MOUNT VERNON, N.Y., September 28, 2024 – Battling the elements from start to finish, the Monroe University football team dropped a 45-20 score to No. 6 Georgia Military College (GMC) on Saturday at The Stadium at Memorial Field. Monroe drops to 2-2 with the loss, while the Bulldogs improve to 5-1.
 
Things got off to a rough start for Monroe, as the Mustangs' opening drive ended with a pick-six by GMC's Walker Hicks to give the visitors a quick 7-0 advantage. Two possessions later, it was Monroe's defense coming up with a big takeaway. With the Bulldogs on Monroe's half of the field, Justice Jordan forced the ball out of Trequan Jones' hands, allowing Na'il Johnson to scoop it up and get the ball back for Monroe.
 
The weather conditions worsened after Monroe's fumble recovery, making it difficult to move the ball for much of the first half, resulting in the 7-0 score sticking until the second quarter. GMC had the ball to start the second, and moved the ball deep into Monroe's territory. On second-and-five from the Monroe seven, Kareem Lewis jarred the ball loose from Jones, leading to Ty Boler falling on it to stop GMC from scoring and giving the ball back to the Mustangs once again.
 
Later in the second, the conditions once again got in the way, this time on a GMC field-goal attempt. Freddy Perez lined up for a 42-yarder, but came up short with 7:49 left in the half. The Mustangs were moving backwards on the next drive, but it then came to an unfortunate end when a deep ball by Raeden Oliver was intercepted once again, giving GMC possession on their own 29. Just five plays later, Keenan Phillips found a hole and ran it 28 yards for a Bulldogs touchdown, doubling the lead to 14-0.
 
Late in the half, the Mustangs looked to have the Bulldogs stopped, but committed a penalty on a punt to keep the drive alive for the visitors. After stopping them on the 19-yard line, Perez got another chance to kick, making his second attempt from 36 yards out to send the game to the half with Georgia Military on top, 17-0.
 
Monroe came out of halftime with some fire behind them, quickly forcing the Bulldogs into a three-and-out to get the ball for the first time in the third quarter. Sean Robinson opened the drive with runs of five and six yards to move the chains, and then Oliver hit Evan Harrington for a 19-yard completion to get across midfield. A facemask penalty on GMC helped Monroe get to the 29, where Oliver eventually hit Harrington again on third down for a 29-yard touchdown, cutting the deficit to 17-7 early in the third.
 
The Bulldogs then came right back to prevent the Mustangs from gaining momentum in the game. Some chunk plays had them quickly in Monroe territory before a 24-yard run by Phillips got him over the goal line for the score, making it a 24-7 game with 5:05 left in the third.
 
GMC got the ball back once again late in the third, taking over at midfield. On second down, Johnson punched the ball out from Trevon Kinchen, but the Bulldogs managed to recover the fumble this time. After getting a first down to Monroe's 18, Jones was able to run in an 18-yard score to make it a 31-7 game as time expired in the third.
 
Despite the large deficit, the Mustangs looked confident on offense on their next drive. A penalty by GMC helped move the ball, and then Oliver was able to hit Donovan Brown for a 35-yard reception to get into the red zone. A holding penalty by GMC helped the Mustangs keep the drive going, and they took advantage of it with a 13-yard touchdown from Oliver to Khameen Powell to bring the score to 31-14.
 
The Bulldogs once again managed to cancel out Monroe's push with another scoring drive. They returned the kickoff to their own 49 yard line to immediately have strong field position. A 23-yard run by Phillips got the Bulldogs down to the three, where Phillips finished it off on the next play, scoring another touchdown to make it a 38-14 score with 8:53 left in the game.
 
GMC had the ball again with under five minutes to play when new quarterback Jaylan Brown was sacked and lost the ball that was recovered by Mohammed Kelleh to give the Mustangs great field position. They quickly took advantage with a 39-yard touchdown from Oliver to Jashaun Amin, though the point-after attempt was no good, leaving GMC up, 38-20. GMC then quickly scored one more time on a 32-yard run by Kinchen after Monroe's failed onside kick, reaching the eventual final score of 45-20.
 
In the tough conditions, Oliver completed 15-of-34 passes for season highs of 241 yards and three touchdowns. Robinson carried the ball 17 times for 36 yards in the game. Brown caught three passes for a team-high 79 yards. Amin made three receptions for 64 yards and a score, while Harrington hauled in four passes for 61 yards and a touchdown. Powell caught a touchdown as well, finishing with two receptions for 15 yards.
 
Jordan, Lewis and Johnson each forced a fumble in the game, with Johnson, Boler and Kelleh each recovering one. Deangelo Innamorato had Monroe's lone sack in the game, while each of Lewis and Anthonio Beckford had 1.5 tackles for loss. Jordan tied with Matthew Courtney for a team-high seven tackles on the day, while Johnson and Lewis each registered six.
 
The Mustangs are set for a rivalry matchup next Saturday, Oct. 5, when they visit No. 14 Lackawanna College in Scranton, Pa., for the first of two matchups this season with the Falcons. Next Saturday's kickoff is set for 4 p.m.
 
ABOUT THE ATHLETIC PROGRAM AT MONROE UNIVERSITY
The athletic program at Monroe University encompasses a total of 28 teams competing across nine sports. There are 20 varsity and junior varsity programs, as well the Monroe University marching band, competing on the New Rochelle campus as the Mustangs (NJCAA Division I & II). The Monroe Express, based out of the Bronx campus, has seven teams competing at the NJCAA Division III level.
 
For more information about the Monroe Mustangs, please visit us at www.MonroeUMustangs.com or follow us on social media: Facebook (Monroe Mustangs Athletics), Twitter (@MonroeMustangs) and Instagram (@monroemustangs). Read Full Article