Stony Brook coach Chuck Priore did not celebrate what may have been the most exciting play of the 2019 college football season – not in the moment, anyway. 

“A little shocking on my end,” Priore said. “I was like, ‘Welp, I guess we gotta stop them, because you never know what’s going to happen in this game.’”

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Quarterback Tyquell Fields’ 50-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-6 in Week 5 at Rhode Island came with 11 seconds on the clock. In a fourth quarter with 37 combined points – including 13 for Rhode Island in a 37-second span less than two minutes prior – one can understand Priore’s hesitance to revel. 

But in a madcap Colonial Athletic Association game, Fields delivered the signature moment. 

Priore noted that “it wasn’t a Hail Mary” that had been called on that fourth down. The end result was every bit as exciting as one, though, and it exemplified what’s made Fields key to Stony Brook’s 4-1 start. 

“I noticed the two plays before that they were leaving the middle of the pocket open. Nobody was really looking at the quarterback,” Fields said. “So we had a little crossing route going, and I saw the two linebackers go with the crossing route, so I just cut back, got the first down and I noticed I could get more.”

“Players make plays,” Priore summarized. “Sometimes coaches think we make them, but players make them.”

Although 2019 marks his first season at the controls of the Seawolves offense, the redshirt junior Fields has an impressive playmaking history. 

He quarterbacked Archbishop Stepinac High School to an undefeated season and the Catholic High School Football League Class AAA championship in 2015. Among the highlights of that season was a four passing touchdown performance in the semifinals. He followed it up with a rushing touchdown in the championship game. 

Let’s hear from @TyquellFields on the final drive and his 50-yard touchdown scramble. #HOWL | #SeawolvesUnited | #CAAFB | #FCS_150 pic.twitter.com/LYG4W8UTfo

— Stony Brook Football (@StonyBrookFB) September 29, 2019

Fields finished that title campaign with 24 passing touchdowns and five on the ground, and more than 2,700 total yards. Though he had some standout moments then, he said the touchdown at Rhode Island is one of the “top two or top three” in his time playing the game. 

His overall outstanding play in general – 938 yards passing with six touchdowns, 248 yards rushing and another two scores – marks progress in an ongoing journey over several years. Fields is in his fourth year with the program, but only stepping into the spotlight for the first time. 

“Maybe [Fields was] a little under-recruited because of his arm delivery. It was a little quirky,” Priore said. “When he got here, it was all about learning the college game. Fortunately for him, we had a quarterback in place. He was able to step back and improve his skill level.”

The Seawolves quarterback for part of 2015 all the way through 2018 was Joe Carbone, an effective passer who threw for 23 touchdowns in Stony Brook’s 10-win, 2017 campaign, and 15 touchdowns last season. 

Stony Brook reached the FCS Playoffs in both years. Returning to postseason play coming into 2019 meant rebuilding on offense. Not only did the Seawolves lose longtime starter Carbone, but they also lost the running back tandem of Donald Liotine and Jordan Gowins. Liotine rushed for 1,148 yards a season ago, Gowins for 995, and they combined for 14 touchdowns. 

Fields said talk of Stony Brook as a young or inexperienced team coming into the season resonated. 

“I always knew we were young and motivated,” he said. “And ready to take the next step to be one of the top teams in the CAA.”

TYQUELL FIELDS!

Fields runs for 50 yards to put @StonyBrookFB up 31-27 with just 11 seconds to go #CAAFB pic.twitter.com/lZkl9kNQEf

— CAA Football (@CAAFootball) September 29, 2019

With Fields settling in at quarterback and bringing a new dynamic with his dual-threat ability, the new-look running-back rotation keeps chugging along. Isaiah White and Seba Nekhet are on paces similar to those of Liotine and Gowins last year with 460 and 400 yards, respectively. 

Ty Son Lawton, who dealt with injury earlier in the season, came on strong at Rhode Island with 88 yards and a touchdown. He got into the end zone for the first time in his career the week prior against Fordham. 

Priore said the addition of Lawton to the mix, who adds size and strength at 215 pounds, is a positive but not unexpected development. Fields said the backfield as a whole believed in their ability to deliver, too. 

Fields and White in particular have comparable arcs to this point, both as upperclassmen who bided their time for their opportunities. White came to Stony Brook as a running back in 2015 and debuted with a 107-yard performance against Central Connecticut State. 

After injuries slowed him that first year, he spent 2016 and 2017 at linebacker and on special teams before redshirting in 2018. With the openings in the backfield for 2019, White pounced. He’s 11^th in the country in rushing yards almost halfway through the season. 

“I used to talk about it all the time with Isaiah. That was one of our dreams, to always play together and be in the backfield together,” Fields said. “We’ve been working together on the field, studying film, and we always knew what we were capable of. It’s about presenting it to people now.”