Delaware faces stiff test at Elon with QB situation again uncertain

Delaware will go into its critical Colonial Athletic Association game at Elon on Saturday with a wounded quarterback.

Nolan Henderson left Saturday’s 38-7 win over Morgan State early in the fourth quarter with an apparent injury to his left non-throwing shoulder and was scheduled for an MRI Monday.

Delaware (6-1 overall, 3-1 CAA) begins a pivotal four-game stretch to close the regular season at 3:30 p.m. Saturday at Elon (5-3, 3-2).

“We’ll figure out what he can do this week and that’ll probably dictate what he can do on Saturday,” coacg Ryan Carty said Monday. “I expect him to give it a go. I just don’t know exactly what is wrong yet so we’ll have to kind of play that by ear.

“Hopefully by the end of the week, we’ll know a little bit more about whether he has limitations or not and what they are. Or maybe he can’t play. There’s that chance as well, but I’d like to think that he’ll be OK to play.”

Both Zach Gwynn, who started the last seven games last year after Henderson suffered a season-ending injury, and red-shirt freshman Ryan O’Connor appeared in relief Saturday. The two have split reps with the No. 2 offense in practice and share backup duty.

Gwynn was 0-for-4 passing but had a 14-yard run Saturday and O’Connor ran for 4 yards and was 4-for-5 with his first career touchdown pass. Delaware also used Anthony Paoletti, who typically runs the football himself when on the field.

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“We’ll continue to get those guys ready,” Carty said, “and I think they’ll probably get a lot more reps in practice regardless of Nolan’s fate.”

The Blue Hens moved up one spot to No. 12 Monday in the latest Stats Perform national FCS media poll Top 25. They are also part of a four-way tie for second place in the CAA behind New Hampshire, which is unbeaten in league play.

Elon may be in a must-win situation after back-to-back losses at Rhode Island and New Hampshire jeopardized its postseason aspirations. A victory against Delaware would thrust the Phoenix back into the FCS playoff picture with winnable conference games left against Albany and Hampton.

This is Delaware’s first game against Elon since losing there 42-7 in 2019, when Henderson, then making his third career start, was knocked out of the game on a targeting infraction. That remains the second-most lopsided loss in Delaware’s now 37 seasons as a member of the Yankee Conference/Atlantic 10/CAA.

"That's one that you can't really forget, it kinda motivates you a lot of the time," Delaware linebacker Drew Nickles said. "A bad day."

Tony Trisciani, in his fourth season as Elon head coach, was then defensive coordinator.

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“Nolan, he makes them go,” Trisciani said, “and he’s also got talent around him, certainly with [Thyrick] Pitts and [Jourdan] Townsend out wide and a talented group of running backs. Nolan is certainly a guy that you have to game plan specifically for. You’ve gotta account for him and his ability to extend plays and scramble. So that will be important.”

Trisciani, whose defense has been among the CAA’s best, also thought O’Connor threw the ball well and was poised in his brief appearance Saturday.

Elon has a capable quarterback of its own in Matthew McCay. The 6-4, 212-pound graduate transfer started five games at North Carolina State in 2019 and sparked Montana State to the FCS playoffs last year.

McCay is second in the CAA in total offense with 290.3 yards per game. His 1,998 passing yards are also second.

“He’s a dropback kid that can run, similar to ours,” Carty said of McCay. “Those guys are always the hardest ones to [defend]. If you keep them in the pocket they’re able to beat you. And when you cover them downfield and lose contain or maybe they sneak their way through they can hurt you that way, too. And then extend plays as well.

“He’s big. He has the ability to kind of gain a couple yards on his own just being a bigger body.”

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This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: UD quarterback's injury complicates preparation for key conference clash