Jim Fleming left UCF following the 2013 season—a pivotal campaign for the Knights positioning themselves as nationally recognized FBS powers. UCF won the newly formed American Athletic Conference championship that season, and earned a spot in the Fiesta Bowl, where it beat Baylor.

The defense Fleming coordinated ranked No. 17 in the FBS, alongside some noteworthy names like LSU, Clemson, Notre Dame and Ohio State. The program’s future looked bright. 

Rhode Island faced a much less certain forecast.

The Rams’ best finish in the decade preceding Fleming’s hire was a five-win 2010. In the two years leading up to the new coaching staff’s arrival, Rhode Island went a combined 3-20. By contrast, Fleming’s mark in two seasons as a head coach at Sacred Heart was 21-1.

No doubt, Rhode Island needed a jolt. It took time, but the current corps of Rams provided that in 2018. Rhode Island reached the Top 25 and was in firm contention for a berth in the FCS Playoffs before a late-season stumble, with losses in four of the final six, relegated it to 6-5.

“The opportunity to put a winning season on the field for the first time in 17 years was a phenomenal step,” Fleming said at CAA media day. “For our football program, it was a couple of steps away from where we want to be.”

Where Rhode Island wants to be is in the FCS Playoffs. Fleming called wins No. 7 and 8 the “magic numbers” for a team in the Colonial Athletic Association to crack the field. The return of some key veterans from last year’s pivotal campaign just might make that dream a reality.

Head Coach: Jim Fleming (sixth year at Rhode Island, 13-43; eighth year overall, 34-44) 

Offensive Coordinator: Will Fleming

Defensive Coordinators: Pete Rekstis

2018 Record: 6-5 (4-4 CAA)

2019 Preseason Poll: 8^th, 104 points

Defense

Boasting one of the more prolific offenses in the CAA (31.2 points per game, third-most overall) often means putting a greater onus on the defense to step up. More possessions unfortunately translated to more scoring opportunities for Rhode Island’s opponents in 2018. The Rams gave up 28.6 points per game to finish in the bottom quarter of CAA defenses.

One phase in which the Rhode Island defense has plenty to build from, however, is its ability to create turnovers. The Rams gained 25 takeaways in 2018, tied with Villanova for second-most in the CAA, and 18^th-most in the nation. Cornerback Rashod Dickerson, who made two interceptions in just six games before injury, returns to the secondary. The Rams also welcome back leading tackler and linebacker Branyan Javier-Castillo, who picked off a pair of passes.

The defensive line feature playmakers who could help force some turnovers with their ability to generate pressure. End Andre Bibeault is coming off a 4.5-sack season, while running mate L.B. Mack III racked up five.  Also back up front is big man Brandon Ginnetti, whose eight tackles for loss from the interior led the team. 

Improving against the run will be the most critical development for Rhode Island defensively after giving up four yards per carry in 2018 – not a bad number, but on the back-half of defenses in the CAA. Javier-Castillo will have new starters around him in the linebacker corps, adding to the uncertainty in that phase.

Offense

Rhode Island builds around two of the top seniors in the CAA, with wide receiver Aaron Parker and offensive lineman Kyle Murphy both garnering first team Preseason All-CAA recognition. 

Parker is an All-America caliber receiver, coming off a standout junior campaign in which he caught 61 passes for 955 yards and 10 touchdowns. Initially recruited to play linebacker, Parker more than adequately transitioned to offense. He uses his size to go over the top of cornerbacks in red-zone situations: 

Aaron Parker with his 2nd @rhodyfootball TD of the game pic.twitter.com/5DCLnf7fc1

— CAA Football (@CAAFootball) November 3, 2018

But also has the kind of explosive speed that on defense would be used to chase down running backs. Instead, he uses it to get past the safeties on deep balls. He could parlay a big senior season into a 2020 NFL draft pick. 

Murphy is a bully on the line, capable of playing on the interior at guard or outside at tackle. DraftScout.com ranks him No. 30 among all guards in the 2020 NFL draft class. 

Two veteran running backs return to take advantage of those holes Murphy makes: Zoe Bryant Jr. and Naim Jones. The two combined for a shade below 900 yards rushing a season ago, with versatile wide receiver Ahmere Dorsey adding another 145 to put the trio over 1,000.

Finding a quarterback to replace the electrifying JaJuan Lawson is the most pressing concern on this side of the ball. Lawson completed two-thirds of his pass attempts, averaged almost 250 yards per game through the air, and scored 17 passing touchdowns against just five interceptions. He also added a dual-threat element, rushing for 213 yards and scoring a team-high five touchdowns.

When Lawson went down in October, Rhode Island’s skid began. Avoiding a repeat this season with him now graduated is crucial. 

