CAA Football Rewind - Sept. 2
Rob Washburn
Senior running back Cardon Johnson rushed for a career-high 265 and two touchdowns as No. 1/1 James Madison rolled past FBS member East Carolina, 34-14. Johnson broke scoring runs of 85 and 80 yards in the second half and Georgia Tech transfer Marcus Marshall added a 70-yard fourth-quarter TD run as the Dukes piled up 422 yards on the ground and 614 yards overall. The JMU defense was equally as impressive, forcing four turnovers and holding the Pirates to one score until the final minute. Kyre Hawkins recorded a team-best 13 tackles. It was JMU's second win over an American Athletic Conference team in the past three years as the Dukes beat SMU in 2015. It was the Dukes' 13th straight victory dating back to last year and snapped ECU's 25-game win streak against FCS foes.
Senior running back Matt Gudzak ran for a career-high 142 yards and two touchdowns as No. 10/9 Villanova picked up a 38-35 victory at No. 17/17 Lehigh in Mark Ferrante's first game as head coach of the Wildcats. VU quarterback Zach Bednarczyk also had a big afternoon, passing for 209 yards and a pair of TD's and rushing for 72 yards on just nine carries.
Towson recorded its first shutout since 2015 as the Tigers defeated Morgan State 10-0 to capture the Battle for Greater Baltimore. Monty Fenner's second-quarter interception set up a 2-yard touchdown run by Shane Simpson and Aidan O'Neill added a 42-yard field goal. The Tigers' defense forced four turnovers and limited MSU to 53 yards on the ground.
Stony Brook game 19th-ranked USF all it could handle before dropping a 31-17 decision. The Seawolves were up 10-7 at the half and tied the game at 17-17 early in the fourth quarter on Stacey Bedell's 54-yard touchdown run. Linebacker Shayne Lawless recorded a career-high 13 tackles to lead an impressive effort from the SBU defense.
William & Mary turned in a solid effort, but fell 28-10 at ACC foe Virginia. The Tribe defense held the Cavaliers to 354 total yards as Corey Parker made a team-best 13 tackles and linebacker Nate Atkins added 12. Offensively, junior quarterback Tommy McKee ran for a team-high 89 yards and a TD and threw for 63 yards.
UAlbany gave Old Dominion a battle before suffering a 31-17 setback. The Great Danes closed to within 24-17 with 8:42 to play after fourth-quarter TD runs by Neven Sussman and freshman running back Karl Mofor, who finished with a team-high 99 yards on the ground. UAlbany's defense held the Monarchs to 285 total yards as Nate Hatalsky made 12 tackles.
For complete results and recaps from the opening week of action,
click here.
For highlights from Saturday's games, click the play button on the photo above.