CAA Football Recap - Oct. 4/5
Rob Washburn
Delaware 42, Monmouth 35
Box Score
Marcus Yarns accounted for 228 yards and two touchdowns as Delaware (5-0, 2-0 CAA) battled past Monmouth (3-3, 1-1 CAA), 42-35. The Blue Hens’ running back rushed for 142 yards and a score and added an 86-yard TD catch that put UD on top 42-27 with 6:10 to play.
In a contest that was tight throughout, Monmouth pulled within 28-27 on a Jack Neri 8-yard TD catch with 13:57 remaining. Delaware answered quickly with a 29-yard scoring grab by Phil Lutz and then took its largest lead on Yarns’ long reception. The Hawks trimmed the deficit to seven on a 1-yard Sone Ntoh run and 2-point conversion with 3:20 left. Delaware sealed the victory when Tyron Herring broke up a 4th-down pass at the UD 27. Blue Hens’ quarterback Zach Marker passed for 298 yards and 3 TD’s, with Lutz making six catches for 91 yards and 2 TD’s. Monmouth’s Derek Robertson threw for 361 yards and 4 TD’s, including scoring passes of 87 yards to TJ Speight and 72 yards to Gavin Nelson.
Richmond 20, North Carolina A&T 17
Box Score
Zach Palmer-Smith rushed for a career-high 200 yards and a TD and Andrew King added 100 yards and a TD on only 6 carries as Richmond (4-2, 2-0 CAA) held off North Carolina A&T (1-5, 0-2 CAA), 20-17. It was the first time since 2015 that two Spiders ran for 100+ yards in a game.
A&T jumped out to a 10-0 advantage midway through the second quarter on a 26-yard Andrew Brown field goal and a 4-yard TD catch by Anthony Rucker. UR pulled even at the half following a 63-yard scoring run by King and a 33-yard Brandon Peskin field goal. An 8-yard TD run by Palmer-Smith extended the Spiders’ lead to 20-10 late in the third quarter, but the Aggies trimmed the deficit to three on a 38-yardsTD grab by Rucker with 8:20 to go. The Spiders were able to get a defensive stop and then ran out the clock to win their fourth straight game. A&T’s Justin Fomby passed for 261 yards and 2 TD’s, with Ger-Cari Caldwell making 7 catches for 130 yards.
Rhode Island 46, Hampton 44 (2ot)
Box Score
Rhode Island (4-1, 2-0 CAA) overcame a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit and edged Hampton (3-3, 0-2 CAA), 46-44 in double overtime. Rams’ quarterback Devin Farrell had a 12-yard TD pass and a 2-yard TD run in overtime and won the game by running in a 2-point conversion.
Hampton quarterback Malcolm Mays gave the Pirates a 17-10 halftime advantage with a 2-yard scoring run and tossed TD passes of 57 yards to Brennan Ridley and 2 yards to Tymere Robinson to give his team a 31-17 lead with 7:02 to go. Rhode Island rallied as Farrell hit Marquis Buchanan on a 41-yard scoring strike and Malik Grant reached the end zone on a 2-yard run to tie the contest at 31-31 with 24 seconds left in regulation. In overtime, Mays had TD passes of 25 yards to Tyler Hatcher and 8 yards to Ridley, but HU couldn’t convert a 2-point conversion, setting the stage for Farrell’s game-winner. Farrell threw for 247 yards and Grant rushed for 180 for the Rams. Mays finished 24-of-28 passing for 253 yards and 4 TD’s, with Ridley making 8 catches for 121 yards.
Villanova 42, Stony Brook 24
Box Score
Freshman David Avit rushed for a career-high 183 yards and 4 TD’s as Villanova (5-1, 2-0 CAA) rallied past Stony Brook (4-2, 1-1 CAA). It was the most yards ever for a VU first-year player.
Stony Brook took a 24-14 lead early in the third quarter as Roland Dempster scored his third touchdown of the game on a 1-yard run. The Wildcats were able to rally behind Avit, who reached the end zone on a 1-yard run after a SBU turnover and then broke loose on TD bursts of 59 and 72 yards to put the Wildcats ahead 35-24 with 8:40 left. VU, which rushed for 280 yards, tacked on a 21-yard TD run from Ja’briel Mace. Dempster finished with 115 yards rushing, his fourth game with 100+ yards. Brendan Bell had 15 tackles and 2.5 TFL’s for the VU defense.
