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Fans, coaches, and players were treated to a weekend of firsts. Post notched its first win since the 2014 season. St. Thomas Aquinas suffered their first loss in program history. After appearing in two consecutive championship games (winning one), Penn fell to a team not named Army or Navy for the first time since 2014.
Penn vs Chestnut Hill
Without captain Eddie Jenkins under center, Penn has suffered its first loss to a non-service academy since 2014. The air raid offense of Chestnut Hill had the Griffins flying high, as quarterback Michael Marino made throwing the deep ball look easy, completing six passes over 25 yards. Though Penn's defense allowed an incredible -20 yards on the ground, their secondary was carved up for 331 passing yards. Led by Josean Perez and Mike McIlhenney, the Chestnut Hill defense was no different. Surrendering just sixteen yards on the ground (Yards lost from sacks included) was just enough to compensate for the 315 passing yards put up by Penn quarterbacks Connor Reed and Joshua Trybus.
As is the case with any defense, big plays have diminished what has been an overall above-average season through three weeks for the Quaker defense. Against Mansfield and Cornell, chunk plays by the opposition were what kept the games close for the most part. This week, a 51-yard touchdown by Domoree Hill and a 63-yard touchdown by Reggie Robinson Jr. were the daggers that finally cost Penn a victory. Chestnut Hill shocks Penn 31-26
Navy vs Mansfield
After their first loss to rival West Point, Navy righted the ship with a 55-6 thumping of Mansfield. Attempting just 13 passes all day, the 44 rushing attempts by the Midshipmen produced a punishing 328 total rushing yards on the day. Caleb Champion and Braydon Chmiel had monster days on the ground. Typically the backup quarterback, Braydon Chmiel stepped in and showed that the term backup is merely a formality. Impressively, his two rushing touchdowns and 99 rushing yards was only the second best rushing performance of the day. Caleb Champion covered 157 yards of turf, crossing the goal line three times in what was an old school, run the ball don their throats kind of game.
With few incomplete passes to stop the clock, it is a testament to the entire offense that they were able to have enough time to put up 55 points. Aided by the great defensive play of Troy Monroe and Sheppard Wilson, the Midshipmen were rolling this week. The two combined for nine tackles, four forced fumbles, and 2.5 sacks. With little success to report for the Mansfield offense, D.J. McLean and Jayden Walker filled the Mounties' stat sheet with 97 all-purpose yards a piece
Army vs S. Thomas Aquinas
In yet another smackdown by the defending champions, Army crushed St. Thomas Aquinas 56-0 at home to become the only undefeated team remaining in the CSFL. Army’s offense, led by quarterback Keegan West (who threw 22 for 26 passing, 255 yards, 5 touchdowns, 0 interceptions), looks virtually unstoppable and are clear favorites only three games into this season. The St. Thomas Aquinas Spartans struggled against the Black Knight’s defense, gaining only 45 yards (91 passing yards and -46 rushing yards) on offense in 13 drives. The Black Knights looked stellar in almost every facet of the game - the only thing to work on going forward is decreasing the big penalties each game (8 penalties for 115 yards). On the ground Matthew Sauter (7 rushes for 83 yards) and Jacob Lowman (11 rushes for 44 yards) led the Army offense while Tom Williamson led wide receivers with 6 receptions for 70 yards and 3 touchdowns. Although it’s the Spartan’s first season in the CSFL, St. Thomas needs to learn from this game, because these two teams may very well meet up again in the postseason. The Spartans are 2-1 playing next against Cornell on October 20th. Army will play next against the UPenn Quakers on October 12th.
Caldwell vs Post
In a battle between two 0-2 teams desperately looking for a win, Post University came out on top thanks to a strong second quarter (quick note - this marks Post's first win since the 2014 CSFL season!). After Caldwell grabbed the first score, a 36 yard passing touchdown from Tajae’ Irby to Carl Watson, Post scored 21 points between the 2nd and 3rd quarters unanswered. Senior quarterback (and kicker) Buddy Enriquez had four total touchdowns (1 rushing and 3 passing) to lead Post to their first win. Caldwell’s three turnovers hurt them down the stretch, especially since they had over 100 more yards on offense than Post did. Buddy Enriquez threw for 196 of Post’s 257 yards. By the fourth quarter, the game was Post’s to lose, and despite giving up a touchdown, the Eagles held onto win by a final score of 28-14. Caldwell will play at home against Navy on October 13th, while Post will face off next against Mansfield, also on the 13th.