MONMOUTH HAWKS (1-2, 0-1 CAA) AT #10/#9 VILLANOVA WILDCATS (2-1, 0-0 CAA)
Saturday, September 24, 2022; 3:30 p.m.
Villanova Stadium, Villanova, PA

BROADCAST INFORMATION
FloSports
Nick Mantegna (Play-by-Play); Steve Pinone (Color Analyst)
 
Monmouth Digital Network Audio
Matt Harmon (Play-by-Play); Gary Kowal (Color Analyst)

TICKET INFORMATION
For tickets click HERE for more information.
Promo code: Monmouth

HAWKS ON THE ROAD
Join fellow Hawk fans pregame for a Blue/White Club tailgate.
Click HERE for more information.

OPENING KICKOFF
Monmouth looks for its first CAA victory of the 2022 season when it meets Villanova on Saturday. The Hawks are coming off their first win of the season, a 45-6 win over Georgetown. Villanova plays its first CAA game of the season after starting the year with wins over Lehigh and LIU. Last week the Wildcats lost a 49-10 decision to Army.
 
A WIN WOULD
A win would give Monmouth its second victory in two all-time meetings against Villanova. The Hawks are in search of their first ever CAA victory. Monmouth would also secure back-to-back wins with a victory.
 
RANKED OPPONENTS
Monmouth is playing its first ranked opponent of the 2022 season with Villanova at No. 10 in the AFCA Poll and No. 9 in the Stats/Perform Poll. The Hawks have three wins over ranked teams in their history (2015 – 22/22 Liberty; 2019 - 4/5 Kennesaw State; Spring 2021 – 7/7 Kennesaw State).

ALL-TIME SERIES
Monmouth leads 1-0
Last Meeting: 9/17/11 W, 20-9 at Villanova
at Villanova: Monmouth leads 1-0
Streak: W1

DID YOU KNOW?
Running back Jaden Shirden is approaching a career milestone with 950 career rushing yards entering Saturday's matchup with Villanova. Shirden is attempting to become the 16th player in program history to run for 1,000 yards in his career. Shirden is coming off back-to-back 100-yard rushing performances and his consecutive 100-yard games are the first since Juwon Farri had three-straight 100 yard games in the Spring 2021 season against Charleston Southern, Gardner-Webb and Kennesaw State.
 
MONMOUTH IN THE RED ZONE
Monmouth's offense has been among the best in the country through three games when it enters its opponents' 20-yard line. The Hawks are 14th in the FCS in red zone offense, scoring on 92 percent of its drives. Monmouth has come away with points on 12 of its 13 red zone opportunities, highlighted by touchdowns on 11 trips.
 
CAA LEADERS
Monmouth has the top scoring offense in the CAA at 38.3 points per game. The Hawks also lead the conference with 16 total touchdowns, 12 rushing touchdowns, passing yardage (289.3 per game) and in total offense at 507.3 yards per game.
 
Individually, Tony Muskett leads the CAA in passing yards per game (282.3). On the ground, Jaden Shirden is tops in rushing yards per game (151) and Owen Wright leads the conference in scoring (48) and total touchdowns (8).
 
DEFENSE STEPS UP
Monmouth's defense bounced back in a big way in the win over Georgetown by limiting the Hoyas to six points. The six points are the lowest total since the Hawks held Presbyterian scoreless on Oct. 12, 2019. Monmouth's defense also smothered Georgetown on the ground by holding the Hoyas to 61 rushing yards. It was the first time the Hawks have held a team to less than 75 yards rushing since the matchup with Princeton in 2021. Monmouth's 39-point win was also its largest margin of victory since the 45-0 win over Presbyterian in 2019.
 
SHIRDEN ON THE LOOSE
Jaden Shirden was named the CAA Football Co-Offensive Player of the Week 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, which is the longest run in an FCS game this season.
 
