Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Preview: Q&A with Monmouth Beat Writer Mike Ready
9/3/2021 12:30:00 PM | Football
New Jersey Scribe breaks down MT’s season opening opponent
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — This Saturday is not your typical FCS opponent for Middle Tennessee.
When Saturday's season opener kicks off at Floyd Stadium, the Blue Raiders will be one of 36 FBS teams to begin their 2021 season against an FCS opponent. But few, if any, will start out with an FCS foe that has the resume of the Monmouth Hawks over the past two seasons.
Back-to-back winners of the Big South, the Hawks return 20 out of 22 starters from last year's squad that went 3-1 in the shortened spring FCS season. Monmouth's only loss came in the FCS playoffs to eventual national champion, Sam Houston State. In 2019, the Hawks won the Big South behind a 11-3 overall record, winning an FCS playoff game against Holy Cross before falling to national runner-up James Madison in the Round of 16.
To give Blue Raider fans an in-depth look at this week's opponent, GoBlueRaider.com staff writer Sam Doughton exchanged emails with Mike Ready, a freelance reporter who covers Monmouth for jerseysportingnews.com.
This Q&A has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
1) Monmouth has had their best run in school history over the past two seasons, winning back to back Big South titles and earning berths to the FCS playoffs with those conference titles, with a predicted third in this year's preseason poll. What has been the key for the program to take the next step that has led to that success?
Monmouth University began playing football in 1993 as a member of the Northeast Conference. When the rest of Monmouth's Division 1 programs joined the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (which does not sponsor football) in 2013, the Hawks football program accepted an offer to join the Big South Conference starting in 2014.
The Northeast Conference sets a limit of 40 scholarships (for football) as opposed to the 63 scholarships allowed by FCS regulations. So, Monmouth now had an additional 23 scholarships to work with. With budget restraints, it has taken some time to reach that quota of available scholarships, but they are now very close to the maximum limit of 63 scholarships. This has allowed Monmouth to attract a higher caliber athlete, which in turn produces a better product on the field and allows the Hawks to build depth across the board, which was difficult to accomplish in the past.
As John Wooden was fond of saying, "Winning breeds winning." Once Monmouth began to win Big South titles and make NCAA FCS playoff appearances, elite athletes began to take notice of Monmouth, where in the past they were an afterthought. Add that to the fact that Monmouth boasts a beautiful campus only one mile from the beach, it's an easy sell.
2) Both head coach Rick Stockstill and safety Reed Blankenship were very complimentary of quarterback Tony Muskett in this week's weekly press conference. What made him a standout as a true freshman last season?
Tony Muskett is a once in a generation quarterback. Muskett was under-recruited coming out of West Springfield High School in Springfield, Virginia where he threw for over 7,000 yards and 69 touchdowns. He chose Monmouth over eight other FCS schools and one FBS school, Coastal Carolina. Mature way beyond his age, Muskett keenly handled the many hardships the Covid-19 pandemic presented, including the cancellation of the fall 2020 season and a bizarre winter training camp leading up to a unique spring season. He won the job coming out of winter camp and hasn't looked back.
Muskett possessed leadership qualities rarely found in a true freshman and he quickly earned the respect and trust of his teammates, which allowed him to be himself. Once he steps on the field, he portrays confidence and has the pure talent to back it up. Muskett's football IQ is off the charts and he processes things rapidly. He mastered Monmouth's offense in record time, which allows him to play on instinct and let his unique skill set blossom. He has elite arm strength and is extremely accurate with his throws. He has great vision, which allows him to quickly scan the field, check off primary receivers and locate secondary receivers. He has good ball security, throwing just two interceptions in 128 passing attempts a season ago. Muskett feels pressure and knows when to step up in the pocket to avoid the rush as he was sacked only twice.
Primarily a pro-style QB, Mukett is extremely athletic and will take off and run for a first down when need be. He's very calm in his demeanor and doesn't put any pressure on himself – it appears like nothing is too big for him to handle as his potential game-winning drive in the FCS playoffs against eventual national champion Sam Houston State showed. With one of the top receiving units in the FCS to work with, Muskett is primed for a huge season.
3) Both Monmouth (Juwon Farri) and Middle Tennessee (Amir Rasul, Martell Pettaway) had some of their top backs opt-out of recent seasons. How big is the potential impact of Farri's on the Hawk offense?
Farri sat out the 2019 season for personal reasons after rushing for 1,047 yards and eight touchdowns as a true freshman in 2018 and earning first team All-Big South honors. He returned for the spring 2021 season after the fall 2020 season was cancelled. He was named the 2021 Big South Offensive Player of the Year last spring after rushing for 422 yards on 79 attempts (5.3 per carry) with 10 touchdowns while averaging 140.7 yards per game, which ranked third in all of FCS. He's full go this fall and raring to let loose.
4) New Blue Raider offensive coordinator Brent Dearmon runs a scheme heavy on Run-Pass Option plays. Who are some of the key players that will need to step up on defense to slow down the spread option attack?
Unfortunately for Monmouth, middle linebacker DaQuan Grimes, their leading tackler the past two seasons and unquestionably the heart and soul of the Hawks defense, is out for the season after suffering a lower leg injury in summer camp that required surgery. That's a huge blow to the Hawks defense. Fifth-year senior linebacker Eddie Hahn, who transferred from UConn prior to last season, will be counted on to pick up the slack. Hahn had a tremendous spring season and was named first team All-Big South after recording 27 tackles (second on the team to Grimes), four TFL, 1.5 sacks and an interception in four games.
First team All-Big South selections defensive ends Kahari Scarlett and Erik Massey are physical players that are extremely active and always around the ball. Defensive end Nick Shoemaker is a three-year starter that tends to be underrated, but always gets the job done. Another lineman to watch is tackle Lorenzo Hernandez, who moves into a starting role this season. He had a breakout season last spring and is big, physical and quick. Monmouth's secondary is comprised of four first team All-Big South selections with a ton of experience between them. The unit includes the 2021 Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, free safety Anthony Budd, along with cornerbacks Eddie Morales III and Justin Terry and strong safety Tyrese Wright. All are plus coverage guys and physical in run support. The foursome was three through six on the team in tackles last season.
5) Monmouth has only faced four FBS opponents in their program's history, and is 0-4 in those games. What would be considered a successful trip south for the program to open the season?
This is, without a doubt, the best team in program history. The players feel they can win this game and come in very confident. There will be no moral victories in their minds. As a beat writer, I would say if they can stay within a touchdown that would constitute a successful trip.
When Saturday's season opener kicks off at Floyd Stadium, the Blue Raiders will be one of 36 FBS teams to begin their 2021 season against an FCS opponent. But few, if any, will start out with an FCS foe that has the resume of the Monmouth Hawks over the past two seasons.
Back-to-back winners of the Big South, the Hawks return 20 out of 22 starters from last year's squad that went 3-1 in the shortened spring FCS season. Monmouth's only loss came in the FCS playoffs to eventual national champion, Sam Houston State. In 2019, the Hawks won the Big South behind a 11-3 overall record, winning an FCS playoff game against Holy Cross before falling to national runner-up James Madison in the Round of 16.
To give Blue Raider fans an in-depth look at this week's opponent, GoBlueRaider.com staff writer Sam Doughton exchanged emails with Mike Ready, a freelance reporter who covers Monmouth for jerseysportingnews.com.
This Q&A has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
1) Monmouth has had their best run in school history over the past two seasons, winning back to back Big South titles and earning berths to the FCS playoffs with those conference titles, with a predicted third in this year's preseason poll. What has been the key for the program to take the next step that has led to that success?
Monmouth University began playing football in 1993 as a member of the Northeast Conference. When the rest of Monmouth's Division 1 programs joined the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (which does not sponsor football) in 2013, the Hawks football program accepted an offer to join the Big South Conference starting in 2014.
The Northeast Conference sets a limit of 40 scholarships (for football) as opposed to the 63 scholarships allowed by FCS regulations. So, Monmouth now had an additional 23 scholarships to work with. With budget restraints, it has taken some time to reach that quota of available scholarships, but they are now very close to the maximum limit of 63 scholarships. This has allowed Monmouth to attract a higher caliber athlete, which in turn produces a better product on the field and allows the Hawks to build depth across the board, which was difficult to accomplish in the past.
As John Wooden was fond of saying, "Winning breeds winning." Once Monmouth began to win Big South titles and make NCAA FCS playoff appearances, elite athletes began to take notice of Monmouth, where in the past they were an afterthought. Add that to the fact that Monmouth boasts a beautiful campus only one mile from the beach, it's an easy sell.
