CAA Football Week 10 Previews & Predictions: It's Playoffs Season
CAA Football Week 10 Previews & Predictions: It's Playoffs Season
November is here, meaning the CAA football campaign has officially reached Playoffs Month. Postseason contenders look to solidify their cases in Week 10.
November football just has a different aura to it. This time of year is when championship-caliber teams find another gear and separate themselves from the pack.
With the 2024 FCS Playoffs less than a month away, the Coastal Athletic Association heads into the home stretch with clear front-runners for postseason positioning. However, every week brings the opportunity for shake-ups. Stony Brook proved that in Week 9 with its dominant win over William & Mary, the Seawolves making their most resounding argument for playoff consideration yet.
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Stony Brook is one of four CAA teams appearing in the FloFootball FCS Playoffs forecast ahead of Week 10, joining Villanova, Rhode Island, and Richmond. The Seawolves are on the road at Bryant to kick off November, while each of their fellow playoff front-runners takes on teams hoping to build cases with strong finishes over the final month.
Get primed for three marquee CAA matchups with playoff implications set for Week 10, streaming on FloFootball.com.
Villanova at Hampton
No CAA team has more to gain in Week 10 than Hampton. The Pirates have won their last two conference games to improve to .500 in the league and 5-3 overall. A top-20 win against Villanova would propel Hampton into the playoff conversation with four games remaining on its docket, including another home date against a ranked opponent (Richmond on Nov. 16).
The Pirates have scored at least 41 points in each of their last three games, including in their 41-21 win over Elon last week. Credit a prolific rushing offense that, at 205.3 yards per game, ranks No. 15 in the FCS.
Quarterback Chris Zellous and running backs Elijah Burris, Ja'Quan Snipes, and Tymere Robinson have all carried for at least 245 yards and each has at least four rushing touchdowns. Quarterback Malcolm Mays has been an X-factor over the recent three-game explosion, too, passing for touchdowns in all three contests to complement the multifaceted run game.
Mays' 24-of-28, a four-touchdown passing performance that also included a touchdown in Hampton's overtime loss to Rhode Island showed the full array of the Pirates' offense against one of the best defenses in FCS. Hampton will need to tap into that again facing another of the best defenses the CAA has to offer.
And Villanova has perhaps not been better defensively at any point this season than in its Week 9 win over New Hampshire. The Wildcats held UNH without a touchdown. Most notably, Villanova denied New Hampshire at the goal line in the third quarter to cap a pivotal sequence.
Shane Hartzell's astounding 20 tackles garnered the Villanova linebacker national Player of the Week honors. Hartzell and running mate Brendan Bell, who made 4.5 tackles for loss with a sack and forced a fumble, will be the tone-setters for the Wildcats' defense against Hampton.
Slowing down Hampton is priority No. 1 for Villanova, and the Wildcats have the playmakers across all three phases to stack up effectively with the Pirates offense. But will the Villanova offense be able to give the Wildcats defense time to breathe is an important question.
Villanova's offense seemed to have found its rhythm with the 42-24 win at Stony Brook on Oct. 5, particularly through freshman running back David Avit's breakout performance. In the two games since, however, Villanova has scored just 21 total points.
The run game was dramatically improved against New Hampshire compared to the week prior's loss at Maine — 4.3 yards per carry as a team compared to 1.3 — but the passing game is up-and-down. Two of Connor Watkins' seven completions vs. UNH went for touchdowns, a development that Villanova will try to build on against a Hampton defense that ranks 18th nationally against the pass.
As it did last week for the Wildcats, Week 10 could very well come down to a pivotal stop in the second half.
PREDICTION: Villanova 20, Hampton 17
Monmouth at Rhode Island
Rhode Island’s 39-year playoff drought inches to a conclusion with every impressive second-half performance the Rams put together to stack wins. URI is undefeated against FCS competition after its 24-14 Week 9 win over Maine, a game that was quintessential Rhody football for 2024.
The Ram's defense stifled Maine with aggressive pressure in the backfield, particularly in the second half. Speaking of the second half, that's where Rhode Island won and has won repeatedly on its way to 7-1.
