The 15-game CAA Football slate in Week 2 includes three games against nationally ranked FCS opponents. Maine travels to #3 Montana State, Campbell heads to #17 Western Carolina and Monmouth hosts #19 Lafayette. In addition to Monmouth, Richmond, Stony Brook, Bryant, Towson and North Carolina A&T play their home openers on Saturday. CAA teams were 6-1 at home in Week 1.
There are three games against FBS opponents in Week 2 as Rhode Island visits Minnesota, UAlbany travels to West Virginia and William & Mary heads to Coastal Carolina. Despite an 0-7 record, CAA teams battled well against FBS teams last week as North Carolina A&T (Wake Forest) and Campbell (Liberty) held 10-7 second-quarter leads, Elon trailed Duke just 3-0 in the final minute of the first half, Stony Brook was down 7-0 to Marshall with five minutes left in the first half and Towson was within 28-20 of Cincinnati in the third quarter.
Get ready for all of the action with the latest edition of Three Things To Watch:
WEEK 2 SCHEDULE
Saturday, September 7
Rhode Island (1-0, 0-0 CAA) vs Minnesota (0-1, 0-0 Big Ten)
12 p.m.
at Huntington Bank Stadium (50,805)
Minneapolis, Minn.
TV: Peacock
19/19 Lafayette (0-1, 0-0 PL) vs Monmouth (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
12 p.m.
at Kessler Stadium (4,200)
West Long Branch, N.J.
TV: SNY, NBCSPhil+ / FloFootball.com
Campbell (0-1, 0-0 CAA) vs 17/17 Western Carolina (0-1, 0-0 SoCon)
1 p.m.
at Whitmire Stadium (13,742)
Cullowhee, N.C.
TV: ESPN+
UNH (0-1, 0-0 CAA) vs Holy Cross (0-1, 0-0 PL)
2 p.m.
at Fitton Field (23,500)
Worcester, Mass.
TV: ESPN+
Stonehill (0-0, 0-0 NEC) vs Stony Brook (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
3:30 p.m.
at LaValle Stadium (12,300)
Stony Brook, N.Y.
TV: FloFootball.com
Wofford (1-0, 0-0 SoCon) vs 14/145 Richmond (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
3:30 p.m.
at Robins Stadium (8,700)
Richmond, Va.
TV: Monumental / FloFootball
Franklin Pierce (0-0) vs Bryant (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
4 p.m.
at Beirne Stadium (4,400)
Smithfi eld, R.I
TV: FloFootball.com
Morgan State (1-0, 0-0 MEAC) vs Towson (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
6 p.m.
at Unitas Stadium (11,198)
Towson, Md.
TV: Monumental / FloFootball
Elon (0-1, 0-0 CAA) vs North Carolina Central (0-0, 0-0 MEAC)
6 p.m.
at O’Kelly-Riddick Stadium (10,000)
Durham, N.C.
TV: ESPN+
5/5 Villanova (1-0, 0-0 CAA) vs Colgate (0-1, 0-0 PL)
6 p.m.
at Andy Kerr Stadium (10,221)
Hamilton, N.Y.
TV: ESPN+
16/13 UAlbany (1-0, 0-0 CAA) vs West Virginia (0-1, 0-0 Big 12)
6 p.m.
at Milan Puskar Stadium (60,000)
Morgantown, W.Va.
TV: ESPN+
Virginia Union (1-0) vs Hampton (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
6 p.m.
at Armstrong Stadium (12,000)
Hampton, Va.
TV: FloFootball.com
13/14 William & Mary (1-0, 0-0 CAA) vs Coastal Carolina (1-0, 0-0 Sun Belt)
7 p.m.
at Brooks Stadium (21,000) Coastal Carolina (1-0, 0-0 Sun Belt)
Conway, S.C.
TV: ESPN+
Winston-Salem State (1-0) vs North Carolina A&T (0-1, 0-0 CAA)
7 p.m.
at Truist Stadium (21,500)
Greensboro, N.C.
TV: FloFootball.com / My48
Maine (1-0, 0-0 CAA) vs 3/3 Montana State (2-0, 0-0 Big Sky)
8 p.m.
at Bobcat Stadium (20,767)
Bozeman, Mont.