Towson 34, William & Mary 27
Box Score
Tyrell Greene, Jr. ran for 133 yards and a TD and Towson scored 21 points off three William & Mary turnovers as the Tigers (2-3, 1-1 CAA) topped the Tribe (4-2, 1-1 CAA), 34-27.
William & Mary scored 10 points in the final 36 seconds of the first half to tie the game, 13-13, at the break. However, Towson responded with 21 unanswered points in the third quarter. John Dunmore caught a 15-yard TD pass from Sean Brown and Branson Peters returned a fumble 70 yards for a score after a CJ McClendon strip sack to make it 27-13. Following a Tribe fumble, Greene scored on a 3-yard run to extend the lead. W&M battled back within seven in the fourth quarter as Darius Wilson caught a 6-yard pass from Hollis Mathis and Malachi Imoh reached the end zone on a 1-yard run, but Towson was able to run out the clock. Brown passed for 185 yards and 2 TD’s for TU, while Wilson threw for 209 yards.
Bryant 42, Brown 35
Box Score
Landon Ruggieri caught a 30-yard touchdown pass from Jarrett Guest with 1:45 remaining, lifting Bryant (2-3, 0-1 CAA) over rival Brown, 42-35. Guest finished 26-of-39 passing for a career-high 337 yards and 4 TD’s, with Ruggieri making 10 receptions for a career-best 190 yards and 3 TD’s.
In a back-and-forth game, Bryant went up 27-21 with 14:20 to go on a 38-yard Ruggieri TD grab. After a quick Brown score, Bryant responded with a 46-yard TD run by Dylan Kedzior with 10:50 remaining. Brown rallied to tie, but Bryant drove 63 yards for the winning score by Ruggieri. Kedzior added 93 yards rushing on 11 carries as Bryant piled up 517 total yards.
UAlbany 31, Cornell 10
Box Score
UAlbany (2-3, 0-1 CAA) rolled up 273 yards on the ground and powered to a 31-10 road win at Cornell. Faysal Aden rushed for a team-best 133 yards, highlighted by an 84-yard TD run, and freshman Jojo Uga added 91 yards and a TD.
The Great Danes trailed 7-6 at the half, but took the lead for good on a 52-yard TD catch by Jacari Carter early in the third quarter. Clinging to a 16-10 advantage late in the game, Uga capped a 77-yard drive with a 16-yard TD burst with 3:08 left and Aden tacked on his long run with 1:22 on the clock. UA’s Myles Burkett passed for 225 yards and a TD. The Great Danes’ defense held Cornell to 97 yards rushing with Troy Berschwinger making eight stops and a sack.
North Carolina Central 45, Campbell 14
Box Score
Campbell (2-4, 0-2 CAA) fell behind 28-0 at the half and suffered a 45-14 setback to North Carolina Central.
The Camels used big plays to cut into the deficit in the second half. VJ Wilkins scored on a 55-yard run midway through the third quarter and quarterback Mike Chandler II broke loose for a 72-yard TD run early in the fourth period. Chandler finished with 89 rushing yards and Wilkins added 60 yards along with a 9-yard reception. Cornelius Davis recorded a team-best nine tackles for the Camels.
Harvard 28, New Hampshire 23
Box Score
Seth Morgan passed for 267 yards and two touchdowns and Nick Mazzie contributed three field goals, but New Hampshire (3-2) dropped a 28-23 decision at Harvard.
UNH got off to a fast start, driving 82 yards on its opening drive and taking a 7-0 lead on a 14-yard pass from Morgan to Caleb Burke. The Wildcats upped their advantage to 10-0 on a career-long 52-yard field goal by Mazzie and held a 16-14 edge at halftime as Mazzie added field goals of 29 and 43 yards in the second quarter. The Crimson moved on top 28-16 early in the fourth quarter before Morgan hit Logan Tomlinson on a 3-yard scoring pass with 5:54 left, but UNH could get no closer. Morgan, who completed his first 17 passes, was 34-of-47 through the air, with Tomlinson making a career-high 10 catches for 105 yards.