Two Rhode Island football players are recognized for their performances against Brown
Retaining the Governor’s Cup led to more recognition for the University of Rhode Island football team on Monday.
The Rams claimed two Player-of-the-Week honors from the Coastal Athletic Association. Syeed Gibbs was honored on defense and Randy Jordan was tabbed on special teams.
Gibbs made the clinching interception and Jordan returned a kickoff for a touchdown to help URI score a 34-30 victory over Brown. The Rams downed their in-state rival for the fifth straight time, the longest string for the program since 1989-93. URI rallied from a 27-20 deficit on a rainy afternoon at Brown Stadium.
“This game is three phases,” URI coach Jim Fleming said. “If you can win two of the three on any given Saturday, you’ve got a pretty good opportunity to win.”
Gibbs accounted for the first two turnovers committed by the Bears this season. He picked off a pass in the first half and added a second in the final minute. Brown was driving for the potential winning score when Gibbs snagged a throw from Jake Willcox along the left sideline.
“We knew what we had with Syeed,” Fleming said. “We knew that he was a young corner and would make some mistakes as young corners always do.
“He answered a very direct challenge, prepared extremely well and ended up having a phenomenal game. I expect we’ll see a lot more of that from him as we go forward.”
Gibbs finished with a career-high nine tackles — two of those for loss. He’s tied for the CAA lead with three interceptions and has been credited with three pass breakups. Gibbs is a redshirt freshman from Massachusetts prep power Everett High.
Jordan answered a spectacular touchdown reverse by Bears receiver Wes Rockett on the ensuing play. He burst up the middle and raced 95 yards to the house, giving the Rams a 20-17 lead. It was the first kickoff return score for URI in 30 games — Ahmere Dorsey last did the honors in November 2019 against James Madison.
“It really is the epitome of team football when you watch one of those things come together,” Fleming said. “Everybody does his job and puts a hat where he needs to. There really wasn’t much that Randy had to do other than make the last guy miss.”
Jordan is averaging 23.5 yards per kick return through six games. The Rams rank third among teams in the CAA. His current mark sits second among players with 15 returns or more. Jordan is a California native who transferred from Fresno State prior to the 2022 season.
URI (4-2, 2-1 CAA) is past the midpoint of its season and is done with nonconference play. The Rams are back in league action on Saturday when they host Richmond (3-3, 2-1) for a 1 p.m. kick at Meade Stadium. The Spiders are coming off a 42-31 home win over Maine.
“We’ve got to be fully prepared,” Fleming said. “The rest of the way is all critically important for the goals we’ve laid out for our football team.”
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This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: URI's Syeed Gibbs and Randy Jordan are named players of the week
