CAA Football Recap - Sept. 14
Rob Washburn
Villanova 14, Towson 13
Box Score
Jaylan Sanchez caught a pair of touchdown passes, including a go-ahead 6-yard grab late in the third quarter, as Villanova (3-0, 1-0 CAA) edged Towson (1-2, 0-1 CAA) in the opening CAA game for both squads.
Towson took an early 7-0 lead as quarterback Sean Brown, making his Tigers’ debut, hit Carter Runyon with a 30-yard TD pass. Sanchez had a 20-yard scoring grab to even the game at the half. The Tigers went back ahead on a 41-yard Keegan Vaughan field goal before Sanchez made his second TD catch. Vaughan’s 23-yard field goal pulled Towson within one with 11:23 left, but a 48-yard field goal hit the upright and a 37-yard attempt drifted wide right in the final 1:13.
For Towson, Brown finished 20-of-36 for 233 yards, while Devin Matthews rushed for 135 yards on 14 carries. For Villanova, Isaiah Ragland rushed for 141 yards and Connor Watkins threw for 116 yards and two scores.
Monmouth 51, Maine 22
Box Score
Derek Robertson passed for 390 yards and four touchdowns as Monmouth (1-2, 1-0 CAA) earned a 51-22 road win at Maine (1-2, 0-1 CAA) in the CAA opener for both teams. Hawks’ receiver Josh Derry made seven receptions for a career-high 227 yards and 2 TD’s, highlighted by a 94-yard strike in the fourth quarter.
Monmouth sprinted out to a 20-0 first-quarter advantage on a 4-yard TD run by Sone Ntoh followed by scoring passes from Robertson to Jack Neri (11 yards) and Marcus Middleton (25 yards). The Black Bears answered with a 98-yard kickoff return for a TD by Trevin Ewing, but Monmouth got a 2-yard TD run from Ntoh and a 56-yard TD pass to Derry early in the third period to take control. Jaharie Martin ran for 46 yards and a TD for Maine.
Delaware 42, North Carolina A&T 13
Box Score
Delaware (2-0, 1-0 CAA) scored points on six of its first eight drives and piled up 526 yards of offense to claim a 42-13 win at North Carolina A&T (1-2, 0-1 CAA) in the conference opener for both teams. Blue Hens’ quarterback Ryan O’Connor threw for 325 yards and a TD and added 47 yards and a TD on the ground.
UD got rushing touchdowns from Marcus Yarns, Jo’Nathan Silver and Quincy Watson on its first three drives to take an 18-3 lead early in the second quarter. The Aggies pulled within eight after a 70-yard pick six by Aaron Harris and trailed 21-13 at the half. The Blue Hens put the game away with two long scoring drives in the third quarter as O’Connor found the end zone on a 23-yard run and Watson had a 17-yard TD rush. Dillon Trainer made eight tackles for a UD defense that held A&T to 264 yards. A&T quarterback Kevin White passed for 145 yards, while Mack David II tallied 13 tackles and 1.5 TFL’s.
Rhode Island 21, Campbell 9
Box Score
Quarterback Devin Farrell threw two touchdown passes and ran for a third to lead Rhode Island (2-1, 1-0 CAA) past Campbell (1-2, 0-1 CAA), 21-9, in the conference opener for both squads. Farrell threw for 140 yards and picked up 45 on the ground.
The Rams went up 7-0 in the first quarter on a 9-yard TD catch by Greg Gaines, but the Camels got a 34-yard Connor Lytton field goal to close within 7-3 at half. Farrell broke loose for a 27-yard scoring run on the opening drive of the third quarter and hit Marquis Buchanan on a 25-yard TD pass later in the period. Campbell tried to rally as reserve quarterback Mike Chandler II connected on an 8-yard TD pass to Sincere Brown with 6:30 remaining, but the Rams’ defense stopped the Camels down the stretch. Fredrick Mallay had 11 tackles for the URI defense and AJ Pena added 10 stops and two sacks. CJ Tillman had 11 tackles and a sack for Campbell.
Stony Brook 27, Fordham 21
Box Score
Brandon Boria’s 6-yard TD run with 12:37 remaining helped Stony Brook (2-1) rally for a 27-21 victory at Fordham. The Seawolves’ defense was excellent, recording five sacks and two interceptions while limiting the Rams to 257 total yards.
Fordham took advantage of a pair of pick sixes to go ahead 21-17 midway through the third quarter. Boria’s TD run capped an 80-yard drive to put SBU on top by three, and Enda Kirby added a 41-yard field goal with 8:34 remaining. The Seawolves’ defense took over from there as Rushawn Lawrence intercepted a pass to stop a Rams’ drive and SBU made a late 4
th-down stop. Freshman quarterback Malachi Marshall threw for 268 yards, while Lawrence led the defense with five tackles, 2.5 TFL’s, a pair of sacks and the interception.