The quarterback race is going down to the wire. Vito Priore, who started in place of Lawson a season ago, threw for seven touchdowns. Jahkari Grant could factor into the competition; so, too, could Alin Edouard. Edouard is a UT-San Antonio transfer by way of Independence College (of Last Chance U. fame, albeit one season prior to Netflix’s arrival in Kansas). 

Special Teams

Perhaps the most dangerous return man in the Colonial is Rhode Island’s Ahmere Dorsey. One of only 10 players with multiple kickoffs taken back to the house in 2018, his 28.4 per return average topped the conference. 

Placekicker C.J. Carrick is back. He connected on 6-of-8 field-goal attempts, and all but one of 44 extra-point attempts. Punter Anthony Garro graduated. He pinned opponents inside the 20 12 times in 2018. 

The Schedule

@ Ohio, Aug. 31: Rhode Island’s knocked on the door of an FBS upset each of the last two seasons, taking Ohio’s Mid-American Conference counterpart Central Michigan to overtime in 2017; and dropping a 56-49 shootout at Connecticut in 2018. Ohio’s a popular pick to win the MAC in 2019, so a Rams win here would be monumental for the program.

Delaware*, Sept. 7 | Watch Live: The Rams opened their landmark 2018 fittingly, knocking off Delaware on the road, 21-19. The defense was integral in knocking off the then-No. 15 Fightin’ Blue Hens, generating three takeaways on the day.

@ New Hampshire*, Sept. 21 | Watch Live: The final week of the 2018 season featured something of a role reversal when regional counterparts Rhode Island and New Hampshire met. The Wildcats were on the brink of a 14-year Playoff streak ending, while the Rams needed one final win to secure the program’s first winning record in almost two decades. Rhode Island got it, secured on Ahmere Dorsey’s 95-yard kickoff return touchdown.

Stony Brook*, Sept. 28 | Watch Live: Stony Brook routinely boasts one of the stingiest defenses in college football — a distinction Rhode Island knows well. Since the Seawolves joined the CAA in 2013, the Rams have never broken into the 20s in any of their six matchups, and were held in single digits three times.

@ Brown, Oct. 5: In-state rivals Rhode Island and Brown celebrate the 110^th year of their gridiron series in 2019, with the 104^th meeting between the programs. Rhode Island went winless in the rivalry until 1935, endured another drought until 1952, then — after a brief run of dominance from the late 1980s through the 2000s — hit a five-year skid from 2011 through 2015. Rhode Island’s won two of the last three, though, including the most lopsided decision scored by either program since 1947.

@ Virginia Tech, Oct. 12: This is Rhode Island’s first matchup with a Power Five conference program since facing Kansas in 2016, and the first against an Atlantic Coast Conference foe since opening 2015 at Syracuse.

@ UAlbany, Oct. 19 | Watch Live: Aaron Parker posted Herculean receiving numbers in last season’s 45-26 romp past UAlbany: nine receptions for 146 yards, including a 59-yarder, and a touchdown.

Elon*, Oct, 26 | Watch Live: With Elon securing one of the last berths into the FCS Playoffs, this three-point, road loss might be the most pivotal in keeping Rhode Island out of the 2018 postseason. A disastrous second quarter doomed the Rams, with Elon intercepting a pass to kill a promising drive, and scoring just seconds before halftime.

Merrimack, Nov. 2: With the longer regular season in 2019, Rhode Island plays four non-conference games. The Rams last faced then-Div. II Merrimack in 2006, winning a 42-7 rout. Merrimack enters 2019 transitioning to Div. I and FCS, where it will join the Northeast Conference.

@ William & Mary, Nov. 9 | Watch Live: The Rams defense generated a staggering six turnovers to stifle William & Mary in a 21-10 win last October. Branyan Javier-Castillo was electric, recording 2.5 tackles for loss and accounting for one of Rhode Island’s three interceptions in the win.

@ Maine, Nov. 16 | Watch Live: Three of Rhode Island’s five losses in 2018 were by a single possession; none was closer than the 38-36 heartbreaker against Maine. Despite playing without JaJuan Lawson, the Rams’ 36 points were the most Maine’s Black Hole Defense allowed in the regular season. Aaron Parker caught nine passes for 124 yards and hauled in both of Vito Priore’s touchdown throws. 

James Madison, Nov. 23 | Watch Live: A berth in the FCS Playoffs may well come down to the final weekend for Rhode Island — and what better statement to make than against the odds-on CAA preseason favorite, and preseason No. 2-ranked James Madison Dukes? The Rams scored 31 points against James Madison’s tough defense last season, but could never quite get the deficit within 10 points during the second half.