When the Towson Tigers (5-4, 4-2 Colonial Athletic Association (CAA)) faced the Rhode Island Rams (0-9, 0-6 CAA) last year's regular-season finale in Kingston, R.I., the Tigers had a lot on the line. Although they started out slow, finding themselves down 10-0 to start the game, Towson came back to pull out a tough 28-17 win. That victory gave the Tigers their first-ever CAA Championship and an automatic bid to the FCS playoffs.
This Saturday at 3:30 pm in Unitas Stadium the Tigers once again face Rhode Island with the playoffs on the line. But this time, Towson needs a win just to stay alive in the post-season race and the championship picture.
URI has struggled this season but just like last year, they can be a very dangerous opponent. The Rams are coming off a 39-0 loss at Richmond where they committed five turnovers and were shut out for the first time since the 2010 season. URI has lost 12 in a row on the road. Their last win was here at Towson on Oct. 30, 2010.
Rhode Island has had injury issues this year, and it's affected the Rams' running game. They average just 81.6 yards per game on the ground and just 2.7 yards per carry. Defensively, the Rams allow 216.1 yards per game on the ground and 244.8 yards per game in the air. They have committed 19 turnovers this season and have forced just nine.
Junior QB Bob Bentsen (6-1, 213) leads the offense with 1,302 yards passing, six touchdowns and six interceptions. He's also second on the team in rushing with 214 yards and three scores. But last week against Richmond, sophomore Danny Fenyak (6-4, 217) got his first career start and completed 16-of-31 passes for 124 yards and five interceptions.
Sophomore Jordan Sebastian (6-0, 226) is a powerful back who leads the team in rushing with 223 yards (3.7ypc).
The main injury issues have taken place on the offensive line. Senior center Matt Greenhalgh suffered a season-ending torn ACL in the season opener at Monmouth. Sophomore center Jeff Kennedy out with an injury. In a merry-go-round of sorts, sophomore Eric Thomson (6-5, 291) now starts at right tackle, junior Andrew Belizaire (6-4, 301) moved from left tackle to center and junior Kevin Mustac (6-4, 296) moved from right tackle to left tackle.
The top player on offense for the Rams is senior wide receiver Brandon Johnson-Farrell (5-10, 197), a native of Odenton, Md., who leads the Rams with 48 catches for 504 yards and four TDs. Johnson-Farrell went over 2,000 receiving yards for his career with an 18-yard grab in the first quarter against Richmond last week, his lone catch of the game.
Defensively, senior Damen Vargas (6-2, 290) leads the Rams' frontline. He has recorded 27 tackles with two sacks and a team-high 7.5 tackles for loss. Junior DE James Timmons (6-2, 238) adds 36 tackles and four pass breakups.
At linebacker, the Rams are missing another key component in senior Doug Johnson, who is out for the season with a shoulder injury. Johnson, a third team All-CAA selection in 2011, appeared in three games this season and made 26 tackles. Sophomore Andrew Bose (6-2, 232) leads the Rams with 72 tackles, adding one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and 4.5 tackles for loss.
Senior safety Clement Ani (6-1, 210) leads the Rams' secondary. In seven games, he has 53 tackles, three pass breakups, one pick and one forced fumble.
The special teams is led by the dangerous Johnson-Farrell, who averages 20.6 yards per kick return.