2) Both head coach Rick Stockstill and safety Reed Blankenship were very complimentary of quarterback Tony Muskett in this week's weekly press conference. What made him a standout as a true freshman last season?
Tony Muskett is a once in a generation quarterback. Muskett was under-recruited coming out of West Springfield High School in Springfield, Virginia where he threw for over 7,000 yards and 69 touchdowns. He chose Monmouth over eight other FCS schools and one FBS school, Coastal Carolina. Mature way beyond his age, Muskett keenly handled the many hardships the Covid-19 pandemic presented, including the cancellation of the fall 2020 season and a bizarre winter training camp leading up to a unique spring season. He won the job coming out of winter camp and hasn't looked back.
Muskett possessed leadership qualities rarely found in a true freshman and he quickly earned the respect and trust of his teammates, which allowed him to be himself. Once he steps on the field, he portrays confidence and has the pure talent to back it up. Muskett's football IQ is off the charts and he processes things rapidly. He mastered Monmouth's offense in record time, which allows him to play on instinct and let his unique skill set blossom. He has elite arm strength and is extremely accurate with his throws. He has great vision, which allows him to quickly scan the field, check off primary receivers and locate secondary receivers. He has good ball security, throwing just two interceptions in 128 passing attempts a season ago. Muskett feels pressure and knows when to step up in the pocket to avoid the rush as he was sacked only twice.
Primarily a pro-style QB, Mukett is extremely athletic and will take off and run for a first down when need be. He's very calm in his demeanor and doesn't put any pressure on himself – it appears like nothing is too big for him to handle as his potential game-winning drive in the FCS playoffs against eventual national champion Sam Houston State showed. With one of the top receiving units in the FCS to work with, Muskett is primed for a huge season.
3) Both Monmouth (Juwon Farri) and Middle Tennessee (Amir Rasul, Martell Pettaway) had some of their top backs opt-out of recent seasons. How big is the potential impact of Farri's on the Hawk offense?
Farri sat out the 2019 season for personal reasons after rushing for 1,047 yards and eight touchdowns as a true freshman in 2018 and earning first team All-Big South honors. He returned for the spring 2021 season after the fall 2020 season was cancelled. He was named the 2021 Big South Offensive Player of the Year last spring after rushing for 422 yards on 79 attempts (5.3 per carry) with 10 touchdowns while averaging 140.7 yards per game, which ranked third in all of FCS. He's full go this fall and raring to let loose.
4) New Blue Raider offensive coordinator Brent Dearmon runs a scheme heavy on Run-Pass Option plays. Who are some of the key players that will need to step up on defense to slow down the spread option attack?
Unfortunately for Monmouth, middle linebacker DaQuan Grimes, their leading tackler the past two seasons and unquestionably the heart and soul of the Hawks defense, is out for the season after suffering a lower leg injury in summer camp that required surgery. That's a huge blow to the Hawks defense. Fifth-year senior linebacker Eddie Hahn, who transferred from UConn prior to last season, will be counted on to pick up the slack. Hahn had a tremendous spring season and was named first team All-Big South after recording 27 tackles (second on the team to Grimes), four TFL, 1.5 sacks and an interception in four games.
First team All-Big South selections defensive ends Kahari Scarlett and Erik Massey are physical players that are extremely active and always around the ball. Defensive end Nick Shoemaker is a three-year starter that tends to be underrated, but always gets the job done. Another lineman to watch is tackle Lorenzo Hernandez, who moves into a starting role this season. He had a breakout season last spring and is big, physical and quick. Monmouth's secondary is comprised of four first team All-Big South selections with a ton of experience between them. The unit includes the 2021 Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, free safety Anthony Budd, along with cornerbacks Eddie Morales III and Justin Terry and strong safety Tyrese Wright. All are plus coverage guys and physical in run support. The foursome was three through six on the team in tackles last season.
5) Monmouth has only faced four FBS opponents in their program's history, and is 0-4 in those games. What would be considered a successful trip south for the program to open the season?
This is, without a doubt, the best team in program history. The players feel they can win this game and come in very confident. There will be no moral victories in their minds. As a beat writer, I would say if they can stay within a touchdown that would constitute a successful trip.
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