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CAA Football

CAA Football Weekly Report | Week 12

CAA Football Weekly Report | Week 12

Catch up on the CAA Football weekly news, notes and awards. See who shined on the gridiron this week.

Nov 18, 2022 by FloFootball Staff
CAA Football Weekly Report | Week 12

See who shined on the gridiron this week.

Co-Offensive Player of the Week

Max Brosmer | QB | New Hampshire

Brosmer completed 31-of-43 passes for a career-high 316 yards and two touchdowns, highlighted by a game-winning scoring pass with 17 seconds left, as New Hampshire rallied past Rhode Island, 31-28. 

Trailing by four, the sophomore guided the Wildcats on an 89-yard drive in the final 2:21 and hit D.J. Linkins on a 26-yard TD pass on fourth-and-9.


Co-Offensive Player of the Week

Darius Wilson | QB | William & Mary

Wilson accounted for 306 yards of total offense and four touchdowns in William & Mary’s 45-12 win over Villanova. 

The sophomore was 12-of-15 passing for 211 yards and a career-high tying three TDs. He also ran for 95 yards and a score on only eight carries. 

He played a big role in the Tribe piling up a season-high 582 yards of total offense, which was its most since 2010.

Defensive Player of the Week

Marlem Louis | DE | Richmond

Louis recorded a career-high tying six tackles, three TFLs, two sacks, two forced fumbles and two QB hurries in Richmond’s 21-13 victory at Delaware. 

The defensive end forced two fumbles on a pair of second-quarter sacks, including one that stopped a drive at the UR 30. 

He was a part of a Spiders’ defense that held UD to its second-fewest points of the year.

Special Teams Player of the Week

Jake Larson | PK | Richmond

Larson booted three field goals, including a game-winning 39-yarder with four seconds to play, as No. 12 Richmond got past No. 17 Delaware, 21-13. 

The junior, who had missed the past four games due to injury, also hit field goals of 46 and a season-best 48 yards in the contest.

Rookie of the Week

Reese Poffenbarger | QB | UAlbany

Poffenbarger completed 19-of-37 passes for 274 yards and two TDs, including a game-winning scoring toss on the game’s final play, to lead UAlbany past Maine, 23-21. 

The freshman guided the Great Danes on a 14-play, 76-yard drive in the final 1:43 and capped it with a 1-yard TD pass to Julian Hicks. It was his eighth game with 250+ passing yards.

CONFERENCE NOTES

RIVALRY GAMES TAKE ON ADDED IMPORTANCE: Rivalry games in the CAA always mean a lot, but this year's contests have title implications.

No. 8 William & Mary visits No. 11 Richmond in the 133rd Capital Cup, with the winner earning at least a share of their first conference title since 2015. 

No. 18 New Hampshire heads to Maine in the 110th Battle for the Brice-Cowell Musket, needing a win to claim a share of the CAA title for the first time since 2014. 

Two other games have playoff implications, as Delaware goes to Villanova for the Battle of the Blue, and Rhode Island hosts UAlbany. Towson brings a three-game win streak into its game with Hampton, and Monmouth entertains Stony Brook.

THE RACE IS ON: New Hampshire, Richmond and William & Mary enter Week 12 tied for first place in the CAA with 6-1 records. Should UNH and UR finish tied at 7-1, the Spiders would receive the automatic bid to the FCS playoffs based on their head-to-head win. Should UNH and W&M finish tied at 7-1, the automatic bid would be determined on point differential in conference games.

DOMINANT IN NONCONFERENCE PLAY: CAA teams have been dominant against FCS nonconference opponents over the past five years, winning a remarkable 76% of those games. The success has continued in 2022, as CAA teams are 21-5 against FCS opponents. The 21 wins and the .808 win percentage are the best of any FCS conference.

QUALITY QUARTERBACKS: CAA Football features some of the best quarterback play in FCS. 

The league has five of the top 18 QBs in the FCS in pass efficiency (W&M's Darius Wilson, EU's Matthew McKay, MU's Tony Muskett, UA's Reese Poffenbarger and UR's Reece Udinski), and five of the top 25 in passing yards (Udinski, Poffenbarger, UD's Nolan Henderson, Muskett, and Rhode Island's Kasim Hill). 

Udinski is second in FCS in completion percentage (75.2%), VU's Connor Watkins is fourth in yard per completion (15.7) and Henderson is sixth in TD passes (25).

GETTING IT DONE ON THE GROUND: Six of the top 26 rushers in the FCS play in the CAA. 

