Story by
Previewing Monmouth's home Halloween football showdown with Bryant | Exclusive
- Story by
- Previewing Monmouth's home Halloween football showdown with Bryant | Exclusive
WEST LONG BRANCH -- Monmouth football is coming home.
It's been a long stretch for the Hawks on the road in 2026, but they've navigated that challenge adeptly as they are two-thirds of the way through the regular season. Now ranked 17th in the FCS, Monmouth has recovered from a 1-2 start to win five straight games. The 6-2 record is even more impressive considering only two of those contests were at home.
Advertisement
That hard work has given the Hawks a runway to potentially take flight into the playoffs. With three straight home games, they could essentially clinch a playoff spot by taking care of business at Kessler Stadium over the next three weeks. But as last year's finish showed Monmouth, there are no guarantees in college football. And there is no room to look back with so much to look forward to.
"If you start looking back, looking too far ahead, you lose focus on what's directly in front of you," Monmouth head coach Jeff Gallo said. "We've worked hard and improved, and that's what I look back at. Have we gotten better from the first week until now? And we have. Now, we have to continue that track to get to where we want go to become the team we want to be."
Monmouth’s Elijah Jennings returns a punt. Monmouth Football Hawks season opener against Sacred Heart University in West Long Branch on September 5, 2026.
With one misstep, two months of hard work can be undermined. As the Hawks near the summit of their goals, the journey only becomes more precarious. And this week, there's no room to look in any other direction than straight ahead. Monmouth hosts 5-3 Bryant on Saturday in what was always expected to be one of the biggest games of the year.
Advertisement
How to watch Bryant at Monmouth football
When:Saturday 1 p.m. ET
Where:Kessler Stadium at Monmouth University
TV/streaming:FloSports
Monmouth holds the series edge over Bryant
Early on in the 2026 campaign, it became clear that two late-season contests would loom large in terms of postseason implications. Bryant and Campbell were two of the matchups that stood out as those teams had early success and were among the CAA teams unbeaten in conference play at the midway points. That changed last week when Bryant lost 27-17 to Stony Brook. Despite that setback, the Bulldogs are unquestionably a team and program on the rise.
Advertisement
"They've come into the CAA on a similar kind of track to us. When you come to the CAA, you start to build your team up to this level. And I think this is their third year in the league now, and they've gotten better every year," Gallo said.
The Hawks are 8-1 all-time against Bryant and have outscored the Bulldogs 80-24 in two wins over their first two years in the CAA. But all that history serves as motivation for a more capable group this time around as Monmouth needs to be at their best to get a win at a major inflection point in the season.
Key to that will be Monmouth's defense, which has been trending in the right direction since the bye week. The Hawks are coming off statistically their best defensive performance of the season against last-place Hampton, allowing a season low 13 points in the resounding win.
"Attention to detail and tackling, I think we've improved in those aspects," All-American safety Jaeden Jones said. "We've kind of progressing towards the defense that we knew we could be the whole time. We obviously still have a lot to work on, a lot to clean up. We left a lot of food on the plate. But I think we're driving in the right direction."
Monmouth defensive back Jaeden Jones sits back in coverage during the Hawks' 42-21 win over New Hampshire on Oct. 17.
The defense has been pedestrian statistically to this point, sitting at 73rd in the FCS in points allowed, 47th in rushing yards, and 53rd in passing yards. But there have been plenty of moments of brilliance over the win streak, including holding opponents under 200 passing yards in wins over Albany, Dartmouth, and Hampton in addition to another strong performance against New Hampshire, which had to change quarterbacks and racked up yards with the game already decided.
Advertisement
But they've allowed explosive plays in both the run game and the passing game, undercutting a unit that has played better than the numbers. Still, the Hawk defense remains accountable and focused on cleaning up mistakes such as several blown coverages against Hampton and New Hampshire that could prove more costly against a more capable opponent like Bryant or Campbell.
"Any given Saturday, any team can come out there and win," Jones said. "It's about owning your assignments that week, locking in on what you have to do for that week and not worrying about the past, the future, and kind of just blocking out the outside noise."
Some of that racket might be microscopic analysis of Monmouth's defense and if it can weather the challenges of the home stretch. But as their most recent performances against Hampton and New Hampshire prove, the Hawks do more than enough to win. And that's the most important part as the team hopes to celebrate Halloween with an afternoon victory on Saturday.
"We have to be better in communication and everybody has to be ready when their number's called," Jones said. "We have to be able to have depth, especially when we're trying to make runs like this late in the season where every game is a one-week season and you're basically fighting to survive at this point."
Advertisement
Monmouth must not provide fuel to struggling Bryant offense
The Monmouth defense has a prime opportunity to continue the trend of recent success against a Bryant offense that ranks 99th in the FCS in points per game and is 93rd in passing yards, but the Hawks can't allow any easy opportunities for the Bulldogs to get going as they aim for the road upset.
Junior quarterback Brennan Myer didn't get his chance to face off against Monmouth last season, getting injured after five starts. He has returned as the starter this fall with 1,394 passing yards and six touchdowns to four interceptions. Aside from wins over Hampton and North Carolina A&T, he's been at his best managing the position while the Bulldogs lean into the run game.
