Chicago wide receiver Dee Brizzolara's opportunities were limited on Saturday, but the speedster made the most of what came to him, scoring three out of the four times he touched the ball en route to a 38-23 win over Denison on Saturday afternoon from Piper Stadium.

From the onset, Denison was playing from behind after Chicago quarterback Kevin Shelton completed a 53-yard touchdown pass to Brizzolara on the Maroons' first play from scrimmage.  Just 13 seconds into the contest, Chicago led 7-0.

Both teams would trade field goals on their next two possessions and Chicago entered the second quarter with a 10-3 advantage.  Early in the second quarter, Denison's drive would stall on the Chicago 6-yard line and Matt Ring closed out the series with a 23-yard field goal, trimming the Chicago lead to 10-6.

After the Ring field goal, Denison would force the Maroons to punt after six plays, however Jeff Sauer's punt would land just inches in front of the goal line in Denison territory, forcing the Big Red to start the drive in the shadow of its own goal post.  When three plays failed to yield a first down, Ring's punt would fly to the Denison 39-yard line where Brizzolara, who entered the game ranked fifth in the NCAA in punt returns, would take the kick from the left hash mark.  He immediately reversed his field and found a wide open right side of the field that resulted in a 39-yard touchdown return.

The Big Red would respond with six minutes left in the second quarter with a four play, 28-yard touchdown drive after a Tyler Moseley interception set DU up on the Chicago 28-yard line.  Max Paulus hit senior wide receiver Andy Carpenter for a 5-yard touchdown pass, trimming the lead to 17-13.

On its ensuing drive, faced with a third-and-nine from the DU 24-yard line, Chicago's Vincent Cortina went up top to his favorite target, Brizzolara, who managed to haul in his third touchdown in as many touches in the opening half, sending his team into the locker room with a 24-13 lead.

The second half began almost as badly as the first half did for Denison.  On its second play from scrimmage from their own 26-yard line, Paulus' pass was intercepted by Alex Dzierbicki and returned for a Chicago touchdown.

Denison would get a third field goal from Ring in the third quarter and a 1-yard touchdown catch by Braden Layer in the fourth quarter but the Maroons would hang on for the 15-point victory.

The Big Red held a distinct advantage in total yards and time of possession but miscues on special teams and three turnovers would be their undoing.  DU amassed 411 yards of total offense compared to just 253 yards for Chicago.  For the second-straight week the Big Red also dominated the clock, holding a 37-23 advantage in time of possession.

Paulus was 22-of-38 for 288 yards and two touchdowns.  He also threw two interceptions and was sacked a season-high seven times.  The NCAC's leading rusher, Sam Fioroni, carried the football 21 times for 60 yards.  Paulus toted the ball 15 times and finished with a net 38 yards.

Fioroni also led DU in receptions with 8 and receiving yards with 70.  Backfield mate, John Wilson, caught six passes for 50 yards and Layer posted three catches for 49 yards.

Chicago was led by running back Zak Ross-Nash who finished with 14 carries for 104 yards.  Quarterbacks Kevin Shelton and Vincent Cortina combined to go 7-of-14 for 121 yards and two touchdowns.  Brizzolara had two catches for 77 yards, both of which ended in touchdowns.  He also returned one punt for a 39-yard touchdown and had one rush, for a one-yard loss in the first quarter.

Maroon linebacker Danny Polaneczky ended with 13 tackles.  Dzierbicki posted eight tackles, one sack and two interceptions.  In the last two victories over the Big Red, Chicago has sacked Paulus 16 times. 

The Denison defense was led by senior linebacker Adam Frudden who had nine tackles.  Eric Conrad posted seven stops and a forced fumble while Scott Baird and Moesley accounted for the interceptions.

Chicago improves to 4-2 overall while Denison drops to 3-3.  The Big Red will hit the road next Saturday (Oct. 15) for a 1 p.m. kickoff against Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa.