One year ago, Central Connecticut State found itself in a near-identical position: one win away from a Northeast Conference championship. The Blue Devils delivered then, and now they stand on the precipice of history once more.
CCSU dismantled Stonehill 40-10 Saturday at Arute Field, moving one step closer to defending its NEC championship and securing an automatic berth in the FCS playoffs.
“We’ve been talking about it. If we could put together a complete game, that we’d have a chance to do this… we hadn’t, people hadn’t done it until today,” head coach Adam Lechtenberg said. “I felt like we played pretty good on all sides. Stonehill’s a good team. They played everybody close. They got a good defense. So we had to play well, and I was proud of our kids for executing for the most part all the way through the game.”
The Blue Devils (7-3, 5-0 NEC) remain the conference’s lone unbeaten team and have won nine straight NEC games dating back to last season. With one game remaining, a victory over Duquesne next week would clinch CCSU’s second consecutive conference championship and guarantee a postseason berth.
“Job’s not finished, and we got a full head of steam, and we’re going to the end,” junior linebacker Jack Stoll said.
Saturday’s victory was never in doubt. CCSU scored on five of its first six possessions, building a 23-0 lead before Stonehill (3-7, 2-3 NEC) even reached the end zone. The Blue Devils racked up 533 total yards while holding the Skyhawks to just 220.
Running back Elijah Howard provided the game’s most electrifying moment early in the second quarter. Taking a handoff near his own goal line, Howard found a seam up the middle before cutting off his blockers and sprinting 93 yards for a touchdown, the longest run of his career.
“Man, it was a great call,” Howard said. “He [Donovan Wadley] was like, ‘Man, don’t be indecisive. Hit it up off my behind.’ And I did that, and I kind of seen the safety coming and cut it off him. And man, O-line did that thing up front. It was just a beautiful play all around.”
Howard finished with 178 yards and two touchdowns on just 17 carries, averaging 10.5 yards per attempt. He surpassed 100 yards for the 12th time in his career, and now leads the NEC in scoring with 7.3 points per game. The senior entered Saturday with 3,368 all-purpose yards for his career, eighth among active FCS players, and his 2,533 career rushing yards rank eighth among active players and fourth all-time at CCSU.
The performance came one week after a subpar outing against Long Island.
“Great recognition and preparation. That’s where it started,” Howard said. “I kind of was a little indecisive two weeks ago in practice and it showed during the game. So me and Coach got that figured out, and we were all gas this week.”
Quarterback Brady Olson complemented Howard’s rushing attack with an efficient passing performance, completing 20 of 30 passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns without an interception. Ricky Ortega and Sean O’Brien each caught 12-yard touchdown passes, their only receptions of the game.
“From the start they executed, and that’s what we’re capable of,” Lechtenberg said. “When we don’t beat ourselves, we have a chance to be a really good offense. We have a lot of good skill kids. And today we made some plays. Brady always plays well, played well again today. But our skill kids really made a lot of plays.”
The offensive line, featuring several young players continuing to develop, paved the way for 266 rushing yards on 34 carries.
“Our O-line played really well today. I was really proud of them,” Lechtenberg said. “So many young kids continue to come and get better.”
While the offense controlled possession and scored at will, CCSU’s defense suffocated Stonehill’s attack. The Blue Devils recorded five sacks, 11 tackles for loss and held the Skyhawks to 60 rushing yards on 29 attempts.
Stoll led the defensive effort with seven total tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss. Linebacker Eric Jackson added 11 tackles, while Wayne Coleman, Derek Berlitz, Gavin Taylor and Carter Banks each recorded a sack. Coleman’s sack resulted in an eight-yard loss.
“The beautiful thing about our defense is when everyone does their jobs starting with the D-line being aggressive, you’re able to make big-time plays, and it’s a lights-out defense,” Stoll said.
The defensive line and linebacker corps, now in their second year as a cohesive unit, have become the backbone of CCSU’s success.
“Our D-line and our linebackers, that group is a good talented group we’ve had for two years,” Lechtenberg said. “They just continue to get better. What we’re doing is stopping the run, which gives us a chance to play the pass.”
CCSU opened the scoring on its first possession, marching 78 yards in 12 plays capped by Howard’s 3-yard touchdown run. Donny Marcus added an 11-yard touchdown run later in the first quarter, and Jack Hennessey connected on field goals of 30 and 20 yards. Howard’s 93-yard burst made it 23-0 before Stonehill finally answered with a Cole Clarke touchdown reception just before halftime.
The Blue Devils added two more touchdowns in the second half, with O’Brien’s 12-yard catch making it 33-10 in the third quarter and Ortega’s 12-yard reception in the fourth putting the game out of reach.
CCSU converted 12 of 14 third-down attempts and controlled possession for nearly 30 minutes. The fifth consecutive victory marks the program’s longest winning streak since 2019, when the Blue Devils won their final eight regular-season games.
The Blue Devils now lead the all-time series against Stonehill 3-1, having won nine straight conference games overall. CCSU plays three of its four November games at home, where the team is 10-1 over the past two seasons.
Next Saturday’s showdown with Duquesne will determine whether the Blue Devils can cap off an undefeated conference season. The Dukes (5-5, 3-2 NEC) will host Central for a
rematch of last year’s season finale, when CCSU emerged victorious to claim the conference crown.
“It’s a game to go,” Lechtenberg said. “We all know Duquesne’s a really good team. We know they’re going to be ready for us. We beat them here last year. Regardless of what happens in the LIU game, they’ll be ready for us, and it’s going to be a huge game for us to have a chance to win.”
Howard emphasized the team’s singular focus moving forward.
“It don’t matter who it is, just keep doing our thing,” he said. “We got to come out and finish the game. This is us building trust with each other and coming down and finishing. I feel like we’re ready to compete versus anybody.”
The stage is set. One more win, and the Blue Devils will reign supreme once again.
