Instant Classic

If you left the game early or turned off the streaming of the Stonehill/Southern Connecticut game last Friday, you missed a lot. The final 15 minutes of the game were unforgettable and showed two teams that played to the final whistle.

It started quickly in the fourth quarter. On the first play of the quarter, Stonehill running back Mike Cordova went 29 yards to the end zone and the Skyhawks had their first lead of the night, 13-12. But in the blink of an eye, Kendall Thomas of Southern Connecticut took the kickoff and went 98 yards to regain the lead for the Owls, 18-13.

Both teams moved the ball over the next couple of drives but could not punch it in the end zone. Stonehill then put together a quick five play drive that saw Matt Foltz run it in and gives his team a 19-18 advantage. Southern Connecticut takes over after the kickoff and needs just 14 seconds to get back on top. Shaquan Hall took the pass from Rob Nittolo and goes 75 yards for the 24-19 Owl advantage.

Stonehill gets the ball back and drives into Owl territory. But the drive stalls at the 34-yard line with 3:41 left on the clock. Southern Connecticut looks to get a first down or two to run out the clock.

Not so fast.

On second down, Donovan Phanor picks off Nittolo and Stonehill has excellent field possession to retake the lead. Two plays later, Foltz to his favorite target of the night, Andrew Jamiel and the Skyhawks are once again on top, 27-24.

Enter Thomas again on the kickoff and he nearly breaks off another one. But steps out of bounds at the 48-yard line with 1:56 to go. Four plays later, the dynamic duo of Nittolo and Devante Jenkins hook up for the seventh time on the night in the corner of the end zone and Southern Connecticut again leads 31-27.

But it is not over. Cordova takes the handoff on the kick return and gets the ball close to midfield after a penalty. Stonehill has 34 seconds and 56 yards to pull off the victory. Foltz finds Kaleb Lutton and Jamiel to get the ball deep into Southern Connecticut territory. A pass interference call from the Owls sets up one play for the game at the 11-yard line with no time left.

Foltz dropped back and is looking for Jamiel in the end zone. Enter Corey Chaffee for Southern Connecticut and he knocks down the pass to preserve the Owls' 31-27 victory. It was quite the dramatic ending that the fourth quarter deserved.

Each time Stonehill scored, Southern Connecticut answered and it was a battle to the final whistle. It is also the first time since 2011 that the Owls won their first league game of the season. It might be the type of win that will propel them into the mix this year.

For Stonehill, it was their second consecutive tough loss. After being undefeated last September, they are currently winless this September. And it was Southern Connecticut that ended their streak one year ago when they traveled to Easton and upset the Skyhawks.

For the fans that left or turned off the game early, shame on you. It was a great final quarter and why the NE-10 has become a very balanced league.

Kickoffs

Special teams are always an important part of the game. Most fans take it for granted as a minute to stretch their legs or check their phone. But this year has already seen its fair share of exciting kick and punt returns.

As mentioned above, Southern Connecticut kick returner Kendall Thomas had a monster game for the Owls in their victory. He returned a kick for a score and set up the winning drive with another return that gave Southern excellent field possession. For the game, he had 246 return yards and was a threat each time he touched the ball.

On the other side of the field, the combo of Mike Cordova and Andrew Jamiel also are a dangerous threat. They combine for 148 return yards and Cordova had a long of 44 yards in the fourth quarter.

The excitement in kick returns started last year when Assumption's Deonte Harris was a threat to take one back each time. And it seemed like he did. Harris has just one return thus far for 33 yards but remains a threat.

Kyle Ward from LIU Post is also a threat to run it back each time. He averaged 32 yards per return in the Pioneers' 43-20 victory over New Haven. Matt Montalo of Bentley is averaging 28.4 yards per return in the first two games.

Next time there is a kickoff, pay attention and don't be the person that misses the kickoff return for a touchdown. Each team has a threat to take one back to the house.

Top QB

The NE-10 has a number of solid quarterbacks but one continues to stand above the rest. LIU Post signal caller Jeff Kidd has been very consistent since he took over the reins last year. He moves the Pioneer offense up and down the field and gets them into the end zone on a regular basis.

Kidd was on full display last Saturday when he led Post to a 43-20 victory over New Haven. He finished the day 31 for 37, 336 yards and four scores. He is a dual threat as he also had 24 yards on the ground, one score and converted several third downs with his legs.

"Jeffrey did a great job managing, controlling the game," LIU Post head coach Bryan Collins said. "He is a competitor and tough as nails."

The Post offense had six scoring drives and they were all at least 66 yards in length. They methodically took apart the New Haven defense and executed to perfection on each play call.

It was a huge revenge game for the Pioneers as they were crushed last year at New Haven by the score of 63-16. It was a tough game for Post to swallow as they did everything wrong and were over-matched the entire afternoon.

"Last year, New Haven really handed it to us," Kidd said. "We came out with fire and very determined. Finishing the game was our top priority."

For Post to make a run at the NE-10 title, Kidd will continue to need to play like he did last Saturday. He spread the ball around to six different receivers, converted an amazing 71% of third downs tries and did not turn the ball over.

If he plays like this week in and week out, the Post offense is unstoppable.

Big Wins

Besides the Post handling of New Haven, Assumption also had a dominating victory on the road at Pace. They took control of the game early and never looked back. 24 points in the opening quarter were too much for the Setters to handle and not the game that they hoped for in their home opener.

Deonte Harris had a couple of huge touchdowns for the Greyhounds. First, he took a hand-off on a reverse and went 32 yards for the score. Then on the next drive, he took a short pass, found a hole and went 88 yards for the touchdown. It was just a part of the 607 yards of total offense for Assumption.

Another team with an impressive victory on the road was Bentley. They traveled north to St. Anselm and walked away with a 35-21 victory. They never trailed in the game and won their first game of the season. CJ Scarpa was very efficient in the win as he tossed for 185 yards and two scores. He also ran one in for the Falcons.

Week in and week out, the NE-10 is a very competitive league. Any team can beat any other team anywhere. The balance is unbelievable right now and if you are not ready to play, you will be on the wrong end of the score at the end of the game.

Comeback

It is very rare that a Merrimack team is held off the scoreboard for 36 minutes. But that was exactly the case last Saturday night. The American International defense was the story early as they were in top form.

But it was the Warriors that rallied from a 13-0 deficit to win their first game of the season by the score of 16-13. It was an eight-minute stretch of the third and fourth quarter that Merrimack used to get the win.

A long 93-yard drive was capped off by Dillon Salva's one yard touchdown reception that ignited the comeback. A blocked punt that resulted in a safety cut the deficit to 13-9. Then taking advantage of the short field after the free kick, the Warriors marched 50 yards in 2:45 to take the lead for good. Nick Davis found Justin Mount from eight yards out and the Warriors were on top for good.

The defense did the rest as they stymied the American International offense until a late pick sealed the game for Merrimack. They finished the game with two interceptions, six sacks and allowed just three third down conversations in 16 tries.

That sets up a nice match up next weekend as they travel to rival Bentley to see which team will go 2-0 in the league.