Blue Devils Score 20 Unanswered in Fourth Quarter to Claim a Share of 2009 NEC Title

Junior Josue Paul caught a 69-yard touchdown pass with 2:23 to play in the fourth quarter to cap a 20-point quarter for Central Connecticut and defeat Monmouth 20-19 on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Devils trailed 19-0 before scoring their first touchdown of the game with under 14 minutes to play in the fourth quarter. With the victory the Blue Devils improve to 8-2 overall and 6-1 in the NEC, and claim at least a share of the 2009 NEC title. It marks the third time since 2004 that Central has won at least a share of the NEC title. A win next week at St. Francis (PA) and Central can win their first outright league title.

Paul's touchdown capped an explosive fourth quarter for the Blue Devils as they racked up 176 yards and scored 20 points to finish the comeback. Down 19-13, Paul caught a pass from senior quarterback Aubrey Norris at the Monmouth 40. He broke one tackle and a pair of blockers led him down the sidelines as he trotted in for the game-winning score. The extra point by junior Joe Izzo put the Blue Devils ahead for the first time in the game with 2:23 on the clock.

Things did not look good for the Blue Devils after three quarters. Monmouth had held the Central running game in check, and the rain and wind was causing havic for each team through the air. Central had only 155 yards of total offense in the first three quarters.

"These guys don't quit," head coach Jeff McInerney said following the emotional victory. "We knew we would get the wind in the fourth quarter and we thought we could move the football. There is just no quit in these guys. We made the defensive stops and adjustments that we had to keep us in the ball game. Then we just needed our offense to make some plays, and they did that in the fourth quarter."

Monmouth senior tailback David Sinisi scored his third touchdown of the game with 3:30 on the clock in the third quarter to give the Hawks the 19-0 lead. They had missed an extra point earlier in the game and decided to go for two after the Sinisi score. The attempt was no good, a key play in the game as Central went on to win by one.

Fullback Eric Richardson got the Blue Devils on the board in the fourth quarter for the first time in the game. Central, who has now won eight straight games at home and finishes 2009 4-0 at Arute Field, capped a 10-play, 80-yard drive with Richardson's six-yard scoring run. Izzo kicked the extra-point.

Norris would scored the second touchdown of the quarter for Central. This time the Blue Devils drove 13-plays and 79-yards to cut the lead to 19-13. The extra point was blocked.

After forcing the Hawks to punt, the one-play drive to Paul, his fourth receiving touchdown of the year, gave the Blue Devils the lead for good. Monmouth had another chance to score but on a fourth down play in Blue Devil territory Hawk quarterback Kyle Frazier slipped on the wet turf and the Blue Devils went on to down the ball three times for the victory.

Paul finished another impressive day with six catches for 131 yards and the touchdown. It was his third 100+ yard game of the season and his second in the last two weeks.

"Josue is a playmaker and he has proven that in his three seasons," McInerney said. "Aubrey did a great job of finding in his route and once he got his hands on the ball he was gone."

The Blue Devils have now won eight games for the second time in the four seasons under McInerney and for the third time in the last six seasons. McInerney improves his home record to 17-2 and the Blue Devils are 26-3 at home since 2004.

The comeback win marks the sixth time this season that the Blue Devils have won a game when trailing at the half.

Senior running back James Mallory rushed for 98 yards in the victory, surpassing 3,000 yards for his career. He becomes the second back in school history to reach that milestone and now has 3,079 yards rushing in his four seasons.

Norris finished the game 10-of-19 for 158 yards and the touchdown. He completed 6-of-7 passes for 126 yards and a touchdown in the fourth quarter alone. Central outgained Monmouth 176-56 in the quarter leading to the comeback win. Norris completed 9-of-12 passes in the second half after starting just 1-of-7 on the day.

Defensively the Blue Devils were led by Lawton Arnold who had a team-high 13 stops, including five solo. Gene Johnson had 12 tackles while Alondre Rush and Paul Briody each had a sack. Senior Marcus Dorsey had his team-best fifth interception of the season in the first quarter.

The win gives the Blue Devils at least a share of their third NEC title since 2004. They can win their first-ever outright title with a win on the road at St. Francis (PA) next week.