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NEC Offensive Player of the Week: Jermaine Corbett, Stonehill
NEC Defensive Player of the Week: Micah Brown, Stonehill
NEC Special Teams Player of the Week: Perry Shelbred, Stonehill
NEC Rookie of the Week: Trey Howe, Central Connecticut
Previous NEC Releases: September 4 |
Preseason Poll Release |
TV Package Release
NEC OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Jermaine Corbett, Stonehill
Running Back, Sr., 5-9, 190 lbs., Long Branch, NJ/Long Branch
Week 2 Stats: 28 rushes, 182 rushing yards, 1 rushing TD, 6.5 yards per carry, 5 receptions, 57 receiving yards, 238 all-purpose yards
Corbett put up big numbers at Central Connecticut on Saturday to lead Stonehill to a thrilling 33-30 victory and the program’s second 1-0 start to NEC play. A senior running back, he paced a Skyhawks’ offense that finished with 399 yards of total offense after he carried the ball 28 times for 182 yards, the most by an NEC player this season. In addition, Corbett tacked on 57 more yards on five receptions to finish with a career-high 238 all-purpose yards in the triumph. Scoring on a two-yard drive in the second quarter to give Stonehill a 13-7 advantage, he rushed for 30 of the 40 yards on two carries to fuel the Skyhawks’ final drive and set up the game-deciding 52-yard field goal in the closing seconds of the game. A native of Long Branch, NJ, Corbett currently leads the circuit with 124.0 rushing yards per game, while his three rushing touchdowns are also a league-best. With his first NEC Player of the Week honor of the 2023 campaign, Corbett has now earned the distinction three times in his career.
NEC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Micah Brown, Stonehill
Defensive Back, Sr., 6-0, 205 lbs., Depew, NY/St. Joseph Collegiate Institute
Week 2 Stats: 27 tackles (3 solo), 2 forced fumbles
Brown finished with seven tackles, including three solo, to go along with a pair of clutch defensive plays for Stonehill, which opened the 2023 NEC slate with a thrilling 33-30 win at Central Connecticut on Saturday. The veteran defensive back wasted little time to wreak havoc on the Blue Devils’ offense, as he knocked the ball loose on the opening play of the game that led to the first score of the afternoon, a 12-yard touchdown throw from Ashur Carraha to Chris Domercant with 12:04 to go in the stanza. Early in the second quarter, Brown went to work once again and forced another fumble on the Stonehill goal line that prevented what would have been a game-tying touchdown for Central Connecticut. With the honor, the Depew, NY native becomes the first-ever Skyhawk to take home NEC Defensive Player of the Week accolades.
NEC SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Perry Shelbred, Stonehill
Kicker, Sr., 5-10, 170 lbs., Ridgefield, CT/John Jay (NY)
Week 2 Stats: 2-for-2 FG (52-yard long), 2-for-4 PAT
Shelbred used his right foot to provide the heroics for Stonehill on Saturday in a thrilling 33-30 victory at Central Connecticut. A native of Ridgefield, CT, the senior delivered a program-record 52-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Skyhawks to the win and their second 1-0 start to NEC play. The field goal — which was the longest by an NEC kicker since 2016 when Wagner’s James Cooper delivered a 52-yarder against Sacred Heart on Oct. 1 — came just 63 seconds after Central Connecticut knotted up the score for the second time over the final 8:10. Shelbred racked up nine points in the game, adding a 22-yard field goal in the second quarter to give the Skyhawks a 16-7 lead. He finished 2-for-2 on field goal attempts and was 3-for-4 on PATs. This is Shelbred’s second career NEC Special Teams Player of the Week honor.
NEC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Trey Howe, Central Connecticut
Running Back, R-Fr., 5-8, 200 lbs., Uxbridge, MA/Assumption (Blackstone Valley Tech)
Week 2 Stats: 1 blocked punt, 1 punt recovery, 15-yard punt return
Howe, a redshirt freshman running back, was a key contributor to a 16-0 run that saw Central Connecticut claw back from a 23-7 deficit in the fourth quarter and knot up the score at 23-23, all within a span of 76 seconds. The Uxbridge, MA native got his hand on a Stonehill punt, scooped up the loose ball and returned it 15 yards for the score. The Blue Devils would pull even when Davion Johnson caught the two-point conversion with 8:10 left to play. Howe’s efforts were not enough for Central Connecticut to earn the win in the league opener, though, as Stonehill went on to spoil the comeback with a last-second field goal. The NEC Rookie of the Week award is the first for a Central Connecticut player since safety Jonathan Cabral-Martin earned the honor on Nov. 1, 2021.
#NECFB PRIME PERFORMERS (Week 2)
C.J. Duell, CCSU (QB, Jr.)
Duell threw for 200+ yards for the second time in as many games, as he registered a career-best 299 yards after going 18-of-28 in his NEC debut against Stonehill. The junior hurled a 51-yard touchdown pass in the opening quarter before he registered a pair of successful two-point conversions to fuel the Blue Devils’ comeback bid in an eventual three-point defeat.
