WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ – Monmouth University Football wrapped up 15 spring practices on Saturday afternoon at Kessler Stadium with the annual Blue/White Spring Game. The offense defeated the defense 44-29 using a scoring system unique to today's game. Terrance Greene Jr. (Philadelphia, PA/St. Joe's Prep) scored twice for the offense, while Da'Quan Grimes (Gaithersburg, MD/Damascas) registered four tackles for loss on the defensive side.

The scoring system rewarded the offense for touchdowns, field goals, PAT's and two-point conversions, and third and fourth-down conversions. The defense registered points for turnovers, scores, red zone stops, three-and-outs, and third and fourth-down stops.

After Kenji Bahar (Baltimore, MD/Calvert Hall) converted a first down to Matt Castronuova (Jackson, NJ/Jackson Memorial) on the far sideline to open the game, the defense held for a third-down stop. On the next possession, Big South First Teamer Reggie White Jr. (Randallstown, MD/Milford Mill Academy) got loose up the right side for a 58-yard pickup to set up the first score of the day, a Greene Jr. reception from 22 yards out.

The defense posted four consecutive tackles for loss at one point, forcing a three-and-out with Ryan Schoer (Manalapan, NJ/Red Bank Regional/URI) and Grimes getting in on stops. The offense responded when Max Smyth (Riverton, NJ/Palmyra) hit Brandon Batts (Elkridge, MD/Mount St. Joseph's) over the middle for 40 yards to the eight yard line, before Lonnie Moore IV (Sicklerville, NJ/Paul VI) punched it in.

The defense came out of a short break to force a fumble that Tre Nelson (Palmerton, PA/Palmerton) pounced on for the recovery, two drives after Nelson registered a half sack on third down. Bahar led the offense on a long drive just before the halfway point, completing three passes and scrambling for 12 yards of his own, the final an athletic play from Batts to break several tackles and stay in bounds for the 22-yard score.

After the half, the defense held on a fourth and 10 and then got a sack from Lowell Kelly-Gamble (Bloomfield, NJ/Bloomfield) on the next drive for a 15-yard loss. The offense finished the day with a pair of touchdowns, with Greene scoring on a double reverse for his second score of the day and Zach Tredway (Langhorne, PA/Neshaminy) closing the scrimmage with a 22-yard TD catch.

NOTES AND QUOTES
Monmouth Head Coach Kevin Callahan
"We had beautiful football weather and it was a great turnout by the fanbase, I know the guys were really excited about playing today. I was happy with our execution on both sides of the ball. What we saw was some explosive plays by the offense and the ability to put the ball in the endzone. On defense we really saw a firmness up front and ran to the ball extremely well."
"Every day we come out here we want to see execution and improvement from one day to the next. I thought this spring over the course of the 14 days we did that. The young guys, especially the freshmen took advantage of the time this spring and really positioned themselves to contribute in 2018."

-Terrance Greene Jr. scored two touchdowns for the offense, one on the ground and one through the air.
-Da'Quan Grimes had four tackles for loss on the day, including a half sack.
-The offense scored five touchdowns total on the day, four through the air.
-Kenji Bahar threw for three of the four touchdowns, while Max Smyth hit Moore IV for the fourth.
-The defense posted four three-and-outs on the day.
-Bryce Barneys posted a sack for a 12-yard loss in his first spring game as a defensive back after switching from wide receiver.
-Defensive end Mike Warren posted two sacks for the defense in the game.
-Four players took reps at the quarterback spot (Bahar, Smyth, Harris, O'Connor).
-Lowell Kelly-Gamble had two tackles for loss, including a sack.
-The scrimmage concluded a 15-practice spring practice session for MU football.

UP NEXT
-Monmouth Football opens the 2018 season at Eastern Michigan on August 31^st. It will mark the third FBS game in program history.