Final Score
#18/21 Monmouth (3-1, 1-0 CAA) – 51
#12/11 Villanova (1-2, 0-1 CAA) – 33
 
WEST LONG BRANCH, N.J. – In front of a sold-out Kessler Stadium, No. 18/21 Monmouth delivered a dominant home opener, piling up points and yards in a 51-33 victory over No. 12/11 Villanova on Saturday afternoon. The Hawks (3-1, 1-0 CAA) picked up their first win in a home opener since Spring 2021 and extended their streak of scoring 40 or more points in each of their last 13 wins, the longest such stretch in program history.
 
Monmouth's offense clicked from the opening drive as Derek Robertson continued his remarkable start to the 2025 campaign. The graduate quarterback completed 20-of-30 passes for 397 yards and four touchdowns, the first of which coming on the second play from scrimmage to wide receiver Josh Derry for 75 yards. Derry paced the 10 different Hawks to haul in a pass, finishing with eight catches for 177 yards – his fourth 100-yard contest of the year – and two scores.
 
Robertson has now surpassed 350 passing yards in six straight games dating back to last season and pushed his season totals to 18 touchdown passes and 1,662 yards through four games, both tops in the FCS. Running back Rodney Nelson anchored the ground attack with 186 yards and two touchdowns on a career best 33 carries.
 
The Hawks jumped out to a 17-7 lead at the end of the first quarter, backed by Derry's and Makhi Green long touchdown receptions. Green's 72-yard touchdown catch and run (51 YAC) at 3:00 came following a Hudson Fiene 28-yard field goal at 8:14. The Monmouth defense was able to hold the Wildcats scoreless for 25:11 straight of game time, including a game changing forced fumble inside the redzone by Jaeden Jones and recovered by true freshman Chris Palmer Jr. midway through the second. In that time frame, the Hawks jumped ahead 31-7 on touchdowns by Tra Neal and Elijah Jennings.
 
Villanova was able to cut the deficit to 10 in the third, but back-to-back scores by the Hawks – a Rodney Nelson 10-yard rush and Josh Derry's second touchdown grab of the afternoon – pushed the Hawks back ahead by 24. Nelson had another score in the fourth, this time from four yards out, as Monmouth's final offensive blow – pushing them over 50 points for the seventh time since joining the CAA in 2022.
 
Quotes
"It was a gratifying day. I think we started right from the beginning of the game offensively, moving down the field. They had difficulties stopping us, even to the end. The only times they were successful were when we stopped ourselves. On the defensive side, I thought we were opportunistic. We came up with key stops at key moments of the game. It wasn't a complete game, but it was good enough."
 
"I can't credit these guys enough for the work they put in this week. That was a top-12 team in the nation that we just took apart, so I'm very pleased with that right there."
 
"So much credit goes to our offensive guys and our offensive coaches. They really believed that we could move the ball downfield on these guys. Once we had that second play of the game, we had the attitude that no one could stop us out there." – Head Coach Kevin Callahan on the win
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"It's just trust. It's pretty easy when you get to throw the ball to the guys that I'm throwing the ball to. The amount of trust we have as a group is incredible. But we are hungry. We want more than what we had today." – Quarterback Derek Robertson on his relationship with his receivers
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"We spent a lot of time over the summer, just building a connection. Becoming one of his go-to guys. On a big third or fourth down, making sure I'm making a play, making sure I'm there for every opportunity." – Wide Receiver Josh Derry
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"My job is to get five yards each play, and if it pops, it pops. But I'm just thinking five. We are just taking it play-by-play, and if one of them pops open, it pops open. My job is just to get five yards and a first down." – Running Back Rodney Nelson on the consistency of the running game
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"That play was hype, it showed our effort, and it got all the guys excited. It shows, when everyone is clicking, how good we can really be." – Safety Jaeden Jones on his forced fumble in the second quarter
 
Notes
- 4,200 fans packed Kessler Stadium – the most since 2021 vs. Holy Cross.
- Monmouth improves to 4-0 all-time versus Villanova.  
- The Hawks (637) eclipsed 600 total yards on offense for the second time this season.
- Monmouth ran for 240 total yards, their most since last season vs. Bryant (328).
- Monmouth's 34 offensive first downs are the most they have recorded in a game this season.
- The Hawks surpassed 50 points for the seventh time since joining the CAA in 2022.
- The MU offensive line allowed no sacks; the sixth time Derek Robertson has been held upright for an entire game as a Hawk
- MU has possessed the ball for over 10 minutes in each of the last two fourth quarters vs. Villanova (10:18, today … 11:22, 2024).
- Josh Derry had 111 receiving yards in the first quarter and finished with 177. He has gone over 100 yards in each of his first four games this season, while leading the CAA in touchdown catches (8).
- Makhi Green's 72-yard touchdown catch was a career long.
- Rodney Nelson carried the ball a career-high 33 times.
- Jaeden Jones's forced fumble was the first of his career, and he led the Hawks with nine tackles.
- Josiah Graham had a team-high 1.5 sacks today bringing his season total to 5.0.
- Hudson Fiene connected on his first career field goal attempt in the first quarter.
 
Numbers Crunch
- The Hawks had more first downs, 34-27.
- Monmouth ran more plays on offense, 75-71.
- The Hawks had more total yards, 637-498.
- Monmouth had more time of possession, 32:21 – 27:39.
- MU was 7-of-12 on third down and 0-of-1 on fourth down.
- Villanova went 7-of-14 on third down and 0-for-1 on fourth down.
- Monmouth was a perfect 5-of-5 on redzone chances, while Villanova went 4-of-6.
- The Hawks tallied four sacks for 23 yards, while Villanova did not record a single sack.
- The Wildcats committed 13 penalties for 124 yards, while the Hawks had seven for 72.
 
Up Next
The Hawks enter the bye week with a 3-1 overall record including 1-0 in CAA play. Monmouth hosts Delaware State on Saturday, October 4. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on FloCollege.