TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University football team was within four points of No. 10/8 Villanova with just over four minutes left in the game but could not finish as the Tigers fell to the Wildcats 28-10 on Saturday afternoon in Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) play.
 
Towson (4-6, 2-4 CAA) knocked down a field goal in the closing minute of the third and got just outside midfield with five minutes left, but two rushing touchdowns scored by Ja'Briel Mace, who rushed for 291 yards, in the final four minutes for Villanova (7-2, 6-1 CAA) sealed the game for the Wildcats.
 
Key Stats:

• Towson had the edge in passing yards 156-120, but Villanova had 353 rushing yards to Towson's 131.
• Towson's defense had a couple of fourth down stops plus blocked two field goal attempts and a punt.
• Andrew Indorf was 14-for-30 at quarterback for 156 yards, adding 38 rushing yards.  John Dunmore was his top target with four catches for 38 yards, also having a 45-yard rush for a touchdown.
• Alfred Thomas led all players with 12 tackles, including a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss.  Myles Brodie broke up two passes and made five tackles.
• For Villanova, which won its sixth straight game, running back Ja'briel Mace averaged 10.4 yards a carry, running the ball 28 times for 291 yards and four touchdowns.  Pat McQuaide threw 11-for-23 for 120 yards.  AJ Koukou made four tackles and forced a fumble which let to a turnover.

How it Happened

• Both defenses stood strong in the early going with a couple of three-and-outs starting the day.  Given short field position, Villanova attempted to go for it on fourth and two, with Alfred Thomas stuffing the ball-carrier one yard short on the Towson 24 to force a turnover on downs. 
• The punting continued until Villanova's fourth drive in the first, where a Ja'Briel Mace 14-yard rush and a 17-yard pass to Antonio Johnson placed the Wildcats on Towson 28.  As the defense held them to just one more yard, the field goal attempt was blocked at the line by Treyvon Adams as Towson took back over.  Andrew Indorf threw a dart down the center to Jarvis Jones for 28 yards, then the next play, an end-around to John Dunmore saw the wide receiver run 45 yards down the sideline for the touchdown, putting Towson on the board first 7-0 with 1:42 left in the first.
• Into the second, again Villanova attempted a fourth down conversion with fourth and one on the Towson 49, with Myles Brodie and Shamir Boyd stopped Mace for no gain and another turnover on downs.  Towson had to punt on a three-and-out, pinning Villanova on its own two.
• Villanova had a punt partially blocked by Xzavion Crumb, but a holding penalty forced Towson back to its 38.  Towson pushed to the Villanova 33 on some short passes but punted.  Next drive for Villanova, a 32-yard run for Mace set the tone as Villanova came down the field.  Mace scored on an eight-yard run to tie the game at 7-7 with 1:14 left in the half.  Towson attempted a final drive with a 22-yard catch by Lukkas Londono getting to the Villanova 22, but the clock expired.
• The Wildcats kicked off to the start the second half and Jack Barnum pulled off an onside kick which the Wildcats recovered. Four plays later, Mace scored on a 39-yard run to give Villanova the lead 14-7 1:33 into the second half.
• Al Wooten II got Towson started with a couple of rushes as Towson pushed inside Villanova territory.  On a first down play on the 38, a fumble was recovered by Villanova.  An 18-yard catch by Braden Reed got the Wildcats to the Towson 30.  Towson's defense again held there and again blocked a Villanova field goal attempt, keeping within a score.
• Indorf again turned to Dunmore for a 23-yard catch to start the drive.  Indorf then got out of a jam in the pocket and checked down to Wooten II for a 22-yard gain.  In the closing minute of the third, Caden Williams knocked down a 34-yard field goal attempt to pull Towson within four at 14-10.
• Villanova responded with a drive lasting over nine minutes going down the field.  At third and goal from the four, Branson Peters tripped up Mace behind the line of scrimmage to force a field goal attempt, which slammed the right upright.  Towson remained within four.
• In two-and-a-half minutes, Towson got just outside Villanova territory but had to punt.  With 4:08 remaining, Mace ran 82 yards for his third touchdown of the game as the Wildcats led 21-10.
• Forced to start the next drive on its own six, Towson could not break out and punted.  Mace added another touchdown with 1:48 left for a 28-10 lead, the eventual final score.

Inside the Numbers

• Three of Towson's four defeats at home have come against top-25 opponents.
• This season, John Dunmore has earned a touchdown via receiving, rushing and passing, combining for seven touchdowns this season.
• Alfred Thomas earned his second 12-tackle game in his last three contests.
• Caden Williams, with a 34-yard field goal today, is 13-for-15 on field goals this season for 86.7%.  The current record for field goal percentage in a season for a Towson kicker is 84.6% by Sam Hurwitz in 2015.
• This was the final game between Towson and Villanova as CAA foes, with Villanova headed to the Patriot League next season.

Next Game

• Towson plays its last away game of the 2025 regular season on Saturday, Nov. 15 at 1 p.m. at UAlbany.