MONMOUTH HAWKS (4-3, 2-2 CAA) VS #19/22 RHODE ISLAND RAMS (4-2, 2-1 CAA)
Saturday, October 22, 2022; 1 p.m.
Kessler Stadium, West Long Branch, NJ

BROADCAST INFORMATION
FloSports, NBC Sports Philadelphia+, SNY (Tape Delay)
Matt Harmon (Play-by-Play); Emory Hunt (Color Analyst)
 
DIRECTIONS TO KESSLER STADIUM
Directions to Monmouth University and Kessler Stadium can be found here

TICKET INFORMATION
For tickets call 732-263-5735 or visit MonmouthHawks.com/Tickets for online sales. Day of game tickets can be purchased at the Austin Family Box Office.

GAMEDAY PROMOTIONS
Saturday's game is part of Homecoming Weekend at Monmouth University. The 2022 Homecoming Alumni Tailgate will be held on the practice field this year. Visit Monmouth.edu/alumni/homecoming for more information.

OPENING KICKOFF
Monmouth welcomes nationally-ranked Rhode Island to Kessler Stadium for Homecoming with both teams jockeying for position in the CAA standings. The Rams are coming off a critical victory over previously unbeaten Elon, while Monmouth looks to bounce back from a road loss to Maine.
 
A WIN WOULD
A win would give the Hawks a third victory in conference play and their second against a ranked team in 2022. Monmouth would also improve to 3-1 at home this season and give the Hawks their second straight win over Rhode Island. In addition, Monmouth can extend its Homecoming winning streak to five with a victory.
 
STRENGTH OF THE CAA
Rhode Island is one of an FCS-best six CAA teams ranked in this week's Stats Perform FCS Top 25 poll coming in at No. 22. The Rams are ranked No. 19 in AFCA Coaches poll and are one of five CAA teams currently ranked.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Tied 1-1
Last Meeting: 09/08/12 W, 41-6 at Monmouth
at Monmouth: Monmouth leads 1-0
Streak: W1

DID YOU KNOW?
Owen Wright needs one rushing touchdown to enter the top 10 in program history. K.B. Asante (2011-14) ranks 10th with 16 career rushing touchdowns, while David Sinisi (2006-09) holds the program record of 65.
 
PAYTON AWARD WATCH
Jaden Shirden has been added to the Walter Payton Award Watch List, the Football Championship Subdivision post season award bestowed upon the best offensive player in the country. The West Haven, CT product leads the FCS in rushing yards per game with 144.7 ypg and is the only back in the country to eclipse the 100-yard mark (1,013) at this point in the season. Shirden has run for a career-high seven touchdowns this season and tied a Monmouth record with five-consecutive 100-yard rushing games. This season he has proved himself as one of the most explosive players in all of college football, recording seven runs of 35 yards or more. Monmouth owns the top scoring offense in the CAA at 37.9 points per game.

PUTTING ON A SHOW
Monmouth's offense has been outstanding in its three games this season at Kessler Stadium. The Hawks have averaged 44 points and 546 yards of total offense per home game in 2022. Since opening Kessler Stadium in 2017, Monmouth has played 28 home games. The Hawks have scored 30 points or more 24 times and have a 23-1 record in those games. Monmouth is 1-3 when it is held below 30 points at home since 2017. Sophomore running back Jaden Shirden has run for 1,510 yards in his career and 990 of those yards have come in home games. At quarterback, Tony Muskett has a career 25-6 touchdown-to-interception ratio at Kessler Stadium.
 
MILLER TIME
Dymere Miller is Monmouth's leading receiver this season with 28 catches for 464 yards in just five games. Miller missed Monmouth's games against Fordham and Georgetown, but has bounced back to make a big impact on Monmouth's offense. He had 62 yards on five catches with a TD at Villanova, before a career-day with nine grabs for 125 yards and a score at Lehigh. Miller had another 100-yard day with six catches for 116 yards in the UAlbany win.
 
