Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs (2-2, 0-0 Big South) at
#RV/RV Monmouth Hawks (2-2, 1-0 Big South)
Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021; 1:05 p.m.
Kessler Stadium, West Long Branch, N.J.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
ESPN+
Matt Harmon (Play by Play); Eddy Occhipinti (Color Analyst)
DIRECTIONS TO KESSLER STADIUM
Directions to Monmouth University and Kessler Stadium can be found here:
TICKET INFO:
For tickets call 732-263-5735 or visit MonmouthHawks.com for online sales
Day of game tickets can be purchased at the Austin Family Box Office 

A LOOK AT THE GAME

• Today's game will be the first home conference game of the season for Monmouth and the Big South opener for Gardner-Webb. Each team brings a 2-2 record into today's matchup, with Monmouth suffering its first FCS loss of the year while Gardner-Webb came from behind to win a shootout against Western Carolina last weekend.
• Today's game is Monmouth University's homecoming game. The school, which opened in 1933, has a record of 13-14 on homecoming contests, including winning the last three games. 2019 was the last year Monmouth had a homecoming game with the Hawks defeated today's opponent, Gardner-Webb.
• Monmouth dropped its first home game since 2018 last weekend to Holy Cross, snapping a 11-game win streak against the Patriot League. The Hawks will face one more non-conference opponent this season.
• Gardner-Webb, who faced two FBS opponents to open the season, has secured back to back home wins against Lincoln and Western Carolina. The Runnin' Bulldogs scored 28 third quarter points to defeat WCU and have scored 50+ points in back to back games for the first time since 2013.    

TODAY'S PROMOTIONS
Homecoming: Today is Homecoming for the Hawks. The 2021 King, Queen and Court will be announced at halftime.

THE COACHING MATCHUP
Kevin Callahan, the 2019 and 2020 Big South Coach of the Year, is in his 29th season at Monmouth as the Hawks' head coach. Callahan owns a 168-127 career coaching record, all with Monmouth. Coming into the season, Callahan's 168 victories ranks him 6th among active coaches in the Football Championship Subdivision. He is one of two FCS coaches with 150+ wins all at one institution and his 29 years as a head coach is the seventh most among active coaches. The only coach in Monmouth history, he has led the Blue & White to six conference championships, in 1996, 1998, 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2020-21 and its first at-large playoff berth in 2017. Callahan has earned conference coach of the year accolades in 1998, 2003, 2006, 2019 and 2020 and was named as an Eddie Robinson Award finalist in 2017 (10^th), 2019 (4^th) and 2020-21. Prior to arriving in West Long Branch, Callahan served as defensive coordinator at Colgate for eight seasons and at Wagner for three years. He began his coaching career as an assistant coach at Albany (1977-79) and Syracuse (1980) before becoming a Seahawk assistant in 1981.
 
Tre Lamb is in his second season at the helm of the Gardner-Webb football program, as this marks his first Fall campaign after playing last spring. The second youngest head coach in Division I, Lamb led the Runnin' Bulldogs to a 2-2 record last spring, including a 42-20 win over No. 24 Elon. Before taking over in Boiling Springs, he served as the offensive coordinator at Ohio Valley Conference member Tennessee Tech, his alma mater, for two seasons, and was also previously an assistant coach at Mercer. Lamb comes from a coaching family, as his father, Hal, and grandfather, Ray, were state championship-winning high school coaches in Georgia. In addition, his uncle, Bobby, has more than 100 wins and four national playoff appearances during a Division I coaching career at Furman and Mercer. Tre Lamb played quarterback at Tennessee Tech from 2009-12, serving as team captain his final three seasons and finishing his career with 5,301 passing yards, which ranks third in program history.

INSIDE THE MU-GARDNER-WEBB SERIES
Eighth Overall Meeting
Overall Record: MU 6-1
    West Long Branch: MU 3-0
    Boiling Springs, NC: MU 3-1
First Meeting: Nov. 22, 2014
Last Meeting: Oct. 18, 2019
Longest MU Win Streak: 4 gms
Longest GWU Win Streak: 1 gm
Largest MU W Margin: 29 pts
Largest GWU W Margin: 1 pt
Smallest MU W Margin: 14 pts
Smallest GWU W Margin: 1 pt
Shutouts: ---
Overtime Games: GWU 1-0
 
INSIDE THE MONMOUTH-GARDNER-WEBB SERIES

• Today's game marks the seventh time that the Hawks and Runnin' Bulldogs will meet, with Monmouth owning a 6-1 record. Monmouth is 3-0 at home and 3-1 on the road with the only loss coming in overtime by one in 2016.
• The Hawks have put up an average of 40.1 points per game in the series and have scored 40 or more in the last four meetings. Last season the Hawks allowed just 52 yards in the second half while Juwon Farri ran for a career-high four touchdowns and 124 yards rushing to pace the Monmouth offense. 

MONMOUTH AGAINST THE BIG SOUTH

• Since starting up Big South league play in 2014, Monmouth owns an 22-14 conference record, however is 18-2 since 2017.
• The Hawks own a 6-1 record against Gardner-Webb, 2-0 against Campbell, 5-1 against CSU and 2-4 vs Kennesaw State. The Hawks are also 1-0 against Hampton (3-0 overall) in conference competition. MU is 1-0 against North Alabama as well and has never faced North Carolina A&T.
• The Hawks won their first Big South Title in 2019 going undefeated for the first time since joining the league.
• MU was 0-3 against members of the Big South prior to joining the league, including dropping a home and home series with Coastal Carolina and a non-conference tilt with the Flames. The Hawks were also 4-2 against PC.
• With the win over Campbell in 2019, Monmouth won four consecutive Big South games to start Big South play for the first time in school history. 

HAWKS SELECTED FIRST IN BIG SOUTH PRESEASON POLL
For the second consecutive season Monmouth University was selected to finish first in the 2021 Big South Preseason Poll. The Hawks recorded 16 of a possible 18 first place votes with Kennesaw State and Charleston Southern each earning a first place vote.
 
2021 Big South Preseason Poll
1. Monmouth (16 votes)           141     
2. Kennesaw State (1 votes)     117
3. North Carolina A&T               100
4. Charleston Southern (1 vote) 85
5. Campbell                              82
6. Gardner-Webb                      59
7. Hampton                              35
8. Robert Morris                        29
 
HAWKS LOOK TO MAKE IT FOUR STRAIGHT ON HOMECOMING
Today is homecoming at Monmouth University and the MU football team is looking to continue its recent trend of winning homecoming games. The Hawks are 13-14 all-time in homecoming games and are looking to extend a three-game winning streak against Big South foes. In 2020/Spring 2021 the Hawks did not have a homecoming matchup due to COVID-19 and defeated Gardner-Webb 49-28 in 2019. MU is 12-12 on homecoming games played in October and 1-2 in November.
 
COACH CALLAHAN FOURTH IN BIG SOUTH HISTORY
Head Coach Kevin Callahan is fourth all-time in Big South history with 48 wins during his time in the conference, and needs two to become the fourth with 50 victories. He is looking to become the third-fastest Big South coach to 50 wins.
 
DID YOU KNOW?
Monmouth has faced five opponents more than once on Homecoming, including this weekend's opponent Gardner-Webb. The Hawks have hosted Central Connecticut State a record four times on homecoming with Albany appearing three times and Wagner, Robert Morris and Gardner-Webb twice each.

Social Media Links:
Follow the Hawks all season long on twitter (@MUHawksFB)
Facebook (facebook.com/MUFootball)  
Monmouth's YouTube page (YouTube.com/monmouthhawks)