Saturday, Nov. 16, William and Mary football (7-4, 4-3 CAA) defeated Bryant (2-9, 0-7 CAA) 22-12 at Walter J. Zable Stadium at Cary Field, in Williamsburg, Va.
“Very happy for this team. I’m happy for the progress this program has made,” head coach Mike London said after the game. “This is the fourth season in a row we’ve had a winning record here so that’s an accomplishment — it goes to the guys who are seniors.”
Saturday’s game celebrated the Tribe’s senior players in their final regular season game in front of home fans.
“I wanted to not get too caught up in the moment,” said senior running back Malachi Imoh. “Emotions were really high.”
After suffering a last-minute loss last week against Elon, the Green and Gold looked to get back on track against a Bryant team that had yet to win a Coastal Athletic Association conference game this season.
The Tribe continued to boast impressive team and individual statistics coming into Saturday’s matchup with an average of 247.7 rush yards per game, third-best in the Football Championship Subdivision. The Green and Gold offense has also averaged 32.9 points per game, good for 22nd most in the Division 1 Football Championship SubdivisionSenior running back Bronson Yoder came into the game with 937 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns this season. Defensively, the Tribe also ranks third in the CAA with 10 interceptions.
The Bulldogs entered Zable Stadium possessing impressive stats of their own, with graduate student quarterback Jarrett Guest ranking second in the CAA with 239.1 passing yards per game and senior wide receiver Landon Ruggieri ranking third in the CAA with an average of 87.9 receiving yards per game.
The Tribe won the opening coin toss, electing to receive the first possession. Bryant junior kicker Bryce Soli booted the kickoff 65 yards for a touchback. Yoder had an extremely fast start, breaking numerous tackles down the middle for a 22-yard gain on third down. The Tribe were then pushed to the brink, failing to convert on third down with a quarterback sneak. Yoder again showed up when needed, converting a fourth down attempt on a five yard run, with a defensive offside penalty moving the chains a further five yards. After another first down powered by a pitch right from senior quarterback Darius Wilson to senior wide receiver DreSean Kendrick, the Tribe found the end zone on a wide open Wilson pass to senior wide receiver Matthew Akuchie. Although senior kicker Eric Bernstein missed the extra point, another Bryant offside penalty put the offensive unit back on the field, and Wilson converted the two-point attempt on a short pass to senior wide receiver JT Mayo.
The Tribe defense stepped up big on the next drive, drawing another Bryant penalty before the Bulldogs were forced to punt in their own half.
The Tribe had a poor start to its next offensive drive, drawing a ten yard holding penalty, though the team was able to overcome the minor setbacks on another crucial third down conversion, this time courtesy of a Wilson six-yard pass to junior wide receiver Isaiah Lemmond. Akuchie would continue this momentum a few plays later, securing a tough catch in coverage with a toe tap out of bounds. It would be another Wilson throw, this time to wide open redshirt freshman tight end Jackson Blee, that would put the Green and Gold in the red zone. The drive came to an abrupt end when Wilson was picked off in the endzone by Bryant graduate student defensive back Colin Elliot, leaving the Tribe offense walking off the field with zero points.
Bryant would get their first first down of the game off a 14-yard throw by Guest to sophomore wide receiver Aldrich Doe with under a minute left in the first quarter. This drive, too, would stall out early in the second quarter with great defensive plays by the Tribe, including a pass breakup by Tribe junior cornerback Jalen Jones, forcing the second Bryant punt in as many drives.
The Tribe seemed to be getting back into rhythm with Yoder firing off a fierce 32-yard run right into Bryant territory, breaking multiple tackles along the way. The drive stalled out too, with Yoder and Wilson not mustering up another first down, forcing the punting unit on for the first time.
This poor trend would persist with the Bryant offense, with another quick punt after only one first down. Just when the tides seemed to be turning again for the Tribe, Bryant senior kicker Jimmy O’Brien recovered a muffed punt return at midfield, putting the Green and Gold on the defensive once again. The Bryant offense once again failed to generate any sort of positive momentum, with the punting unit coming right back onto the field again.
This return marked a turning point for the Tribe, with an electric punt return by sophomore wide receiver Carson Jenkins going 90 yards all the way to the end zone, speeding around the right side of Bryant’s punting unit in the process. Bernstein would convert the extra point to extend the Green and Gold lead to 15-0.
The Tribe’s special team touchdown seemed to serve as a wake up call for the Bryant offense, who led a quick three-minute march down the field on the following drive. Guest and Ruggieri led the way, with Ruggieri catching three balls for 51 yards, including a spectacular toe tap catch good for a 16-yard touchdown. Bryant would attempt to convert the two-point try as the Tribe had earlier in the first quarter, but Guest overthrew sophomore tight end Koby Keenan in the endzone, leaving the Bulldogs to settle for a score of 15-6.
