Madison, NJ (October 8) – FDU-Florham sophomore quarterback
Ryon Thomas (Mattapoisett, Mass.) recorded four passing touchdowns, 294 passing yards and 128 rushing yards as the Devils defeated Widener University, 30-17, in a Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) contest on Robert T. Shields Field this afternoon.
As a team, FDU-Florham recorded 499 yards of total offense today – 294 through the air and 205 on the ground.
Connor Perez (Warwick, NY) was the lead target for Thomas today as he caught six passes for 135 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while
Michael DeSantis (South River, NJ) and
Brendan Dennis (West Palm Beach, Fla.) both hauled in touchdown receptions on the afternoon for FDU-Florham.
Defensively, both
Isaiah Massey (New Rochelle, NY) and
Jorden Bennett (Queens, NY) both tallied interceptions, while
Marquez Haywood (Lindenwold, NJ) posted three solo tackles, three assisted tackles, 1.5 tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks, a pair of quarterback hurries and a pass breakup.
On the very first play from scrimmage, Widener quarterback Jeff Chaplin found Ty Holbert for a 67-yard touchdown reception for the early 7-0 edge. FDU-Florham answered late in the opening quarter as an interception by Massey turned into a touchdown for the Devils – a 29-yard reception by Perez at the end of a seven play, 80-yard drive.
Widener put together a three minute drive that stretched into the early portion of the second quarter to take the lead back at 14-7. Once again, FDU-Florham converted on an interception and turned it into points as a pick by Bennett led to a 27-yard field goal by
Chris DiMedio (Cornwall, NY).
FDU-Florham forced a punt just prior to halftime and took advantage of a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and took over close to midfield. Thomas fired a 56-yard pass to DeSantis, who drove down the sidelines and into the endzone, as the Devils took their first lead of the game at 17-14 at the break.
After winning the coin toss to start the game, the Devils took the ball to start the third and quickly added a touchdown to extend their lead to 24-14. Thomas rushed the ball for 67 yards and capped the drive with a 16-yard pass to Dennis. In the fourth, Perez put the game out of reach as he hauled in a 63-yard touchdown reception to account for the 30-17 final.
With today's win, the Devils picked up their second consecutive victory over Widener and moved to 4-2 overall and 2-2 in the MAC. FDU-Florham will enter a bye week before traveling to Stevenson University on Saturday, October 22 for a conference matchup at 12:00 pm.
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FDU-Florham is currently running a campaign in honor of former Devils men's basketball head coach, men's golf coach and athletic director Roger Kindel.
All donations will go directly towards funding a complete renovation of the basketball and volleyball court inside the Ferguson Recreation Center with his name dawned on both sides. If you are interested in reading more about the campaign and/or making a donation to the cause, please follow the link here: https://support.fdu.edu/athletics/devils/giving/roger-kindel
