Eight months after falling two points short of an NCAA basketball tournament bid, Stony Brook athletics continued its rapid rise when the football team defeated Liberty, 41-31, to win the Big South title and earn the school’s first FCS playoff berth.
It got even better a week later when the Seawolves beat Albany in a 31-28 thriller in the first round. Then they put a scare into top-ranked Sam Houston State before losing on the road, 34-27.