WILLIAMSBURG, Va.- William & Mary converted three second-quarter VMI turnovers into 21 points, as the Tribe handed the Keydets a 42-6 loss Saturday afternoon at Zable Stadium.
VMI committed four turnovers for the game, including three in the second quarter that quickly turned the game. Two interceptions by senior quarterback Josh Lyles and a fumble by sophomore tailback Colby Hollingsworth cost the Keydets dearly, who had no answer for 28 second-quarter points except a pair of field goals.
The Tribe attack was led by senior quarterback Lang Campbell, who completed 11 of his 15 pass attempts for 160 yards and two touchdowns. Senior tailback Jon Smith led W&M on the ground, rushing for 54 yards on 15 carries and two scores.
Lyles finished the contest 9-for-24 for 64 yards and three interceptions. Senior quarterback David Poldiak came into the game in the fourth quarter, racking up 84 yards passing, completing 10 of his 15 passes. Junior wideout Zohn Burden collected 57 yards receiving and caught five balls to extend his consecutive games with a catch to 16 contests, while Gary Price hauled in one catch to extend his streak to 17 consecutive games with a catch.
After trading possessions throughout most of the first quarter, the Tribe put together a 10-play, 63-yard drive near the end of the quarter, capping the drive with a two-yard touchdown run by senior running back Jon Smith on the first play of the second period.
On the ensuing possession, Hollingsworth fumbled on the first play, giving W&M the ball back on the VMI 31 yardline. Six plays later, sophomore tailback Elijah Brooks converted a third down and goal from the six, scoring his first career touchdown while giving the Tribe a 14-0 lead.
A 28-yard pass from Lyles to junior wideout Zohn Burden helped set up VMI's first score of the day, a 28-yard field goal midway through the second quarter to cap a 13-play, 69-yard drive that ate up over five minutes of the clock.
The Tribe then capitalized on a pair of interceptions by sophomore linebacker Ryan Nickell, as Dominique Thompson and Joe Nicholas each hauled in touchdown passes from Campbell to give the Tribe a 28-3 lead.
Just before the half, the Keydets recovered a fumbled punt return, giving them the ball at the W&M 21. However, they could only manage a field goal, as freshman Barett Way converted a 39-yard field goal to cut the lead to 28-6 at the intermission.
On the opening possession of the second half, the Tribe marched down the field, running off a 10-play, 57-yard scoring drive, resulting in a one-yard touchdown run by Smith.
Neither team could sustain a drive for the next 20 minutes, until W&M tacked on a four-yard touchdown pass from back-up Michael Potts to John Taylor.
In the contest, the Tribe ran up 305 total yards, while VMI totaled 197. William & Mary outgained the Keydets 98-47 on the ground and 207-148 in the air.
William & Mary converted eight of 14 third down plays, while VMI mangaged just 3 of 14 third down opportunities.
The Keydets return to action Saturday afternoon, when they travel to Charleston, S.C. to take on Charleston Southern. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. at CSU Stadium.
COACH CAL McCOMBS- "William & Mary is a good football team, I have a lot of respect for them. They're quarterback played well for them. We played them tough in the first quarter, but in the second we started to turn the ball over. You just can't give them three short-fields and expect to win. I had told the team that we had to take care of the ball, but those three turnovers killed us. Offensively we couldn't get anything going. They loaded up to stop the run, and I think that we're going to see a lot of that coming up, with teams making us throw to win the game. I was impressed with Poldiak, coming into the game and making plays there at the end of the game. But we have to go home and look at what we can do offensively to help out both Lyles and Poldiak so that they can have success."
