Playoff hopes damaged
Tribe can’t stop Tigers in 2nd half after leading 17-0
WILLIAMSBURG — William & Mary’s stunning reversal of form in a 34-24 loss to Towson on homecoming Saturday at Zable Stadium is a microcosm of its season.
Three weeks ago, the Tribe was 4-0, ranked No. 4 nationally and thinking about a repeat Coastal Athletic Association title, then opening at home in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. The Tribe (4-3 overall, 2-2 CAA) now must likely win its final four games just to qualify for the playoffs.
That scenario seemed far-fetched as at halftime, with the Tribe leading 17-3 in front of more than 13,000 on the strength
of more than 20 minutes of ball possession. That was little surprise as W&M entered ranked sixth nationally in time of possession.
The surprise was that the Tigers (3-4, 2-2) not only ripped a page from the Tribe’s ball-possession
playbook, they more or less wrote the thing in scoring the first 31 points of the second half.
“They deserved the win because they played harder than us,” Tribe coach Mike London said. “I’ve got to do a better job when it comes to getting our guys ready coming out of that halftime situation.”
Towson’s comeback began with an epic 22-play, 82-yard touchdown drive to start the second half that ate up the first 11:36 of the third quarter. Tigers quarterback Nathan Kent (19 of 28, 188 yards, two TDs) led the way by converting two fourth downs and a third down on the drive.
His 1-yard touchdown run on fourth down pulled the Tigers to within 17-10. They quickly tied the game at 17 as the Tribe’s JT Mayo fumbled the ensuing kickoff and Devin Matthews (117 yards rushing) scored on a 10-yard touchdown run four plays later.
The Tribe punted after three plays following the kickoff, and Towson then mounted another long drive. The 12-play, 65-yard march lasted more than seven minutes, resulting in Keegan Vaughan’s 24-yard field goal that gave the Tigers a 20-17 lead with 7:48 remaining in the game.
W&M went three-and-out again after that score before Towson struck quickly to seize control. Following a pair of short runs, Kent passed over the middle to tight end Carter Runyon, who broke a tackle on the way to a 53-yard touchdown that increased the Tigers’ lead to 27-17 with 4:01 to play.
A fumble by Tribe quarterback Darius Wilson gave the Tigers the ball at the W&M 20 to start their next possession. Kent threw to Runyon for a 1-yard touchdown four plays later to make it 34-17 with 1:55 to play, and the issue was decided.
By then, a first half in which the Tribe had outgained the Tigers 187 yards to 71, and led 17-0 with 13:39 to play in the second quarter, was a distant memory. W&M began the game with a 15-play drive that chewed up 8:26 of clock and led 3-0 on Caden Bonoffski’s 36-yard field goal.
Martin Lucas ran for gains of 6, 19 and 8 yards before Hollis Mathis ran 8 yards on a direct snap in the shotgun. Lucas took the next snap directly and ran for a 1-yard touchdown to give the
Tribe a 10-0 lead late in the first quarter.
Malachi Imoh (104 yards rushing) ignited a five-play, 87-yard touchdown drive with a 56-yard run around the left end. That led to Wilson’s 8-yard touchdown pass to Hollis Mathis and a 17-0 lead for the Tribe.
But Towson seized control to start the second half and handed the Tribe a third straight loss.
“That third quarter was kind of a turnaround thing of plays being made by them and not enough being made by us,” London said. “That third quarter, they put together some drives that were impressive.”