Despite a great effort from quarterback Casey Case, the Stony Brook football team officially fell to sole possession of last place in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA).
In a battle between the two remaining winless teams in the CAA, the Seawolves (0-5, 0-4 CAA) found themselves on the wrong end of a one-sided game. They were dismantled by the Maine Black Bears (1-4, 1-2 CAA) 56-28 on Saturday up in Orono, Maine.
Stony Brook allowed 42 points in the first half alone, 28 of which came in the first quarter. The first play of the game was a cautionary tale of the disaster that followed, as running back Roland Dempster fumbled the ball away and gave it to the Black Bears at Stony Brook’s 33-yard line.
Maine took just six plays to capitalize, punching it in from one yard out with running back Tristen Kenan to go up 7-0. After forcing a three and out on the Seawolves, the Black Bears got the ball back at their own 20-yard line and found the end zone in just four plays. Maine quarterback Derek Robertson capped off the quick drive when he hit wide receiver Joe Gillette on the inside seam for a 55-yard touchdown to go up 14-0.
The Black Bears followed their long score with another stop on defense before outdoing their previous offensive efforts. After Robertson fired a 33-yard dot to wide receiver Jamie Lamson, running back Trevin Ewing turned the left corner and dusted Stony Brook’s entire defense for a 30-yard touchdown.
Before the first quarter’s conclusion, a short punt by punter Clayton Taylor set Maine up at its own 42-yard line. On the fifth play of the drive, the Black Bears tricked the Seawolves with a flea flicker, and Robertson aired out a 41-yard touchdown to wide receiver Montigo Moss to make it 28-0.
Coming into the game, Robertson had not thrown a touchdown pass while completing just 50.5% of his passes for 150.5 yards per game. In the first quarter alone, he completed nine of his 11 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns.
Head coach Chuck Priore said that the Black Bears simply outperformed his team in every aspect.
“They certainly did a good job executing some things against some of our coverages,” Priore said in a postgame press conference. “I’ve got to hand it to their game planning and execution of what they did. They probably picked on some things, but as I said, I’ll have to watch the film.”
The Seawolves opened the second quarter with their first points of the day when Case found wide receiver Jayden Cook alone downfield for a 47-yard touchdown pass. However, Robertson responded with a 34-yard touchdown strike to Gillette to undo Case’s effort.
Towards the end of the first half, a 51-yard touchdown pass from Case to tight end Cal Redman only briefly stopped the bleeding. Robertson came back onto the field with just 56 seconds left before halftime and still found time to throw a fourth touchdown — this one a 27-yarder to Moss.
The remainder of the game was much of the same story. Maine opened up the second half with a scoring drive that ended in a two-yard touchdown run by Kenan. On the Seawolves’ opening drive of the second half, Case threw an interception to Maine free safety Abdul Stewart, setting the Black Bears up with a short field. The drive ended how most others did, with Robertson finding wide receiver Cooper Heisey for a two-yard touchdown pass to make it 56-14.
Case notched a few more impressive throws, completing a 36-yard touchdown to Cook towards the end of the third quarter and a six-yard scoring pass to wide receiver R.J. Lamarre in the fourth. Statistically, Case’s performance was one of the best in Stony Brook history. He completed 22 of his 37 passes (59.5%) for 348 yards, four touchdowns and one pick. It was the sixth-most yards in a single game by a Seawolf ever and the first 300-yard performance since former quarterback Tyquell Fields threw for 320 against Villanova on Oct. 26, 2019.
Cook topped the receiver group with 117 yards and two touchdowns on seven catches. Wide receiver Anthony Johnson followed, catching five passes for 88 yards. Redman’s touchdown was the second of his career and the first by a Stony Brook tight end this year. He had not scored since his first career catch back in the 2020-21 season against Albany.
Likewise, Robertson had his best game of the year by far, completing 25 of his 30 passes (83.3%) for 394 yards and five touchdowns. Moss — the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Randy Moss — led Maine with 108 yards and two touchdowns on five catches. Gillette racked up 96 yards and a pair of scores on four catches.
The Seawolves will remain on the road for their next game when they take on the Morgan State Bears in Baltimore next Saturday. Morgan State is 1-4 this year and has lost four in a row after being blown out 45-3 by Yale. The game will be the Bears’ homecoming. Opening kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