Monmouth's Jaden Shirden leads the nation at 156.7 ypg, W&M's Bronson Yoder is 14th (108.0 ypg), EU's Jalen Hampton is 17th (102.3 ypg), UA's Todd Sibley is 19th (98.7 ypg), URI's Marques DeShields is 20th (98.3 ypg) and UNH's Dylan Laube is 26th (90.0 ypg). Twenty-two CAA players have run for at least 100 yards in a game this season, with Shirden (four) and Laube (one) having topped 200 yards.

NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARDS: Richmond kicker Jake Larson was named the FedEx Ground FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week from Stats Perform after booting three field goals, including the game-winning 39-yarder against Delaware. 

He was the CAA's eighth national award winner from Stats, and another was recognized by NCAA.com. 

Other national honorees are: Delaware's Johnny Buchanan (Defense - Sept. 5), W&M's Jalen Jones (Defense - Sept. 12), Delaware's Nolan Henderson (Offense - Sept. 19), Richmond's Reece Udinski (Player by NCAA.com, Sept. 26), UAlbany's Reese Poffenbarger (Freshman - Oct. 17), New Hampshire's Sean Lehane (Special Teams - Oct. 24), Stony Brook's Charlie McKee (Freshman - Oct. 24) and Towson's D'Ago Hunter (Special Teams - Oct. 31).

FIVE TEAMS RANKED IN TOP 25: CAA Football had five teams ranked in the Stats Perform and AFCA Coaches Top 25 polls this week. William & Mary is No. 8 in both polls, while Richmond moved up to No. 11 in both polls. Elon is ranked No. 14 by Stats and No. 18 by the AFCA, New Hampshire is No. 18 in the Stats poll and No. 20 in the AFCA rankings and Delaware is No. 19 in the AFCA poll and No. 20 in the Stats poll. Rhode Island received votes in both polls.

UAlbany

•  Edged Maine, 23-21, last week on a TD pass with no time remaining.

•  Reese Poffenbarger threw for 274 yards and two TDs vs. UM. He ranks 11th in FCS in passing yards and 17th in pass efficiency and has thrown for 250+ yards in eight of his last nine games. He has 22 TDs and three interceptions.

•  Todd Sibley ran for 165 yards and a TD on 19 carries vs. UM, which was his sixth game with 100+ yards. He ranks 19th in FCS in rushing.

•  Thomas Greaney made seven catches for 126 yards and a TD vs. UM. He tops all CAA tight ends in receptions (45), receiving yards (635) and TD's (nine).

•  Roy Alexander has made multiple catches in nine straight games and has 42 receptions for 537 yards and two TDs this season.

•  UAlbany has generated over 400 yards of total offense in eight of the last nine games.

•  Dylan Kelly recorded a team-high nine tackles and intercepted his first pass of the season vs. UM. He has a team-high 90 stops.

Delaware

•  Dropped a 21-13 decision to nationally ranked Richmond last week.

•  Nolan Henderson passed for 196 yards and added a 2-yard rushing TD vs. UR. He has 200+ passing yards in eight of his last nine games. He leads the CAA and is sixth in FCS with 25 TD passes and ranks 19th in passing yards.

•  Jourdan Townsend made seven receptions for 79 yards vs. UR. He has 42 catches for 572 yards and five TDs in the last eight games.

•  Quincy Watson ran for a team-best 62 yards vs. UR, which was his most since Sept. 17.

•  Johnny Buchanan leads the CAA with 118 stops. He was the FCS National Defensive Player of Week after making 23 stops vs. Navy and has had 10+ tackles in six games.

•  UD has held five teams to 10 points or less. The Hens are second in FCS in pass defense, third in total defense and third in scoring defense.

•  Nic Ware made a team-best and season-high nine tackles vs. UR and also had a quarterback sack.

Elon

•  Defeated Hampton 38-24 last week. Elon's eight overall wins and six CAA victories are the most since 2017.

•  Jalen Hampton ran for a career-high 177 yards and three TDs at HU. It was his fourth 100+-yard outing and his 1,023 yards for the season are the most at EU since 2004.

•  Matthew McKay has thrown for 300+ yards three times and is 13th in FCS in pass efficiency and 15th in passing TDs (21).

•  Jackson Parham made six receptions for 65 yards and a TD at HU. It was his fifth game with at least six catches.

•  Skyler Davis is EU's all-time leading scorer with 334 points. He's second on the CAA's career FG list (67) and is 16-of-20 this season with five FGs from 51+ yards.

•  Elon's defense has allowed just 40 points in the second half vs. its 10 FCS foes.

•  Omar Rogers had eight tackles and intercepted two passes at Hampton. He leads Elon with three interceptions for the season.

Hampton

•  Fell 38-24 to No. 18 Elon last week. It was HU's third game vs. a ranked opponent in four weeks.

•  QB Christopher Zellous was 10-of-14 passing for 134 yards and two TDs and ran for a team-high 94 yards vs. Elon.

