MONMOUTH HAWKS (4-4, 2-3 CAA) VS TOWSON TIGERS (2-5, 0-4 CAA)
Saturday, October 29, 2022; 1 p.m.
Kessler Stadium, West Long Branch, NJ

BROADCAST INFORMATION
FloSports, NBC Sports Philadelphia, SNY
Matt Harmon (Play-by-Play); Brandon London (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
Pre-game trunk or treat from 11:30am-kickoff, open to the public and all participants will receive a special $5 ticket to the Halloween themed-Hawks vs. Towson at 1pm. 

OPENING KICKOFF
Monmouth hosts Towson on Family Weekend at Kessler Stadium. The Hawks are coming off a 7OT loss to Rhode Island, while Towson enters the game in search of its first CAA victory. Monmouth and Towson are playing for the first time in 20 years after playing in eight straight seasons from 1995-2002.
A WIN WOULD
A win would give the Hawks a third victory in conference play and snap a two-game skid. Monmouth would also improve to 3-2 at home this season and give the Hawks their second ever win over Towson.
 
HAWKS ON LINEAR TELEVISION
Saturday's game is one of six Monmouth home games that will be broadcast on linear television this season. The contest will be shown live in both the New York and Philadelphia markets on SNY and NBC Sports Philadelphia. In additional to the traditional TV broadcasts, FloSports will also carry all home and conference road games on its streaming platform.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES
Towson leads 7-1
Last Meeting: 11/02/02, Towson 20, Monmouth 0
at Monmouth: Towson leads 4-0
Streak: L1

DID YOU KNOW?
Owen Wright's 14 rushing touchdowns are the most in a single season since Pete Guerriero had 18 in 2017. Wright's 14 touchdowns are tied for sixth most in a single season in program history with Julian Hayes (2011).

FAMILIAR FACE ACROSS THE FIELD
For the second time this season the Hawks will face a former a player as part of an opposing team's coaching staff. Towson's linebacker's coach, Christian Runza, was a Monmouth player from 2014-2017, starting out as a quarterback before moving to the other side of the ball as a linebacker. Runza appeared in 31 games over three seasons at linebacker and on special teams having his most successful year in 2017 when he helped guide the Hawks to their first NCAA Playoff Appearance.
 
HAWKS BECOME PART OF FCS HISTORY
Last weekend Monmouth and Rhode Island played the longest game in FCS history, with the game needing seven overtimes to finish. The longest game in FCS vs FBS history came earlier in the year when Eastern Kentucky knocked off Bowling Green 59-57, also in seven overtimes. The longest game in college football history came in 1998 when Bethune-Cookman defeated Virginia State in eight overtimes. The loss to Rhode Island snapped a three-game winning streak for Monmouth in overtime contests.

PUTTING ON A SHOW
Monmouth's offense has been outstanding in its four games this season at Kessler Stadium. The Hawks have averaged 44.5 points and 531 yards of total offense per home game in 2022. Since opening Kessler Stadium in 2017, Monmouth has played 29 home games. The Hawks have scored 30 points or more 25 times and have a 23-2 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 1,651 yards in his career and 1,131 of those yards have come in home games. At quarterback, Tony Muskett has a career 28-7 touchdown-to-interception ratio at Kessler Stadium.

BACKS ON BACKS
The duo of Jaden Shirden and Owen Wright have paced Monmouth's rushing attack. Wright is the CAA leader with 14 rushing TDs and Shirden leads the FCS in rushing with 1,154 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.

RECORD RUNS
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 1,651 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 11 pass breakups this season is tied for the second most of any player in the country. He currently ranks ninth in passes defended per game in the NCAA with 1.5 while his 12 passes defended is tied for fourth in the FCS. Reid's 19 career pass breakups ranks him tied for eighth  in the Monmouth history books while his 21 passes defended puts him in the top-10. 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 38.9 points per game. The Hawks also lead the conference with 42 total touchdowns, 25 rushing touchdowns, yards per rush (5.87), and in total offense at 480.5 yards per game Individually, Jaden Shirden is tops in rushing yards per game (144.2) and Owen Wright leads the conference in scoring (90 points) and total touchdowns (15).

CAA COACHES PRESS CONFERENCE
Audio Replay

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