KEARNEY MAKING PLAYS
Wide receiver Assanti Kearney has been a major weapon for Tony Muskett this season and leads the team with four touchdowns. In the Fordham game, Kearney had a career-best 121 yards, including receptions of 35, 28 and 25 yards. In the win at Villanova, Kearney registered his first-career two-touchdown game with receiving touchdowns of 21 and 18 yards, respectively. Kearney followed up that with a three-catch, 73-yard day at Lehigh, including a career-long 52-yard touchdown grab. Kearney set a new career high with six catches at Maine.
 
BACKS ON BACKS
The duo of Jaden Shirden and Owen Wright have paced Monmouth's rushing attack. Wright is the CAA leader with 13 rushing TDs and Shirden leads the FCS in rushing with 1,013 yards. In the win against UAlbany, Wright set a career-high with 114 yards, while Shirden totaled 160 on the ground. The effort was the first time since April 2021 that Monmouth had two 100-yard rushers, when Juwon Farri and (124 yards) and Romeo Holden (112) ran past Gardner-Webb.
 
WRIGHT'S RECORD RUN
Owen Wright's 99-yard touchdown run against UAlbany marks the third time in program history that a Monmouth back has tied the FCS record with a 99-yard rushing touchdown. Former backs David Sinisi (2007) and Jim Varick (1994) share the Monmouth record of 99-yard runs, each done against Sacred Heart. Earlier this year, Jaden Shirden had a 95-yard touchdown run against Fordham. Shirden's touchdown scamper is the fourth longest run in school history and Pete Guerriero had a 93-yard touchdown run in the 2019 NCAA Second Round against JMU. Monmouth's defense has allowed just one 90+ yard run, in the 2013 opener against Montana State (90).
 
CAN'T CATCH SHIRDEN
As a rookie in 2021, Shirden had a pair of 75-yard touchdown runs against Holy Cross and Robert Morris and seven of his 10 career touchdown runs have been at least 55 yards in length after a 75-yarder against UAlbany. Shirden's 917 rushing yards over the five games from Fordham-UAlbany are the most in a five-game span in program history. Shirden ran for 100 yards for the fifth consecutive game and became the first Hawk since David Sinisi in 2008 to have five straight games with at least 100 yards rushing. Shirden and Sinisi are the only two Monmouth backs to run for 100+ in five straight games.
 
JADEN MAKES MORE HISTORY
Jaden Shirden became the 16th player in Monmouth history to rush for 1,000 career yards – achieving the feat in just 15 games with his 211-yard performance against Villanova. The sophomore's 211-yard effort was the 14th 200-yard game in Monmouth history and the first by a Villanova opponent since 1995 (Jerry Azumah). Shirden became the third Hawk with multiple 200-yard games, joining Pete Guerriero (five times) and David Sinisi (four times). Shirden has 1,510 career rushing yards entering Saturday's game and he became the 10th player to run for 1,000 yards in a season with his 80-yard effort at Maine.
 
REID IN THE RANKINGS
Mike Reid's 10 pass breakups this season is tied for the third most of any player in the country. He currently ranks ninth in passes defended per game in the NCAA with 1.6 while his 11 passes defended is tied for fifth in the FCS. Reid's 18 career pass breakups ranks him 11th in the Monmouth history books while his 20 passes defended is just one away from checking into the top-15. His 10 PBU's this season is the eighth most in school history.
 
CAA LEADERS
Monmouth has the top scoring offense in the CAA at 37.9 points per game. The Hawks also lead the conference with 37 total touchdowns, 23 rushing touchdowns, yards per rush (6.11), and in total offense at 479.7 yards per game Individually, Jaden Shirden is tops in rushing yards per game (144.7) and Owen Wright leads the conference in scoring (84 points) and total touchdowns (14).
 
FCS ELITE
Monmouth ranks in the top 10 in the FCS in three offensive categories. The Hawks are seventh in total offense (479.7 yards per game), ninth in rushing offense (227.0) and 10th in scoring offense (37.9 ppg).
 