TV: ESPN+ |
CAA FOOTBALL WEEK 1 AWARDS
Offensive Player of the Week
Devin Farrell | QB | Rhode Island
Making his first career start, Farrell tallied 341 yards of offense and led a game-winning drive as Rhode Island edged Holy Cross, 20-17. The sophomore was 20-of-33 passing for a career-high 287 yards and 2 TD’s and ran for a team-best 54 yards on 13 carries. With URI down by four with 1:47 left, he converted two third downs and a 4th-and-10 before hitting Shawn Harris for a 31-yard TD with 19 seconds to go.
Defensive Player of the Week
Richie Kimmel | LB | Villanova
Kimmel recorded a career-high 10 tackles, recovered a fumble and sealed the victory with an interception as Villanova held off #25 Youngstown State, 24-17. The senior covered a fumble on a 4th-and-1 play in the first quarter and picked off a pass at the VU 49 with 57 seconds left to end a potential game-tying drive by the Penguins.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Jeff Yurk | P | Elon
Playing his first game since 2022, Yurk averaged a nation’s-best 51.9 yards on seven punts in Elon’s game at Duke. The junior’s first two punts went 58 and 60 yards and he added two more that traveled over 55 yards. Three of his seven punts pinned the Blue Devils inside the 20-yard line.
Rookie of the Week
Isaiah Ragland | RB | Villanova
Ragland rushed for 65 yards and a TD on seven carries (9.3 ypc) in Villanova’s 24-17 win over #25 Youngstown State. The freshman gave VU a 17-3 lead with a 3-yard scoring run late in the 2nd quarter and broke loose for a 31-yard run to help set up a TD on the first drive of the third quarter.
CONFERENCE NOTES:
RANKED FOES AWAIT ON WEEK 2 SLATE:
The 15-game CAA Football slate in Week 2 includes three games against nationally ranked FCS opponents. Maine travels to #3 Montana State, Campbell heads to #17 Western Carolina and Monmouth hosts #19 Lafayette. In addition to Monmouth, Richmond, Stony Brook, Bryant, Towson and North Carolina A&T play their home openers on Saturday. CAA teams were 6-1 at home in Week 1.
THREE FBS MATCHUPS ON WEEK 2 NON-CONFERENCE SCHEDULE:
There are three games against FBS opponents in Week 2 as Rhode Island visits Minnesota, UAlbany travels to West Virginia and William & Mary heads to Coastal Carolina. Despite an 0-7 record, CAA teams battled well against FBS teams last week as North Carolina A&T (Wake Forest) and Campbell (Liberty) held 10-7 second-quarter leads, Elon trailed Duke just 3-0 in the final minute of the first half, Stony Brook was down 7-0 to Marshall with five minutes left in the first half and Towson was within 28-20 of Cincinnati in the third quarter.
SUCCESS AGAINST THE FBS:
CAA Football has posted 42 wins over FBS foes in its history and has won at least one game against an FBS team in 12 of the past 16 years. Since 2013, 10 different teams have recorded at least one FBS victory and the CAA has had multiple wins over FBS opponents five times since 2016, including two of the past three seasons.
WELCOME TO THE CAA:
CAA Football will again be the largest FCS conference in the nation as the addition of Bryant gives the league 16 members for the first time in history. The Bulldogs are coming off a 6-5 campaign in 2023 and a third-place finish in the Big South/OVC with a 4-2 mark. Chris Merritt is in his sixth season as head coach at Bryant.
NON-CONFERENCE SUCCESS:
CAA teams have been dominant against FCS non-conference opponents in recent years. In 2023, the league was a combined 20-10 against FCS foes during the regular season after posting a 21-5 mark in 2022.
FOUR TEAMS RANKED IN TOP 25:
Four CAA teams are ranked in both the Stats Perform and AFCA Coaches Top 25 polls. Villanova leads the way at #5 in both polls. William & Mary is #13 in the Stats poll and #14 in the AFCA poll. UAlbany is ranked #13 by the AFCA and #16 by Stats, and Richmond is ranked #14 by Stats and #15 by the AFCA. Elon and Rhode Island were among others receiving votes in both polls and North Carolina A&T picked up votes in the AFCA poll. The CAA’s four ranked teams trails only the Missouri Valley (7) and Big Sky (6).
