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University of New Hampshire Athletics
Defensive tackles Rick Holt, left, and Ryan Sosnak watch a drill during practice.
Game 8 Report: Defense Shines, Next Up Stony Brook at Home
10/23/2016 3:13:00 PM | Football, UNH Insider
Now that was some bounce-back.
The UNH football team, looking to rebound from a narrow and rare loss at home to James Madison, went to Towson on Saturday aiming to rebound and strengthen its chances of extending a long string of FCS tournament appearances.
The Wildcats, led by an opportunistic defense, did both in a major way with a 21-7 triumph on a blustery day that hindered a passing game.
Not only did the defense – headed up by defensive coordinator John Lyons - shut down Towson and not allow a score, it came up with a pair of touchdowns itself.
"One of our goals is to score defensive touchdowns," said Ryan Sosnak, a 6-foot-2, 296-pound sophomore defensive tackle who went 39 yards with a fumble recovery early in the second half to finish Saturday's scoring. "We're trying to create turnovers and get defensive touchdowns. Any time we can do that, it makes the chances of our winning a game a lot better."
The Wildcats, who slipped out of the Top 25 rankings after the JMU loss, upped their overall record to 5-3 with the win and they are now 4-1 in the Colonial Athletic Association.
They are down to their final three games of the regular season and the tests continue straight away.
No. 24 Stony Brook comes to Durham on Saturday to take on the Wildcats at noon. The Seawolves are 5-2 overall and 4-0 in the CAA after a 28-3 win at Delaware on Saturday.
Tickets are available at www.unhwildcats.com, by calling 603-862-4000 or by visiting the Whittemore Center Box office.
UNH has Saturday, Nov. 5 off and then closes out the regular season with a home game against Albany on Nov. 12 at noon and a road game at Maine on Nov. 19 at 1 p.m.
Stony Brook, Albany and Maine – just like UNH – are trying to keep their playoff hopes alive. Albany, Maine and UNH each have three losses and may not be able to afford another.
At Towson on Saturday, the UNH defense allowed a season-low total of 191 total yards, 81 rushing and 111 passing. It was the third time the Wildcats have held a team under 90 yards rushing this season.
The lone Towson score came on a 100-yard kickoff return by Shane Simpson.
The Towson TD followed UNH's second defensive score, a 16-yard interception return for a touchdown by freshman cornerback Prince Smith, Jr. midway through the second quarter.
UNH sophomore quarterback Trevor Knight opened the scoring with a shifty 29-yard TD run with 3:42 left in the first period. Sophomore Morgan Ellman kicked the first of his three conversions for 7-0.
After that, it was all about the UNH defense – and its touchdowns.
The score was 14-7 and Towson got the ball to start the second half and was on the move. The Tigers picked up a couple of first downs and were in New Hampshire territory when quarterback Ellis Hudson dropped back to pass.
UNH senior linebacker Ryan Farrell and sophomore defensive end Kyle Reisert got to him and Farrell forced a fumble.
The ball was on the ground and Sosnak, in a crowd of UNH defenders, picked it up.
"Ryan Farrell came off the edge and made an unbelievable play and Kyle Reisert pressured him pretty well, too," Sosnak said. "The ball was kind of rolling and I was lucky enough to pick it up and started running. Rick Holt and Cam Shorey and DeVaughn Chollette threw some nice blocks for me. I just had it in my head that I didn't want to fumble it and I tucked it away and the adrenalin took over and I found a way to get in there."
Sosnak said it was his first touchdown at any level of football.
"I've come close," he said. "I played tight end in high school and I caught them in in passing camp, but that doesn't count. That was back in my tight end days, but I put on some weight and moved to the defensive line."
The Wildcats have now scored five defensive touchdowns this year, their most in a season since they had six in the 2008 season.
They whooped it up on the sidelines.
"The kids were pretty excited for Ryan," said UNH coach Sean McDonnell. "They were pretty jacked up. It's a huge momentum thing. It was huge score at the time. That's the thing with momentum. You start feeling confident, making some plays. Something like that picks the team up."
The Wildcats last scored two defensive touchdowns in a game on Oct. 12, 2013 in a 59-19 win over Rhode Island when Steven Thames scored on an 11-yard interception return and Shorey on a 44-yard fumble return.
Now the Wildcats start their preparation for Stony Brook, a team that beat them soundly, 31-6, last season.
They'll see what they can do about scoring - on offense, defense, special teams, whatever.
"Getting the win is really all that matters, however you can do it," Sosnak said. "It doesn't have to be pretty, as long as you do it."
NEXT UP: STONY BROOK
HOME SWEET HOME: BACK TO WILDCAT STADIUM
QUOTEBOARD
"They're a good football team. Undefeated in the conference. A big, strong physical line and they like to run the ball and have an excellent core of receivers. It all starts in that program after they run the ball, I think, with how they play defense. You look at the last two games, they've given up six points total. People haven't moved the ball on them. They do a great job of disguising fronts. It's a huge test for us. They got us pretty good last year."