"Fourth-quarter performance has obviously been continuing all year long, which is critical," Rams coach Jim Fleming said. "We got into the fourth quarter, game tied up, hit a nice pass to Tommy Smith, and then finished it off with a nice run to Malik Grant...Then finished it off with a three-and-out and they had to punt into the wind and [the URI offense] got a short field."
In just three possessions of the fourth quarter, Rhode Island won on offense with the drive culminating in Grant's touchdown, the defensive stop, and then two big special-teams plays in the punt and a Ty Groff field goal. That sequence and the timing encapsulate why Rhode Island is well-positioned for its first playoff since 1985, but finishing the job over the next few weeks is crucial.
That starts with slowing down Monmouth, which just completed a four-game homestand at 2-2. The Hawks lost the finale last week to Towson, 26-14, in what was the least effective offensive performance in an otherwise standout season on that side of the ball.
Towson ground down the Hawks running game to 56 yards on 25 carries, and despite quarterback Derek Robertson throwing for 305 yards, the Tigers limited him to one touchdown. Getting pressure on Robertson, who ranks second nationally in passing yards per game behind SEMO's Paxton DeLaurent, proved vital for Towson. Expect Rhode Island's tenacious pass rush to have an impact this week, as well.
PREDICTION: Rhode Island 34, Monmouth 24
Towson at Richmond
Richmond appears to be peaking at the right time, closing out October with its two most dominant wins in a six-game streak. Coach Russ Huesman eased off the accelerator after the Spiders scored 41 points in the first half vs. Bryant, which could be to Richmond's benefit this week.
The extra rest for the Spiders first string sends them into a Week 10 matchup that promises to be especially physical. Towson comes into Robins Stadium having slowed down the CAA's most prolific offense in a way no other opponent could.
The Tigers also thrived defensively against William & Mary's multifaceted rushing attack. But Towson also gave up 52 points in a loss to Stony Brook, which derailed the Tigers' momentum after picking up back-to-back gutty wins over W&M and Norfolk State.
Consistent is something that's eluded Towson in an at times very promising 2024. Richmond, on the other hand, has been the picture of consistency. The Spiders defense ranks 12th nationally in points allowed, thanks in no small part to an overwhelming pass rush that averages 2.75 sacks per game. Jeremiah Grant had led the nation in sacks for a long stretch this season; New Hampshire's Josiah Silver has since taken over the FCS lead with 9.5, though Grant still boasts 8.5.
But while Richmond's defense has been excellent throughout the six-game winning streak, the key revelation has been a dramatically improved offense. Running back Zach Palmer-Smith is up to No. 11 nationally at 829 yards in eight games. He's also carried for nine touchdowns.
Quarterback Camden Coleman had incredible performances the last two weeks vs. Delaware and Bryant, passing for almost as many combined touchdowns (six) as he's thrown incompletions (eight). Nick DeGennaro is a dependable No. 1 target, but Richmond's entire rotation of pass-catchers are coming along at the right time for the Spiders to make a push to one last CAA championship before leaving for the Patriot League.
PREDICTION: Richmond 38, Towson 23
CAA Week 10 Schedule
- William & Mary at North Carolina A&T, 1 p.m. ET
- New Hampshire at UAlbany, 1 p.m. ET
- Monmouth at Rhode Island, 1 p.m. ET
- Villanova at Hampton, 1 p.m. ET
- Stony Brook at Bryant, 1 p.m. ET
- Towson at Richmond, 2 p.m. ET
- Campbell at Elon, 2 p.m. ET
What Are The Top Conferences In The FCS?
Curious about the top performers and strongest conference within the FCS ranks? We’ve got you covered.
See the FCS conferences ranked using a unique system that was originally developed for chess.
When Do The 2024 FCS College Football Playoffs Start?
The FCS playoffs begin on November 30, 2024.
The 2024 Division I FCS College Football Championship game will be played on January 6, 2025, at Toyota Stadium in Frisco, Texas.
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