THE BASICS
No. 17/18 Rhode Island (2-1, 2-0 CAA Football) at No. 25/RV Villanova (2-1, 0-0 CAA Football)
Kickoff: Saturday, Sept. 23, 2 p.m. EST
Live Stats |
Audio: Varsity Network |
Video: FloFootball |
Game Notes
RHODE ISLAND VS. VILLANOVA - SERIES NOTES
- Saturday's contest will be the 26th in the history between Rhode Island and Villanova, dating back to 1988.
- The Wildcats have earned a 20-5 all-time advantage over the Rams, which includes a 13-2 edge at home at Villanova Stadium.
- Despite Villanova's overall success in the series, Rhody has been victorious in two of the past three meetings.
- A 20-6 victory for the Rams in 2017 snapped a five-game losing streak in their history with the Wildcats.
- The team then followed it up with another win in the spring 2021 season at 40-37 (OT).
- Quarterback Kasim Hill's 2-yard touchdown run propelled Rhody to its overtime triumph over the sixth-ranked Wildcats.
- The last time the sides faced off was in 2021 when Villanova shut out Rhode Island, 44-0, in Pennsylvania.
- Rhody's shut out at the hands of the then-No. 5 Wildcats was its first since 2016.
MCKENZIE PICKING UP STEAM
- Running back Ja'Den McKenzie has seen his role steadily increase through the start of the Rams' season.
- A graduate transfer from West Chester, McKenzie was a big get for the Rams last offseason as he was one of the top running backs in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference.
- He finished his career as a Golden Ram with 2,603 rushing yards and 30 touchdowns.
- After struggling at Georgia State (Aug. 31), where he rushed for -1 yards, McKenzie recorded 30 yards on the ground opposite Stony Brook (Sept. 8) and recorded his first Rhody touchdown.
- The Morton, Pa. native finally broke free at Maine (Sept. 15), punishing the Black Bears' defense for 121 rushing yards.
- McKenzie made a 17-yard run into the endzone at Maine for his second touchdown of the year and now leads the Rams with two rushing scores.
GROFF COLLECTS CAA FOOTBALL HONORS
- After making the first two field goals of his career on the road at Maine, rookie kicker Ty Groff earned Co-Special Teams Player of the Week honors from CAA Football.
- The New Canaan, Conn. native nailed a 47-yarder in the first quarter, the longest by a Rams' kicker in 10 years and added a 42-yarder in the third period that put URI up by 10.
- Groff's 47-yard boot ties for the seventh-longest field goal in program history.
- The freshman is now 2-3 on field goals as a Ram and a perfect 14-14 on PATs.
- He accounts for a team-best 20 of Rhody's 104 points so far this season.
- Groff shared Rhode Island's first weekly honors of the season with Elon's Kyle Romenick, who averaged 42.2 yards on five punts and threw the first touchdown pass by an Elon punter in its Division I era as the Phoenix defeated North Carolina A&T, 27-3.
GIBBS MAKING AN IMPACT
- After appearing in just four games as a true freshman last year and preserving a redshirt, cornerback Syeed Gibbs has come on strong in 2023.
- The Everett, Mass. native is the team's third-leading tackler with 16.0 total stops, 10 of which are solo.
- Gibbs is credited with one pass breakup and has started all three of Rhody's games.
- Safeties Brent Jackson (19.0 tackles) and Jordan Colbert (18.0 tackles) lead the Rams defensively.