•  Jadakis Bonds had five catches for 96 yards and a TD vs. EU. He's fourth in the CAA in receiving yards and 12th in FCS with nine TD catches. He's HU's career leader in TD grabs.

•  Bonds received an invitation to play in the East-West Shrine Bowl in February. It's the longest-running college all-star game.

•  Hampton rushed for 170 yards vs. EU and is averaging 190.0 ypg on the ground over the past two games.

•  Qwahsin Townsel had a team-high nine tackles vs. Elon and ranks second in the CAA with 93 stops. He has four games with 10+ stops.

•  Ali Shockley talled six tackles vs. Elon. He's eighth in the CAA with 79 tackles and has 44 stops over the last four games.

Maine

•  Lost 23-21 at UAlbany last week. UM's past four losses have been by 16 total points.

•  Joe Fagnano threw for 164 yards and a TD and also ran for 46 yards and a TD at UA. He has over 5,000 career passing yards and has passed for 200+ yards five times in 2022.

•  Zavier Scott ran for a team-best 78 yards and a TD on eight carries and caught a team-high six passes for 58 yards at UA. He leads Maine in receiving (37 rec., 405 yds) and is second in rushing (263 yds) for the season.

•  Montigo Moss had a 10-yard TD reception at UA, which was his team-best sixth game with a TD catch.

•  Maine has committed just one turnover in the past five games and has now scored on 20 straight trips to the red zone.

•  Adrian Otero recorded a team-best eight tackles and an interception at UA. He leads the Black Bears with 67 stops.

•  Brian Cooey averaged 60.0 yards on four punts at UA and is averaging 42.6 yards per kick for the season.

Monmouth

•  Off last week. Returns to action on Saturday against Stony Brook in their home finale.

•  Jaden Shirden ran for 202 yards and a TD at UD. It was his fourth 200+-yard outing and the eighth time in nine games that he's topped 100 yards. He leads FCS in rushing (156.7 ypg) and is ninth in FCS in rushing TDs (12), including seven TD runs of 50+ yards.

•  Tony Muskett missed his second straight game due to injury at UD. He has thrown for 200+ yards in 11 of his last 13 games and has a TD pass in 23 straight contests.

•  Owen Wright is fourth in FCS with 15 rushing TDs and is also fifth in scoring (9.6 ppg).

•  Dymere Miller had four catches for 35 yards at UD. He's second in the CAA in receptions (6.0 pg) and third in receiving yards (84.6 ypg).

•  Da'Quan Grimes leads MU and is 12th in the CAA with 74 tackles.

•  Monmouth ranks 10th in FCS in total offense (466.0 ypg), 9th in scoring offense (37.6 ppg) and ninth in rushing (233.9 ypg).

New Hampshire

•  Rallied past Rhode Island, 31-28, last week to remain tied for first place in the CAA.

•  Max Brosmer was 31-of-43 passing for a career-high 316 yards and two TDs vs. URI. He has 18 TD passes in the past eight games and has thrown for 200+ yards in 7-of-10 games.

•  Dylan Laube had 137 all-purpose yards vs. URI. He tops FCS in punt returns, is third in all-purpose yards and ranks 26th in rushing.

•  Freshman Joey Corcoran made a career-high eight catches for 71 yards vs. URI. It was his seventh game this season with at least five receptions.

•  Freshman DJ Linkins caught a game-winning 26-yard TD pass with 17 seconds left vs. URI. Four of his 10 catches have been for TDs.

•  Dylan Ruiz had five tackles, a strip sack and three QB hurries vs. URI. Ruiz ranks fourth in FCS in sacks (10.0), while Josiah Silver has 8.5 sacks and a team-best 14.0 TFLs.

•  Nick Mazzie was 3-for-3 on FG's vs. URI and is now 9-for-10 for the season.

Rhode Island

•  Edged 31-28 at New Hampshire last week. It was URI's third setback to a ranked foe.

•  Kasim Hill passed for 222 yards and two TDs and ran for 43 yards and a TD at UNH. He has thrown for 200+ yards in 9 of 10 games and has 17 passing TDs and seven rushing TDs.

•  Marques DeShields rushed for 77 yards and a TD vs. UNH. He's run for 100+ yards in five of the last six games and six times overall. He's 20th in FCS in rushing and has 10 TDs.

•  Ed Lee made a career-high nine catches for 116 yards and a TD at UNH. It was his fourth 100+-yard effort this season. He has 512 receiving yards over the past four games.

•  Jake Fire made a team-high 10 tackles at UNH and has tallied nine or more tackles in seven games. He's third in the CAA with 90 stops.

•  Jordan Jones owns the URI program record with 30 passes defensed and is second in the CAA with 10 PBUs this season.

