Villanova 47, Lehigh 3
Box Score
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Villanova's offense piled up 506 total yards and the Wildcats' defense forced six turnovers in a 47-3 season-opening road victory at Lehigh. Justin Covington rushed for 156 yards on just 18 carries, including touchdown runs of 13 and 51 yards in the second quarter, that gave VU a 20-0 advantage. Quarterback Dan Smith passed for 182 yards and three second-half touchdowns. He connected on scoring strikes of 15 and 61 yards to Dez Boykin and had a 17-yard TD pass to Jaaron Hayek. Villanova's defense held Lehigh to 139 total yards, including -12 yards on the ground, and forced six turnovers in a game for the first time since 2018. Christian Benford recorded a pair of interceptions while Jalen Goodman made a team-high six tackles.
Richmond 38, Howard 14
Box Score
Richmond recorded its 16th straight home-opening win, topping Howard 38-14. Quarterback Joe Mancuso accounted for 347 yards of total offense and three touchdowns as the Spiders piled up 530 total yards. Richmond sprinted out to a 13-0 first-quarter lead on a pair of 1-yard scoring runs by Aaron Dykes. The Bison trimmed the deficit to six, but Mancuso took over from there. He found the end zone on a 41-yard run midway through the second quarter and then threw TD passes of 51 yards to Isaac Brown and 10 yards to Robert Rolfe in the third quarter to put the game away. Mancuso finished 26-of-34 passing for 293 yards, with Jasiah Williams making a career-high eight receptions for 85 yards. Defensively, linebacker Tyler Dressler made a team-high nine tackles, 2.0 TFL's, a sack and a forced fumble.
Towson 31, Morgan State 0
Box Score
Towson's defense posted its first shutout since 2017, defeating Morgan State 31-0 to claim the Battle of Baltimore. The Tigers, who held the Bears to 142 total yards and seven first downs, were led by SJ Brown's five tackles. Offensively, quarterback Chris Ferguson was 20-of-33 passing for 269 yards and 2 TD's in his Towson debut. He connected on an 8-yard TD toss to Jason Epps in the first quarter and followed with a 73-yard strike to Darian Street in the second quarter. The Tigers tacked on scoring runs from Devin Matthews and Kobe Young in the second half as they finished with 412 total yards.
Rhode Island 45, Bryant 21
Box Score
Rhode Island piled up 508 yards of offense and scored 24 second-quarter points to roll past Bryant, 45-21. Kasim Hill completed 12-of-18 passes for 249 yards and 2 TD's and also ran for a score while Justin Antrum rushed for 96 yards and 2 TD's to lead the Rams offensively. URI took a 7-0 lead on its opening drive of the game on a 1-yard run by Antrum. The contest was tied at 7-7 at the end of the first period when the Rams broke loose in the second. Hill connected on a 17-yard TD pass to Ivory Frimpong and followed with a 38-yard scoring strike to Matt Pires. Antrum's 10-yard TD run just before halftime put the Rams up 31-14 at the break. Rhode Island added a 1-yard TD run by Hill and a 20-yard TD pass from Brandon Robinson to Joey Kenny in the second half. Antonio Carter paced the URI defense with six tackles and a sack.
James Madison 68, Morehead State 10
Box Score
Cole Johnson completed 19-of-28 passes for 299 yards and five touchdowns as James Madison pulled away for a 68-10 victory over Morehead State. The Dukes finished with 688 yards of total offense and put 51 points on the board in the second half. Johnson hit Kris Thornton with a 54-yard TD pass in the first quarter and Antwane Wells Jr. with a 5-yard TD toss in the second quarter to build a 17-3 halftime edge. The Dukes blew the game open in the third period as Johnson had scoring strikes to Thornton and Solomon Vanhorse and he added his final one early in the fourth quarter to Kevin Curry, Jr. Kaelon Black added 100 yards rushing on 12 carries. Defensively, the Dukes held Morehead State to 196 total yards, including a school-record -57 yards rushing, and forced four turnovers.
Wofford 24, Elon 22
Box Score
Depsite 312 yards passing from Davis Cheek in his first start since 2019, Elon suffered a tough 24-22 setback to Wofford. Cheek, who was 29-of-52 through the air, hit Kortez Weeks on a 20-yard TD pass in the second quarter to put the Phoenix on top 10-7. The Terriers moved ahead 21-10 late in the second quarter, but Elon got two field goals from Skyler Davis and a 37-yard scoring pass from Cheek to Chandler Brayboy to tak, e a 22-21 lead with 2:31 remaining in the third period. Wofford moved ahead 24-22 early in the fourth quarter, but Elon stayed alive when Cole Coleman forced a fumble with 1:04 to play. The Phoenix drove into scoring position, but a 46-yard field goal came up short with 18 seconds left. Brayboy finished with eight catches for 112 yards. Defensively, Devonte Chandler recorded a team-high 11 tackles and Omar Rogers intercepted two passes.
#4 North Dakota State 28, UAlbany 6
Box Score
UAlbany turned in a strong effort defensively, but fell 28-6 at perennial FCS power North Dakota State. The Bison took a 14-0 lead in the second quarter, but the Great Danes shifted the momentum just before halftime when Jeff Undercuffler hit Roy Alexander with a 67-yard touchdown pass to make it 14-6 at intermission. However, NDSU broke a long TD run on the opening play of the second half and kept UAlbany off the scoreboard over the final 30 minutes. Undercuffer finished 16-of-28 passing for 183 yards, with Alexander making four receptions for 113 yards. Defensively, Jared Verse tallied eight tackles, one TFL and a forced fumble, while Bobby Ambush registered a team-high 10 stops.
Virginia 43, William & Mary 0
Box Score
William & Mary dropped a 43-0 decision at ACC member Virginia. The Tribe gave the Cavaliers a battle in the first half, trailing just 10-0 late in the second quarter before UVA added a touchdown just before intermission. Freshman quarterback Darius Wilson completed 9-of-15 passing for 83 yards and also ran for 29 yards in his first collegiate action. Donavyn Lester rushed for a team-best 42 yards on 12 carries and caught three passes for 23 yards. W&M twice drove into scoring position, but was unable to convert field goals. Nate Lynn made a team-high seven tackles for the Tribe and Malcolm Spencer had six stops
