Monmouth football looks to stay hot in homecoming vs. Towson | preview

WEST LONG BRANCH -- Even after a clutch 31-28 road win last weekend over Dartmouth, the intensity is unwavering for Monmouth football. In the midst of an 11-on-11 session at Tuesday's practice, one of the team's stars was challenged by his positional coach.

"Want to make a name for yourself?" The coach said. "This is the week to do it."

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The Hawks are at the point of the season when their hard work deserves to be rewarded. But the reward? That's just the opportunity to work even harder. Monmouth has a winning record for the first time this season, but that positive is an undersell for what the group has accomplished in the first month.

The Hawks are 3-2 overall and 2-0 in conference play, one of just two such teams in the CAA (No. 18 Campbell is the other). They just got a signature non-conference win on the road against Dartmouth, a perennial Ivy League title contender that finished 7-3 last season and went toe-to-toe with No. 6 Lehigh in their season opener the previous week. And the overall success on the road is the understated part of the strong start, as the Hawks only had one home game out of their first five contests.

Now, they're poised to let loose with a homecoming matchup against winless Towson.

Looming above all the other superlatives is the net result: the Hawks control their own destiny at this key inflection point in the fall campaign. There are certainly no guarantees for Monmouth as the team enters the gauntlet of conference play, embarking on a long road that will presumably lead to a high-stakes season finale on the road against Campbell. But the Hawks have earned the right to decide for themselves what they are capable of accomplishing in 2026.

"Our guys have had a great mindset from the off-season, winter to spring to summer to now, of just constant forward motion," Monmouth offensive coordinator Jimmy Robertson said. "We talk about continual improvement every day, and it's really just the mindset and the daily work they put in. And now you're seeing some of those results on the field."

But even with the recent positive trends, there is plenty of room for improvement. That double-edged sword is a good thing considering that Monmouth's potential is still considerably higher than what has been shown in the first five games, but it's also a reminder that the Hawks' perch is a precarious one.

Last year's season-ending loss to Albany, already avenged two weeks ago with a momentous road win, is a reminder of how quickly the tides can turn in college football. The Hawks will face a potential trap game when they host Towson (0-5) on Saturday in West Long Branch. But there's no need for an overly grounded outlook when Monmouth is flying high.

"It all starts with their day-to-day approach of just every day, what can I do to get better?" Robertson said. "We talk about, I can give more, I must give more for myself, for my unit, for my teammates—for everyone that puts on this jersey."

Where to watch Towson vs. Monmouth

Game: Towson at Monmouth

Date and Time: Saturday Oct. 3, 1 p.m.

Where: Kessler Stadium - West Long Branch

Watch: FloSports

The offense has been hitting on all cylinders over the past two wins, delivering the high-powered efficiency that has become synonymous with the program. The Hawks are fifth in the FCS (among teams that have played at least four games) in converting third downs at 39-for-75 (52%).

Most of the other metrics are still generally modest for Monmouth, a sign of the team's room for improvement and a reminder that it's still too early to get broadly useful statistically sample sizes at the FCS level. But the takeaways from the past two games, especially on offense, are clear. Quarterback Frankie Weaver had arguably his best game of the season against Dartmouth, finishing with 313 yards on 33-of-42 passing with two touchdowns and no interceptions.

"He really found that rhythm last game, and he was just taking what the defense gave him," Robertson said. "We told him we thought there were some things where we can take some of those pre-snap throws and those shorter throws, and then we said the explosives will come. We have great playmakers on the perimeter. We know he can make every throw in the offense. So kind of just let the game come to you, let the explosives come. But he did a great job of distributing the ball, his completion percentage was close to 80%. He knows to just get the ball to a playmaker, and let them make you look good."

It also helps Weaver to have playmakers just a few feet away in the backfield. Redshirt freshman Kenny Smith Jr. of Glassboro had a career day against Dartmouth, finishing with 93 rushing yards on 23 carries and a touchdown. The 5-foot-10 and 190-pound running back is a speedy weapon in the pass game and run game, but the growth of him and Elijah Jennings as tough runners that can churn out yards on a high volume of carries has been key to unlocking more weapons in the offense as a whole.

"It's constant forward motion. On offense, try to eliminate all negative plays," Smith said. "Ding—two (yards). Ding—four/five. Then the explosives will come over time, but staying consistent and staying grounded. Staying humble and just knowing to put in the work, do your job, and the big plays will come."

The big plays, augmented by countless smaller ones, have been flowing for Monmouth over the past two victories. For the first-year offensive coordinator Robertson, it's been an impressive testament to a complimentary game plan and strong sequencing over the first month. Sharp execution has been key for the Hawks, but more aspects of the offense will open up as the more novel and elaborate designs are unveiled as the season progresses.

"It's been a great experience and it all starts with the people here," Robertson said. "We have a great offensive staff, starting with Coach Gallo, who was the best in the country at doing it the last few years. Then Coach Gabriel, Coach K Cal, Coach Dorsett, Coach Long, Our QCs and analysts—so it's a very collaborative effort. Then when you have players like Gavin (Nelson) and Tra (Neal) on the outside and the o-line making plays, they make all of us look good. But at the end of the day, it's really just all the people in the program. I'm the one who gets to call the play on game day, but it's a very collaborative effort."