TEAM NOTES
UALBANY 1-0 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Transfer WR Seven McGee made a team-high five catches for 119 yards against LIU, highlighted by a 75-yard TD grab just before halftime. • DL Jack Iuliano recorded a sack and returned a fumble 20 yards for a TD. • RB Griffin Woodell, the 2023 CAA Offensive Rookie of the Year, rushed for a team-high 85 yards and a TD, in the opener vs. LIU. • Transfer LB Dontae Lunan made a team-best 13 tackles and had a TFL against LIU.
BRYANT 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• QB Jared Guest passed for 146 yards and a TD in his Bryant debut at Delaware. It was the fifth career game with 100+ passing yards for the Coastal Carolina transfer. • Gary Cooper made a team-best four catches for a career-high 78 yards at UD. • DB Chris Yates recorded a career-high 12 tackles against the Blue Hens. • In his first collegiate game, freshman LB Cole Nilles recorded seven tackles and 2.0 TFL’s at Delaware.
CAMPBELL 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• WR Sincere Brown made five catches for a career-high 126 yards at Liberty, including a 36-yard TD grab that put the Camels ahead 10-7 in the second quarter. • Transfer RB Mark Biggins ran for a team-high 81 yards and a TD on 8 carries at LU. • Jojo Pace led the Camels’ defense with a career-high 14 tackles at LU. Paul Hutston III (11) and CJ Tillman (10) also had double-digit stops. • QB Chad Mascoe, Jr. passed for 180 yards and a TD at LU in his 2nd career start.
DELAWARE 1-0 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Scored TD’s on five consecutive first-half possessions in a 48-17 victory over Bryant. • QB Ryan O’Connor was 29-of-41 passing for 245 yards and 4 TD’s vs. BU. The 29 completions were a career-high. • All-America RB Marcus Yarns ran for 62 yards and a TD and had 4 catches for 34 yards and a TD vs. BU. He had 3 games in 2023 with a rushing and receiving TD. • DL Keyshawn Hunter made four tackles and had two sacks against Bryant.
ELON 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Held ACC foe Duke to three points over the opening 29 minutes before falling 26-3. • Transfer DB Khalil Baker made a team-high 10 tackles and 2 PBU’s in his Elon debut while All-America DB Caleb Curtain had an interception and 3 PBU’s at Duke. • Versatile WR Chandler Brayboy had a team-high six catches for 30 yards at Duke and returned two kickoff s for 33 yards. • P Jeff Yurk averaged 51.9 yards on 7 punts at Duke, with four punts traveling over 55 yards and three landing inside the 20.
HAMPTON 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Reserve QB Malcolm Mays was 13-of-17 passing for 168 yards and 2 TD’s vs. Morgan St. and ran for a team-best 63 yards. • RB Elijah Burris rushed for 43 yards and a TD on 15 carries and added four catches for 61 yards and a TD. Burris ran for 803 yards in 2023, but only had 34 receiving yards. • Xavier Marshall recorded a team-high 10 tackles against MSU. • The Pirates’ defense tallied 7.0 TFL’s and made three sacks against Morgan State.
MAINE 1-0 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Earned their first season-opening victory since 2019, beating Colgate 17-14. • Maine’s defense held Colgate to 303 total yards, which was the fewest yards it has allowed in a game since 2022. • Transfer QB Carter Peevy was 16-of-21 passing for 182 yards vs. Colgate and added a rushing touchdown. • DB Alhaji Kamara sealed the Colgate win by intercepting a pass with 7 seconds left . It was his second career pickoff.
MONMOUTH 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Transfer QB Derek Robertson threw for 390 yards and 3 TD’s at EWU. It was the most passing yards ever for a MU QB in his first start and the 6th-most ever in a game. • RB Sone Ntoh scored his 15th rushing TD in 12 career games at EWU. He has found the end zone in all but two career games. • Six different receivers had at least three catches at EWU, led by TJ Speight with five grabs for 97 yards. • Four MU players set career highs for tackles at EWU, led by Deuce Lee with 12.
