It was the first full weekend in college football and the CAA had somewhat of the expected mixed bag with a competitive first round of nonconference games along with couple of conference openers thrown in for good measure.
Rhode Island and Campbell wasted no time in opening this year’s CAA conference schedule with an offensive show. Quarterback Devin Farrell threw for 275 yards and two touchdowns as #9 Rhode Island rallied for a 31-20 victory over Campbell.
North Carolina Central had been riding high after its strong performance in Week Zero against Southern in the MEAC/SWAC challenge. The Eagles got brought down to earth at home in Durham rather quickly as quarterback 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 NCCU.
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 scored first and were tied with Tigers midway in the fourth quarter, but JSU turned on juice in the running game with Ahmad Miller who had a pair of TDs in that six-minute span of 2 yards and a 76-yard game closer.
Liberty was a heavy favorite over a rebuilding Maine squad, but the Black Bears 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.
There was very little defense played between Monmouth and Colgate. Very little. Monmouth overcame a 24-point third-quarter deficit and four interceptions to post 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.
Norfolk State’s Michael Vick made his coaching debut last weekend with high expectations for turning the Spartans into an immediate MEAC contender. It may take longer than anticipated as freshman quarterback Andrew Indorf passed for 187 yards and three touchdowns in his first collegiate game as Towson State opened the season with 27-7 road victory at Norfolk State.
Elon fought ACC member Duke even for the first 30 minutes before the Blue Devils decided they had seen enough and easily pulled away in the second half to coast to an easy 45-17 win.
Stony Brook is one of the CAA early preseason favorites, but they were thoroughly outclassed in their opener by San Diego State as the Aztecs built a 14-point first-quarter lead and went on to win in a 42-0 blowout.
William and Mary traveled down to Furman looking to start the season right, but Furman’s kicking game accounted for 3 field goals in the final quarter which proved to be the difference as the Paladins eked out a 23-21 win over the Tribe.
North Carolina A&T outplayed defending OVC/Big South champion Tennessee State in just about every statistical category. The Aggies outgained the Tigers in total offense 343 to 252, rushing for 133 yards and passing for 210 more while TSU was held to just 252 total offense (129 rushing, 123 passing). A&T won the time of possession 32.55 to 27:05 and had less yardage in penalties 8 for 55 yards while TSU had 8 for 68 yards including two personal fouls.
Yes, the Aggies played well and did most things right except for 3 big splash plays on missed assignments coupled with 3 turnovers made impossible obstacle for even good teams to overcome. Yet, despite being the decided underdog A&T fought back after going down 24-14 late to cut the deficit o just three points in the fourth quarter with more than a legitimate shot to send it into overtime on the last play of the game.
A&T had a 38-yard field goal blocked because of a breakdown in protection and was sent back to Greensboro on the short end of 24-21 nail biter. Despite the loss, it was apparent to everyone that &T is going to be a distinctly better, if not outright dangerous football team going forward in 2025 under new Head Coach Shawn Gibbs.
The improvement of the Aggies was quite evident. The aggressiveness, the focus, the effort, and the ability to fight back despite adversity were all there. What they are short on was not talent but consistency in their execution and that is very much correctable.
The type of mistakes A&T made can be overcome with more game experience, more repetition in practice, and a new coach and his staff improving communication on their part especially with end of game situations.
Still, A&T is headed in the right direction. This week’s opponent is Big 12-member Central Florida is far bigger, deeper, faster and is obviously will be the best team on A&T’s schedule having been a postseason bowl participant as long as anyone can remember.
While the chances pulling an upset is extremely remote, expect A&T to battle the Golden Knights with zeal and should give a good account of themselves on the road.
The biggest challenge is to come out of this game healthy and with better and more consistent execution across the board. It is often said the biggest improvement is between weeks one and week two. Let’s hope that holds true for A&T.
Central Florida – 41
N.C. A&T – 17
