Five Takeaways From Monmouth University's 38-14 Opening Night Loss

WEST LONG BRANCH - Monmouth University’s 38-14 loss to No.15 Tennessee Tech was hardly the debut new head coach Jeff Gallo had in mind. Still, it gave the Hawks an early measuring stick and a chance to address areas of concern as they turn the page and focus on Saturday’s upcoming game against Sacred Heart.

“We didn’t play well enough, not anywhere near the standard we’ve set,” said Gallo. “They beat us on special teams tonight. We turned the ball over, gave up field position, didn’t get points in spots when we should’ve gotten points. We turned the ball over and then allowed a big punt return, giving them essentially 10 points in about a minute. That was a good team and a good environment, and we didn’t play well enough.”

BELOW ARE FIVE TAKEAWAYS FROM THE GAME

The Special Teams Weren’t So Special:

With the score tied 7-7 and just under two minutes left in the first half, Monmouth had all the momentum after its defense forced Tennessee Tech to punt from its own 38-yard line. But redshirt sophomore Anthony Brown muffed the punt, and Tech recovered at the Monmouth 32. The turnover changed the game’s complexion, and the Hawks never fully recovered. Four plays later, Tennessee Tech scored to take a 14-7 lead.

As if this wasn’t bad enough, the Hawks then went three-and-out, and on fourth-and-eight from their own 20-yard line, for some inexplicable reason, took a delay of the game penalty, pushing them back five yards to the 15. They then proceeded to punt the ball to 2025 All-OVC/Big South first-team punt returner Tre’ Holloway, who already had returns of 21 and 47 yards. Holloway then returned the punt 18 yards to the Monmouth 40-yard line with 18 seconds remaining. Four plays later, Carter Brown booted a 40-yard field goal for a 17-7 lead as time expired. Holloway finished with three punt returns for 86 total yards. After Holloway gave Tech short fields, they scored every time. Four of six Tech scoring drives began in Monmouth territory following punts.

Twice Brown should’ve downed the ball in the end zone on kickoffs, but instead ran them out, advancing the ball to just the 18 and 13-yard lines as opposed to getting the ball at the 25. He averaged just 18 yards on three kickoff returns.

Trailing 24-7, the Hawks drove to the Tech six-yard line, but the drive stalled and on fourth down Sky Sholder missed a chip-shot 24-yard field goal.

Redshirt Sophomore Quarterback Frankie Weaver Struggled to Find His Footing:

Gallo hesitated to name his starting quarterback essentially until game time, with Weaver and redshirt freshman Brad Seiss battling it out all summer camp. Weaver eventually got the nod but had a rough first outing. He finished 20-of-41 for 179 yards and an interception but was actually 14-of-32 for 122 yards and an interception late into the fourth quarter before leading a garbage-time drive for a touchdown. Six of Monmouth’s seven first-half possessions resulted in punts, with five of those possessions being three-and-out. It was arguably his worst outing as a starter, which included five starts last season. He seemed hesitant at times, his accuracy wasn’t what we have seen from him in the past and he struggled to fit the ball into tight windows. Let's hope it was just opening night jitters against a quality opponent, and we’ll see the real Frankie Weaver next week.

The Wide Receivers Failed to Get Separation and Had Trouble Getting Open

Part of Weaver's trouble may have been that his receivers struggled to get open against Tech's elite secondary. Monmouth’s four wideouts, Gavin Nelson (4-35), Tra Neal (4-30), Christian Harrison (2-24) and Caleb Newsome (2-15) combined to catch just 12 balls for 104 yards for a paltry 8.6 yards per catch average. Five receptions by Monmouth wideouts came in the fourth-quarter scoring drive. Transfer tight end Greg Genross (4-39) and redshirt junior tight end Marcus Middleton (3-32) appear to be nice options for Weaver, but the overall production in the passing game has to improve. The Eagles' defensive backs recorded a staggering ten pass breakups, which is an insane number.

Monmouth’s Defense Played Better Than the Score Indicated:

Thirty-eight points are 38 points; however, the defense did play better than the score would have you believe. The score was 7-7 with under two minutes to play in the first half, and the defense had just forced a huge punt when the roof fell in. They were on the field for an overwhelming 37:55 minutes in the game, with high humidity and temperatures in the 80’s. Transfers, redshirt sophomore Jahide Lesaine and redshirt junior Donovon Dyson each recorded a sack, with Dyson’s sack forcing a punt with the score still 7-7. The unit recorded five tackles for loss, and redshirt senior Charlie Sasso forced a fumble, with redshirt senior Bryce Rooks recovering. Sasso finished with 10 tackles, including four solo stops. All-American safety Jaeden Jones was up to his old tricks, finishing with 11 tackles, including five solo stops and a half-TFL. He made his presence felt from sideline-to-sideline.

Looks Like Monmouth Will Field Another Dominant Offensive Line This Season:

You would never have known that Monmouth had four new starters along the offensive line the way they performed Saturday. Left tackle Matt Fries, left guard Collin Goetter, center Kevin Shrinner, right guard Michael Petito and right tackle Josh Duran, along with subs Reed Collins and Brady O’Hara, played as a cohesive unit that had been together for years. They allowed zero sacks and surrendered only two TFL. Monmouth’s running backs averaged 5.3 yards per carry thanks to the offensive line's powerful run blocking up front. Starting running back Elijah Jennings rushed for 75 yards on 11 carries and a touchdown, averaging 6.8 yards per touch. They committed three false start penalties, but all things considered, that’s not a bad number, and it will improve with more time together. Offensive lines need time to jell, but it appears this season's line is way ahead of the game.