On the next drive, Yoder again converted a quick first down for 19 yards. However, despite the hot start, the Green and Gold offense sputtered around midfield, turning the ball over on downs after Yoder couldn’t get past the line of scrimmage on a crucial fourth and one play.
Bryant would start the final drive of the half on their 35-yard line, quickly driving into the Tribe’s half on a 12-yard reception by Doe. The Bulldogs converted on two more first downs before calling a timeout. Guest would decide to try for a touchdown coming out of the break, but overthrew a wide open Ruggieri who waited in the endzone. With only three seconds remaining, Soli converted a 35-yard field goal to bring the Bulldogs within one score, going into the halftime break down 15-9.
The Bulldogs received the ball to start the third quarter and made it down the field in less than five minutes. Consecutive runs by senior running back Dylan Kedzior would set the tone for the drive. The Tribe defense was unable to come up with an answer, with Kedzior rushing for another 9 yards before Guest and senior wide receiver Drew Montez blew the game wide open on a 21-yard gain down to the Tribe four-yard line. This would prove to be the closest the Bulldogs would come to the endzone on the drive, with another false start penalty backing things up five yards. Senior linebacker Alex Washington broke up a crucial pass on the line of scrimmage before a Guest incompletion sent the Bryant field goal unit back onto the field, converting from 26 yards out to cut the Tribe lead to 15-12.
After receiving the kick-off the Tribe offense brought Imoh back onto the field, who immediately ran for two first downs good for 14 and 11 yards each. The drive fell apart after Elliot forced a loss of five yards on Imoh’s next run and senior linebacker Ben Silver sacked Wilson for a loss of two yards, setting up yet another punt for the Green and Gold.
As the following two drives concluded the third quarter down, neither side made many offensive gains. Tribe senior safety Marcus Barnes came up with a big pass breakup on a third down pass down the middle. On offense, the Tribe handed the ball to Yoder five times, though him and Jenkins were unable to obtain a first down around midfield.
The Bulldogs offense got another try leading into the fourth quarter. The Tribe defense remained stalwart with Guest being sacked by Washington for a loss of one yard. This play set the tone for the rest of the drive, as Barnes broke up another pass intended for Ruggieri. Yet another penalty forced the punting unit back five yards.
The Green and Gold made extreme light work of the Bryant defense on the very next play. Imoh broke a number of tackles down the middle and rushed nearly unchallenged for a 62-yard touchdown, galvanizing the William and Mary sidelines. Bernstein converted another extra point to widen the lead to 22-12.
The Bulldogs offense began their response in stride, with good runs by Kedzior and drawing a fifteen yard pass interference penalty against Tribe redshirt freshman safety TJ McGill. Kedzior used multiple runs to take Bryant into the red zone, but on a crucial third and one play, freshman linebacker Harrison Johnson blew up another Kedzior run play for no gain. This momentum carried into the special teams unit, where redshirt freshman defensive back Sascha Garcia stretched out to block the short field goal, recovered by McGill and the Tribe.
Johnson spoke about his play after the game.
“Great team execution. Great call by the coaches. Just doing my job and trying to get to the ball,” Johnson said.
The Tribe used its next drive to wind the clock down. Imoh ran the ball multiple times, but Kendrick would be stopped short of a first down on a tackle for loss by Bryant senior defensive back Sean Hunt. The Green and Gold was forced to punt with hopes to get one last defensive stop to end the game.
Bryant used the last two minutes to drive dangerously close to the endzone, powered by a 21-yard Ruggieri reception and multiple fourth and one conversions to keep Bryant alive. Senior wide receiver Tristen Riley hauled in a 21-yard catch down at the one-yard line. In one final defensive stand, the Tribe held the Bulldogs at the 1 yard three times, before redshirt freshman defensive line Ty Gordon ended the game with an interception on Guest as time expired.
Bryant would end the day with more offensive yards, 410, than the Tribe’s 348. The running game would again prove to be the x-factor for the Tribe, with 244 yards compared to Bryant’s 147. Yoder added 147 yards to his season total, which eclipsed 1000 during the game. It would be Imoh that proved decisive however, with 103 yards on the day, including the 63-yard touchdown that put the game out of reach.
“We were trying to get things going on offense, and coach told me ‘All it takes is one play,’” Imoh said when asked about his touchdown run.
Guest would add 263 yards and a touchdown in the air for Bryant, outshining Wilson’s 97 yards and one touchdown. Ruggieri led all receivers with 112 yards and a touchdown for Bryant.
On the defensive side of the ball, senior linebacker Quinn Osborne led the Tribe with 10 tackles. Barnes recorded seven tackles, a career-high four pass breakups and one forced fumble. Washington recorded two PBUs and a sack. Elliot led Bryant with seven tackles, one for a loss and one interception.
The Green and Gold looks to win its final regular season game against rival Richmond (9-2, 7-0 CAA) Saturday, Nov. 23 at Robins Stadium in Richmond, Va.