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College Football's Craziest Player Stats From Week 5

College Football's Craziest Player Stats From Week 5

Here’s Week 5’s edition of Video Game Numbers, showcasing some of the craziest stats of the past week from all levels of college football.

Oct 1, 2024 by Briar Napier
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Bringing you the most eye-popping stats throughout college football that look too wild to be real, Video Game Numbers returns for Week 5 with even more big individual performances to share.

From a quarterback who had six touchdowns in his first career start to a star running back who has already led his team to quadruple the amount of wins that it picked up last year, the huge numbers and standout days across the sport were top-notch.

If you’ve followed this series for a while, you know the drill by now. Let’s get into it.

Here’s Week 5’s edition of Video Game Numbers, showcasing some of the craziest stats of the past week from all levels of college football: 

Roland Dempster, RB, Stony Brook (25 carries, 158 yards, three touchdowns, two catches, 59 yards vs. Morgan State)

What’s the secret behind the Seawolves going 4-0 against FCS opponents to start the season after an 0-10 campaign a year ago? 

It’s Dempster’s emergence as a bonafide top-tier tailback in the country.

The redshirt senior from Staten Island had his best game yet of his breakout season for Stony Brook in his team’s 22-3 win over Morgan State this past weekend, tying his season high for touchdowns in a single game and putting him tied for third in the FCS (as of this writing) in rushing scores in the process.

All of Dempster’s touchdown runs were from short range as he scored from one, two and four yards out, making up the largest chunk of the Seawolves’ 287 yards on the ground as they pummeled the Bears on both sides of the ball. Two big receiving plays for Dempster, the longest of which went for 40 yards and saw him be the team’s second-leading receiver for the night, definitely didn’t hurt, either.

Dempster and the Seawolves have a major test this weekend to prove if they are for real, hosting No. 5-ranked Villanova at home in a showdown streamed exclusively on FloFootball, but all signs so far point to Dempster being a problem in the backfield for whoever is on Stony Brook’s schedule the rest of the way.

Nino Marzullo, QB, Fairmont State (28-for-44 passing, 435 yards, three touchdowns, 11 rushes, 48 yards, three touchdowns at Wheeling)

Accounting for six total touchdowns in a comeback, shootout win on the road? It’s safe to say that there have definitely been worse first career college starts under center than the one Marzullo had for the Falcons last Saturday at Wheeling.

The true freshman made sure that Fairmont State didn’t have to worry about if there was a quarterback crisis on its hands by being involved in all but one of its scores in a 52-49 win, which included a go-ahead touchdown throw from 53 yards out to Winston Page with 1:08 to go in the fourth quarter before the Falcons’ defense got a pick to close out the victory.

Marzullo looked like a savvy veteran for much of the game, answering all of Wheeling’s touchdowns with haymakers of his own as his touchdown throws were from 21, 49 and 53 yards. His three scores on the ground were from within five yards as he showed off the wheels when he needed to and finished off drives by putting himself over the goal line.

Now with a newfound gunslinger calling the shots, Marzullo will be looking to guide Fairmont State to his first home win as a starter this weekend against West Virginia State as he and first-year coach Luke Barker look to make some noise in the Mountain East Conference.

Adam Callahan, LB, William Jewell (18 tackles, one tackle for loss, two forced fumbles, one interception vs. Davenport)

The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s Davenport had a tough time getting past upstart William Jewell — already 3-1 in 2024 after going 2-8 the year prior — this past weekend. Callahan’s fantastic performance at the linebacker spot was a major reason why.

After a solid start to his season in which he had season highs of seven tackles previously against Kentucky Wesleyan and Lincoln (Missouri), Callahan absolutely exploded Saturday in the Cardinals’ toughest game yet against a Panthers squad receiving votes in the Division II national polls, losing 17-7 at home.

DU didn’t score in the second half after getting out to a 17-0 lead at the break, however, as Callahan lit it up and set Jewell’s single-game, NCAA-era record for tackles all the while. He tried all he could to get the Cardinals back into it as he nabbed his second interception of the season on the drive following Jewell’s lone score of the day, but shortcomings in the Cardinals’ offense allowed Davenport to escape with a nonconference win.

