The University of Rhode Island football team held off Central Connecticut State University for a 27-19 victory in the opening round of the Football Championship Subdivision Playoffs on Saturday, eliminating CCSU at Meade Stadium for the second straight year and earning a spot in the second round.
Rhody entered the postseason after clinching an outright Coastal Athletic Association title for the first time in program history with a dominating 38-10 win over Hampton University on Nov. 22.
The Rams won the final six games of the regular season, with the last five victories coming by two or more possessions, to earn the No. 9 seed in the FCS Playoffs. Meanwhile, the Blue Devils secured a bid to the playoffs by winning the Northeast Conference for the second straight year.
URI fourth-year quarterback Devin Farrell, who exited the Hampton game in the second quarter due to a foot injury, didn’t skip a beat in his return on Saturday. He found fifth-year tight end Connor Finer wide open down the sideline for a 28-yard touchdown to give the Rams a 7-0 lead on their first offensive drive of the game.
After a second consecutive three-and-out forced by the Rams’ defense, it took just three plays before Farrell connected with fourth-year receiver Marquis Buchanan over the middle, who broke a tackle and went untouched into the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown.
“When you’re able to get a lead early in the first quarter, get up 14 points, that changes things a little bit for [CCSU],” URI Head Coach Jim Fleming said. “I don’t think it changed it entirely, but it was good to play with a lead versus those guys.”
Despite the offensive firepower from Rhody out of the gates, the Blue Devils delivered a counterpunch when fourth-year quarterback Brady Olson found fourth-year running back Elijah Howard on a swing route for a three-yard touchdown to cap off a 16-play, 75-yard drive. CCSU continued to build momentum early in the second quarter when it worked into URI territory; however, the Rams came up with a crucial stop on fourth-and-four to force a turnover on downs.
URI took advantage of the stand by its defense, as Farrell hit fifth-year receiver Omari Walker in stride for a 54-yard gain on the ensuing drive before fifth-year running back Antwain Littleton Jr. punched in a one-yard touchdown on fourth down. The Rams added one more score when fifth-year kicker Garth White put a 42-yard field goal through the uprights to make it 24-7 heading into the locker room.
Both sides had missed opportunities throughout the third quarter, with second-year Jack Hennessey missing a 48-yard field goal for CCSU and White sending a 38-yard attempt wide left. Prior to White’s miss, the Rams also had a 27-yard touchdown by Buchanan called back due to a holding penalty.
“Last two weeks, we’ve had a couple of things where when it goes wrong, it really starts to snowball,” Fleming said. “We got to make sure that we tighten things up.”
Neither team was able to find the scoreboard in the third quarter, but the Blue Devils got a jolt of energy at the end of the quarter when they executed a fake punt for 16 yards to convert on fourth-and-four. Later in the drive, Olson found first-year receiver Damani Williams wide open in the end zone for a 25-yard touchdown to cut URI’s lead to 24-13.
CCSU kept clawing its way back into the game, as fifth-year cornerback Dekavis Preston intercepted Farrell on the next drive and took it all the way down to URI’s seven-yard line. The Rhody defense held the Blue Devils to an 18-yard field goal; however, the score still made it a one-possession game.
After both sides traded field goals, CCSU had one final chance when it began a drive at its own five-yard line trailing 27-19 with 1:36 left. Olson, who had over 300 passing yards on 62 attempts, brought the Blue Devils past midfield, but his Hail Mary attempt as the clock expired fell short of the end zone and the Rams secured the first-round victory.
“The thought of how you win or how well you win or how poorly you win, it doesn’t matter,” Fleming said. “You win and you move on. We certainly have things we can correct, certain things that you want to make sure we can continue to get better at, but it’s all about win or go home.”
With the victory, the Rams will move on to face No. 8 seed University of California, Davis in the second round of the playoffs. URI had its season come to an end in the second round last year in a 17-10 loss to Mercer University and has never won multiple postseason games in the same season.
“We know that feeling of losing; we don’t want that feeling ever again,” fourth-year linebacker A.J. Pena said. “We’re going to do whatever it takes to not have that feeling again.”
URI will travel to Davis, California, for the second-round matchup with UC Davis at 10 p.m. EST on Saturday. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2, and a radio stream will be available on The Varsity Network.
