CAA Football Recap - Aug. 28-30
Rob Washburn
Rhode Island 31, Campbell 20
Box Score
Quarterback Devin Farrell threw for 275 yards and two touchdowns as #9 Rhode Island rallied for a 31-20 victory over Campbell in the CAA Football opener.
Rams’ All-America wide receiver Marquis Buchanan caught six passes for 167 yards, including a 46-yard TD grab with 9:27 remaining that gave URI its biggest lead of the night. Antwain Littleton Jr. ran for 85 yards and two scores in his Rams’ debut.
Campbell quarterback Kamden Sixkiller passed for 144 yards and a TD in his Camels’ debut, with Randall King making five catches for 52 yards.
URI sprinted out to a quick 7-0 lead as tight end Kevin Shaeffer caught a 31-yard scoring pass from Farrell to cap a four-play, 75-yard opening drive. However, Campbell took advantage of three Rams’ fumbles to tally 17 unanswered points. A muffed punt set up a game-tying 1-yard TD reception by the Camels’ JJ Cowan. After a Rams’ turnover in the red zone, Campbell drove 90 yards and took the lead on a 6-yard run by quarterback Mike Chandler II. A URI fumble on the ensuing kickoff led to a 29-yard Alex Crabb field goal that made it 17-7. The Rams trimmed the deficit to three at the half on Antwain Littleton’s 2-yard scoring run.
The teams traded field goals in the third quarter before Rhody regained the lead, 24-20, when Littleton found the end zone on 4
th-and-1 with 12:02 to go. Buchanan’s TD on the next possession capped the scoring. Logan Livermon recorded nine tackles for Campbell and Leisaan Hibert had eight stops for Rhode Island.
New Hampshire 27, North Carolina Central 10
Box Score
Matt Vezza passed for 186 yards and two touchdowns and added 36 yards and a score on the ground to lead New Hampshire to a 27-10 road victory at North Carolina Central.
Up 3-0 late in the second quarter, Vezza tossed a 4-yard TD pass to Denin Limouris. The Wildcats pushed their lead to 16-3 in the third quarter on Vezza’s 8-yard scoring run and he then put UNH in control by connecting on a 65-yard strike to Peyton Strickland just three minutes later.
Myles Thomason ran for 76 yards on 22 carries and had 63 punt return yards. UNH’s defense held NCCU to 275 total yards with Trevor Barry making a team-best 10 tackles.
Furman 23, William & Mary 21
Box Score
William & Mary scored a pair of third-quarter touchdowns to take a 21-14 lead, but Furman kicked three field goals to edge the Tribe, 23-21.
After falling behind 7-0 early, W&M pulled even early in the second quarter as transfer running back Rashad Raymond capped a 74-yard drive with a 5-yard scoring run. Trailing 14-7 at the half, W&M found the end zone on its first two drives of the second half. Quarterback Tyler Hughes scored on a 1-yard run and then hit tight end Sean McElwain with a 9-yard TD pass to make 21-14 with 5:26 to go in the third quarter. A Furman field goal with 2:43 left was the game-winner.
Hughes finished with 208 yards and a TD through the air and a team-high 57 yards and a TD on the ground. Linebacker Luke Banbury had a team-high 14 tackles and a fumble recovery defensively.
Jackson State 28, Hampton 14
Box Score
Hampton was tied with #17 Jackson State in the fourth quarter, but the Tigers recorded a pair of touchdowns in the final six minutes to win, 28-14.
The Pirates took a 7-0 advantage on their opening drive. Quarterback Isaiah Freeman broke loose for a 63-yard run on 4
th-and-1, and Ja’Quan Snipes found the end zone from three yards out on the next play. Down 14-7 in the final period, Freeman connected with MarShawn Ferguson, Jr. on a 30-yard scoring strike to tie the game at 14-14 with 10:44 left. However, JSU went back on top with 5:32 left and then added a 76-yard scoring run following an HU turnover.
Freeman passed for 117 yards and a TD and ran for 94 yards on 13 carries. Harold O’Neal III made a team-high six stops.
Liberty 28, Maine 7
Box Score
Maine gave FBS member Liberty all it could handle before dropping a 28-7 decision. The contest was tied 7-7 in the fourth quarter before the Flames reeled off 21 points in the final 11 minutes.
The Black Bears struck first as Sincere Baines exploded for a 77-yard scoring run early in the second quarter. Liberty tied the game just before half, and the game stayed even into the final stanza. The Flames went ahead on a TD pass with 10:24 remaining and then added two more in the final five minutes.
Baines rushed for 118 yards and a TD on 11 carries and Rashawn Marshall added 76 yards on the ground. Linebacker Christian Thomas recorded 15 tackles and a TFL for a Black Bears defense that kept Liberty in check for most of the afternoon.
Tennessee State 24, North Carolina A&T 21
Box Score
A late North Carolina A&T rally came up just short as the Aggies were edged 24-21 at defending Big South/OVC champ Tennessee State.
A&T took the lead midway through the first quarter on a 40-yard touchdown run by Wesley Graves. After TSU answered with 10 straight points, the Aggies took a 14-10 advantage into halftime following a 1-yard run by quarterback Braxton Thomas with 12 seconds on the clock. The Tigers went back on top by 10 in the fourth quarter, but Thomas found Amonte Jones on a 66-yard strike down the sideline to trim the deficit to 24-21 with 9:58 to play. A&T drove to the TSU 24 in the final seconds, but had a game-tying 38-yard field goal blocked to end the game.