A reeling Indianapolis squad that is still ranked in the AFCA DII Coaches Poll (at No. 22) but lost to Saginaw Valley State over the weekend visits Jewell next, though, where Callahan and the Cardinals will look to try and get the marquee win that they just missed out on against the Panthers.

Dante Aviles-Santos, QB, UMass Dartmouth (21-for-27 passing, 352 yards, five touchdowns, six rushes, 56 yards vs. Vermont State Castleton)

The two-time reigning and defending MASCAC Offensive Player of the Year is one of the best quarterbacks in all of D-III, and he further proved that by having a monster day against Castleton — in just three quarters of action, no less.

The Corsairs got to 4-0 in a 60-10 romp over the Spartans which featured an eye-popping 690 yards of total offense for the hosts, paced by their captain under center who had all five of his passing scores before halftime, the longest of which was a 33-yard strike to Jael Cabrera with under 30 seconds left in the first half. With Aviles-Santos pulled in advance of the fourth quarter, his teammates easily coasted off of the 41-7 halftime lead that he led them to and rolled to yet another lopsided win.

UMass Dartmouth’s scoring average of 63.8 points per game currently ranks second in all of D-III as it looks especially motivated to take back the MASCAC title and get back to the playoffs after Western Connecticut State denied the Corsairs from doing so in 2023. Massachusetts Maritime, who Aviles-Santos has never lost to in his career, is first up next on the docket Friday, though, with a showdown with WestConn (which will join the Landmark Conference as a football affiliate next season) looming Nov. 2.

Collin Murphy, S, Denison (three tackles, two interceptions, one field goal block, one touchdown vs. Hiram)

The Big Red have seemed to have gotten back to business after two losses against ranked opposition (first Linfield, then Alma) to start their season, shutting out both Kenyon and Hiram in back-to-back weeks to begin North Coast Athletic Conference play. It also helps when players like Murphy are making impact plays all over the field.

With a multi-tooled skillset that comes natural to him as both a football and lacrosse player for Denison, Murphy wreaked havoc against Hiram in the Big Red’s 35-0 demolition of the Terriers as he’s helped Denison not allow a point since 4:59 mark of the Alma game Sept. 14. 

Murphy first made his presence felt against Hiram when he blocked the Terriers’ 23-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter, keeping the Big Red’s shutout streak alive with the play. He then returned an interception 62 yards to the house early in the second quarter to double the host’s lead to 14-0, then he got a second pick on a fourth-down play in the third quarter with Denison in full control of the game by that point. 

Denison’s defense doesn’t mess around, and with an opportunity to go 3-0 in NCAC play when it visits Wittenberg this weekend, Murphy and the rest of the Big Red will be looking to capitalize and keep the good vibes going.

AFCA NCAA Division II Football Rankings In Week 6

  • 1. Harding (Ark.) (4-0)
  • 2. Grand Valley St. (Mich.) (4-0)
  • 3. Valdosta St. (Ga.) (4-0)
  • 4. Colorado School of Mines (4-0)
  • 5. Ferris St. (Mich.) (3-1)
  • 6. Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.) (4-0)
  • 7. Minnesota St. (5-0)
  • 8. Kutztown (Pa.) (4-0)
  • 9. Slippery Rock (Pa.) (4-0)
  • 10. Pittsburg St. (Kan.) (3-1)
  • 11. Central Washington (3-1)
  • 12. Central Missouri (3-1)
  • 13. Western Colorado (4-0)
  • 14. Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) (4-0)
  • 15. West Alabama (4-0)
  • 16. Charleston (W.Va.) (4-0)
  • 17. Central Oklahoma (4-0)
  • 18. Colorado St.-Pueblo (4-1)
  • 18. Emporia St. (Kan.) (4-1)
  • 20. Delta St. (Miss.) (3-1)
  • 21. Indiana (Pa.) (4-0)
  • 22. Indianapolis (Ind.) (3-1)
  • 23. Findlay (Ohio) (4-0)
  • 24. Johnson C. Smith (N.C.) (5-0)
  • 25. Carson-Newman (Tenn.) (4-0)

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