A potentially disastrous trip to Hawai’i could turn out to be signs of life for the Delaware State football team.
After a week of travel woes that saw them arrive later than expected to Honolulu, the Hornets befuddled the Rainbow Warriors for more than a half before falling 35-14 Saturday night/Sunday morning. Even in the loss, there are a few reasons for DelState to be encouraged that 2024 could be a better season than 2023.
The maturation of Marqui Adams
Adams, a redshirt sophomore quarterback from Philadelphia, has settled into the starting role for Lee Hull’s quick-hit offense. Last year’s tendencies to rush throws or squeeze them into impossibly tight windows were absent against Hawai’i.
Adams completed 17 of 28 for 156 yards but did the most damage with his legs, rushing for 44 yards and DSU’s first touchdown just before halftime. If Adams can play this well against an FBS defense, then that bodes well for the Hornets once they start FCS/MEAC play.
Defensive improvements
The Hornets’ run defense was third from the bottom in all of FCS in 2023, allowing over 2,700 rushing yards and 6 yards per carry. The Rainbow Warriors managed 128 yards and two scores on the ground but didn’t completely overwhelm Delaware State in that area of the game.
Veteran defenders Charles Brown Jr., Maurio Goings, and Darren Cook took last year’s poor showing personally and, along with younger teammates and portal additions, kept Hawai’i from going crazy on the ground.
A few more options on offense
One of Delaware State’s sore spots in recent years has been injuries to skill position players. With a mostly healthy roster (expected starting running back Marquis Gillis was inactive due to a team rules violation), the Hornets have some pieces that can make things happen. In Gillis’ place was grad student Jaden Sutton, who led the Hornets with 56 yards rushing and a tough 9-yard touchdown run that tied the game at 14 early in the third quarter.
In the passing game, eight different receivers caught passes from Adams, including three receptions out of the backfield by Sutton and a 42-yard completion to tight end Ryan Lee. If the Hornet receivers and running backs can stay healthy, their depth will be an important asset to keeping this team in games this season.
They won’t have to fly across country again this year
Thanks to a bus company “snafu”, the Hornets didn’t get to enjoy as much of Hawai’i as they would have liked, but a few videos on the team’s social media accounts showed that they used this experience to bond as a team.
That will come in handy as they are on the road next week, but instead of 10,000 miles round trip, it’ll only be about 675 to play Sacred Heart of the Northeast Conference.
There’s no guarantee that the Hornets will secure the program’s first winning season in 12 years, but there is hope that after hanging with an FBS program for 35 minutes of game time, there is some hope for more than one win in 2024.
