The Montclair State University football team fell behind early and dropped their home opener against United States Merchant Marine Academy 41-24 at Sprague Field.
Montclair State started well when Farad Green Jr. returned the opening kickoff for 30 yards. However, the Red Hawks ended up going three-and-out on their opening possession.
The first drive for the Mariners lasted eight plays and ended in a 39-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Bubba Mustain to wide receiver Angelo Cimino.
On a third-and-nine at the MSU 22, Montclair State quarterback Luke Henrich was strip-sacked and the ball was recovered by USMMA. The visitors made it count by rushing in for their second touchdown of the game on a six-yard rush by Harrison Garrido.
Montclair State almost responded on their next drive but a 36-yard pass from Henrich to Ali Lee Jr. was squandered by Brendan McGonigle’s missed 30-yard field goal.
USMMA drove 80 yards up the field and scored another touchdown making it 21-0 after one quarter of play.
Early in the second quarter, Sophomore defensive back Jahmir Beal intercepted a pass from Mustain and ran 34 yards into the endzone to make it 21-7. When USMMA got possession back, Montclair State’s defense couldn’t stop them. The Mariners executed a 13-play drive that took over eight minutes and culminated in another touchdown run.
Trailing now 28-7, Montclair State went to work on its next drive. Henrich completed four passes to wide receiver Ali Lee Jr. which set up a 38-yard field goal from McGonigle. This time, McGonigle made the field goal and cut the Mariners’ lead to 18 points.
Merchant Marine received the ball back to start the second half. Montclair State could have held the Mariners to a field goal by making a stop on a fourth and three, but Mason Wilson rushed for the first down. The Mariners then put together their best drive of the day, a 17-play, 72-yard drive that ended with a four-yard run and burned 10:59 off the clock.
With the visitors leading 35-10 when the fourth quarter began, it looked to be all over for Montclair State, but Montclair fought back First, they forced Will Surdez to fumble at the MSU two-yard line. Jose Tejeiro recovered the ball. Henrich and the Red Hawk offense worked their way into better field position when Henrich completed a 38-yard pass to TJ Kachala. Then on 4th and 1, a pass from Henrich was intercepted by Zatyk Holub which ended the Montclair State drive.
Merchant Marine was forced to punt from their own two-yard line and Montclair started their drive at Merchant Marine’s 38 with 8:15 left in the game.
Montclair State earned one first down and on the second set of downs, went for it on 4th and 12. Henrich set up in the shotgun and threw a deep pass intended for Lee Jr. Pass interference was called against the Mariners, which moved the ball from the 27-yard line to the 13.
It wasn’t pretty but Montclair State got their second touchdown of the day on a four-yard rush by senior running back Diante Wilson, making the score 35-16 in favor of the Mariners.
Montclair State then attempted an onside kick but took a penalty on the play, giving USMMA the ball at the MSU 44. From there, Merchant Marine put together their sixth scoring drive of the game which ended in a 9-yard touchdown pass from Mustain to Caleb Callahan.
On their final drive of the game, the Red Hawks went 64 yards and scored their third touchdown behind two excellent rushes from Wilson and a 17-yard reception by Khalil Forbes. Wilson punched the ball in with a 1-yard rush up the middle. Then Montclair State’s Lee Jr. completed a pass to TJ Kachala to earn a successful two-point conversion.
However, it was too late as the visitors regained possession after another onside kick by Montclair State and knelt to run out the remaining 21 seconds of fourth-quarter clock. The Mariners defeated Montclair State 41-24.
Montclair State dug themselves a 21-0 hole before they could put any points on the board, which made it hard for them to win but there were some positives for the Red Hawks.
Beal finished with a game-high 15 tackles and made his first career interception in his first collegiate game. Beal’s pick six was the first from a Montclair State player since 2023. Junior linebacker William Canavan had 10 tackles and junior linebacker Ashan Harris had five tackles along with a forced fumble.
Diante Wilson had a team-high two touchdowns to go along with 77 yards. Wilson’s 77 rushing yards were second only to USMMA quarterback Bubba Mustain’s 86.
Montclair State Football Head Coach Mike Palazzo
On learning from today’s loss.
Proud of the way we stuck together and continued to fight in the second half. Ultimately, we couldn’t overcome the mistakes we made in the first quarter. This adversity can make us better down the road if we’re willing to learn from it and grow.
Montclair State will travel to Pennsylvania to face Lycoming College in their next game on September 12.