Sean McDonnell on Stony Brook
"(Towson's) trademark has been knocking people off the football and that's what we talked about, the physicality of their football team and challenging our guys. We held them to under 100 yards rushing and it was just good to see our guys respond after a tough game last week."
Sean McDonnell
"We stayed the course. I think one of the big keys of the second half was we got to run the football a little bit and I thought Dalton (Crossan) did a heck of a job."
Sean McDonnell
"From what I've seen Stony Brook has beaten some tough teams. I know they beat Richmond and they're 4-0 in the CAA. They have to come to Wildcat Stadium. We get to play at home and we have to practice really well this week and get ready to play a really good Stony Brook team."
Sophomore defensive tackle Ryan Sosnak
"They played real well against us last year. Stacey Bedell is a great running back. We've got to be able to contain him and be gap sound and be in our defensive lanes and play real hard."
Ryan Sosnak
"Great road win for us. It hasn't been good for us the last couple of times down here and to get a win coming out of this place is a really good win."
Sean McDonnell
UNH BY THE NUMBERS
WILDCAT NOTES
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
The UNH football team, looking to rebound from a narrow and rare loss at home to James Madison, went to Towson on Saturday aiming to rebound and strengthen its chances of extending a long string of FCS tournament appearances.
The Wildcats, led by an opportunistic defense, did both in a major way with a 21-7 triumph on a blustery day that hindered a passing game.
Not only did the defense – headed up by defensive coordinator John Lyons - shut down Towson and not allow a score, it came up with a pair of touchdowns itself.
"One of our goals is to score defensive touchdowns," said Ryan Sosnak, a 6-foot-2, 296-pound sophomore defensive tackle who went 39 yards with a fumble recovery early in the second half to finish Saturday's scoring. "We're trying to create turnovers and get defensive touchdowns. Any time we can do that, it makes the chances of our winning a game a lot better."
The Wildcats, who slipped out of the Top 25 rankings after the JMU loss, upped their overall record to 5-3 with the win and they are now 4-1 in the Colonial Athletic Association.
They are down to their final three games of the regular season and the tests continue straight away.
No. 24 Stony Brook comes to Durham on Saturday to take on the Wildcats at noon. The Seawolves are 5-2 overall and 4-0 in the CAA after a 28-3 win at Delaware on Saturday.
Tickets are available at www.unhwildcats.com, by calling 603-862-4000 or by visiting the Whittemore Center Box office.
UNH has Saturday, Nov. 5 off and then closes out the regular season with a home game against Albany on Nov. 12 at noon and a road game at Maine on Nov. 19 at 1 p.m.
Stony Brook, Albany and Maine – just like UNH – are trying to keep their playoff hopes alive. Albany, Maine and UNH each have three losses and may not be able to afford another.
At Towson on Saturday, the UNH defense allowed a season-low total of 191 total yards, 81 rushing and 111 passing. It was the third time the Wildcats have held a team under 90 yards rushing this season.
The lone Towson score came on a 100-yard kickoff return by Shane Simpson.
The Towson TD followed UNH's second defensive score, a 16-yard interception return for a touchdown by freshman cornerback Prince Smith, Jr. midway through the second quarter.
UNH sophomore quarterback Trevor Knight opened the scoring with a shifty 29-yard TD run with 3:42 left in the first period. Sophomore Morgan Ellman kicked the first of his three conversions for 7-0.
After that, it was all about the UNH defense – and its touchdowns.
The score was 14-7 and Towson got the ball to start the second half and was on the move. The Tigers picked up a couple of first downs and were in New Hampshire territory when quarterback Ellis Hudson dropped back to pass.
UNH senior linebacker Ryan Farrell and sophomore defensive end Kyle Reisert got to him and Farrell forced a fumble.
The ball was on the ground and Sosnak, in a crowd of UNH defenders, picked it up.
"Ryan Farrell came off the edge and made an unbelievable play and Kyle Reisert pressured him pretty well, too," Sosnak said. "The ball was kind of rolling and I was lucky enough to pick it up and started running. Rick Holt and Cam Shorey and DeVaughn Chollette threw some nice blocks for me. I just had it in my head that I didn't want to fumble it and I tucked it away and the adrenalin took over and I found a way to get in there."
Sosnak said it was his first touchdown at any level of football.
"I've come close," he said. "I played tight end in high school and I caught them in in passing camp, but that doesn't count. That was back in my tight end days, but I put on some weight and moved to the defensive line."
The Wildcats have now scored five defensive touchdowns this year, their most in a season since they had six in the 2008 season.
They whooped it up on the sidelines.
"The kids were pretty excited for Ryan," said UNH coach Sean McDonnell. "They were pretty jacked up. It's a huge momentum thing. It was huge score at the time. That's the thing with momentum. You start feeling confident, making some plays. Something like that picks the team up."
