How it Happened
No. 8/9 Rhode Island jumped out to a big lead then held on to defeat Central Connecticut State 27-19 in the opening round of the FCS Playoffs Saturday afternoon.

The Rams (11-2) scored touchdowns on their first possessions, as Devin Farrell found Connor Finer for a 28-yard touchdown pass then connected with Marquis Buchanan for a 25-yard touchdown strike. Farrell was 6-for-7 for 105 yards and two touchdowns in the opening 8:14 of the game.

CCSU (8-5) got one score back when Brady Olson hit running back Elijah Howard for a 3-yard touchdown pass with two seconds to go in the opening quarter. The second quarter was all URI, as the Rams got a 1-yard touchdown plunge by Antwain Littleton, Jr.midway through the period and a 42-yard Garth White field goal on the final play of the half to take a 24-7 lead into the break.

Neither side scored in the third quarter, as Rhody appeared to have the game well in hand. However, the visiting Blue Devils made things interesting. A 25-yard touchdown pass from Olson to Damani Williams and an 18-yard field goal from Jack Hennessey cut the Rhody lead to 24-16 with just under 10 minutes to go. Following the touchdown, URI managed to block the extra point.

Garth White's second field goal of the day pushed the lead back to 11 points for the Rams, but Hennessey made a 28-yarder to make it a one-possession game. Rhode Island was unable to run out the clock after taking over at its own 48 with 1:58 to go, but a James Allen punt pinned CCSU at its own 5-yard line with 1:36 to go.

Olson drove the Blue Devils to the Rhode Island 40-yard line. After three incomplete passes, Rhody's Trey Lubin broke up a pass intended for Paul Marsh, Jr. on fourth-and-10 to end the game and send Rhode Island to the second round of the postseason for the second straight season.

Inside the Box Score

• The teams combined for 685 passing yards in the game.
• Rhode Island's Devin Farrell finished 25-of-39 for 374 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, while CCSU's Brady Olson was 35-of-62 for 311 yards and two touchdowns.
• Farrell surpassed 5,000 career passing yards in the game. He now ranks fourth in program history with 5,189, passing Derek Cassidy (5,005 from 2005-08).
• Marquis Buchanan had eight catches for 110 yards and one touchdown. He is 5 receiving yards shy of joining Brian Forster (3,944 from 1983-85, 1987) and Aaron Parker (3,460 from 2016-19) as the only Rams with 3,000-plus in their careers.
• Omari Walker had a career day, catching four passes for 95 yards. His 54-yard reception set up Antwain Littleton, Jr.'s touchdown run.
• Garth White had two field goals and three extra points. With 94 points this season, he needs eight more to tie Dameon Reilly's program record of 102 set in 1985.
• White's 14 field goals are tied for the third most in a season in team history, and his 52 extra points are the team record.
• Moses Meus had five tackles, giving him a team-high 102 for the season.
• Ayinde Johnson and Andre DePina-Gray led the team with seven tackles each. DePina-Gray also broke up a pass and had a tackle for loss.
• Rohan Davy had six tackles, leaving him just two shy of 100 for the year.
• The game captain was defensive lineman Dontay Bishop, and the anchor bearer was wide receiver Marquis Buchanan served as the anchor bearer.

Up Next
Rhode Island travels to UC Davis for the second round of the FCS Playoffs. The game will be played Saturday, Dec. 6 at UC Davis Health Stadium. Kickoff is 10 p.m. EST on ESPN+.