Breaking Down The Keys To Monmouth University's 21-17 Victory Over North Carolina A&T

WEST LONG BRANCH — For much of Monmouth's recent history, the Hawks offense did the heavy lifting. Saturday, the defense put the offense on its shoulders with a second-half shutout that powered the Hawks to a 21-17 win over North Carolina A&T. For a defense playing on a day dedicated to former defensive coordinator Louis DiRienzo Jr., who died suddenly this summer, there could hardly have been a more fitting way to honor him.

"He was there with us," said Monmouth head coach Jeff Gallo. "It's what we've been working for all year. And this was big; we're not there yet. It's growth, and we've got to keep getting better. And we've gotten better over the course of the year, which is huge. It's that growth mentality, and there are things we can get better at from today; that's the beauty of it. But it was great to see them playing the second half for each other."

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Monmouth jumped to a 14-0 first-quarter lead on Nazir Treadwell's 2-yard touchdown run and a 4-yard touchdown pass from Tra Neal to quarterback Frankie Weaver. North Carolina A&T answered with 17 straight points as Kevin White threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Nebanye Moore, Asher Holland added a 22-yard field goal and White connected with Michael Carlock-Williams for a 20-yard touchdown to put the Aggies ahead 17-14 late in the second quarter. Weaver then found Christian Harrison for a 47-yard touchdown with 1:11 remaining before halftime, putting the Hawks back in front, 21-17. In a departure from the norm, those proved to be the winning points, as neither team scored in the second half.

"Just cleaning up the little mistakes, going out there and playing hard," said junior safety Jaeden Jones, referencing the defense's second-half turnaround. "The big focus at halftime is just knowing what we do it for. We knew that our game plan was solid; we had a good game plan. It just came down to execution. And we know Louis D was out there with us today, and that was our purpose. It's been our purpose all year."

KEYS TO MONMOUTH'S 21-17 VICTORY OVER NORTH CAROLINA A&T

MONMOUTH'S DEFENSE PLAYS FLAWLESS SECOND-HALF FOOTBALL: On a day when the Hawks' offense was a shadow of itself, the defense stepped up and answered the bell, unleashing perhaps its best half of football in recent memory and slamming the door on the Aggies when the Hawks could least afford to buckle. A loss Saturday would've put a serious dent in their quest to secure their first-ever Coastal Athletic Association championship. After surrendering 17 points and 261 yards of total offense in the first half, including scoring drives of 84, 91 and 65 yards, the Hawks defense flipped the script, holding the Aggies offense to 122 yards of total offense in the second half. On North Carolina A&T's seven second-half possessions, the defense forced six punts and recovered an Aggies fumble deep in Hawks territory. The Aggies were 4-for-8 on third-down conversions in the first half and 0-for-7 in the second half. After struggling to put pressure on quarterback Kevin White in the first half, the Hawks' pass rush was relentless in the second half. Tackle J.J. Lewis, end Jahide Lesaine Jr., and edge Mounir Keshen collected sacks, while tackles Avery Barnes and Bryce Rooks shared a sack. Several first-half blown coverages by the Hawks' secondary allowed White to complete 11-of-18 passes for 174 yards and two touchdowns, but they completely shut down White in the second half, limiting him to just two completions on 11 attempts for 60 yards and no touchdowns. The defense held the Aggies to 3.3 yards rushing per attempt, with Lewis, Rooks, Bigos, and Barnes doing a superb job clogging up the middle of the line. On the Aggies last possession of the game with 2:54 remaining, trailing 21-17 and desperately needing a score, Lewis sacked White on third-and-10, forcing a punt on fourth-and-17. The Hawks offense then ran out the clock. Linebacker Ryan Russo and Charlie Sasso led the team with eight tackles with Russo recording four solo stops and Sasso two. Sasso added 1.5 TFL.

REDSHIRT JUNIOR SAFETY DONOVAN FEY IS THE UNSUNG HERO: Fey recorded two under-the-radar plays that had major implications for how the game turned out. On A&T's only real drive of the second half, the Aggies faced second-and-8 at the Monmouth eight-yard line and were threatening to take the lead when cornerback Mir Haskett's hit on White forced a fumble, and Fey recovered the ball at the one-yard line with 9:02 left in the fourth quarter. Game-changing play by both Haskett and Fey. Then, with just over six minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the defense forced a three-and-out and punt after Christian Palmer defended an A&T third-down pass. Elijah Jennings fielded the punt at the Monmouth nine-yard line before fumbling it, but Fey was there to recover the ball at the 16-yard line for another game-saving play with the game on the line. On Jennings behalf, he led the team with 115 yards rushing on 19 carries, including a 39-yard jaunt that set up the Treadwell touchdown. He's gone over 100 yards rushing in three of the last four games.

QUARTERBACK FRANKIE WEAVER TURNS WIDE RECEIVER: Monmouth's offense has made creativity a calling card this season, using misdirection and unconventional formations to keep defenses guessing, and Saturday they threw in a new wrinkle. On third-and-4 from the four-yard line, the Hawks had Weaver split right and running back Nazir Treadwell in the shotgun. Treadwell took the snap and pitched to wideout Tra Neal on a reverse and Neal found Weaver streaking across the back of the end zone with a perfect pass that Weaver gobbled up to give the Hawks an early 14-0 lead. The last Monmouth quarterback to catch a touchdown pass was Brandon Hill in 2014.

WEAVER AND WIDEOUT CHRISTIAN HARRISON TEAM UP FOR CRUCIAL TOUCHDOWN: With 1:48 left in the first half, North Carolina A&T scored to take the lead, 17-14, with all the momentum having been swung to their side. Unfazed, Monmouth took over at their own 32-yard line and marched to the A&T 47-yard line, where they faced a third-and-9 with time running out in the half. Weaver took the snap and tossed a perfect spiral to Harrison, who was streaking down the right sideline. Harrison hauled it in around the 15-yard line and sprinted into the end zone for the game-winning points, 21-17. At the time, that would've sounded absurd, but that's why they play the game. That was Harrison's 20th catch of the season and second career touchdown reception as a Hawk. It was Weaver's 17th touchdown pass of the year and his fourth straight game without an interception.

MONMOUTH IS NOW IN CHARGE OF THEIR OWN DESTINY FOR CAA CHAMPIONSHIP: The Hawks no longer need help to finish the job. Saturday's victory secured at least a share of the program's first CAA football championship and improved Monmouth to 7-0 in conference play. A win at Campbell in the November 21 regular-season finale would complete an unbeaten 8-0 CAA campaign, clinch the outright championship and secure the league's automatic berth in the FCS playoffs, regardless of any other results. Monmouth could claim the outright title even sooner if Campbell loses to Elon on November 14. The Hawks host Merrimack that same day, but the nonconference matchup will not affect their CAA standing. With a title share already in hand, Monmouth can make the crown exclusively its own by beating Campbell.

The Hawks' (8-2, 7-0) seven-game winning streak is their longest since 2019, when they won the Big South championship and beat Holy Cross in the first round of the NCAA FCS Playoffs before losing to No.2 seed James Madison. North Carolina A&T entered the game on a three-game winning streak and had won four of their last five games. The Hawks remain ranked 14th in the country in the most recent AFCA FCS Coaches Poll, released today.