By Laura Soukkavong –
Week 1 gave CAA Football four different ways for a player to alter a game. One receiver repeatedly moved the chains and helped fuel a comeback, one linebacker anchored a defense that virtually erased an opponent’s running game, and two Elon freshmen showed that youth does not have to mean waiting for an opportunity to matter.
Stony Brook senior wide receiver Seth Sweitzer was named CAA Football Offensive Player of the Week after producing the biggest receiving performance among the conference’s opening-week honorees. Campbell sophomore linebacker AJ Benton earned Defensive Player of the Week, while Elon redshirt freshman defensive back Codey Larkins received Special Teams Player of the Week and true freshman running back Kamerin McDowell-Moore was selected as Rookie of the Week.
Sweitzer’s numbers were substantial by themselves: 12 receptions, 157 yards and a touchdown. What made them more important was when some of those yards arrived during Stony Brook’s 36-32 comeback victory over Lindenwood last Thursday.
Stony Brook needed offense while playing from behind, and Sweitzer repeatedly provided it. His 29-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter pulled the Seawolves within 22-14 and helped change the direction of a game Lindenwood had controlled on the scoreboard.
Sweitzer wasn’t finished. In the fourth quarter, he broke loose for a 55-yard reception that positioned Stony Brook for another touchdown and helped reduce the deficit to two points.
Those two catches accounted for 84 yards, but focusing only on the explosive plays would overlook the larger importance of his 12-reception afternoon. A receiver who catches the football a dozen times is not simply producing isolated highlights; he is repeatedly giving his quarterback and offense somewhere to go with the football.
The 12 receptions were the most by a CAA player since 2024. Sweitzer also became the 21st Stony Brook player to surpass 150 receiving yards in a game.
For Stony Brook, his performance became even more valuable because it came during a comeback. Statistics accumulated while protecting a comfortable advantage tell one story, but Sweitzer was producing while the Seawolves were trying to erase one.
The 29-yard touchdown helped begin that process. The 55-yard reception helped sustain it later, and Stony Brook eventually completed the comeback with a four-point victory.
That made Sweitzer a natural choice for the conference’s opening Offensive Player of the Week award. His 157 receiving yards demonstrated production, his 12 catches demonstrated consistency and his involvement in the comeback demonstrated impact.
Campbell’s AJ Benton earned his recognition in a considerably different kind of game. The sophomore linebacker produced a career-high eight tackles as the Camels defeated No. 24 Western Carolina, 28-19, on Sunday.
Benton also recorded a sack, a tackle for loss and a pass breakup. His performance was part of a Campbell defensive effort that accomplished something particularly difficult against Western Carolina: the Camels almost completely eliminated the running game.
Western Carolina finished with one rushing yard. Campbell also held the Catamounts to their lowest point total against an FCS opponent since Western Carolina faced Campbell in 2024.
For a linebacker, that kind of defensive performance is significant because the position frequently sits near the center of everything a defense must accomplish. Benton contributed against the run, reached the quarterback and affected the passing game.
His career-high tackle total reflected his activity throughout the game, but the additional production made the performance more complete. A sack changes a possession, a tackle for loss puts an offense behind schedule and a pass breakup eliminates an opportunity through the air.
The larger accomplishment belonged to the Campbell defense as a unit. Holding an opponent to one rushing yard leaves little ambiguity about which team controlled that portion of the game.
Benton stood prominently within that effort, and Campbell turned the defensive performance into a nine-point victory over a nationally ranked Western Carolina team. His Defensive Player of the Week honor recognizes both his individual production and his role in a performance that left the Catamounts with almost nothing on the ground.
Elon’s two awards came from freshmen, and both arrived during the same emphatic result. The Phoenix defeated Davidson, 38-0, with Codey Larkins changing the game on special teams and Kamerin McDowell-Moore leading Elon on the ground.
Larkins’ contribution illustrates why special teams can alter a game without producing the same statistical totals associated with offense or defense. The redshirt freshman defensive back made two plays that ultimately led to 10 Elon points.
The first came when Larkins recovered a muffed punt at the Davidson 23-yard line. That turnover gave the Phoenix favorable field position and led to a first-quarter field goal.
His second special teams play was even more disruptive. In the second quarter, Larkins blocked a punt and recovered it at the Davidson 7-yard line.
That play put Elon’s offense only seven yards from the end zone. The Phoenix converted the opportunity into a touchdown that increased their advantage to 17-0.
Two special teams plays, 10 resulting points and a game that eventually became a 38-point shutout. Larkins also recorded two tackles, but it was his work on special teams that separated his performance from the rest of the conference.
A blocked punt does more than create field position. It can abruptly turn a routine change of possession into an immediate scoring opportunity, and Larkins didn’t merely block the football; he recovered it deep in Davidson territory.
Combined with his recovery of the earlier muffed punt, Larkins repeatedly made sure Davidson’s special teams mistakes became Elon opportunities. The Phoenix converted both of them into points.
McDowell-Moore supplied another reason for Elon to leave its opener encouraged. In his first season of college football, the freshman running back carried 15 times for a team-high 88 yards and scored twice.
His first touchdown was the more explosive of the two. McDowell-Moore broke a 29-yard scoring run in the second quarter to put Elon ahead 10-0.
His second score came from one yard in the fourth quarter. By reaching the end zone twice, McDowell-Moore became the first Elon true freshman to score two touchdowns in a game since 2015.
That distinction gives his opening performance additional perspective. McDowell-Moore didn’t need several weeks to work his way toward a meaningful offensive role; he carried the football 15 times and led the Phoenix in rushing while scoring twice.
He also contributed outside the traditional responsibilities of a running back by forcing a fumble on a kick return. That added another dimension to an afternoon already strong enough to earn him CAA Football Rookie of the Week.
The two Elon awards tell an encouraging story for the Phoenix beyond the 38-0 final score. Both recognized players are at the beginning of their college careers, yet each had a direct influence on the outcome.
Larkins repeatedly created opportunities through special teams. McDowell-Moore converted his offensive opportunities into 88 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Their performances were different, but the common thread among all four CAA honorees was timing. The numbers mattered because the plays behind them mattered.
Sweitzer’s biggest receptions helped Stony Brook climb back into a game it eventually won. Benton’s production came within a Campbell defense that held Western Carolina to one rushing yard. Larkins turned special teams plays into short fields and points, while McDowell-Moore gave Elon two touchdowns from a freshman running back making an immediate impact.
Week 1 awards never tell anyone what an entire season will become. There is too much football remaining, too many opponents still to face and too many opportunities for the conference’s landscape to change.
They can, however, identify who made the opening weekend count. Sweitzer did it with 12 catches and 157 yards, Benton did it in the middle of a dominant run defense, Larkins did it by changing possession twice on special teams and McDowell-Moore did it by running into a piece of Elon freshman history.
Four players received four different awards, but none needed September to settle in. Their seasons began with performances the CAA could not overlook.