Towson’s comeback falls just short as Maine escapes with 21-18 win in season opener
TOWSON, Md. — The Towson Tigers nearly erased a 21-point deficit Thursday night, but a furious second-half comeback came up just short as the Maine Black Bears escaped Johnny Unitas Stadium with a 21-18 victory in the 2026 season opener.
Towson trailed 21-0 with less than a minute remaining in the first half before scoring 18 unanswered points. The Tigers had multiple opportunities to complete the comeback in the fourth quarter, but a missed field goal and a turnover on their final possession allowed Maine to survive.
The loss drops Towson to 0-1 overall and 0-1 in CAA play, while Maine opens the season 1-0 overall and in the conference.
Scoreless first quarter gives way to Maine surge
Neither offense found the end zone during the opening quarter. Towson’s defense did its job early, stopping Maine on a pair of possessions that crossed midfield and keeping the game scoreless through the first 15 minutes.
That changed dramatically in the second quarter.
Maine quarterback Eddie Buehler put the Black Bears ahead with 8:38 remaining in the half when he connected with Malik McNeely for a 16-yard touchdown. Samuel Tremblay converted the extra point to make it 7-0.
The Black Bears then put together their most impressive possession of the night.
Maine traveled 90 yards on seven plays before Rashawn Marshall broke loose for a 32-yard touchdown run with 2:38 remaining. Suddenly, Towson found itself in a 14-0 hole.
Things got worse for the Tigers just before halftime.
Buehler found Nick Laughlin for a 30-yard touchdown with 42 seconds remaining, completing a quick two-play, 35-yard possession and extending Maine’s advantage to 21-0. Maine scored all 21 of its points during a span of less than eight minutes in the second quarter.
Charlton gives Towson life before halftime
Towson desperately needed something positive before going into the locker room.
Cleveland Charlton provided it.
Quarterback Andrew Indorf connected with Charlton for a spectacular 56-yard gain that moved Towson from its own 31-yard line to the Maine 13 with less than 30 seconds remaining.
After Indorf completed a nine-yard pass to Aaron Enterline, he went back to Enterline for a four-yard touchdown with 11 seconds remaining.
Towson then elected to go for two. Enterline completed the conversion to cut Maine’s advantage to 21-8.
The entire touchdown drive covered 69 yards in only 24 seconds.
Instead of entering halftime down three touchdowns, the Tigers had life.
Towson continues comeback
The Tigers carried that momentum into the second half.
After both defenses controlled the beginning of the third quarter, Indorf and Charlton connected again for the biggest offensive play of Towson’s night.
Indorf delivered a deep pass to Charlton, who finished the play for a 59-yard touchdown with 5:11 remaining in the third quarter.
Zaydaan Faridi converted the extra point.
Maine’s once-commanding 21-0 lead had suddenly been reduced to 21-15.
Charlton emerged as Towson’s most dangerous offensive weapon. In his first career start for the Tigers, he finished with four receptions for 136 yards and a touchdown, averaging 34 yards per reception. His two longest catches went for 56 and 59 yards.
Weather delay interrupts Towson’s momentum
Towson entered the fourth quarter driving with a chance to draw even closer.
Mother Nature temporarily stopped the comeback.
Lightning and severe weather caused a delay lasting approximately one hour and three minutes with 13:20 remaining in the game.
When play finally resumed, the Tigers remained focused.
Towson finished an 11-play, 60-yard drive with Faridi connecting on a 39-yard field goal with 12:18 remaining.
After trailing 21-0, Towson had scored 18 consecutive points.
Maine 21, Towson 18.
There was still plenty of time remaining.
Tigers get multiple opportunities to take the lead
Towson’s defense gave its offense the opportunities it needed.
Seth Hampton forced Buehler out of bounds on fourth down, turning the ball back over to the Tigers with a chance to either tie the game or take their first lead.
Towson eventually sent Faridi onto the field for another field-goal attempt.
This time, the kick missed.
The Tigers still were not finished.
Towson got the football back again late in the fourth quarter and had one more opportunity to complete what would have been a remarkable comeback.
Instead, disaster struck.
Maine linebacker Sam Oppenheimer forced a fumble, and Jake Kucera recovered it with 1:22 remaining.
The turnover essentially ended the Tigers’ comeback bid.
Maine ran out the remaining time and escaped Maryland with the 21-18 victory.
Indorf puts together strong season debut
Despite the loss, Indorf showed plenty of positives running Towson’s offense.
Indorf completed 15 of 21 passes for 267 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. It marked his fifth career game with at least 200 passing yards.
He averaged 12.7 yards per attempt and helped Towson produce several explosive passing plays.
Charlton was his leading target with 136 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Kemarrion Battles also contributed in both phases of the offense. Battles carried 18 times for 89 yards, averaging 4.9 yards per carry, and caught two passes for 59 yards.
