Monmouth (4-6, 2-4 CAA) vs. #8/9 Villanova (8-2, 5-1 CAA)
Saturday, November 16; 12:00 p.m. ET
Kessler Stadium; West Long Branch, NJ
 
Watch
NBC Sports Philadelphia+ / FloFootball
Play-by-Play: Matt Harmon
Analyst: Emory Hunt

Listen
WMCX 88.9 FM
Play-by-Play: Dan Yeserski
Analyst: Nick Giannantonio

Kessler Stadium Information
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Ticket Information
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Senior Day
Monmouth returns home to Kessler Stadium looking to snap a three-game losing skid. The Hawks welcome in nationally-ranked Villanova who comes into the contest as winners of three straight. 

Milestone Watch
Sone Ntoh is one rushing touchdown shy of equaling the single-season program record set by David Sinisi in 2008.
Derek Robertson is five passing touchdowns short of the single-season mark and 839 yards away from Kenji Bahar's record setting 2019 campaign. Ryan Moran needs six tackles to enter the top 10 in team history.

A Win Would ...
Be Monmouth's fifth victory and third in CAA play.
Keep Monmouth unbeaten all-time against Villanova (2-0).
Be Monmouth's sixth win all-time against a ranked team (5-24).

The Coaching Matchup
Kevin Callahan
32nd Season / 186-148
 
Mark Ferrante
8th Season / 55-31
 
All-Time Series
Series Record: Monmouth leads 2-0
At Monmouth: First Meeting
At Villanova: 2-0
Most Monmouth points: 49, 9/24/22
Most Villanova points: 42, 9/24/22
Most combined points: 91, 9/24/22
Biggest Monmouth win: 11, 9/17/11
Current streak: Monmouth, W2

A Ntoh for the End Zone
Running back Sone Ntoh has found the end zone 35 times in 21 career games for Monmouth. Ntoh scored on a 19-yard run to extend his streak of games with a touchdown to 10. Ntoh has scored at least one touchdown in all but two games over the last two seasons, highlighted by his career-high five TD effort against Fordham. Ntoh's five touchdowns against the Rams equaled the program record held by David Sinisi and Ralph O'Neill. His 35 rushing touchdowns are tied with Pete Guerriero for second in program history.

Tough Sledding
The Hawks will look to end a three-game losing streak on Saturday when Villanova comes to town boasting the top defense in the CAA. Over the last three games, Monmouth has faced strong defensive units, including two in the top six of the league in Rhode Island and New Hampshire. Monmouth is averaging 20.7 points over its last three contests, while Villanova comes in allowing 16.3 points per game to its opposition on the season. The Hawks have played without a pair of starting offensive linemen during a significant portion of the last three games as left tackle Matt Fries and center Ed Gatling have been out of the lineup.

50 Piece
Monmouth has scored 50-plus points three times this season, marking the first time the team has accomplished that feat since 2018 and the third time ever, joining the 2014 squad. No Monmouth team has ever scored more than 50 points in a game four times. On the year, MU is averaging 37.3 points per game, with the program record sitting at 36.4 points per game set in 2022. The 63 points Monmouth scored against Fordham are the most for a CAA team in a game this season and only two other CAA teams have scored more than 50 points in a game this year. In their four wins, the Hawks have outscored their opponents 211-102. Overall, Monmouth has scored 373 points, while surrendering 322 points. 

Defense Rising
Monmouth's defense has steadily improved throughout the season and turned in its best performance of the year in the win over Bryant. The Hawks held Bryant to a season-low 17 points and set new season-highs in sacks (3), tackles for loss (6) and interceptions (2). It was the first time Monmouth had three sacks and two picks in the same game since it had four sacks and two interceptions at Towson last season. Against Rhode Island, Monmouth's defense forced a season-high three turnovers, two interceptions and a fumble recovery, as well as a turnover on downs. Faced with multiple short fields, Monmouth's defense held its own at UNH and forced four field goals, as well as a turnover on downs against the Wildcats.

First Impressions
Monmouth freshmen have made an impact on defense this season. Linebacker Willy Love has played in every game for the Hawks and has 20 tackles to this point. In the secondary, Jaeden Jones made the most of his first extended action with a seven-tackle performance at Rhode Island and he blocked a field goal in the game. Jones made two tackles in his first start at UNH. On special teams, Destin Hill made three tackles in his debut against Rhode Island. Against UNH, Kyle Jackson made his Monmouth debut and contributed a pair of tackles and a forced fumble. Hunter Watson and Sebastian Achempong have also seen limited action on the defensive line. 

Derek's Dominance
Derek Robertson has been exceptional for Monmouth this season, emerging as one of the top quarterbacks in the FCS. He currently is fourth in the nation in passing yards per game (304.3) and ranks fourth in passing touchdowns with 25. Robertson is also responsible for 15.2 points per game (12th in FCS), while his passing efficiency rating of 152.3 places him 19th nationally. Robertson has recorded the second 3,000 yard passing season in program history. He tied the program record with his 35 completions at FIU, equaling the effort by Kyle Frazier against Cornell on October 13, 2012. 

Within the CAA, Robertson is leading the conference in most major passing categories, including passing yards and touchdowns. His ability to consistently move the ball down the field has been crucial to Monmouth's high-powered offense, which leads the league in total offense at 468.7 yards per game, passing offense (305.6) and scoring at 37.3 points per contest. Robertson became the fastest Monmouth QB to 2,000 passing yards in a season when he did it in six games and he occupies five of the top 12 single-game passing yard totals in Monmouth's program history.

Spreading the Love
Derek Robertson has distributed the ball effectively this season, connecting with a variety of Monmouth receivers. Robertson has completed double-digit passes to eight different players. Leading the way is Josh Derry, who has emerged as Robertson's primary target, recording 754 receiving yards and four touchdowns. TJ Speight and Tra Neal lead the Hawks with six touchdowns each, while Jack Neri, Maxwell James and Gavin Nelson have also each scored multiple touchdowns. The depth of Monmouth's receivers has been instrumental in its ranking as the top passing offense in the CAA and fifth in the FCS, at 305.6 yards per game.

Tackling Totals
Justin Bennin made a career-best 14 stops against Towson, the most for a Monmouth player in a game this year. Deuce Lee (12), Sam Korpoi (10) and Damir McCrary (8) each set new career highs in total tackles against Eastern Washington, with Korpoi equaling that effort against Towson. Miles Mitchell added six tackles at EWU to equal his career high, while Alex Odom made eight in his Monmouth debut, giving him more than 200 career tackles after coming over from Temple with 199 stops to his name. In the Lafayette game, Emmanuel Lane led Monmouth with a career-best nine stops. Isaiah Rogers set a new career-high with 11 tackles in the Delaware contest.  Israel Clark-White turned in a new personal high with seven tackles in the victory over Bryant, while Charlie Sasso (8) and Jaden Jones (7) each had career-highs at Rhode Island. 

CAA in the Polls
CAA Football has four teams ranked in the latest FCS Top 25 polls. Richmond is the highest ranked team at #7 in the AFCA Coaches Poll and the Spiders are #11 in the Stats Perform Poll. Villanova is #8 in the Coaches poll and #9 in the Stats Poll. Stony Brook is #16 in Stats and #17 in the Coaches rankings, while Rhode Island #15 and #18 in Stats and Coaches, respectively.

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