RICHMOND, Va. – Monmouth University Football quarterback Derek Robertson has been named the 2025 CAA Football Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, the league office announced on Wednesday morning.
 
Robertson became the third consecutive Monmouth player of the CAA Offensive Player of the Year postseason award in 2024 and is the second overall for the preseason honor (Jaden Shirden, 2023). In addition, he is one of eight Hawks headlining the Preseason All-CAA Team and Honorable Mentions list – Monmouth's best representation since joining the conference prior to the 2022 season.
 
Derek Robertson delivered one of the most prolific seasons in Monmouth history in 2024, breaking single-season program records with 3,937 passing yards and 31 touchdown passes, and leading all of FCS in both air yards per game (328.1) and total offense per game (325.3). He completed 65% of his passes (283-for-435) and threw for at least one touchdown in every game, including seven outings with 350+ yards and a school-record 536-yard, three-touchdown performance at Stony Brook. Robertson also earned First Team All‑CAA honors, earned multiple All-America honors, and is a Stats Perform FCS Preseason First Team All‑American heading into 2025.
 
Joining the Hawks quarterback on the list were wide receiver weapons Josh Derry and TJ Speight, as well as tight end Jack Neri. Offensive tackle JT Cornelius also appeared on the preseason all-conference team, with running back Rodney Nelson earning an Honorable Mention. Speight enters 2025 as the conference's top kick returner, as well.
 
Derry emerged as one of Monmouth's most dynamic offensive weapons in 2024, recording 60 receptions for 917 yards and 5 touchdowns over 10 games – leading the CAA and ranking eighth in the FCS in receiving yards per game (91.7). He broke into the program's history books as the 11^th Hawk to notch 60 catches in a single season and delivered three 100-yard performances, including an electric 227-yard, two-touchdown outing against Maine with a career-long 94-yard touchdown, helping him earn a Second Team All-CAA selection.
 
Speight recorded 61 receptions for 896 yards and six receiving touchdowns, while adding 346 kickoff return yards and setting return statistics that ranked fourth in the CAA (1,346 all-purpose yards, 83.3 per game). He delivered three 100‑yard receiving games and electrified special teams with a 79‑yard kickoff return touchdown against Fordham. His explosive playmaking included a standout 151‑yard performance at Stony Brook and a career‑long 89‑yard touchdown catch versus Lafayette, earning him repeated conference accolades as both a receiver and returner.
 
Neri notched a career-best 32 catches for 329 receiving yards and five touchdowns in 2024 and returns for his sixth campaign donning the Blue and White. He finished as a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy highlight by an 83-yard effort in the win over No. 20/18 Stony Brook to close the year. Cornelius is expected to provide an imposing and experienced presence on the offensive line again for the Hawks after a Second Team All-CAA selection in 2024. Cornelius is also a Stats Perform FCS Second Team Preseason All-American ahead of 2025 and will be a key piece to protecting Robertson and paving the way for lead running back Rodney Nelson. Nelson exploded onto the scene as a redshirt freshman last year with 809 rushing yards and six touchdowns on 133 carries – averaging an impressive 6.1 yards per attempt.
 
Deuce Lee is the lone Hawk featured on the defensive side of the ball. Lee started in nine of 12 games and finished third on the team with 70 tackles (46 solo), adding five pass breakups, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in 2024. His standout performance came at Eastern Washington, where he posted a career-high 12 tackles (eight solo), and he earned CAA Defensive Player of the Week honors on September 22 – a well-deserved nod after sealing Monmouth's historic upset at FIU with a clutch forced fumble and recovery late in the game.
 
In addition, the Hawks were predicted by the league's head coaches to finish second in the conference standings, collecting four first-place votes in the conference.
 
Monmouth opens the season at Colgate on August 29, 2025. Tickets for the 2025 Monmouth Football season are available at MonmouthHawks.com/Tickets or by calling 732-263-5735.
 
Full List of Monmouth University 2025 Preseason All-CAA Honors

CAA Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Derek Robertson

Preseason All-CAA
QB – Derek Robertson
TE – Jack Neri
WR – Josh Derry
WR – TJ Speight
OL – JT Cornelius
S – Deuce Lee
KR – TJ Speight

Honorable Mention: RB – Rodney Nelson
 
 
2025 CAA Football Predicted Order of Finish
Selected by a vote of head coaches
1. Rhode Island (8 first-place votes) 163
2. Monmouth (4 first-place votes) 142
3. Villanova (2 first-place votes) 139
4. Stony Brook 125
5. New Hampshire 119
6. Towson 108
7. William & Mary 104
8. Elon 98
9. Maine 71
10. Campbell 53
11. Hampton 50
12. UAlbany 47
13. Bryant 32
14. North Carolina A&T 23