Welcome to our latest and greatest preview series: the FCS Roundup! Each week, we will look to highlight all of the lower-level programs in action against the Mid-American Conference in one place.
Unfortunately for the Best Little Conference in the Midwest, they suffered a 1-2 record against FCS teams last week. We warned everyone that Bryant would be a potential trap game for UMass, and it eventually came home to roost. LIU also delivered a jawbreaker punch to a shocked EMU squad, leaving Buffalo
as the lone survivor against St. Francis [PA]. On the year, the MAC is 4-2 against FCS opponents.
This week sees two more FCS teams walk into MAC stadiums, with a well-known FCS powerhouse and an HBCU program both trotting in for pay games.
We’ll list them in order of appearance below:
New Hampshire Wildcats
- Who are they playing? Ball State, on Saturday, September 13th at 2 p.m. Eastern time
- Location: Scheumann Stadium in Muncie, Indiana
- Viewing options: The game will be available only on ESPN+; a valid subscription is required for viewing.
- Radio options: Mick Tidrow (play-by-play) and Chris Radican (color) will provide the Ball State call for WMUN-AM 1340.
- All-time series: In a rarity for FCS/FBS matchups, New Hampshire leads 1-0 all-time, dominating start-to-finish in a 23-16 win on Sept. 12, 2009. UNH was the #9 team in FCS at the time.
Rick Santos is in his fourth year coaching New Hampshire after taking over for the legendary Sean McDonnell full-time starting in 2021. McDonnell, leader of the pack from 1999-2021, was responsible for establishing UNH as an FCS power with his evolution of the game and knack for graduating coaching talent to the next level. As of publication, eight coaches at the FBS and FCS level, including Ryan Day at Ohio State and Ryan Carty at Delaware, were either assistants or players under his tutelage. McDonnell is also responsible for Chip Kelly’s ascent into coaching.
Santos, also an apprentice under McDonnell, has a 31-19 overall record ahead of this week’s matchup with Ball State, including a 2-0 record this season. UNH opened the season with a 27-10 road victory over HBCU North Carolina Central, then stifled a Holy Cross team which took NIU to the brink a few weeks ago to take a 19-16 win.
For their efforts so far, the Wildcats were ranked #23 by the Stats Perform Poll and #24 by the AFCA Coaches Poll earlier this week, making this Saturday’s game all the more intriguing.
The Wildcats run the ball about twice as much as they pass it, looking to control the ball and score with efficient, balanced drives.
Quarterback Matt Vezza is capable in both the pass and run games, completing 21-of-38 passes for 315 yards and two touchdowns (though he does also have two interceptions), with an additional 83 rushing yards and a score on the ground.
Myles Thomason is new to the starting position at halfback after the departure of last year’s starter Issac Seide, with 122 yards on 41 carries. At receiver, all-CAA receiver Caleb Burke is option #1 by a decent margin, with twice as many receptions (eight) and nearly twice as many yards (133 yards) as the next leading receiver. Burke was second on the team last season with 52 catches for 711 yards and six touchdowns.
UNH boasts an experienced, upperclassman-laden offensive line, with three of five starters who played in 2024 returning, and an additional starter back from a year-long injury. They’ll present an intriguing challenge to a Ball State defense which was forced to hit the reset button in the offseason.
The Wildcats will have to navigate the 2025 season without their two stud defensive ends, as both former FCS All-American Josiah Silver and first-team all-CAA Flex Ruiz departed the program in the offseason. UNH in fact, will be without 10 of their 11 starters from 2024, with graduate safety Brendan Tighe the lone returnee.
Redshirt freshman linebacker Trevor Berry seems to be the notable player on the front seven, patrolling the middle of UNH’s 4-2-5 defense and leading the team with 19 tackles— including 11 solo stops. Defensive lineman Justice Akinmoladun, a transfer from Washburn, leads the team with two tackles-for-loss and two sacks on five total tackles, with eight different UNH players logging at least one TFL each. Defensive back Raleigh Collins, a West Virginia transfer, has hauled in both interceptions for the team in 2025, with one apiece against NC Central and Holy Cross.
