Charlotte 49ers football wins in wild comeback over FCS foe Monmouth
A familiar sight took center stage at Jerry Richardson Stadium on Saturday night — like a bad action film stuck on repeat, spanning from the days of Brad Lambert to Will Healy and Biff Poggi: The Charlotte 49ers fell behind an FCS opponent in the second half of a football game.
But this time, quarterback Conner Harrell took command, helping coach Tim Albin earn his first win as the 49ers’ head coach, rewriting an ending that felt all too familiar for 15,681 Charlotte fans in attendance.
Albin, who turned 60 on Saturday, celebrated in style. The “most exciting birthday (he’s) ever had” resulted from a 42-35 49ers victory over Monmouth in a game that featured 56 second-half points, more than 1,000 yards of total offense, and a game-sealing defensive stop.
In a contest where the 49ers scored touchdowns on five straight drives in the game’s final 30 minutes, Charlotte (1-2) needed every last yard to fend off the Hawks’ explosive offense, which answered nearly every time Harrell and the 49ers’ offense found the end zone.
But Curtis Simpson, a redshirt freshman edge rusher, called game.
“What a huge sack by Curtis (Simpson) to end the game. I’m so happy for him,” said Albin. “We’re banged up a little bit. We’ve got some guys out, but we’ve got to have the next man up mentality. Our guys just kept fighting.”
Scoring just seven points in the first half, Charlotte’s sold-out crowd expressed its frustration with boos raining down on McColl-Richardson Field as the 49ers’ third and final turnover punctuated the troublesome second quarter, trailing by a touchdown at the break.
But Harrell’s halftime message got through to his teammates, and the North Carolina transfer quarterback put the 49ers on his shoulders when it mattered most.
“Knowing we were down and needed a little pick-me-up. I was just doing whatever I could to get in the endzone,” Harrell said of his highlight game-tying touchdown, bouncing off five Hawks defenders for the score. “That was my message to the team at halftime – do whatever we can to get the win.”
And the signal-caller’s “grit” propelled a team that continued its sluggish ways from the first two losses in Saturday’s opening half. “He showed some grit, and your football team takes on the personality of your quarterback,” said Albin.
Conner Harrell’s historic night
Following consecutive poor offensive performances against in-state foes Appalachian State and North Carolina, Harrell was electric in the second-half comeback, accounting for five touchdowns and 427 yards.
Harrell completed 26 of his 30 passes for 382 yards and three touchdowns through the air, breaking a program completion percentage record at 86.7%. The redshirt junior started the game with 11 straight completions, including the 49ers’ lone first-half touchdown of the season to wideout E. Jai Mason, foreshadowing the duo’s monstrous night.
A college football shootout is nothing without a crushing turnover — like one that would prompt a surrender cobra from a frustrated fan. And the 49ers had a trio of those, with Harrell accounting for two — a late pitch in the redzone that turned into a fumble, allowing Monmouth to score the game’s first points, and a bad late-half decision with a forced throw to his roommate, tight end Jake Young, that resulted in an interception and a groan from the crowd that could be heard from Bank of America Stadium in uptown.
But the second half was an entirely different ball game. Harrell’s teammates compared his first touchdown run, which bounced off a cast of Hawks, pushing the pile to the end zone for the score, to that of Carolina Panthers’ great Cam Newton.
“That’s Cam Newton, what he did right there,” said defensive lineman Jamarrion Solomon. “They had just shown the Superman (celebration) on the jumbotron right before. That’s Cam Newton.”
And Mason, who was in the midst of his career night, was among the first to greet his quarterback after the game-changing score.
“I was turnt on the other side of the field; I’m not going to lie. It’s just amazing to see how tough he is,” said Mason. “I’ve seen him put the work in in the weight room all off-season, so it wasn’t a surprise to me. But I was turnt.”
And just as Harrell’s heroics turned the tide of the game, he also put the finishing touches on it. Days after Albin said he didn’t want his quarterback to post double-digit carries, Harrell’s 13th tote proved lucky, putting the 49ers ahead for good, pulling the ball on the read option and walking in from two yards out.
But Harrell’s game-winning drive wasn’t possible without scaring Albin, who wanted to win the game with a walk-off field goal with no time remaining.
“E. Jai ran a great route. He had him beat. I’m not saying that (Conner) was wrong at all. But the head coach was looking for the first down and a walk-off field goal,” said Albin. “That was a unique situation in my 37 years, and our guys handled it very well.”
E. Jai Mason’s moment
Last week, E. Jai Mason dropped what could have been a game-changing touchdown against Bill Belichick and the Tar Heels.
Saturday night, he caught all 10 passes thrown his way to record his first-career 200-yard game, totaling 228 yards and two touchdowns — including the dagger from Harrell, which came on a 55-yard strike down the 49ers’ sideline on third-and-7 in the game’s final moments.
“It felt good to make the most of the opportunities that came to me,” said Mason. “Our coaches preach making the play when your number is called. That’s something that I wanted to do every time — just make the play.”
Added Harrell: “No matter the down and distance, you’re going through your reads, trusting your eyes and your teammates. They gave us the look we wanted, and we took a shot.”
Mason, the only wideout to find the endzone for Charlotte this season, matched Harrell in the career-night category. The Samford transfer’s 228 yards is a program-FBS best, behind just Austin Duke, who totaled 254 receiving yards against The Citadel in Charlotte’s final season in the FCS. Duke was in attendance for Mason’s performance.
But even more impressive was the timing of Mason’s breakout game. Of his 228 yards, 197 came in the game’s final half.
And with consecutive 100-plus yard performances from two different wideouts, Albin’s confidence in the offense continues to grow.
“Last week was Javen (Nicholas), this week was E. Jai (Mason),” said Albin. “Now you’ve got some numbers and some guys that can make some plays, and you can’t double-team somebody.”
And more help could be on the way, with American Conference play kicking off Thursday night on ESPN with Rice traveling to the Queen City.
Injury bug & what’s next for the Charlotte 49ers
Already down key pieces on each side of the ball for the season, with edge DJ Burgess (upper body) and wideout Jayden McGowan (lower body) undergoing season-ending surgeries, Charlotte was without multiple returnees on offense on Saturday night.
Center Jonny King exited last week’s matchup against North Carolina with a back injury and is pushing to return against Rice next Thursday night. Skill players and fan favorites Henry Rutledge (lower body) and Justin Olson didn’t see the field either, allowing a career-best 10 targets for Mason. Wideout Sean Brown played just a handful of snaps and didn’t see a target after not practicing throughout the week.
Facing a short week and a new-look Owls team with former Davidson head coach Scott Abell taking the reins, the 49ers have their work cut out for them with conference play kicking off.
“Getting this win will help. It makes you feel good to lead the program,” said Albin. “What an unbelievable atmosphere. I said last week we’d have to play our best game to make it a good game. What an unbelievable game. The kids kept believing. They aren’t splintering.”
This story was originally published September 13, 2025 at 11:51 PM.