Delaware's lopsided win at Hampton in front of tiny crowd makes FBS move more appealing

The best outfit Hampton put on the football field Saturday at Armstrong Stadium was its marching band. On the day, Delaware outplayed the Pirates in every conceivable way except perhaps brass and woodwinds.

Delaware's 47-3 football rout of the overmatched Pirates was another example of why rampant league expansion has Delaware possibly looking for a way out.

It's all about the company you keep, right?

Fittingly, the Colonial Athletic Association was renamed the Coastal Athletic Association recently, just as it was appearing even more watered down.

CAA STANDINGS: Where are Blue Hens?

Delaware, ranked No. 7 nationally in FCS, scored on its first six possessions in a romp that kept Delaware atop the CAA with a 4-0 record. The Blue Hens are 6-1 overall.

In the seats, judging by the blue and yellow hue, they're appeared to be as many Blue Hens rooters as Hampton fans despite blue skies and sunshine.

That leads our five takeaways from Saturday's win:

Next stop, FBS?

Delaware officials, as we reported last fall and in September, are looking seriously into a move up to the Football Bowl Subdivision in conjunction with an effort to raise money for an indoor practice facility and Delaware Stadium renovations.

Seeing how overmatched Hampton was in a league game against the Blue Hens and the paltry turnout of 3,686 showed why that seems more and more sensible and likely.

Hampton is in its second year in the CAA and has been joined by other non-notables such as Campbell this year and Bryant next year.

There goes the neighborhood.

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Delaware has no ideal landing spot should it determine FBS is where it belongs and it has the money -- it'll need lots -- to do it right. The three places it could logically go are Conference USA, the Sun Belt Conference and the Mid-American Conference.

The MAC seems to make the most sense if it's willing to expand. The Sun Belt is loaded with Delaware's former FCS peers but may be full. Conference USA would probably love to have the Hens, but they'd be a geographic outlier.

Saturday's lopsided outcome and limited fanfare showed why any one of them might be preferential to playing in the CAA, despite the cost.

Marker does the job at QB

Zach Marker competed for the starting quarterback job throughout spring drills and in preseason camp and, despite not winning it, earned several cameos in Delaware's first two games.

With starter Ryan O'Connor sidelined with what Delaware termed an upper-body injury, Marker got his chance Saturday after missing several weeks while recovering from his own shoulder injury suffered in Game 2 at Penn State.

Marker benefitted from taking first-team reps throughout practice the week before Hampton. He completed 17 of 28 passes for 239 yards and a touchdown and showed his versatility by running eight times for 37 yards with an 18-yard TD.

"People always preach next man up but it's only good to have the next-man-up mentality if the next man is prepared, " Delaware coach Ryan Carty said, "and he's talented enough and he can get it done. Otherwise, it's just somebody who shouldn't be in the game. Luckily, he's been that guy.

"We got him a ton of reps early. And I know that's not always everybody's favorite move, but that's what we do it for . . . He's ready and it's not the first time he's touched the ball in a really game-like situation so I'm really proud of the way he played today."

Carty said he wasn't sure if O'Connor would be available this week and Saturday at Towson.

Speaking of Towson

The Tigers (3-4, 2-2) won 34-24 Saturday at preseason league favorite William & Mary and remain potentially troublesome in this week's 1 p.m. clash at Unitas Stadium in a rivalry that has often yielded surprise results.

Stats of the day

Delaware had zero turnovers and its quarterbacks were not sacked Saturday at Hampton.

"If we don't the turn the ball over," Carty said, "we have a chance to be dominant in every game."

The Blue Hens' defense has not allowed a touchdown the last 10 quarters.

Big day for Townsend

Jourdan Townsend’s 82-yard punt return for a touchdown was Delaware's first such runback since Rob Jones' 62-yarder in 2013 against Delaware State. Townsend had 185 all-purpose yards also highlighted by a 59-yard catch.

Have an idea for a compelling local sports story or is there an issue that needs public scrutiny? Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com and follow on Twitter @kevintresolini. Support local journalism by subscribing to delawareonline.com and our DE Game Day newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware Blue Hens win at Hampton makes FBS more appealing