Thomas finished 11-of-13 passing for 169 yards and a TD, with Jones making four catches for 91 yards. A&T’s defense held TSU to 252 yards, with Joshua Iseah making 10 tackles and 3.0 TFL’s and an interception.
Iowa 34, UAlbany 7
Box Score
UAlbany took a second-quarter lead on Big Ten foe Iowa, but fell 34-7.
Trailing 3-0, the Great Danes put together a 9-play, 68-yard drive capped by a 9-yard TD pass from Jack Shields to Lasalle Rose, Jr. that made it 7-3 with 11:33 to go in the second quarter. The Hawkeyes regained a 17-7 advantage at halftime and added 17 points in the final 30 minutes.
Shields threw for 134 yards and a TD and ran for a team-best 30 yards. Caden Burti made three catches for 56 yards. Defensively, Thomas Joe-Kamara recorded a team-high 13 tackles and Cam Stodghill added 10 stops.
New Mexico State 19, Bryant 3
Box Score
Bryant got a strong performance from its defense, but suffered a 19-3 setback at FBS member New Mexico State.
After seeing NMSU take an early 6-0 advantage, the Bulldogs responded with a 13-play drive that set up a 43-yard field goal from Bryce Soli that trimmed the deficit to 6-3 with 4:08 to go in the opening quarter. Bryant’s defense limited the Aggies to just a pair of field goals for the next two-and-a-half quarters before they extended the lead to 19-3 with just 6:20 remaining.
Bryant quarterback Brennan Myer threw for 187 yards. Brandon Perkins had six tackles for a Bulldogs’ defense that held NMSU to 305 total yards.
Monmouth 42, Colgate 39
Box Score
Monmouth overcame a 24-point third-quarter deficit and posted a 42-39 victory at Colgate. The Hawks, who piled up 678 yards of offense, scored 35 unanswered points in less than 14 minutes for the largest comeback in program history.
Monmouth quarterback Derek Robertson threw four interceptions in the first half, but bounced back to throw for 491 yards and 4 TD’s. Three Hawks tallied 100 receiving yards, led by Gavin Nelson with five receptions for 176 yards and 3 TD’s. Rodney Nelson rushed for 169 yards and two scores.
Taking advantage of the Hawks’ miscues, Colgate went ahead 31-7 with 8:23 to go in the third quarter. Monmouth responded with a 70-yard scoring grab by Gavin Nelson and 1-yard TD run by Rodney Nelson to close within 31-21 at the end of the third quarter. Scoring strikes of 24 and 51 yards to Gavin Nelson put the Hawks on top, 35-31, with 12:24 left and Rodney Nelson broke loose for a 75-yard TD burst to take an 11-point lead with 9:32 to go.
Towson 27, Norfolk State 7
Box Score
Freshman quarterback Andrew Indorf passed for 187 yards and three touchdowns in his first collegiate game as Towson (1-0) opened the season with 27-7 road victory at Norfolk State.
Towson got off to a fast start, scoring on its first three drives. On the opening possession of his career, Indorf hit Jaceon Doss with a 33-yard scoring strike to make it 7-0. The Tigers added field goals of 24 and 50 yards from Caden Williams to take a 13-0 edge into the half. NSU took advantage of a Towson turnover to close within 13-7 early in the fourth quarter, but Insdorf answered with a 36-yard TD toss to Zay Perkins with 11:06 remaining and later added a 15-yard TD throw to John Dunmore.
Towson’s defense held NSU to 279 yards, including only 39 on the ground. Rodney Roane, Jr. tallied a team-high seven tackles and a sack.
Duke 45, Elon 17
Box Score
Elon played ACC member Duke to a draw for the first 30 minutes before dropping a 45-17 decision. Redshirt freshman quarterback Landen Clark passed for 101 yards and ran for a team-high 61 yards and a TD in his first collegiate start.
Trailing 3-0 early in the second quarter, the Phoenix put together a 14-play, 58-yard drive and drew even on a 35-yard Luke Barnes field goal. After the Blue Devils moved ahead, Elon responded with a 75-yard drive capped by a 2-yard TD run by Clark to tie the contest at 10-10. A fumble recovery by Dillon Pardue in the red zone kept the game tied going into the break.
Duke scored TD’s on its first two possessions of the second half, but Elon battled back within 24-17 as Landyn Backey found the end zone on a 4
th-and-3 run with 14:12 to go. However, the Blue Devils used a number of big plays to extend the margin down the stretch. Darren James-Hamilton made 11 stops for Elon.
San Diego State 42, Stony Brook 0
Box Score
San Diego State built a 14-point first-quarter lead and went on to a 42-0 win over Stony Brook.
The Aztecs had two 13-play, 70+-yard touchdown drives in the opening stanza and added two field goals in the second quarter to go up 20-0 at the half. The Seawolves defense kept SDSU out of the end zone for nearly 30 minutes before the Aztecs tacked on three more TD’s.
All-America running back Roland Dempster picked up 49 yards on 12 carries to lead the Stony Brook offense. Defensively, Bryson Parker made a team-high eight tackles.