In the preseason, if Nostradamus himself had said The College would be 4-4 at their bye week Halloween weekend, I would’ve looked him in the eye and told him he was plum crazy. After two seasons that ended in consecutive playoff appearances and with the amount of key players on the roster returning, this year was not only going to be about winning a CAA Championship, it was going to center around hoisting a trophy in Frisco. Alas, as the saying goes, “That’s why they play the games.” However, after stewing over the Towson loss for the last eight days, The Gale is full of hope. And with that optimistic spirit in mind, here are the Top 5 Takeaways from the loss to Towson and the bye:

1. Quarterback Carousel

One of the bright spots of the Towson loss was the return Mike Graham. Looking like a patented Jimmye Laycock-quarterback, Graham led the Tribe on five scoring drives totaling 27 William & Mary points, the team’s highest point total of the season. The redshirt sophomore completed 19 of 26 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns, spreading the ball around to six different William & Mary receivers. Now, in fairness, he also threw two interceptions – one on the second drive of the game that led to a Towson touchdown on a short field, and another in the endzone in the fourth quarter (although, it appears he was playing with a broken finger at that point, so The Gale is going to give him some leeway on that one). But, all in all, it was the best performance from the quarterback position all year, and consequently, The College’s offense looked like it finally found its stride.
Now . . . for the bad news. On the final offensive drive of the game, Graham broke a finger on his throwing hand, had surgery during the bye week, and is out for the rest of the season. Insert long sigh. The Gale wants to wish Mike Graham all the best in his recovery and I think it is safe to speak for all of the Friends of the Feather in saying, we look forward to seeing you back in Spring practice.
As was the case when Graham was sidelined with an undisclosed illness for the New Hampshire game, Brent Caprio will step in and take his place. Caprio did a nice job in the UNH game managing the offense and, absent a first quarter interception, protecting the football. Additionally, he made some nice plays with his feet to extend plays and turn would-be sacks into positive yardage. If he does the same in the Tribe’s final three games, the Green & Gold will have a chance to finish the season off on a high note.

2. J – G

Tribe fans will have one final home game to see Jonathan Grimes on November 12th against Old Dominion.

Has there been a more impressive player in Division I-AA football the last few weeks than Jonathan Grimes? In the Tribe’s last two contests, Grimes has rushed for 309 yards on 58 carries, caught five balls for 163 yards, and scored four total touchdowns. Oh, and due to his contributions in the return game, Grimes accounted for over 300 all-purpose yards in both contests. It’s rare in a team game like football for individual performances to truly stand out. Sure, a quarterback can have a 300-yard passing day and a running back may accumulate an impressive numbers of yards, but it’s rare to see one player alter the course of games the way JG did against UNH and Towson. Even though it came in a losing effort, Grimes was the Tribe’s bell cow against the Tigers, setting the tone early by toting the rock on eight of The College’s first nine offensive plays. He ripped off runs of nine, 10, 11 and 15 as he propelled the offense down the field. JG has done immeasurable things for William & Mary’s football program and he will leave a storied legacy. But when his story is told, there is no chapter more impressive or more indicative of his tenure than his J-O-B (“Jump on Back”) performances against UNH and Towson. The Gale cannot wait to see the next three!

3. Checking In on the T5 Nicknamees

Instead of doing a new nicknamee this week, The Gale thought it would be prudent to recap all of the names given thus far, and highlight how they performed against Towson.

George “The Animal” Beerhalter – 92 had a nice day against the Tigers, seemingly getting his name called on every Tribe tackle. Officially, he finished the day with seven total tackles, one solo, and six assisted.

The Law Offices of McBride & McBride – Keith accounted for 15 yards rushing on three carries and also returned two kickoffs for 39 yards, including an explosive 26-yard burst. Tre was held without a catch, but look for him to continue his development in the final three games.

Gang Green – Homecoming was a tough game for the Tribe’s Gang Green defense. The normally stout unit allowed 427 yards of total offense on its way to giving up 38 points to the Tigers. Most concerning, Terrance West led a rushing attack that gashed the Tribe for 224 yards on 41 carries, averaging 5.5 yards a pop.

The M&M Boys: DJ Mangas and Ryan Moody – DJ hauled in six balls for 65 yards and accounted for both Tribe scores through the air. He also attempted a pass on a throwback play that fell incomplete. Ryan grabbed two balls for 21 yards as he continues to play his way back to health.

Jabrel “Claymore” Mines – M10 was in on seven tackles and was responsible for another crucial turnover, intercepting Towson quarterback Grant Enders in the fourth quarter and providing the Tribe with a real opportunity to pull off a gutsy comeback. If you listed all of William & Mary’s big defensive plays this year, it’d be a safe bet that the Claymore either made it, or wasn’t far away.

Dr. Marcus and Mr. Hyde – coming off his record-breaking performance against New Hampshire, DMMH was in on four tackles, but the Tigers’ balanced attack negated Tribe pass rushers’ ability to pin their ears back and attack like they could against UNH’s pass-heavy scheme.

4. Play of the Game

As was the case against UNH, The Gale would submit that the play of the game against Towson occurred in the first quarter. Towson won the toss and deferred to the second half, no doubt thinking that their defense could make quick work of The College’s struggling offense. After a 32-yard return by JG gave the Tribe good starting field position at their own 35, Grimes and the big uglies up front did all they could to punish Towson for deferring to the 2nd half. Hell-bent on imposing their will, the Tribe ran the football on six of its first seven plays, picking up chunks of yardage and storming their way down to Towson’s one-yardline. Out of nowhere, Towson’s defense stood up and roared. On 2nd-and-goal, the Tigers stuffed JG for no gain. Then, on the The College’s 3rd-down attempt, the Towson D swarmed Grimes, dropping him for a three-yard loss. William & Mary kicked a field goal to take a three-point lead, but the momentum decidedly swung in Towson’s favor. The Tigers went on to score on the next two possessions and led 14-3 as the whistle blew to end the first quarter. Over the next three quarters, the two teams were neck-and-neck, scoring 24 points apiece. The Gale submits that Towson’s goal-line stand precipitated a wave of momentum that the Tigers rode to an 11-point lead after the first quarter of play. Unfortunately for the Tribe, that turned out to be the difference in the ballgame.

5. A Trip to the Optimist

Friends of the Feather, if you are in dire need of a trip to the Optimist, you’ve come to the right place. After stewing over the loss to Towson for the last week, The Gale is here to provide hope. All the news articles and message boards are dominated by the “no team with less than seven I-AA wins has ever made the playoffs” talk. And admittedly, that is certainly true. What has not been mentioned in the many news articles and message board discussions is that absent last year, the entire sample size for that benchmark comes from a playoff field that only included 16 teams. Again, admittedly, there were less AQ bids then as well, but come on, feel the optimism people!! Benchmarks are meant to be broken. Due to WM’s RPI, an upside-down CAA, and their high preseason ranking (which, against all logic, has kept the Tribe in TSN’s Top 20), winning their final three games would keep the Tribe alive in the I-AA playoff race. There are certainly numerous holes to poke in this line of reasoning, the embarrassing loss to Delaware being at the top of the list. But, with a few more crazy weekends of I-AA football yet to be played, anything can happen – even a six-win team in the I-AA playoffs.

HARK