CAA Football Posts Three Wins In First Round Of NCAA FCS Playoffs
Rob Washburn
NCAA FCS Football Playoff Bracket
CAA Football teams went 3-1 in the first round of the NCAA FCS playoffs on Saturday. Delaware, New Hampshire and Richmond will join 5
th-seeded William & Mary in the second round on December 3.
New Hampshire 52, Fordham 42
Box Score
Dylan Laube piled up a school-record 424 all-purpose yards and scored four touchdowns as New Hampshire (9-3) defeated Fordham, 52-42. The Wildcats advanced to the second round of the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2017 and will face 8
th-seeded Holy Cross.
Laube rushed for 157 yards and 3 TD’s, caught four passes for 127 yards and a TD and added 140 yards on returns. UNH quarterback Max Brosmer also had a big afternoon, completing 18-of-34 passes for 348 yards and 3 TD’s as the Wildcats piled up 664 yards of total offense. Defensively, UNH forced three turnovers and limited Fordham to its second-fewest points this season. Josiah Silver contributed a team-high seven tackles, 2.0 TFL’s and a forced fumble.
UNH never trailed in the contest as Brosmer threw TD passes of 87 yards to Laube, 7 yards to Sean Coyne and 65 yards to Heron Maurisseau in the first quarter to go up 21-7. Fordham pulled within 28-21 at halftime, but Maurisseau broke loose for a 71-yard TD gallop on the first play of the third quarter. Laube’s 12-yard scoring run late in the third period made it 42-28 and he put the game away with an 18-yard TD run with 4:10 remaining that gave the Wildcats a 52-35 advantage.
Delaware 56, Saint Francis (Pa.) 17
Box Score
Nolan Henderson passed for 266 yards and four touchdowns and added another TD on the ground to lead Delaware (8-4) over Northeast Conference champ Saint Francis (Pa.), 56-17. The Blue Hens move on to face top-seeded South Dakota State in the second round.
Henderson set the tone early, finding the end zone on a 13-yard run and throwing a 30-yard strike to Chandler Harvin on UD’s first two drives to take a 14-0 lead. He added TD passes of 10 yards to Thyrick Pitts and 7 yards to Harvin to make it 28-3 at the half, and then connected with Harvin again on a 58-yard TD pass early in the third quarter to put the Hens in control. Harvin finished with four receptions for 128 yards. Delaware, which rolled up 586 yards of total offense, also got TD runs by Quincy Watson and Khory Spruill.
The Blue Hens’ nationally ranked defense was just as impressive, holding SFU to 258 total yards. All-America linebacker Johnny Buchanan led the charge with 15 tackles.
Richmond 41, Davidson 0
Box Score
Richmond (9-3) used a dominant performance on both sides of the ball to cruise past Davidson, 41-0. The Spiders, who were making their first playoff appearance since 2016, advance to face 2
nd-seeded Sacramento State in the second round.
Quarterback Reece Udinski was nearly flawless, completing 28-of-31 passes for 246 yards and 2 TD’s in less than three quarters of action to set a FCS playoff record for completion percentage. He threw second-quarter scoring passes of 25 yards to Jakob Herres and 30 yards to Jerry Garcia, Jr. as the Spiders built a 27-0 advantage at the half. Milan Howard ran for a team-high 73 yards and 2 TD’s in the second half and Aaron Dykes added 70 yards on the ground, including a 12-yard scoring burst midway through the first quarter.
The Spiders’ defense limited Davidson to 226 total yards and recorded a shutout in the playoffs for the first time in program history. All-America linebacker Tristan Wheeler paced the Spiders with eight tackles, 2.0 TFL’s and three quarterback hurries and Phil O’Connor chipped in six stops and a TFL.
Furman 31, Elon 6
Box Score
Elon’s season came to a close after a 31-6 setback at No. 11 Furman. Senior kicker Skyler Davis provided all of the points for the Phoenix (8-4), connecting on field goals of 52 and 51 yards. He finished the year with seven field goals of better than 51 yards, which tied the FCS record for most 50+ yard FG’s in a season.
Elon jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead on its opening drive, converting a fake punt as part of an 11-play drive that set up a 52-yard Davis field goal. The Paladins answered with a 30-yard TD catch by Ryan Miller and a Devin Abrams 10-yard scoring run to go up 14-3 at halftime. A 51-yard Davis field goal brought Elon within 17-6 with 14:39 left in the game, but Furman tacked on two more TD’s in the final five minutes.
Quarterback Matthew McKay was 20-of-40 passing for 238 yards and ran for a team-best 53 yards. Chandler Brayboy made three receptions for 63 yards. Defensively, Jamarian Hawkins made a team-high 11 tackles for the Phoenix and Marcus Hillman added 10 stops and 2.0 TFL’s.