Of note to MAC fans will be former Buffalo kicker Nick Reed (1-of-3 FGs in two years); he has made all six of his attempts in 2025, including one from the 50+ yard range so far.
Morgan State Bears
- Who are they playing? Toledo, on Saturday, September 13th at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time
- Location: The Glass Bowl in Toledo, Ohio
- Viewing options: The game will be available only on ESPN+; a valid subscription is required for viewing.
- Radio options: Mark Baier (play-by-play) and Jack Mewhort (color) will provide the Toledo call for the Rockets Radio Network.
- All-time series: First-ever meeting
Morgan State is in their fourth year under HBCU coaching great Damon Wilson, who led nearby D-II Bowie State to three-straight conference titles and five playoff berths over 13 seasons before taking the job with MSU.
The Bears have gone 14-19 overall under Wilson prior to the start of the 2025 campaign, with a 8-7 mark in MEAC play, finishing no lower than third in all three seasons. Wilson has been a steady hand for the Bears, which churned through four coaches in the last six seasons prior to his arrival. In that span, no coach lasted more than two seasons at the helm.
2025 has started with an 0-2 mark, with a loss to South Alabama to kick off the season, and a one-score loss to FCS Towson. Toledo serves as the team’s second FBS game of the campaign in what is a wild schedule set-up; the Bears play two-straight Division II HBCUs after this week— including Miles College in a neutral site game in Indianapolis— then go to Georgetown for their second FCS out-of-conference game before hosting a non-NCAA member.
Wilson sees the upcoming game against Toledo as an opportunity to showcase MSU’s growth.
“We’ll be playing our second FBS opponent in our first three games. At the end of the day, we were in position in the first game against a good South Alabama team, but had turnovers and penalties,” Wilson said in Morgan State’s game notes this week. “… If you look at the Towson game, we out-performed them in every category except turnovers and the scoreboard. So we’re going to focus on the things we need to handle to be successful and give ourselves a chance. Toledo will be the best ballclub we’ve seen so far.”
The skill positions for MSU are intriguing, with Hawai’i native Kobe Muasau winning the quarterback job out of camp. A dual-threat in the backfield, Muasau finished 17-for-28 for 214 yards and a touchdown against Towson last week, while the Bears as whole out-gained the Tigers in offensive yards by a margin of 419-279.
The Bears spread the ball around with pace; 12 different receivers logged at least one reception against Towson last week, with 15 receivers logging at least two games played. Five-foot-nine receiver Juju Leatherbury leads the pack with nine receptions for 75 yards. Jojo Kennerly should also figure as a starter, with four receptions for 50 yards.
Halfback Jason Collins Jr. is the highlight player on offense, notching 217 net rushing yards and four touchdowns on 52 attempts, while also tied for second in catches (four.) Muasau also figures in to the rushing attack, with 102 yards before sacks (88 net) on 16 carries.
MSU has performed admirably on defense in two tough contests, even if the counting stats don’t quite show it. Buck Buchanan Award Preseason Watchlist nominee Erick Hunter, affectionately referred to as “E40”, leads the way. The redshirt senior linebacker has 216 total tackles, 22.5- tackles-for-loss, seven sacks and two interceptions in his career, and featured against Towson last week with a team-leading 10 tackles.
Defensive lineman Blanche Gold (3.5) and linebacker Jianni Woodson-Brooks (3) have combined for 6.5 of the team’s eight tackles-for-loss and could pose as a difficult matchup on passing downs.
Morgan State’s team defense hasn’t been helped by turnovers on the offensive side, but they’ve done the best they can, holding opposition to seven total touchdowns and 308 yards per game on average— including 279 last week vs. Towson. Teams are 10-of-22 on MSU’s defense on third down, and the Bears have forced four fumbles on the season in just two games.
That defense will be tested to their limits against a Toledo team which stacks up an average of 415.5 yards of total offense— including 183 rushing yards on average— and boasts several all-MAC players.
