First Half: Villanova

The Good: Towson's run blocking is the best I've ever seen. 124 yards rushing, 124 yards passing in the first half, with 8 Towson players getting touches.

The Bad: Towson's defense between the 20s is terrible. Open field tacking and getting blown off the line of scrimmage.

The Ugly: Nova in the redzone, 1 fumble, 1 missed field goal.

First Quarter: Towson 7, Villanova 0

Let me preface this post with a personal anecdote, the last time Towson's led Nova, I was a freshman in College and Jermon Bushrod was a Tiger (not a Saint)

The Good: Towson's defense came out tonight with something to prove. They're physically matching up with Nova in a way that I've never seen before. Villanova is a quicker, stronger team. But like all teams, they've had a share of mental errors. Towson's D has been able to stand up to them physically (not outmatch, just stand up) and expose a few of those errors, holding the Wildcats scoreless.

The Bad: The offense is not clicking like they did last week. Enders 47-yard touchdown to Booker was a great play. But his receivers are not getting open, and when they are he's not making the right reads. Part of that is because the O-Line is not facing a middle of the pack MEAC team, they're playing the 20th best team in the country.

The Ugly: Open field tackling. How many times can this defense bend and not break?

Towson Football Live -- Villanova Wildcats

Welcome one and all to my live updates/analysis of Towson Tigers Football. I'll be updating this blog every quarter with analysis. Live Scoring updates via Twitter: Simon_HWT ...

Towson Kicks Off Conference Play against Villanova

Full story available at PressBoxOnline.com


Coming off a 42-3 win against the Morgan State Bears, the Tigers look to double their win count from 2010. The 20th-ranked Villanova Wildcats stand in their way Saturday night.

Towson (1-0) seeks its first win against Villanova (1-0) since 2006. Towson and Villanova are meeting for the eighth time in a series the Wildcats lead, 5-2.

NCAA FCS National Champions two years ago, the Wildcats travel to Johnny Unitas Stadium after a 42-7 loss to Temple during their season opener. Villanova, who graduated nine All-CAA selections from 2010, is 33-9 during the last three seasons, with playoff berths to cap each year. During his 27th season as the Wildcats' head coach, Andy Talley has won more games than any other head coach in school history.

"We are excited for the opportunity to play against a perennial powerhouse like Villanova," Towson coach Rob Ambrose said. "With a Hall of Fame coach and a tremendous team, they present a challenge for any opponent."

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Full story available at PressBoxOnline.com

Towson Quarterback Enders Named CAA Offensive Player of the Week

Towson quarterback Grant Enders, was named Colonial Athletic Association Offensive Player of the Week by CAA officials. The sophomore transfer from Lackawanna college led the Tigers to a 42-3 routing of the Morgan State Bears Saturday night.
Enders completed 15 of 19 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns in Saturday’s contest. The Tiger quarterback also ran for 47 yards on six carries and a touchdown against the Bears.
“Grant managed the game plan and his offense extremely well last night,” Towson Head Coach Rob Ambrose said. “It is a great testament to our entire offense that Grant was able to perform so well. This honor speaks well of both Grant and his teammates.”
Enders ability to manage the tempo of the game, while managing the Towson attack led to four touchdown drives. Each of which, were of multiple plays, and dominated the time of possession. Towson held on to the football almost twice as long as Morgan was able to.
Enders is the first Tiger to be named as the CAA Offensive Player of the Week since Sean Schaefer earned the award in October, 2007. The all-time leading passer in Tigers history, Schaefer led Towson in the greatest comeback in program history, defeating the Richmond Spiders after a come-from-behind winning drive in the final 22 seconds of the game.

Towson Tops Morgan In Season Opener

Towson opened up the 2011 college football season with a dominating, 42-3 win against the Morgan State Bears. Towson's offense dominated the Bears, amassing 534 yards Saturday night.

Sophomore quarterback Grant Enders was 15-19 for 197 yards passing and threw for three touchdowns. During his first game in a Tigers uniform, Enders also rushed for 52 yards and a touchdown on six carries.

"The thing about his particular offense, with coach Ambrose calling the offense, this is completely different from what they did last year," Morgan coach Donald Hill-Eley said. "[Enders] did a good job isolating the game and slowing us down."

After junior receiver Tyrone Hendrix returned the opening kickoff 69 yards for Morgan, the Bears took a quick 3-0 lead less than three minutes into Saturday night's game. This would be their only lead of the night. Towson's offense responded with a six-play, 69-yard drive, capped off by a Grant Enders touchdown pass to senior fullback Tyler Wharton.

The Tigers looked to hold onto their momentum after junior safety Jordan Dangerfield intercepted junior quarterback Don Dickerson at midfield. Enders and the Towson offense tried to piece together another touchdown drive, but failed to convert on a fourth down attempt eight plays later.

"There were three plays in the first half that should we have done the right way, this would have been a lot more points a lot sooner," Ambrose said. "We had the opportunity to not hit base hits, but to hit home runs, and we whiffed three times in the first half."

Towson's offense would score with 1:43 left during the first half, on a Gerard Sheppard 25-yard cross. Sheppard, one of Towson's five NCAA FBS transfers, scored his first collegiate touchdown after transferring from Connecticut -- where Ambrose originally recruited him while offensive coordinator for the Huskies.

The Tigers scored three times during the third quarter. After throwing his second touchdown of the night to Wharton, Enders broke out on an 18-yard run, juking out both Morgan safeties in his first rushing touchdown as a Tiger.

"It was one of those plays you see in practice a lot, the two safeties were drifting and we caught them sleeping with a quick count," Enders said.

Then, with 42 seconds left during the quarter, sophomore tailback Sterlin Phifer, a Boston College transfer, pounded in a two-yard run on the goal line. Phifer's run put Towson higher than the 30-point mark for the second time since Ambrose took over the program.

With Towson's offense dominating the time of possession, the defensive unit was able to stay fresh, and hold Morgan without a touchdown. With only 160 yards of total offense, Morgan's sole production for the night came on special teams. The Bears special teams unit racked up 200 return yards on four returns.

"We put our defense's back against the wall, time and time again, and that has to change," Ambrose said. "We're about to go play in the toughest conference in the country and there's no way we can try doing that."

Towson began the fourth quarter with a 12-play, 85-yard Touchdown drive, this time led by redshirt sophomore Peter Athens under center. Athens, who started as a true freshman before tearing his ACL in 2009, battled with Enders through the summer for the starting quarterback position. Athens ended the night 3-3 for 73 yards and a touchdown.

"We progressed through camp and gave all of these kids an equal opportunity, which is a difficult thing to do in evaluating play calls against different defenses," Ambrose said about the quarterback battle. "Grant showed the most consistency, and when it comes down to it, that's the name of the game. Grant's performance during camp was staggering."

Towson kicks off conference play Saturday, Sept. 10, at home against the Villanova Wildcats.

Guess who's back...

After some time off, I've decided to reactivate this blog to provide live scoring updates and in-depth commentary for Towson University Football.

Towson v Morgan Tonight, leggo.