players earned professional opportunities at the end of the season in Jordan Colbert (Miami Dolphins, UDFA), Lorenzo Thompson (Cleveland Browns, UDFA), Nick Correia (Seattle Seahawks/Miami Dolphins, mini camp invite), Sebastian Delasoudas (New York Jets, mini camp invite) and Kahtero Summers (New York Jets, mini camp invite).
• Both Colbert and Thompson appeared in preseason games for their respective NFL organizations. 
• Rhody has now signed players to NFL teams in back-to-back seasons, as both Jordan Jones (Los Angeles Rams, free agent) and Ed Lee (New England Patriots, free agent) did so in 2022.