Bryant does have two weapons on the perimeter that are uniquely equipped to pose challenges against the Hawks. Leading receiver Sean Wilson Jr. (32 catches for 411 yards) is coming off his biggest game of the season, surpassing the century mark with 103 yards in the loss to Stony Brook. At 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, he also fits the profile of the bigger targets of Towson that caused problems for the Monmouth secondary.
Monmouth football beats Bryant 35-7 on Nov. 1.
Shamar Fowles (32 catches for 402 yards with three touchdowns) is essentially a co-number-one receiver given the even split of catches. The 6-foot-1 speedster from Miami has exploded for 100-yard games against Hampton and Brown, and is another player who can exploit any lapses down the field. The Hawks will need to be at their best to keep things in front of them, as Bryant thrives on explosive plays when the opportunities arise.
Advertisement
The Bulldogs are more conventional, and efficient, in the running game with two main options in the backfield. It's primarily the lightning and thunder duo of OJ Ross and Jordan Bennett. Ross is the speedster at 5-10 and 190, leading the team with 406 yards on 92 carries.
Bennett is the power element at 6-1 and 236 and has 334 yards on 78 carries with a team-high four rushing touchdowns, and is coming off his biggest game of the season with 80 yards against Stony Brook. Both backs are augmented by Bryant's offensive line, which ranks 30th in the FCS by ProFootballNetwork (Monmouth is 27th).
Bryant has not surpassed 20 points in the last three contests, but the individual pieces show a team that can be dangerous when given the opportunity. The Hawks must find a more steady identity and not concede any easy explosives, but it will be challenging as they will most likely need to load the box to stifle the run game.
Hawks passing attack could soar against Bulldogs
Monmouth's prolific passing game has been lethally efficient at the direction of Frankie Weaver, but he's only had one 300-yard passing game so far this season. That could change this week against a vulnerable Bryant secondary that has been exploited by opponents over the past two weeks.
Advertisement
The Bulldogs allowed 234 passing yards in a tight 17-14 win over Maine, and then gave up 264 and two scores in the loss to Stony Brook. It's not hard to understand why teams have sought to take advantage of that perceived weakness, considering Bryant has just three interceptions and only two players with more than one sack.
The key defender to watch is linebacker Drake Lusk, who does it all for the Bulldogs. The 6-1 and 225-pound junior leads the team with 69 total tackles (28 solo) and 2.5 sacks with a forced fumble and two recoveries. Two other names to know are corner Olatunde Mkparu, a 6-1 and 210-pound athlete that is second on the team in tackles (43) and pass breakups (4) with an interception, and 6-3, 255-pound defensive lineman Toby Brown Jr., who leads the team in tackles for loss with 6.5.
Monmouth receiver Tra Neal leaps toward the end zone. Monmouth football beat Towson 41-30 on Oct. 3.
There is strength in numbers with the Bryant defense that will test the Monmouth running game that has been dominant over the past two weeks. The Hawks are equipped to match that with the steady running styles of Kenny Smith Jr. and Nazir Treadwell, and Elijah Jennings might be utilized more as the explosive counter punch.
Advertisement
But the main recipe for success for Monmouth would seemingly lie in the aerial attack. The Bulldogs struggle to rush the passer and don't generate many turnovers. They can contain deep explosive plays and force prolonged drives, but there are opportunities to get chunks in the intermediate passing attack. Tra Neal as usual will be a top target, and the recent emergence of tight ends Marcus Middleton, Greg Genross and Shane Garrett bring an added dimension. Of course as usual, Gavin Nelson will get his opportunities in creative ways. Frankie Weaver has done a great job commanding this passing attack to do a job, but this might be the prime opportunity for him to unleash the full extent of his throwing ability.
Prediction: Monmouth 28, Bryant 17
Bryant needs to be taken seriously as an opponent, but the fuller portrait of the team has come into focus with double-digit losses to Stony Brook and Brown, two squads with solid-but-not-outstanding resumes. Conversely, Bryant's wins aside from Princeton (4-2) are very underwhelming with a combined record of 12-24.
The Monmouth offense is simply on a different tier than anything that Bryant has faced so far this season. Stony Brook was the only yardage offense the Bulldogs faced that was in the top 50, ranked 33. Monmouth is 19th, and that chasm will be on display.
Advertisement
The Bryant defense is a tough unit, but it's exploitable. After a slow start against Hampton, the Hawks explode out of the gates to take a 21-10 lead at halftime with touchdowns to Neal and Middleton. Forced to pass, the Bulldogs' offense sputters aside from one explosive passing play that sets up another touchdown in the second half with Monmouth already firmly up by double digits.
The Monmouth rushing attack finishes the game, although not necessarily in explosive fashion. Smith and Treadwell churn out the yards needed to keep the clock running as the Hawks cap off October with a momentous win.
This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Previewing Monmouth's home Halloween football showdown with Bryant | Exclusive