The depth of that collaboration goes beyond the field, but it's reflected in the most recent win over Dartmouth. Weaver found eight different receivers over the course of his banner day, which also included career receiving highs for Greg Genross and Christian Harrison, the latter of whom scored his first touchdown with Monmouth. Both Smith and Jennings found the end zone against the Big Green, and Nazir Treadwell continues to get more involved as the powerful change-of-pace in short yardage situations. Last year's prominent stars were impossible to ignore as outstanding focal points, but this year it is a collective effort that keeps opposing defenses off-balance.

"Honestly, I feel like it's the culture here. Everything we do, we gotta do it hard. Whether it's picking up a blitz or catching a ball in a route, I'm gonna give it 100%," Smith said. "That's kind of like what being at Monmouth is about—It's doing hard things."

Monmouth must contain Towson's talented quarterback

Regardless of the significance of the qualifier, Towson might have the best quarterback of any winless team in the country. Sophomore signal caller Andrew Indorf was the CAA's co-Offensive Rookie Offensive of the Year last year with the Tigers after throwing for 16 touchdowns and 2,344 yards with just four interceptions. And despite the team's struggles, The 6-foot-1 and 190-pound passer has been on an even better statistical pace in his second season with 1,263 yards and 11 touchdowns to four picks in the first five games.

Indorf is an ideal encapsulation of the primary challenge Monmouth faces this week—Towson has talent on offense, especially in the passing game. The top receiving target is Penn State transfer Aaron Enterline (6-2 and 185), who has amassed 419 receiving yards and seven touchdowns on 28 catches. And the team's second-leading receiver, Cleveland Charlton, is an imposing 6-5 target with 198 yards and two scores this fall.

The caliber of the aerial attack must not be underestimated, but Towson's results demonstrate some of the team's overall deficiencies. The Tigers are coming off their most competitive showing of the season against a 3-2 Delaware State, mounting a second half comeback to take a 28-27 lead in the fourth quarter before losing 33-28. Prior to that, Towson was not competitive in losses to Morgan State, South Carolina and Navy. The lone CAA result was a 21-18 loss to 1-4 Maine in the opener after the Tigers fell behind 21-0.

As the enduring Bill Parcells quote goes, the Tigers are what their record says they are. But they also have the composition of a team that can cause Monmouth problems. The Hawk defense shown a tendency to be lackadaisical with early leads against Albany and Dartmouth, allowing opponents to make late rallies. The Towson rushing attack ranks 122nd out of 124 FCS teams, so the passing game is clearly the primary threat.

The Hawks do have matchups to stifle the Towson aerial attack. Monmouth's taller cornerbacks in Christian Palmer, Omar Ibrahim and Elijah Mathis are well-suited for the physical challenge. The pass rush that stagnated a bit against Dartmouth will need to bounce back to pressure Indorf, but will have a chance to feast against a Tigers team that has allowed 19 sacks, tied for third-most in the FCS. In particular the edge rushing group of Mounir Keshen, Donovan Dyson and Jahide Lesaine should have favorable matchups all afternoon.

Hawk offense must take flight against vulnerable Towson

Defense is the more vulnerable side of the ball for Towson, as the Tigers conceded 33 points to a Delaware State team that hadn't surpassed 21 points since a season-opening win over Stony Brook and 41 points to a Morgan State squad that only scored 17 and 7 in other games against D-I opponents.

Coming off a huge showing against Dartmouth, the Monmouth passing attack faces another favorable matchup to exploit this week. As far as FCS opponents, the Hawks present a scaled-up challenge of anything Towson has faced prior. With so many players involved last week, that primes the playmakers on the perimeter for a big day where virtually every matchup is favorable.

That is less true for the running game, as Towson was able to limit Delaware State's running backs to just 37 yards while allowing 71 yards to the quarterback. Monmouth obviously doesn't have that dimension with Weaver, but the Hawks' running game is more in line with the Morgan State cast of rushers that went for 123 yards against the Tigers. It's also notable that Monmouth road the running game to a 42-31 road win over Towson last year, totaling 198 yards on the ground.

Ultimately, both avenues should be open to the end zone given the inferred talent advantage for Monmouth based on production. The worrisome possibility is the Hawks getting caught in a shootout like Delaware State. Playing mistake-free football will be key, as Towson is unlikely to get traditional stops especially in the red zone. It could be another Saturday with a heavy dose of run and the short pass game, leaning into the Hawks' talent advantage and wearing down the Tigers' reeling defense.

Prediction: Monmouth 42, Towson 28

Monmouth can't look past this game and ahead to next week's bye, but every indicator is that this will be the team's first win by multiple possessions.

The Monmouth defense needs to prove they can hold an opponent under 20 points, and until then that puts a fair amount of pressure on the offense to stay ahead of the eight ball. Towson's passing game is talented, and will be forced to be aggressive as they play from behind. They'll get some points against the Hawks while trailing, but not enough to keep things within a realistic striking distance.

The Hawks follow a similar blueprint to the win at Dartmouth with a hard-nosed run game and a horizontal passing game that allows their weapons to make plays. Marcus Middleton gets his first real breakout game against the Tigers, complimented by the usual explosiveness of receivers Nelson and Neal. The rushing attack is lights out in the red zone, as all three running backs score a touchdown. Monmouth is up 42-21 entering the fourth quarter and cruises into the bye week with a win to stay unbeaten in CAA play.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Monmouth football looks to stay hot in homecoming vs. Towson | preview

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