Individually, Jaden Shirden is first in rush yards per carry (8.81), first in total rushing yards (1,013) and rushing yards per game (144.7), and eighth in all-purpose yards per game (148.5). Owen Wright is second in the FCS in scoring with 12 points per game. Mike Reid ranks ninth in the country in passes defended with 11 and Tony Muskett is ninth with 14 touchdown passes.
 
OWEN WRIGHT: TD MACHINE
Running back Owen Wright has been a touchdown machine this season with a CAA leading 14 total touchdowns. Wright has at least two touchdowns in five games this season and his three rushing touchdowns against Fordham are the most for a Monmouth player in a game this season. Wright has 15 career rushing touchdowns at Monmouth after running for two in 2021. Wright had one rushing touchdown against Maine, giving him 13 rushing scores this year. His 13 rushing TDs are tied for sixth in a single season in program history.
 
GRIMES MOVES INTO TOP TEN
Linebacker Da'Quan Grimes led Monmouth with eight tackles against Maine. It was the fourth time this season that Grimes led the team in tackles and he had a team season-high of 12 in the win at Villanova. Grimes leads the Hawks with 51 tackles on the season and is ninth in program history with 243 career stops.
 
SHIRDEN RUNS PAST RAMS
Jaden Shirden was named the CAA Football Co-Offensive Player of the Week on September 12 after his scintillating effort on the ground against Fordham. The sophomore back set a program record with 299 rushing yards on 12 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns on runs of 80 and 95 yards, respectively. His 299 yards are the most rushing yards in an FCS game this season, they eclipsed the previous single-game record of 247 set by David Sinisi in 2008 and the 200+ yard performance was the most since Pete Guerriero ran for 220 against Holy Cross in 2019. Shirden averaged 24.9 yards per carry in the game, setting the program record for per game average with a minimum of 10 carries. Shirden had four explosive runs in the game, with carries of 35, 37, 80 and 95 yards.
 
REID ALL ABOUT IT
Junior Mike Reid became the first Hawk to earn a CAA Defensive Player of the Week award after having perhaps his most complete game as a Hawk, finishing second on the team in tackles with nine, recovering a fumble and registering a career-high three pass breakups in Monmouth's win over UAlbany. In the second quarter Reid pounced on a ball that was knocked out of the receiver's hand, ending a 44-yard strike and giving the ball back to the Hawks. Reid, who has a team-high 10 pass breakups this season, had one of the biggest of his career on the final play from scrimmage. With the Great Danes driving to tie the game from the Monmouth 26, Reid reached in front of the wide receiver and knocked the ball away to secure the Hawks' first home CAA victory.
 
MUSKETT'S STREAK CONTINUES
Tony Muskett has thrown at least one touchdown pass in every game of his career dating back to the Spring 2021 season. He has at least two touchdown passes in 14 of his 22 career games and has 48 career touchdown passes to go along with just 15 career interceptions. Muskett ranks fifth among active FCS players in career passing efficiency (149.37) and sixth in total offense per game (250.8 yards). Muskett set a new career standard with 78 rushing yards at Villanova and had 56 more at Lehigh.
 
MUSKETT CLIMBING THE MONMOUTH RANKS
Tony Muskett, who has started 22 consecutive contests for the Blue & White is continuing his assault on the Monmouth record books this season. The junior is fifth all-time in passing yards, career completions and total offense and fourth in passing touchdowns. His 48 touchdowns and 15 interceptions put him first in passing efficiency and his 64.4 percent completion percentage is second all-time behind former Hawk Brett Burke (2005-08).
 
FROM THE JUMP
Only two players in the country have started at quarterback in every game of their careers and thrown at least 45 touchdowns. Monmouth's junior QB Tony Muskett has thrown 48 career touchdown passes in 22 starts over his three seasons. Jackson St. sophomore Shedeur Sanders started all 13 games as a freshman in 2021 and tossed 30 touchdown passes en route to winning the Stats Perform Jerry Rice Award as the nation's top freshman. Sanders has 52 passing TDs in 20 career games.
 
CAA COACHES PRESS CONFERENCE
Audio Replay

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