The Wildcats last scored two defensive touchdowns in a game on Oct. 12, 2013 in a 59-19 win over Rhode Island when Steven Thames scored on an 11-yard interception return and Shorey on a 44-yard fumble return.
Now the Wildcats start their preparation for Stony Brook, a team that beat them soundly, 31-6, last season.
They'll see what they can do about scoring - on offense, defense, special teams, whatever.
"Getting the win is really all that matters, however you can do it," Sosnak said. "It doesn't have to be pretty, as long as you do it."
NEXT UP: STONY BROOK
- Stony Brook improved to 5-2 overall and 4-0 in the CAA with a 28-3 at Delaware on Saturday.
- The Seawolves are one of two teams undefeated in the league, along with James Madison, also 4-0.
- Stacey Bedell carried 14 times for 120 yards and two scores against Delaware.
- Stony Brook owns league wins over Richmond (42-14), Towson (27-20), Rhode Island (14-3) and Delaware.
- The Seawolves have allowed no touchdowns and only three field goals in their last 10 quarters against Delaware, Rhode Island and Towson.
- Last year, UNH lost 31-6 at Stony Brook.
- Bedell rushed 21 times for 193 yards and a score that day.
- The Seawolves piled up 228 rushing yards and 397 total yards in the game.
- UNH had 75 rushing yards and 253 total yards.
HOME SWEET HOME: BACK TO WILDCAT STADIUM
- The Wildcats take on league-leading Stony Brook at noon in Wildcat Stadium.
- Individual game and group tickets are available at www.unhwildcats.com or by calling 603-862-4000.
- Including Stony Brook, the Wildcats have two regular season home games remaining.
- They are off on Saturday, Nov. 5 and play Albany at home on Saturday, Nov. 12 at noon.
- The Wildcats are 49-7 at home since the start of the 2007 season.
QUOTEBOARD
"They're a good football team. Undefeated in the conference. A big, strong physical line and they like to run the ball and have an excellent core of receivers. It all starts in that program after they run the ball, I think, with how they play defense. You look at the last two games, they've given up six points total. People haven't moved the ball on them. They do a great job of disguising fronts. It's a huge test for us. They got us pretty good last year."
Sean McDonnell on Stony Brook
"(Towson's) trademark has been knocking people off the football and that's what we talked about, the physicality of their football team and challenging our guys. We held them to under 100 yards rushing and it was just good to see our guys respond after a tough game last week."
Sean McDonnell
"We stayed the course. I think one of the big keys of the second half was we got to run the football a little bit and I thought Dalton (Crossan) did a heck of a job."
Sean McDonnell
"From what I've seen Stony Brook has beaten some tough teams. I know they beat Richmond and they're 4-0 in the CAA. They have to come to Wildcat Stadium. We get to play at home and we have to practice really well this week and get ready to play a really good Stony Brook team."
Sophomore defensive tackle Ryan Sosnak
"They played real well against us last year. Stacey Bedell is a great running back. We've got to be able to contain him and be gap sound and be in our defensive lanes and play real hard."
Ryan Sosnak
"Great road win for us. It hasn't been good for us the last couple of times down here and to get a win coming out of this place is a really good win."
Sean McDonnell
UNH BY THE NUMBERS
- The Wildcats have held three of their last four opponents to under 250 yards of total offense.
- UNH is allowing 128 rushing yards a game, the third-best total in the CAA.
- The Wildcats are allowing 21.1 points a game. Last year they allowed 22.
- Sophomore quarterback Trevor Knight ran 11 times for 64 yards and a 29-yard score.
- Knight completed 14 of his 18 passes for 100 yards and was intercepted once.
- Senior running back Dalton Crossan carried 18 times for 83 yards.
- He is averaging 92.1 yards rushing a game, the third-best total in the CAA.
- Crossan is up to 737 rushing yards for the season and 2,073 for his career.
- He had his best season last year with 885 yards.
- Crossan continues to lead the league with 147.5 all-purpose yards a game.
- Redshirt freshman safety Rick Ellison led the Wildcats with nine tackles, eight of them solo.
- Senior cornerback Casey DeAndrarde was next with seven tackles.
- Farrell's sack caused the fumble that Sosnak returned.
- Sophomore defensive end Kyle Reisert also had a sack.
- Redshirt freshman Malik Love caught five passes for 22 yards.
- Senior tight end Jordan Powell had four catches for 42 yards.
- The seven points was the lowest total allowed by UNH since a 22-6 win over Maine on Nov. 21 last year.
- After having 100 plays for 569 yards (5.7 per play) against JMU last week, UNH had 58 for 271 (4.7 average) against Towson.
WILDCAT NOTES
- The Wildcats had won 17 straight regular season home games before a 42-39 loss to James Madison on Oct. 15.
- James Madison at 4-0 and Stony Brook at 4-0 are the only two undefeated teams in the CAA.
- New Hampshire, Villanova and Richmond are 4-1 and Maine is 3-1 in the league.
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
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