By Darren Sands
For a moment after Saturday’s 62-43 win over the University of Rhode Island, the 12 catches and 213 yards didn’t matter. Charles Sullivan just wished his mom was there to see the game.
“She’s the queen of my life,” Charles Sullivan said. Her name, Denise, is tattooed on his chest.
With his brother in the stands, Sullivan set a new Atlantic 10 record for yards gained by a freshman. In three games, his 28 receptions lead the A-10, while his 401 yards leads a Pride receiving core that has amassed 1,360 yards.
All this from a red-shirt freshman? Sullivan earned the A-10 Rookie of the Week honors, too.
“He’s done everything that everybody has asked of him,” said quarterback Bobby Seck, who had a record setting day of his own, going 30-for-43 with 560 yards passing.
Sullivan’s only touchdown was the first, and perhaps, most important of the game. It came after a drive in which Rhode Island’s Jayson Davis pitched the ball to running back Jerrell Jones. The crowd’s collective gasp sounded just like it had witnessed an 89-yard run on the third play of the game. The Pride was resilient, however, scoring on eight of its next 10 possessions.
Sullivan’s 40-yard touchdown tied the score at 7 with only 12:35 to go in the first quarter. In other words, if you blinked, you missed two of the more exciting plays of the game.
“I read the [defensive] coverage and I knew they were going to blitz both linebackers so I just ran to the ball,” Sullivan said.
Last Saturday’s break-out game was a far cry from his performance at Montana three weeks ago. Sullivan tipped a ball that was intercepted for a touchdown and fumbled inside the red zone on a possession that might have put the Pride up in the fourth quarter. Coach Joe Gardi remembers what he said to the freshman on the sideline that game.
“I told him he has got to get bigger and stronger if he doesn’t want to fumble, and that was it,” Gardi said.
Since preparation for defensive schemes are reactionary, there is no question that future opponents will know about Sullivan’s knack for getting loose and getting down the field. It was this type of quick-strike capability that dismantled Rhode Island’s defense. Will James Madison adjust its game plan to focus on Sullivan?
“They can’t just put their main person on me. There’s too many of us out there. You’ve got [Devale Ellis], [Isaac Irby], and [Brian Wolman]. If they just focus on me, that would be the worst game-plan ever,” Sullivan said.
Marques Colston looked on proudly as Sullivan fielded questions from reporters, seemingly unfazed by his ailing shoulder.
“That [Rhode Island] win makes it feel a lot better,” Colston said.

Charles Sullivan, who caught 12 balls for 213 yards, set a new Atlantic 10 record for receiving yards by a freshman. (Staff Photo)