Trey Howe, CCSU (RB, R-Fr.)
Howe had a huge defensive play in the fourth quarter to fuel a 16-0 Central Connecticut run that erased a 23-7 deficit and tied up the game, all within a stretch of 1:16. The running back blocked a Stonehill punt, scooped up the loose ball and returned it 15 yards for the score. The redshirt freshman was also named the NEC Rookie of the Week.
Dan Toatley, CCSU (DL, Jr.)
Toatley recorded six tackles to pace Central Connecticut’s defense in a defeat to Stonehill on Saturday. The junior defensive registered 2.0 sacks and combined to push the Skyhawks back 13 yards on those stops.
Darius Perrantes, DUQ (QB, Jr.)
Perrantes completed 14-of-31 passes for 220 yards and a pair of touchdowns at FBS and Power-5 opponent West Virginia on Saturday evening. Registering a 38-yard touchdown throw in the first quarter and a 16-yard pass that was good for six points in the third, the junior leads the NEC in the category with four.
Tyvon Edmonds Jr., MC (RB, Jr.)
Edmonds ran for 140 yards on 23 carries to pace Merrimack’s offense in a defeat to visiting Lehigh on Saturday. The junior running back is second in the NEC behind Stonehill’s Jermaine Corbett with 225 total rushing yards and 112.5 rushing yards per game.
Casey McKinney, SFU (WR, R-So.)
McKinney had eight catches for 111 yards to lead Saint Francis U in a defeat to Robert Morris on Saturday. The redshirt sophomore also recorded his first career touchdown after hauling in a 53-yard pass from redshirt junior quarterback Cole Doyle in the second quarter.
Micah Brown, STO (DB, Sr.)
Coming away with seven tackles, including three solo, Brown registered a pair of key forced fumbles to help Stonehill take down Central Connecticut, 33-30, in the first league game of the NEC slate. The senior linebacker forced a fumble on the opening play of the game before he knocked another ball loose on the Skyhawks’ goal line early in the second quarter to prevent a Blue Devils’ touchdown. Brown was also named the NEC Defensive Player of the Week.
Jermaine Corbett, STO (RB, Sr.)
Corbett carried the ball 28 times for 182 yards, the most by an NEC player in a game this season, to lead Stonehill past Central Connecticut, 33-30, in New Britain, CT on Saturday. The veteran ran for one touchdown in the second quarter and racked up a career-high 238 all-purpose yards for the Skyhawks, who finished with 399 total yards of offense in the conference opener. Corbett was also named the NEC Offensive Player of the Week for the first time this season and the third time in his career.
Perry Shelbred, STO (K, Sr.)
Shelbred booted the longest field goal by an NEC place kicker since 2016 in the final seconds of the game to propel Stonehill to a 33-30 win at Central Connecticut in the first conference game of 2023. The senior’s 52-yard blast spoiled a furious Blue Devils’ comeback that saw the home team erase a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter and tie up the game within a 1:16 stretch. Shelbred was also named the NEC Special Teams Player of the Week.
AROUND THE NEC IN 8 SENTENCES
CENTRAL CONNECTICUT, which is averaging 37.0 points per contest, has put up 30 points in consecutive games for the first time since 2021, when the Blue Devils scored 49 and 30 points, respectively, in wins over Merrimack and Bryant.
DUQUESNE faced West Virginia last Saturday, marking the Dukes’ eighth game in program history against an FBS opponent.
LIU was featured on the Sunday night edition of the NBC Nightly News, as tight end Reese Dykstra’s surprise scholarship announcement was shared prior to NBC’s Sunday Night Football programming.
MERRIMACK’s offense inside the red zone is a perfect 3-for-3 with quarterback Gavin McCusker accounting for two of the three Warriors’ touchdowns when inside the 20-yard line.
SACRED HEART’s has prevailed on three of four fourth-down conversion attempts to lead the NEC with a 75.0 success rate.
SAINT FRANCIS U’s defeat at Robert Morris snapped a nine-game regular season winning streak against FCS opponents that dated back to a loss at Richmond on Sept. 10, 2022
STONEHILL, which received an NEC-leading 182 rushing yards from senior Jermaine Corbett in Saturday’s win at Central Connecticut, is off to a 1-0 start in NEC play for the second straight season.
WAGNER graduate student John Gioia is one of three NEC players averaging double digits in tackles this season with five solo and 15 assisted stops.
2023 NEC FOOTBALL WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS:
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sept. 4: Cole Doyle, Saint Francis U
Sept. 11: Jermaine Corbett, Stonehill
Sept. 18:
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sept. 4: Eric O'Neill, LIU
Sept. 11: Micah Brown, Stonehill
Sept. 18:
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Sept. 4: Jack Barnum, Central Connecticut
Sept. 11: Perry Shelbred, Stonehill
Sept. 18:
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Sept. 4: Makhai Workman, Saint Francis U
Sept. 11: Trey Howe, Central Connecticut
Sept. 18: