Presbyterian routs VMI, 38-6
The Presbyterian College Blue Hose picked up 266 yards on the ground and led wire to wire, picking up a 38-6 win over the VMI Keydets Saturday afternoon at Bailey Memorial Stadium in Clinton, S.C.
Quarterback Ryan Singer threw for 182 yards and two scores, and also had 106 of the PC rushing yards as PC (3-7, 2-3 Big South) jumped out to an early 14-0 lead. VMI (1-9, 1-4 BSC) cut the lead to 14-6 with a second quarter touchdown run by T.J. Talley, but the Blue Hose scored the final 10 points of the half to take a 24-6 lead to the locker room. PC then outscored VMI 14-0 in the second half to account for the final margin.
The Blue Hose piled up 491 yards total offense to VMI’s 222 and held a 36:27 to 23:13 advantage in time of possession while racking up 25 first downs to 12 for the visitors.
Keydet quarterback Eric Kordenbrock completed just eight of 21 passes for 90 yards as VMI could muster just one play over 20 yards – a 46-yard pass to senior wide out Tracy Hairston in the second half. Senior running back T.J. Talley led VMI in rushing with 60 yards on seven carries.
VMI senior linebacker A.J. Gross topped all tackle charts with 15 stops including 13 solos and 1.5 for loss for three yards. He also picked off a pass in the end zone on the last play of the first half.
Singer set the tone on the day for Presbyterian on its first offensive drive when the Blue Hose moved 63 yards in 11 plays for the first points. The sophomore rushed four times for 46 yards and capped it with a 21-yard scramble dash to the right corner of the end zone for a touchdown with 10:23 left in the opening quarter. Aaron Mayes kicked the extra-point to give PC a lead it would not relinquish.
VMI appeared poised to pull even on its first drive when it snapped off an 18-yard pass from quarterback Eric Kordenbrock to Stefawn Ross to the VMI 42. Talley followed with three straight rushes of 12, 7, and 17 yards, but fumbled the ball fighting for extra yardage when he was stood up at the PC 7. Senior linebacker CeeJay Harris recovered at the PC 5 yard line and the Blue Hose tuned away and a pivotal early VMI scoring threat.
After an exchange of punts, Blue Hose junior running back Lance Byrd, who finished with 117 yards rushing for the game, sparked PC’s second scoring drive by rushing five times for 27 yards and capping it with a 4-yard run with 32 seconds remaining in the quarter. A 22-yard Singer scramble to the VMI 1 set up Byrd’s seventh rushing touchdown of the year as PC assumed a 14-0 following the Mayes extra point.
The Keydets battled back to get on the board following a 44-yard punt return by freshman James Fruehan to the PC 16. Two plays later, Talley slashed right off tackle and scored from seven yards out for his second rushing touchdown of the year. But a botched snap-hold combo on the extra-point attempt produced a failed extra-point try by Sexton and the score remained 14-6 with 3:17 left in the second quarter.
Presbyterian College extended its cushion to 21-6 on the following drive when Singer connected with sophomore wideout Arthur Williams for a 14-yard catch and run for a TD. The key play of the drive was a 29-yard inside screen pass to Michael Ruff that VMI apparently had contained at the line of scrimmage on a third and 5 at the PC 43, only to see Ruff bust out on a 23-yard run to the Keydet 34. Singer followed with a 20-yard float pass to Byrd that pushed it to the VMI 14 eventually setting up the touchdown pass play one snap later.
PC led 21-6 with 1:44 left in the half, but was able to tack on a field goal before halftime after VMI fumbled away the opening snap of the next possession at the VMI 34. Mayes knocked through a 35-yard field goal with :44 remaining in the half and the Blue Hose took a 24-6 lead at the break.
VMI opened the second half with the ball, but went 3-and-out and punted to the 50-yard line. PC took advantage of the short field to cover the distance to the end zone in five plays after a 19-yard option keeper by Singer around the left end and assumed a 31-6 lead with 11:36 left in the third quarter.
The Keydets continued to struggle offensively for the remainder of the quarter with a punt, a drive that ended on downs, and an interception that silenced their next three offensive possessions. A Fred Marshall pickoff of an Adam Morgan pass at the PC 37 set up what would be the last tally of the day for either team. Singer engineered a 7-play, 63-yard drive capped with his second TD pass of the game – a 10 yard toss to junior wide receiver Anderico Bailey with :44 left in the third quarter.
QUOTES – VMI Head Coach Sparky Woods
“I thought we would come out and play better than we did today. I take responsibility for that. We couldn’t get things going consistently on offense and couldn’t match their points on the scoreboard. Defensively, we couldn’t stop them and we continued to make mistakes in special teams. We have to find out what it is, fix it, and get these guys ready to play next week.”
VMI falls just short of big upset at #22 Liberty
In a game that was close from start to finish, VMI’s Eric Kordenbrock threw for a career-high 320 yards and three touchdowns with a school record 31 completions, but #22 Liberty held on for a 37-31 win over the Keydets in Big South football action Saturday in Lynchburg, Va.
VMI (1-8, 1-3 Big South) held a 17-16 lead at halftime, looking to surprise homestanding Liberty (7-3, 5-0 Big South) and hand the Flames’ senior class its first-ever home conference loss. Liberty scored midway through the third period, when quarterback Mike Brown had a one-yard touchdown run to give the Flames the lead, but VMI fired right back with a six-play drive that T.J. Talley capped with a 12-yard scamper, putting the Keydets back up by one, 24-23.
Liberty’s Kevin Fogg then took the ensuing kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown, making the score 30-24, Flames, and the home team would never trail again. Dexter Bridge had a leaping touchdown grab with 14 seconds remaining, pulling the Keydets within six, but Liberty recovered the onside kick and held on for the victory.
All told, Kordenbrock was 31 of 47 on the day, with his longest pass coming on a 55-yard touchdown strike to Tracy Hairston in the opening quarter. Hairston had 94 yards receiving, while Talley made nine catches and Trent White hauled in eight passes.
VMI senior back Talley returned to the lineup after missing the previous week with an ankle injury and led the Keydets in rushing with 73 yards and a touchdown while also hauling in a career-high nine receptions for 64 yards. Hairston added six catches for 94 yards and his two scores while sophomore Trent White posted a career-high eight catches for 67 yards.
Liberty held the total offense edge, 420-403, as senior quarterback Brown completed 24 of 34 passes for 286 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore running back Aldreakis Allen added 75 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown to spark the Liberty attack. Senior receiver Chris Summers snared eight passes but was limited to 84 yards receiving, but a fourth quarter touchdown grab from Brown helped turn aside VMI’s bid for an upset.
Senior linebacker A.J. Gross topped the VMI defensive charts with nine stops including seven solo tackles.
Liberty fumbled the ball away on the opening kickoff when Hardy Temoney jarred the ball free from Fogg which resulted in a recovery by VMI’s Byron Allen at the Liberty 39. VMI eventually moved to the Flame 20 but came up empty when James Devans 37-yard field goal attempt was blocked after a low snap. The Flames then punted away after a three-and-out and VMI began its second possession at its own 42.
The Keydets, facing their fourth nationally ranked opponent of the season, wasted little time producing the game’s first points as Kordenbrock threw long down the right sideline to a leaping Hairston who snatched the ball over Liberty defenders at the LU 19, then turned and raced down the boundary for the 55-yard scoring pass play. Devans tacked on the extra point and VMI led 7-0, with 9:41 left in the first quarter.
Liberty answered with a 9-play, 74-yard drive capped by an Allen one-yard burst with 5:53 left in the first quarter. Redshirt freshman kicker Alex Kacere missed the extra-point and Liberty continued to trail 7-6 after a drive that saw Brown connect on passes to four different receivers covering 69 yards.