UNH 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Transfer DB Wande Owens recorded a team-high 14 tackles in his UNH debut at UCF. • WR Logan Tomlinson led UNH with six receptions for 73 yards at UCF. He had 42 catches for 618 yards and 7 TD’s in 2023. • DE Josiah Silver, who is on the Buchanan Award Watch List for the third Ɵ me, had 8 tackles and 2.0 TFL’s at UCF. • UNH’s defense forced a pair of turnovers at UCF with Zedane Williams intercepting a pass and Sam Rumelhart recovering a fumble.
NORTH CAROLINA A&T 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Took a 10-7 second-quarter lead at ACC member Wake Forest before falling 45-13. • A&T rushed for 185 yards at WFU, with RB’s Kenji Christian (16-121 yds, 1 TD) and Wesley Graves (19-70 yds) leading the way. • QB Kevin White was 10-of-15 passing for 116 yards at WFU. It was the second-most passing yards of his career. • Andrew Brown booted FG’s of 38 and 51 yards at WFU and averaged 40.3 yards on six punts. The 51-yard FG was a career best.
RHODE ISLAND 1-0 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• In his first career start, QB Devin Farrell was 20-of-33 passing for 287 yards and 2 TD’s and added 54 rushing yards vs. Holy Cross. • WR Shawn Harris made a game-winning 31- yard TD catch vs. HC with 19 seconds left. He finished with 3 receptions for 45 yards. • URI’s defense held Holy Cross to 271 total yards, including 101 through the air. • The Rams are just 1-8 against FBS foes under Jim Fleming, but three of the losses have been by only seven points.
RICHMOND 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• WR Nick DeGennaro made a team-high 7 catches for 74 yards at UVA. The Payton Award Watch List member tallied 71 receptions for 904 yards and 11 TD’s in 2023. • Transfer RB Zach Palmer-Smith ran for a team-best 76 yards on just seven carries in his UR debut at UVA. • UR and Wofford are meeting for the first time since the 2007 FCS playoffs when the Spiders earned a 21-10 victory. • Redshirt freshman Matthew Traynor made five tackles and intercepted a pass at UVA.
STONY BROOK 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Trailed Marshall just 7-0 with 5 minutes left in the first half before falling 45-3. • LB Anthony Farrelli made a career-high 14 tackles in the opener at Marshall. His previous career-best was eight stops. • Freshman QB Malachi Marshall came off the bench in the 2nd half at MU and was 10-of20 passing for 96 yards. • SBU dominated Ɵ me of possession (35:38- 24:22) at Marshall and ran 12 more plays than the Thundering Herd.
TOWSON 0-1 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Closed within 28-20 of Big 12 foe Cincinnati in the 3rd quarter before losing 38-20. • Transfer QB Carlos Davis was 21-of-37 passing for 244 yards and 2 TD’s in his Tigers’ debut at Cincinnati. • The Tigers ran for 194 yards at UC rotating RB’s Devin Matthews (70 yds), Tyrell Greene (60 yds) and Christopher Watkins (59 yds). • PK Keegan Vaughan is on the Fred Mitchell Award Watch List as the top kicker at the FCS, D2 and D3 level. He made 15-of-18
VILLANOVA 1-0 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• Won their 8th straight season opener, defeating #25 Youngstown State, 24-17. • QB Connor Watkins ran for 107 yards and 2 TD’s and added 90 yards passing vs. YSU. It was his 4th career game with 100+ rush yds. • LB Richie Kimmel made a career-high 10 tackles, recovered a fumble and sealed the win over YSU with an interception. • Last season’s leading tacklers Shane Hartzell and Brendan Bell got off to a good start in 2024 with 11 stops apiece vs. YSU.
WILLIAM & MARY 0-0 Overall/0-0 CAAFB
• QB Darius Wilson was 11-of-15 passing for 190 yards and 2 TD’s vs. VMI. He ranks 3rd in FCS in pass efficiency (223.7). • Hollis Mathis tallied 117 yards of total offense vs. VMI, which included a 4-yard TD run and a 26-yard TD reception. He also completed a 27-yard pass. • The W&M defense held VMI to 241 total yards and pitched a 2nd-half shutout. • Clayton Dobler returned a punt blocked by John Kearney 18 yards for a TD in the 2nd quarter vs. VMI.