•  URI has clinched its third straight winning season and fourth in the last five years.

Richmond

•  Battled past Delaware, 21-13, for their fifth straight win. Remained tied for first place.

•  Reece Udinski threw for 301 yards at UD. He's second in FCS in completion pct. (75.2%), ranks fifth in pass yards and has 22 TDs with four interceptions. He's passed for 300+ yards in six of his last eight games.

•  Leroy Henley leads UR with eight TD catches and has three games with 100+ yards.

•  Jasiah Williams ranks fifth in FCS with 69 receptions and has nine or more catches in five games.

•  Jakob Herres has 100+ receiving yards in three of the last six games. He's the FCS active leader in career receptions (281) and is second in career receiving yards (3,769).

•  Tristan Wheeler tops UR with 90 tackles and has 346 career stops, which ranks fourth among active FCS players.

•  Marlem Louis had six tackles, three TFLs, two strip sacks and two QB hurries at UD. He leads the Spiders with 6.5 sacks and has 10 TFLs.

Stony Brook

•  Suffered a narrow 21-17 setback to Towson last week.

•  Daron Bryden was 18-of-35 passing for a career-high 273 yards and two TDs vs. TU. 

•  Ross Tallarico ran for a team-best 76 yards on 21 carries vs. TU. It was his fourth game with 75 or more yards on the ground.

•  Shawn Harris, Jr. set season-highs with six catches for 135 yards vs. TU. His 70-yard TD reception was the longest offensive play for the Seawolves this season.

•  Khalil Newton added three receptions for 69 yards and a TD vs. TU. He leads SBU with four TD catches for the season.

•  Aidan Kaler tallied a career-best 12 tackles and added two TFLs and a sack vs. TU.

•  Carthell Flowers-Lloyd made eight stops vs. TU. He ranks fourth in the CAA with 12 TFLs.

•  SBU, which ranks fourth in the CAA in rush defense, held TU to 122 yards on the ground.

Towson

•  Beat Stony Brook, 21-17, last week to extend their winning streak to three.

•  Tyrrell Pigrome threw for a season-high 255 yards and two TDs and also ran for 54 yards at SBU. Twice this season he's had over 100 yards passing and rushing in the same game.

•  D'Ago Hunter, who ranks 16th in FCS in all-purpose yards, ran for a team-high 63 yard on 10 carries at SBU. Hunter has three returns (two KOR, one PR) for TDs this season.

•  D'Kendall James had a team-high seven catches for 87 yards at SBU. It was the fourth time in five games that he's had at least five receptions.

•  Robert Javier recorded eight tackles and two pass breakups at SBU, including a PBU in the end zone on the final play of the game.

•  Freshman Mason Woods contributed 7 tackles at SBU. He's led the Tigers in tackles in four of the past five games and has a team-best 75 stops for the season.

Villanova

•  Beaten 45-12 at #8 William & Mary last week.

•  Connor Watkins threw for 206 yards and a TD and ran for a team-best 62 yards at W&M. He has completed 14 passes of 40 or more yards this season and has thrown at least one TD pass in 8-of-10 games.

•  Dez Boykin made six receptions for a career-high 110 yards at W&M. He averaging 20.7 yards per catch this season.

•  TD Ayo-Durojaiye has rushed for over 100 yards four times this season, including three of the past five games. He's averaging 5.3 ypc.

•  Jaaron Hayek has missed the past 2 games due to an injury. He ranks fourth in FCS in receiving yards (101.2 ypg) and has topped 100 receiving yards four times this season.

•  Jalen Goodman recorded a season-best nine tackles at W&M and has 58 for the season.

•  VU ranks eighth nationally against the pass, giving up just 176.6 ypg. They have held four opponents under 140 yards.

William & Mary

•  On a six-game winning streak after defeating Villanova last week, 45-12.

•  Bronson Yoder ran for 133 yards and a TD vs. VU. He's topped the 100-yard mark six times and is 28 yards shy of being W&M's first 1,000-yard rusher since 2016.

•  Malachi Imoh is averaging 8.1 ypc and leads W&M with nine rushing TDs.

•  W&M ran for a season-high 371 yards vs. VU, which was its fourth straight game with 300+ yards. W&M is third in FCS in rushing, 11th in total offense and 23rd in scoring.

•  Lachlan Pitts has a team-high 460 receiving yards and ranks ninth in FCS with 20.0 ypc.

•  John Pius ranks third in FCS in sacks (10.5) and fifth in TFLs (17.0), and leads the Tribe with 59 total tackles.

•  W&M is off to its best start since 2009 with a 9-1 record, which includes a 5-0 mark on the road.

•  The Tribe ranks sixth nationally in third down conversion defense at 30.5%.