Football Turns To NEC Play With Saturday Trip To Duquesne
The Blue Devils begin a two-game road swing
October 12, 2023
The Central Connecticut State football team turns its attention back to Northeast Conference play on Saturday when it travels to Duquesne. The game is scheduled for 12:00 pm at Rooney Field in Pittsburgh, PA.
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The two squads are meeting for the 16th time, with CCSU winning seven of those meetings and the Dukes taking the victory on eight occasions. Duquesne has won the last two meetings. The Blue Devils are playing at Rooney Field for the third time in the last four meetings. CCSU's last win in the series came in 2019, on the road, a 43-10 triumph that helped proepl them to the NEC crown that season.
• CCSU has blocked a kick in each of its last four games and ranks second in FCS in that category
• CCSU ran for a school record 497 yards in the win over Delaware State and the 584 yards of offense is the most since putting up 667 yards at Bryant on 10/13/18
• Elijah Howard was named the NEC Offensive Player of the Week and earned FCS Honorable Mention after posting 257 rush yards - the third highest single-game total this season in FCS football
• Howard (257) and Malik Thomas (113) are the first Blue Devils to both rush for over 100 yards in the same game since October 6, 2018
• Ricky Ortega had three rushing touchdowns in the win on Saturday over Delaware State
• The 51 points scored is the most since scoring 52 at Bryant 10/19/19
• The CCSU offensive line has allowed just 0.6 sacks per game this season, fifth in the FCS and first in the NEC The probable starting five on the offensive line (Jonathan Kuhler, Isaiah DeLoatch, Jordin Martell, Mason Schloop, and Reis Spicer), have combined to play in 192 career games. Of that total, 81 have come since 2021.
• Three Blue Devils rank in the top three in the NEC in sacks. Dan Toatley leads the conference, and is 37th in FCS, at .70 sacks per game. Malachi Wright is 49th nationally and second in the NEC at 0.62 per game, and Ahmad Craig is fifth in the NEC at .40 sacks a game
• The Blue Devils 246.2 yards per game on the ground is 8th in the NCAA and are 28th at 410.6 yards of total offense/game. CCSU had a season-high 584 total yards against Delaware State, surpassing the 528 yards in the opener.
• CCSU leads the NEC in scoring at 31.0 points per game. Duquesne enters the weekend eighth in the NEC allowing 40 points/ game.
• Elijah Howard has accumulated 480 all-purpose yards in the past two games and is now 10th in the NCAA averaging 139.4 APY a contest. His 403 rushing yards in that time frame also has him 10th in the NCAA, averaging 100 yards per game - 12th in the country. At Brown he went 82 yards for a touchdown, the longest play from scrimmage for CCSU this year. Against Delaware State, his touchdown run was 80 yards. Howard is averaging 7.25 yards per carry on the year
• Kimal Clark remains the top tackler in the NEC, with 44 tackles, 8.8 per game - good for 36th in the NCAA. He has six or more tackles in every game this year, with a high-water mark of 13 at Kent State - a career-high.
• Ricky Ortega ran the ball 10 times against Delaware State and took three of them into the endzone. He is the first Blue Devil to record three rushing TD in a game since Nasir Smith found the end zone four time at Stonehill last season. Ortega ran for 78 yards against Delaware State as well as going 3-7 passing. He is third on the roster with 325 yards of total offense. Ortega has a team-best five touchdowns this season
• Dan Toatley has at least one TFL in each game this season and is second in the NEC with seven. He has 1.4 TFL's per game, good for 25th nationally. He leads the team in TFL and sacks, and is tied for second with 28 tackles.
• CCSU is second in the league allowing 163.8 yards per game on the ground
• Preseason All-NEC pick Luquay Washington made his season debut against Delaware State. He finished with four tackles, three solo, and two TFL's.
• Malik Thomas had his first 100+ yard rushing game against Delaware State, carrying the ball 10 times for 113 yards. He had his third touchdown of the season, a 53-yard scamper. He is averaging 68.2 APY a game this season, that includes a 41-yard TD reception at Brown. In the opening night win over AIC, he rushed for 80 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries.
• The Blue Devil defense has broken up 24 passes this season, with three interception. Tavian Montgomery (2) and Kimal Clark (1) have the interceptions. Nine different players have a PBU, led by Montgomery's six, and five apiece from Tyler Boatwright and Gavin Bryson.