As a rookie in 2021, Shirden had a pair of 75-yard touchdown runs against Holy Cross and Robert Morris and five of his six career touchdown runs have been at least 65 yards in length after a 67-yarder against Georgetown. In addition, 830 of Shirden's 950 career rushing yards have come at Kessler Stadium. Shirden's 438 rushing yards over the past two games are the most in a two-game span since Pete Guerriero had 460 over two games in 2019 against Hampton (240) and Holy Cross (220).
 
SHIRDEN'S RECORD RUN
Sophomore Jaden Shirden's 95-yard touchdown run in the first quarter against Fordham is the longest run in the FCS this season. Shirden's touchdown scamper also the third longest run in school history. Former backs David Sinisi (2007) and Jim Varick (1994) own the Monmouth record of 99-yard runs, each done against Sacred Heart. Pete Guerriero's 93-yard touchdown run in the 2019 NCAA Second Round against JMU was the most recent 90+ yard rush by a Hawk. Monmouth's defense has allowed just one 90+ yard run, in the 2013 opener against Montana State (90).
 
OWEN WRIGHT: TD MACHINE
Running back Owen Wright has been a touchdown machine through the first three games of 2022 with a CAA-best seven rushing touchdowns and one through the air. Wright scored twice at New Hampshire, he had three rushing touchdowns against Fordham and two rushing and one receiving in the win over Georgetown. His three rushing touchdowns against Fordham are the most for a Monmouth player in a game this season. Wright has nine career rushing touchdowns at Monmouth after running for two in 2021.
 
DO YOUR DANCE
Alex Bryant has made the most of his opportunities this season. Bryant had a career-high eight catches for 67 yards and registered his first-career touchdown reception in the season opener at UNH. Bryant led Monmouth in every receiving category with 13 targets on the night. The junior followed that performance with a career-long 60-yard touchdown reception against Fordham and had a team-high five receptions against Georgetown.
 
MONMOUTH AGAINST THE COLONIAL ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION
Monmouth is one of 13 current members of the CAA in football, with the addition of Campbell and North Carolina A&T set for 2023. The Hawks are 16-29 all-time against current CAA opponents. Monmouth has never played three teams in the conference; Elon, Richmond and William & Mary. The Hawks' wins over Hampton (3-0) came as a member of the Big South Conference, while UAlbany (5-12) and Stony Brook (5-4) were foes at times during Monmouth's time as a member of the Northeast Conference. Prior meetings with Delaware (0-1), Maine (0-3), Rhode Island (1-1), Towson (1-7) and Villanova (1-0) were non-conference contests. Monmouth opened its 2022 season with a loss at New Hampshire (0-1).
 
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 11 of his 18 career games and has 38 career touchdown passes to go along with just 12 career interceptions. The junior QB has also thrown for at least 200 yards in eight straight games. Muskett ranks fifth among active FCS players in career passing efficiency (145.11) and seventh in total offense per game (248.4 yards).

MUSKETT CLIMBING THE MONMOUTH RANKS
Tony Muskett, who has started 18 consecutive contests for the Blue & White will continue his assault on the Monmouth record books this season. The junior is sixth all-time in passing yards, sixth in completions and sixth in total offense. His 38 touchdowns and 12 interceptions already ranks him top in passing efficiency and his 63.7 percent completion percentage is second all-time behind former Hawk Brett Burke (2005-08).
 
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
Monmouth's game against Fordham was the definition of a shootout. The two teams combined for 101 total points, the most combined points in a Monmouth game since a 54-47 win over Wagner in 2018. Monmouth totaled 13 explosive plays (page 16) in the game, including seven in the passing game, five on the ground and one on special teams. On the other side, Fordham also had 13 explosive plays, including seven passing plays of 20 or more yards. As a team, Monmouth ran for 390 yards and racked up 713 yards of total offense, both totals rank as the second most in program history. The Hawks ran for 417 yards against La Salle in 1997 and had 790 yards of total offense opposite Gardner-Webb in 2018.
 
CAA COACHES PRESS CONFERENCE
Audio Replay

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