The Monmouth Hawks football team opened its season with two road wins against non-conference opponents Colgate and Fordham.
The season-opening win against Colgate gave the Hawks their greatest comeback in program history, as the team overcame a 24 point deficit in the third quarter to win 42-39.
The offense started off slow against Colgate, as senior quarterback Derek Robertson threw two interceptions on the first two offensive drives for the Hawks, both of which the Raiders converted into touchdown drives.
Despite the early struggles, the offense got back on track on their third drive, as a clean 13-play, 80 yard drive ended in a Robertson touchdown pass to sophomore wide receiver Tra Neal. Colgate responded with a field goal before Robertson’s third interception of the game led to another Raider touchdown and a 24-7 Colgate lead. Both offenses traded punts before Robertson threw his fourth interception of the half with just seconds remaining in the second quarter. The Hawks went into the locker room trailing by 17 points.
Colgate opened the second half with a touchdown drive, extending their lead to 31-7 with approximately eight minutes remaining in the third quarter. In their first offensive drive of the second half, Robertson found junior wide receiver Gavin Nelson for a 70-yard touchdown pass a little over a minute after Colgate’s touchdown. A successful two-point conversion made the score 31-15. The Raiders quickly punted on their ensuing drive, and Monmouth would take advantage. A seven play, 74-yard drive highlighted by a 46-yard catch by senior wide receiver TJ Speight was capped off by a touchdown run by sophomore running back Rodney Nelson. A failed two-point conversion kept the score at 31-21 heading into the fourth quarter.
On the second play of the final quarter, Robertson found Gavin Nelson for his second touchdown of the game. A fumble by Colgate gave the ball back to the Hawks, and Nelson got his third touchdown of the game on a 51-yard touchdown pass from Robertson on the first play after the fumble. In less than a quarter of game time, Monmouth had turned a 31-7 deficit into a 35-31 lead. After the teams exchanged touchdowns late in the fourth, the Hawks were able to drain the final five minutes off the clock and hold on for a 42-39 victory. Robertson threw for 491 yards, four touchdowns, and four interceptions.
In the first half, Robertson had one touchdown pass and four interceptions. In the second half, he had three touchdown passes and no interceptions. Rodney Nelson ran for 169 yards and two touchdowns on 22 carries, and Gavin Nelson led the team in receiving with 176 yards and three touchdowns.
After a historic season opening win, the offense stayed hot with a 49-28 win over Fordham on Saturday. After the two teams combined for five touchdowns in the first quarter, Monmouth outscored Fordham 28-14 in the final three quarters to put the finishing touches on another road win. Robertson had one of the best games of his Monmouth career, as he accounted for all seven of Monmouth’s touchdowns. He had six passing touchdowns and one rushing touchdown, with four of those passing touchdowns going to junior wide receiver Josh Derry, who had ten receptions and 144 yards on the day. Rodney Nelson led the team in rushing, with 112 rushing yards on 25 carries.
Monmouth, who is now ranked No. 18 in the FCS top 25, will travel to North Carolina to play FBS opponent Charlotte on Saturday, Sep. 13 before their home opener against No. 12 Villanova on Sep. 20.
