WEST LONG BRANCH – What if I told you the country’s top FCS offense last year, led by the nation’s most prolific passer throwing to a talented young receiving corps that combined for video game-like numbers, had no one enter the transfer portal.
You’d laugh, right, because it couldn’t possibly be true. Except it is.
Oh, and that team closed last season with back-to-back wins over nationally ranked teams, and had a chance to beat two other top-20 foes in the final minute.
Intrigued?
The heart-stopping thrill ride Monmouth took everyone on last season only amounted to a 6-6 record. But if a flood of defensive reinforcements from the portal can stabilize the defensive side of the ball, the Hawks have the look of a championship contender in the CAA.
“Especially in today’s day-and-age of college football, it doesn’t happen very often. It speaks volumes about this place and the guys in that locker room,” said grad student Derek Robertson, who led all FCS quarterbacks with 3,937 passing yards, along with 31 TDs and just six interceptions.
“Ultimately, the decisions came down to everyone wanting a chance to win a championship, and that is what our goal is.”
That familiarity within the group – the Hawks rolled up 690 yards in a 55-47 win over No. 16 Stony Brook in the season finale - could be a huge advantage, with receivers TJ Speight, Josh Derry, Tra Neal, Gavin Nelson and Maxwell Janes combining for 3,259 receiving yards and 25 TDs, while running back Rodney Nelson flashed his big-play potential as a freshman.
“I think there’s a high level of anticipation for what this group can accomplish,” head coach Kevin Callahan said.
“How much can the defense develop. We had a lot of shootouts last year and some we won, some we didn’t. If we can maintain what we did on offense, and then ratchet up the defense, you’ve got to feel pretty good about it.”
Big question mark
That was the backdrop as the Hawks opened spring practice this week at Kessler Stadium, seeking to take full advantage of an offense that’s been among the nation’s most productive since 2019.
In the second season under defensive coordinator Lewis Walker, any resurgence will have to start with a core of young returnees. after losing six of their top 10 tackles off a unit that finished 14th in yards allowed in the 16-team CAA. Walker also remade the defensive staff during the offseason, adding Codey Cole as the defensive line coach and Louis DiRienzo Jr. as linebackers coach, while former Hawk Kamau Dumas will be in charge of the defensive backs.
The defensive backfield should be a strength, led by senior captain Justin Bennin, who made 55 tackles and picked off two passes. Deuce Lee, a junior safety, is the top returner with 70 tackles, leading a defensive backfield that includes cornerback Israel Clark-White, who had 37 tackles last season as a redshirt freshman.
The offseason focus has revolved around rebuilding the linebacking corps, with the departure of leading tackler Ryan Moran, who played five seasons, and Sam Korpoi and Damir McCrary, both in the transfer portal. The four newcomers join returnee Charlie Sasso, who won’t practice this spring to rest a problematic knee.
Defensive tackle Isaiah Rogers (6-2, 300), a third team All-CAA selection, and senior end Miles Mitchell (6-4, 250), who had 30 tackles and 2.5 sacks, return up front, but this looks like an area the Hawks still need to address.
Here’s a look at the ...
