Saturday, Sept. 21, William and Mary football (3-1, 0-0 CAA) defeated Furman (1-3, 0-0 SoCon) 34-24 in comeback fashion at Zable Stadium in Williamsburg, Va.
The Green and Gold, who will begin Coastal Athletic Association conference play next week, entered Saturday’s matchup hot off an impressive road win against Wofford (2-1, 0-0 SoCon) Sept. 14. The Tribe had been on the road for two straight weeks and hoped to build off its impressive home performance from its season opener with another strong showing against the Paladins.
After losing the toss, William and Mary started the game on offense, led by none other than senior quarterback Darius Wilson. Wilson, a third-year starter from the Bronx, N.Y., took the field on Saturday with 540 passing yards over his first three starts. However, after dropping back into shotgun on the opening play, Wilson’s nearly flawless season saw its first blemish. The Tribe quarterback’s first pass was intercepted and returned to the Green and Gold 27-yard line, giving the Paladins great field position for its first offensive drive.
Furman wasted no time taking advantage of the opportunity, and found the end zone within two minutes, courtesy of a 14-yard passing touchdown from freshman quarterback Trey Hedden. Senior kicker Ian Williams drilled the extra point, and after just two minutes of play, the Green and Gold found itself down 7-0.
The Tribe offense looked stagnant on its second trip out, nearly going three-and-out before an untimely Paladin penalty reset the Green and Gold’s downs. After two short runs from senior running back Malachi Imoh and a four-yard pass to junior tight end Trey McDonald, William and Mary was forced to punt, giving the Paladins the ball back with a chance to extend their early lead.
In one play, the Paladins converted on an 84-yard pass for the visitor’s second touchdown in a five-minute stretch.
Now down 14, William and Mary’s offense finally kicked into gear. Senior running back Bronson Yoder found an opening on a third-and-three rush, gaining 31 yards to the Furman 37-yard line. After Wilson gained another 15 yards with a run of his own, the Green and Gold quarterback connected with sophomore tight end Sean McElwain for William and Mary’s first touchdown of the game, cutting the lead to seven.
Despite the slow start, Wilson remarked that he knew his early interception was not big enough to derail the Tribe’s offense on Saturday.
“After that play, it was just about resetting and getting back to playing like how I play: taking it one play at a time,” he said.
The Tribe’s defense locked down the Paladins on their next offensive possession, forcing a punt after just three plays.
With just under six minutes left in the first quarter, the Green and Gold offense started its slow march down the field. In one drive, Wilson, Imoh, senior utility Hollis Mathis and Yoder all had rushes for more than 10 yards, bringing the Tribe to the Furman 18-yard line as the quarter came to a close.
On the first play of the second quarter, senior kicker Eric Bernstein drilled a 35-yard field goal, cutting the lead to 14-10.
Again, William and Mary’s defense shut down the visitor’s offense. Strong tackles from redshirt freshman defensive lineman Ty Gordon, junior defensive lineman Davin Dzidzienyo and senior safety Marcus Barnes stopped the Paladins from getting a single first down.
William and Mary and Furman took turns punting, and the Green and Gold recovered the ball with just over 10 minutes left in the half. On third-and-ten, Wilson connected with Mathis for a 15-yard gain, giving William and Mary a huge first down on the Tribe’s 38-yard line. After an 11-yard rush from Imoh, Wilson took off on a 53-yard rush, scoring and giving the Green and Gold its first lead of the night. Berstein nailed the extra point, and after trailing 14-0 to start, William and Mary now led 17-14 with seven minutes left in the half.
After Furman failed to convert on a 29-yard field goal, a Green and Gold punt and an interception by sophomore defensive back Bryce Barnes, William and Mary got the ball one more time with just over a minute left in the half. Yoder started off the drive with a 16-yard run, which he quickly bested two plays later with a 30-yard rush to the Furman 11-yard line. With 19 seconds remaining in the period, Bernstein converted on a 28-yard field goal, giving the Tribe a 20-14 lead heading into the second half.
When asked about his team’s response to falling behind early, head coach Mike London was more than happy about the Green and Gold’s composure on the field.
“The highs can get you too high, and you’ll get psyched about the results. If you let the lows get you too low, you don’t know how to respond back to things. I think we did a good job of responding back in the appropriate way of just, ‘Okay, let’s just do what we do,” he said.
In the third quarter, the Tribe’s lockdown defense continued to squash any efforts by the Furman offense. After forcing the visitors to punt on their first offensive possession of the half, William and Mary’s offense returned to the field showing no signs of slowing down. Yoder started the drive with a 22-yard rush to the Paladin 18-yard line. Three plays later, Wilson found Mathis in the end zone again, connecting on a 15-yard pass for another Tribe touchdown. After the extra point, the Tribe’s lead grew to 27-14, capping off an impressive 27-0 run since the first quarter.
Furman responded with a touchdown of their own on the next drive, cutting the lead to six with around seven minutes left in the third. William and Mary attempted to respond, but after coming up short on a fourth-and-eleven run, the Green and Gold turned the ball over just before the third quarter came to an end.
The Paladins started the final quarter with another missed field goal, this time from 27 yards out. Both teams traded scoreless drives, but with six minutes left, Furman finally drilled a field goal from 33 yards out, cutting the Green and Gold lead to three.
With one more possession to close the game out, William and Mary turned to the thing its offense relies on the most: the run.
On seven straight rushing attempts, the Tribe gained 22 yards, taking the ball to Furman’s 45-yard line with two minutes remaining. After a brief break, Wilson connected with McElwain on a 29-yard bomb, pushing the Green and Gold to the opponent’s 16-yard line. Yoder took over from there, scoring on a 12-yard rush three plays later. After Bernstein drilled the extra kick, William and Mary took a 34-24 lead, a lead it would carry until the end of the game.
Wilson finished the game with 10 completions for 98 yards and two touchdowns, as well as 155 rushing yards for another touchdown.
“That’s our identity. Everybody knows that we’re going out there, we’re going to run, and it’s just about having that mentality. Everybody plays with 100% effort every play,” Wilson said.
Yoder also had a night to remember, rushing for a career-high 166 yards and one touchdown.
When asked about the team’s collective effort on Saturday night, London expressed how impressed he was with everyone who chipped in.
“That’s the thing about this team that I’m so proud of,” London said. “They do their part, and then they bring their teammates along.”
William and Mary will begin CAA play on Saturday, Sept. 28 when it hosts Hampton (3-1, 0-0 CAA) at Zable Stadium in Williamsburg, Va.