Richmond 38, Charleston Southern 0
Box Score
Richmond (1-2) posted its first shutout since the 2022 season, allowing just 131 total yards in a 38-0 triumph over Charleston Southern. Jeremiah Grant recorded two of the Spiders’ three sacks and UR intercepted two passes, highlighted by a 76-yard pick six from Jabril Hayes.
Quarterback Kyle Wickersham was 10-of-12 passing for 128 yards, including a 39-yard TD strike to Nick DeGennaro. He also ran for a score in the first quarter to give UR an early lead. Zach Palmer-Smith ran for 80 yards and 2 TD’s as the Spiders piled up 213 yards on the ground. Along with the performances by Grant and Hayes, UR got six tackles and a TFL from Carter Glassmyer and Camden Byrd.
Hampton 37, Norfolk State 7
Box Score
Hampton (2-1) turned in a dominant performance on both sides of the ball and cruised past rival Norfolk State, 37-7, in the Battle of the Bay. The Pirates, who built a commanding 30-0 lead after three quarters, piled up 466 yards of offense while holding the Spartans to 104.
Hampton got short TD runs from Chris Zellous and Tymere Robinson to take a 16-0 halftime advantage and the same two players found the end zone again in the third quarter to put the game away. Zellous finished 20-of-25 passing for 185 yards and ran for 60 yards, while Elijah Burris picked up 77 rushing yards. Hampton’s defense held NSU to 58 yards passing and 46 rushing, while recording 8.0 TFL’s and 3.0 sacks. Jordan White made a team-high six tackles.
William & Mary 28, Wofford 21
Box Score
Bronson Yoder’s 1-yard TD run with 3:40 remaining capped a 91-yard drive as William & Mary (2-1) defeated Wofford, 28-21. The Tribe defense stopped two Terriers’ late-game drives to seal the victory.
W&M took a 7-0 lead on its opening drive of the game as Malachi Imoh scored on a 2-yard run and was tied 14-14 at the half following a 19-yard TD run by Yoder in the second quarter. Quarterback Darius Wilson put W&M back on top on a 5-yard run to close the third quarter, but Wofford evened the contest once again before Yoder’s game-winning TD. Yoder finished with 142 yards on the ground while Wilson passed for 185 yards. Jonathan Hammond paced the W&M defense with eight tackles, 2.5 TFL’s, 2.0 sacks, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
New Hampshire 45, Stonehill 6
Box Score
Seth Morgan passed for 387 yards and a school-record tying six touchdowns to lead New Hampshire (2-1) past Stonehill, 45-6. Wildcats’ receivers Caleb Burke (3 rec., 134 yds., 2 TD’s) and Joey Corcoran (5 rec., 129 yds., 3 TD’s) both topped the 100-yard mark.
Morgan hit Corcoran with scoring passes of 11 and 56 yards in the first quarter and added a 53-yard strike to Burke and a 19-yarder to Colby Ramshaw to make it 28-6 at halftime. In the third quarter, he added TD tosses of 68 yards to Burke and 32 yards to Corcoran to put the game away. The Wildcats’ defense held Stonehill to 252 yards and recorded four sacks.
Western Carolina 24, Elon 17
Box Score
Elon (1-2) built a 14-3 third-quarter lead, but Western Carolina battled back for a 24-17 victory. Phoenix quarterback Matthew Downing passed for 285 yards and a TD and TJ Thomas ran for 101 yards, including a 60-yard scoring run.
A 58-yard TD catch by Chandler Brayboy put Elon ahead early and the 60-yard burst by Thomas made it 14-3 after the opening drive of the third quarter. The Catamounts went ahead by three with 3:48 remaining and then blocked a game-tying field goal attempt and returned it 55 yards for a TD with 1:15 to go. Kahmari Brown had five tackles, 2.5 TFL’s, 2.0 sacks and a forced fumble for the Elon defense.
Idaho 41, UAlbany 13
Box Score
Myles Burkett threw for 290 yards and a touchdown, but it was not enough as UAlbany fell 41-13 at 5
th-ranked Idaho. Levi Wentz made five receptions for 114 yards, including a 19-yard TD grab.
The Great Danes (1-2) got a 25-yard field goal from John Opalko late in the first quarter to pull within 6-3, but the Vandals scored 35 unanswered points to go up 41-3 in the third quarter. Opalko added a 33-yard field goal before Burkett connected with Wentz on the scoring pass. Dontae Lunan paced the UAlbany defense with 11 tackles and 2 TFL’s.
Holy Cross 43, Bryant 22
Box Score
Bryant (1-2) opened a 16-7 first-quarter lead, but Holy Cross rallied for a 43-22 win. Bulldogs’ quarterback Jarrett Guest passed for 141 yards and 2 TD’s and ran for a team-hjgh 67 yards.
After getting on the board with a 20-yard Lucas Bisazza field goal, Bryant took a 10-7 advantage on a 10-yard TD catch from Landon Ruggieri. A 7-yard blocked punt return for a score by Chris Yates put the Bulldogs up by nine, but the Crusaders tallied 28 consecutive points. Bryant got a 12-yard TD catch from Fabrice Mukendi in the fourth quarter.