CAA Football Recap - Sept. 27
Rob Washburn
New Hampshire 24, UAlbany 6
Box Score
New Hampshire’s defense held UAlbany to 275 total yards and pitched a shutout for over 57 minutes as the Wildcats defeated the Great Danes, 24-6.
UNH quarterback Matt Vezza was 19-of-24 passing for 190 yards and a TD and added a score on the ground, while Myles Thomason rushed for 77 yards on 16 carries. The Wildcats got a 1-yard TD run from Denzell Gibson on the opening drive of the game and closed the half with a 6-yard scoring toss from Vezza to Ryan Blagg. UNH added a 3-yard Vezza TD run and a 47-yard Nick Reed field goal before UAlbany got on the board on a 6-yard TD catch from Alex Jreige with 3:08 to play. Colin Parachek passed for 181 yards and a TD and ran for 33 yards for the Great Danes.
Towson 26, Bryant 24
Box Score
Towson stopped a Bryant 2-point conversion attempt with 23 seconds remaining and held on for a 26-24 road win. Al Wooten II ran for a season-high 100 yards and a TD to lead the Tigers offense, while the Bulldogs got 100 yards and 2 TD’s on the ground from Elijah Elliott.
Towson held a 6-3 lead late in the first half until the teams traded touchdowns in the final 1:23 as Wooten ran in from a yard out and Elliott caught a 22-yard scoring pass. The Tigers pushed their advantage to 23-9 in the third quarter on a 25-yard Jaceon Doss TD catch and a Caden Williams field goal. Bryant pulled within 23-18 with 8:22 to go on an Elliott 12-yard TD run and a safety. Williams’ fourth field goal of the game put the Tigers ahead 26-18 with 2:37 on the clock, but Bryant put together a 67-yard drive capped by an Elliott 3-yard run to close within two. However, the Tigers stuffed a run to deny the two-point conversion. Ja’Mez Drummer had six tackles, a sack and an interception for the Towson defense and Lonnie Rice made 12 stops and a TFL for the Bulldogs.
Elon 41, Hampton 20
Box Score
Elon scored 24 unanswered points after falling behind by three early in the third quarter and posted a 41-20 victory over Hampton. The Phoenix piled up 288 yards on the ground, with Jimmyll Williams tallying a career-high 172 yards and a TD and TJ Thomas adding 67 yards and 2 TD’s.
Thomas gave Elon an early 7-0 lead on a 23-yard scoring run and the Phoenix got an 81-yard scoring pass from Landen Clark to Isaiah Fuhrmann to take a 17-6 advantage into halftime. The Pirates battled back with a 75-yard TD run from Jah’Kei Chavis on the opening play of the third quarter and a 44-yard scoring strike from Braden Davis to Tae’Shaun Johnson to go up 20-17. However, Elon took over from there, starting with a 6-yard TD run by Clark late in the third quarter. The Phoenix added two more 60+ yard drives in the fourth quarter, capped by runs from Thomas (1 yard) and Williams (14 yards). Fuhrmann finished with six catches for 135 yards for Elon and Hampton’s Johnson had six receptions for 110 yards.
Maine 37, North Carolina A&T 30
Box Score
Quarterback Carter Peevy passed for 298 yards and 2 TD’s and also ran for a score as Maine held off North Carolina A&T, 37-30, for its first win of the season.
The Black Bears sprinted out to a 30-9 advantage late in the second quarter, getting TD runs from Sincere Baines (51 yards), Peevy (2 yards) and Rashawn Marshall (15 yards). A&T answered behind quarterback Kevin White, who threw a 34-yard TD pass to Jayvonne Dillard just before halftime and a 26-yarder to Antoine Bell early in the fourth quarter that pulled the Aggies within 37-23. An 85-yard punt return for a TD by Elijah Kennedy made it 37-30 with 1:43 to go, but a final A&T drive ended at the Maine 22. White threw for 279 yards for A&T. Nick Laughlin caught three passes for 100 yards for Maine.
Villanova 31, William & Mary 24
Box Score
David Avit rushed for 133 yards and three touchdowns and Ja’briel Mace returned the opening kickoff of the second half 100 yards for a score as Villanova battled past William & Mary, 31-24. The Tribe got a big effort from quarterback Tyler Hughes, who threw for 233 yards and a TD and ran for 63 yards and 2 TD’s.
An Avit 1-yard scoring run put VU ahead early, but the Tribe answered with a 10-yard TD catch from Tariq Sims and a 1-yard TD run from Hughes. Avit tied it back up with a 15-yard burst to the end zone before a Keegan Shackford field goal put W&M up 17-14 at half. Mace’s big return put the Wildcats on top to stay and Avit’s third TD run made it 31-17 with 10:18 left. W&M cut the deficit to seven on Hughes’ 1-yard with 4:38 to go but a final drive ended at midfield.
Stony Brook 35, Merrimack 10
Box Score
Quarterback Chris Zellous accounted for 284 yards of offense and Roland Dempster rushed for 114 yards and 3 TD’s as Stony Brook rolled past Merrimack, 35-10.
A 3-yard TD catch by Dez Williams and a pair of field goals gave SBU a 13-7 lead and Dempster closed the first half with a 2-yard TD run. Dempster reached the end zone twice (5, 1) in the second half and the Seawolves defense held Merrimack to a field goal over the final 30 minutes. Zellous threw for 167 yards and ran for 117. Anthony Ferrelli recorded 11 tackles and 1.5 sacks for the SBU defense.
Western Carolina 42, Campbell 35
Box Score
Campbell fought back from a 25-point second-half deficit but was edged 42-35 by Western Carolina.
Trailing 35-10 early in the third quarter, the Camels got a 10-yard TD run from Mike Chandler II and a 26-yard scoring pass from Kamden Sixkiller to Stevie Keener to make it 35-28 with 4:58 remaining. After WCU added a quick TD, Campbell clawed back within seven on a Sixkiller 5-yard run with 2:11 left but couldn’t get another possession. Sixkiller threw for 205 yards and a TD and ran for 55 yards and 2 TD’s. Trayjen Llanas-Wilcox made five catches for 124 yards.
Western Michigan 47, Rhode Island 14
Box Score
Rhode Island jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead at FBS member Western Michigan, but the Broncos took over from there for a 47-14 win.
On the Rams’ opening drive, Devin Farrell hit Marquis Buchanan with a 56-yard pass, and after a pass interference penalty. Antwain Littleton ran in from two yards out. However, WMU reeled off 44 unanswered points to take control. Littleton caught a 5-yard TD pass early in the fourth quarter for URI’s final points. Farrell passed for 229 yards, with Buchanan making seven receptions for 141 yards. Moses Meus recorded a career-high 19 tackles.