Enterline finished with four receptions for 22 yards and Towson’s first touchdown of the season.
Overall, Towson accumulated 379 yards of offense despite failing to score on its first several possessions.
Towson actually outgains Maine
Perhaps the most frustrating part of the result for Towson is what the final statistics show.
The Tigers outgained Maine 379-329.
Towson held a 267-199 advantage through the air while Maine held a relatively small 130-112 advantage on the ground.
Both teams recorded 16 first downs.
Towson held the ball for 29:27 compared with Maine’s 30:33.
There was no statistical domination by the Black Bears.
The major difference was turnovers.
Maine finished without a turnover. Towson committed two.
Those two giveaways became especially costly considering the Tigers lost by only three points.
Maine’s second quarter proves decisive
Buehler completed 17 of 27 passes for 199 yards and two touchdowns for Maine.
Marshall led the Black Bears rushing attack with 81 yards and a touchdown.
What separated Maine from Towson was its ability to capitalize on a short stretch of the game.
The Black Bears did not score in the first, third or fourth quarters.
All 21 Maine points came in the second quarter.
Buehler’s touchdown passes to McNeely and Laughlin surrounded Marshall’s 32-yard touchdown run and gave the Black Bears just enough cushion to withstand everything Towson threw at them during the final 30 minutes.
Maine’s defense also created significant pressure on Indorf, recording six sacks.
Oppenheimer was particularly important late, finishing with 10 tackles and forcing the fumble that effectively ended Towson’s final comeback attempt.
Towson defense settles down
There were positives for Towson defensively after the disastrous second quarter.
The Tigers completely shut Maine out after halftime.
Maine entered the locker room with 21 points and left Johnny Unitas Stadium with exactly 21.
Towson’s defense consistently gave the offense opportunities to complete the comeback.
Seth Chestnut and Jaydyn Johnson each finished with seven tackles to lead the Tigers. Chestnut added 1.5 tackles for loss.
Bryan Lodge and TJ Sands each recorded six tackles, while Marquis Cooper contributed four tackles and two pass breakups.
Keeping Maine off the scoreboard for an entire second half should give Towson something positive to build upon even though the final result went against the Tigers.
Penalties and turnovers hurt
Towson will have areas to clean up before facing Navy.
The Tigers were penalized eight times for 64 yards compared with only four penalties for 27 yards against Maine.
Towson also converted just four of 12 third-down opportunities and failed on its lone fourth-down attempt.
Most importantly, the Tigers lost the turnover battle 2-0.
In a game decided by only three points, those mistakes loom large.
Towson showed that it had enough offensive firepower to move the football against Maine, but the Tigers made their comeback considerably more difficult by allowing the Black Bears to build a three-touchdown advantage.
A historic early opener
Thursday’s game also represented an unusual start to Towson’s season.
The Aug. 27 kickoff was the earliest season opener in program history, surpassing Towson’s Aug. 28 opener against Norfolk State in 2025.
It was also only the second time in program history that Towson began its season with a conference game.
The result immediately places the Tigers at 0-1 in the CAA standings.
Towson now heads to Annapolis
Things do not get any easier.
Towson travels to Annapolis to face Navy on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 3:30 p.m.
It will begin a brutal two-game stretch against FBS opponents for the Tigers.
For Towson, the challenge during the upcoming week will be taking the positives from Thursday’s comeback while correcting the mistakes that forced the Tigers to spend nearly the entire night trying to erase a deficit.
There was a lot to like about how Towson responded.
The Tigers just waited too long to do it.
MSB Take
Towson should be frustrated with this one because the Tigers had every opportunity to win it.
Falling behind 21-0 was obviously the biggest problem, but what happened afterward showed that Towson was more than capable of competing with Maine. The Tigers outscored the Black Bears 18-0 after Maine’s third touchdown and outgained Maine 379-329 for the game.
Indorf made some impressive throws, Charlton looked like a legitimate big-play weapon and Battles gave Towson a dependable presence in the running game. The defense also deserves credit for allowing zero points in the second half.
But football games are often decided by a handful of mistakes.
Towson committed two turnovers while Maine committed none. The Tigers missed a potentially game-tying field goal. They committed eight penalties. They also allowed all three Maine touchdowns during one disastrous second-quarter stretch.
That is enough to turn a potentially impressive opening-night victory into a three-point loss.
The good news is that Towson did not fold.
A team that falls behind 21-0 in its opener could easily allow the game to become a blowout. Instead, the Tigers fought all the way back to 21-18 and had the football with opportunities to tie or win.
That resilience matters.
Now Towson has to turn it into a complete four-quarter performance.
The Tigers will need one quickly because Navy is waiting in Annapolis.
