The Stony Brook football team opened up their 2024 season on Aug. 31 with FBS foe Marshall University, falling to the Herd 45-3 at Joan C. Edwards Stadium in West Virginia.
The Seawolves (0-1, 0-0 CAA) led the time of possession and ran more plays than the Herd, but were unable to capitalize as the Herd finished with a 549-252 advantage in total yards.
The quarterback duo of Tyler Knoop and Malachi Marshall made their first career appearances for Stony Brook and combined for 158 yards through the air. Knoop got the start for the Seawolves and went 8-of-13 with 62 passing yards, including a 32-yard highlight-play by Jayce Freeman. Marshall went 10-of-20 for 96 yards with an interception and 11 carries.
Freeman led the receiver room by tallying a team-high 52 yards on two catches. West Virginia native Chance Knox made his first career appearance with the Seawolves and had a team-best five receptions. RJ Lamarre and Cole Bunicci each had 25 receiving yards, respectively.
Roland Dempster and Brandon Boria split the majority of the carries, with Dempster gaining 37 yards on 13 carries while Boria gained a career-best 22 yards on eight attempts on the ground. Anthony Ferreli finished with a career-high 14 tackles on the defensive side for Stony Brook, four of them solo, and Chayce Chalmers also tallied a career-best 10 tackles, four of them solo as well.
Rudy Silvera made his Stony Brook debut this evening and led the team with six solo tackles, finishing with 10 total. Clarens Legagneur recorded seven tackles, while AJ Roberts finished his night with six. Tyson McCloud recorded the first sack of the season for the Seawolves.
On special teams, Clayton Taylor hit nine punts for 392 yards, averaging 43.6 yards per kick and putting two punts inside the 20. Enda Kirby gave the Seawolves three points with a 39-yard field goal in the third quarter.
“Overall I thought we started strong. I thought we came out with the right mindset. I thought we played hard, we played physical. I like the way our defense played, I thought they wore down as the game went. We were way better on defense than we have been in the past. They had some guys that can run and make plays, that showed up at times,” head coach Billy Cosh said.
“Offensively, there were moments but we’ve got to be a little more consistent. I thought Malachi did a nice job bringing us a spark. He’s young and he’s going to be a really good player. I like our outfit, I like our team,” he added.
Up next, the team returns home for its 2024 home opener against Stonehill on Saturday, Sept. 7 at 3:30 p.m. at LaValle Stadium. To purchase season, single game, mini plans or group tickets, call 631-632-9653.