CAA Football Rewind - Nov. 17
Rob Washburn
For complete highlights from Saturday's action, click the play button on the photo above. Maine championship photo courtesy of Peter Buehner.
Maine 27, Elon 26
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Highlights
Maine (8-3, 7-1 CAA) captured its first CAA Football championship since 2013 by holding off Elon, 27-26. Earnest Edwards returned two kickoffs for touchdowns, a 95-yarder in the second quarter and a 93-yarder that gave the Black Bears a 24-13 advantage with 10:13 left in third quarter. Maine pushed its lead to 27-14 before Elon (6-4, 4-3 CAA) came roaring back. Phoenix quarterback Daniel Thompson hit Cole Taylor with a 32-yard TD pass and Skyler Davis booted the final two of his four field goals of the afternoon to pull Elon within one with 4:33 to go. Elon drove to the Maine 42 in the final minute, but turned the ball over on downs. Along with Edwards' big day, Maine freshman Ramon Jefferson ran for 130 yards on 25 carries. For Elon, Thompson passed for 250 yards in his first outing of the season and Taylor caught six passes for 115 yards.
Rhode Island 24, New Hampshire 21
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Rhode Island (6-5, 4-4 CAA) posted its first winning season since 2001 by getting past New Hampshire, 24-21, ending the Wildcats's three-game win streak. The Rams jumped out to a 17-0 lead early in the third quarter as JaJuan Lawson scored on a 20-yard run in the second quarter and then hit Marven Beauvais with a 16-yard TD pass early in the third quarter. New Hampshire (4-7, 3-5 CAA) rallied to within 17-14 on a pair of rushing touchdowns by Carlos Washington, Jr., but the Rams gained some cushion when Ahmere Dorsey returned a kickoff 95 yards for a TD with 11:58 to go. Washington's third touchdown of the afternoon with 3:15 remaining cut the margin back to three, but URI's D.J. Stewart intercepted a pass with 1:02 left to seal the win. Washington finished with 109 yards rushing on just 14 carries, while Jared Kuehl had 11 tackles and two sacks for the UNH defense. For URI, Lawson passed for 116 yards and ran for 27.
Villanova 42, Delaware 21
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Highlights
Aaron Forbes rushed for 138 yards and three touchdowns to lead Villanova (5-6, 2-6 CAA) to a 42-21 triumph over rival Delaware in the Battle of the Blue. The Wildcats rolled up 459 yards of offense, picking up 190 on the ground and another 269 through the air. Delaware (7-4, 5-3) jumped out to an early lead on DeJoun Lee's 38-yard scoring run, but VU answered with three consecutive rushing TD's from quarterback Zach Bednarczyk, Forbes and Matt Gudzak to move on top, 21-7. The Blue Hens pulled back within 28-21 late in the third period on a 43-yard scoring pass from Nolan Henderson to Joe Walker. However, Villanova put the game away as Bednarczyk connected with Ryan Bell on an 8-yard TD pass and Forbes scored his final TD from 11 yards out. Bednarczyk finished 12-of-22 for 269 yards and a TD. Defensively, Drew Wiley had eight tackles, 1.5 TFL, a fumble recovery and an intercption. For Delaware, Lee rushed for 98 yards and a 2 TD's, while Walker caught five passes for 108 yards.
James Madison 38, Towson 17
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Highlights
James Madison (8-3, 6-2 CAA) rushed for a season-high 395 yards and earned a 38-17 victory at Towson The Dukes had three players top the 100-yard mark on the ground as Cardon Johnson ran for a season-high 162 yards and a TD on 13 carries, Trai Sharp picked up 107 yards and a TD on 15 attempts and quarterback Ben DiNucci rushed for 104 yards and 3 TD's and also threw for 181 yards. JMU took an early lead on Johnson's 76-yard scoring run, but Towson (7-4, 5-3 CAA) answered back with a 2-yard TD pass from Tom Flacco to Shane Leatherbury and a 26-yard field goal by Aidan O'Neill that made it 10-7.However, the Dukes reeled off 31 consecutive points, starting with back-to-back TD runs from DiNucci in the second quarter. Dimitri Holloway led the JMU defensive effort with 14 tackles. Flacco finished 31-of-50 passing for 372 yards and a pair of TD's for the Tigers.
Richmond 10, William & Mary 6
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Highlights
Richmond (4-7, 2-6 CAA) turned in a dominant defensive effort and defeated William & Mary, 10-6, to claim the Capital Cup for the seventh time in the past eight years. The Spiders held the Tribe to 212 total yards, recorded four sacks and forced three turnovers. Maurice Jackson led the way with nine tackles, 4.5 TFL, 3.0 sacks, and two forced fumbles. The Spiders took a 7-0 lead early in the second quarter on a 5-yard TD pass from Joe Mancuso to Caleb Drake and Griffin Trau tacked on a 43-yard field goal late in the third period. W&M got its only score on a 35-yard TD pass from Shon Mitchell to DeVonte Dedmon with 47 seconds to go, but an ensuing on-side kick was unsuccessful. Drake caught seven passes for 41 yards and also rushed for a team-high 30 yards. The Tribe (4-6, 3-4 CAA) was led offensively by Dedmon with seven receptions for 54 yards and tight end Nick Muse with five grabs for 85 yards. Defensive tackle Bill Murray had seven tackles and 3.0 TFL. The contest was the final one in the remarkable 39-year career of W&M head coach Jimmye Laycock.
UAlbany 25, Stony Brook 23
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Highlights
Ethan Stark booted a 48-yard field goal as time expired to lift UAlbany (3-8, 1-7 CAA) to a 25-23 victory over rival Stony Brook to claim the Golden Apple. In a wild, back-and-forth affair, the Great Danes took a 22-17 lead on Karl Mofor's 16-yard TD run with 1:42 to play. Stony Brook (7-4, 5-3 CAA) rallied back, driving 74 yards in just 55 seconds capped by a 41-yard TD pass from Joe Carbone to Julius Wingate with 17 seconds to go. However, UAlbany's AJ Mistler returned a squib kick to the SBU 42-yard line and set the stage for Stark's game-winning field goal. UAlbany quarterback Jeff Undercuffler passed for 170 yards and 2 TD's, while Mofor rushed for 100 yards and a TD. For Stony Brook, Carbone passed for 123 yards and a TD and also ran for 63 yards and a score.