An interception of a Kordenbrock pass by Liberty’s redshirt freshman linebacker Nick Sigmon at the VMI 24 on the first play of the next Keydet possession set up a 35-yard field goal by Kacere to give Liberty its first lead, 9-7, with 4:45 left in the first quarter.
The Keydets answered with a 12-play drive that covered 61 yards and chewed up nearly seven minutes of the first half clock as Kordenbrock completed all six of his passes including a four-yard quick out pass to Hairston in the right corner of the endzone to put VMI back on top, 14-9 following Jeff Sexton’s extra point with 12:50 remaining in the second quarter.
VMI recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff at the Liberty 44 and converted the opportunity into a 37-yard field goal by Devans to push the Keydet lead to 17-9 at the 10:58 mark.
The Flames responded by covering 78 yards on 12 snaps and reaching the endzone on a three-yard flip pass from Brown to tight end Brandon Apon in the back corner of the end zone. VMI led 17-16 with 6:16 left in the half and took that slim one-point margin into the locker room at halftime.
VMI was forced to punt on the opening drive of the second half, and the Flames produced a 90-yard drive to retake the lead. Starting at its own 10, Brown completed a trio of third down passes to junior wide receiver Pat Kelly covering 27 yards, 22 yards, and a 32-yard snag on a third and goal from the VMI 33 that setup a Brown one-yard touchdown keeper. The Flames led 23-17 following the successful extra-point conversion with seven minutes remaining in the third quarter.
The Keydet offense answered again to take a lead for the third time on the day when TJ Talley cut loose up the middle for a 12-yard touchdown run at the 4:08 mark of the third period. Sexton’s extra-point nudged VMI ahead 24-23 after a scoring drive in which Talley contributed a fourth-down conversion run of 24 yards from the VMI 44 which set up a 20-yard Hairston reception to the Flame 12 one play later.
VMI’s elation was quickly subdued after Fogg took the ensuing kickoff and bounced left out of a logjam and raced down the left boundary for a 90-yard kickoff return for a touchdown putting the Flames up 30-24.
As the game moved to the fourth quarter, the Keydets came away empty handed on a scoring opportunity when Devans missed on a 38-yard field goal try from the right hash mark with 11:30 left. Liberty took over at its own 21 and Brown engineered a 79-yard scoring possession keyed by four pass completions – the last on a pump-and-go route to Summers in the left corner of the end zone to push the Liberty lead to 37-24 with 6:43 left.
The Keydets still kept Liberty sideline celebrations at bay until the final snap of the game after Kordenbrock lofted a 22-yard touchdown strike to freshman wideout Bridge who made a leaping catch of the aerial against two defenders with 13.8 seconds left. VMI attempted an on-side kick on the ensuing kickoff and nearly recovered the ball after it ricocheted off a Flames up-man but the Flames ultimately ended with possession and ran out the clock to end the contest.
VMI will wrap up its three-game road stretch next Saturday at Presbyterian College at 1 p.m.
VMI Head Coach Sparky Woods -
“I’m proud of our football team for competing. We came down without our starting tailback (Chaz Jones-shoulder) without our starting nose guard (Charlie Jones) and without any of our starting defensive backs we had earlier in the season. But they competed hard. The two plays that stick in my mind are the third and goal from the 33 that they converted to set up a score, and the kickoff return for a touchdown. It’s hard to win with a play or two like that coming from a good team like Liberty.”
“T.J. Talley also played hurt but he made some good plays for us. He’s a great kid.”
“If you can’t run it, and can’t stop the run, it’s hard to win. So many times when they ran it, it was second and one after they picked up nine yards. But it’s a lot more fun to call plays when you are in the game rather than behind, and we got into their end of the field a little bit. I saw some guys make some plays – Tracy Hairston made great catch and run and the last score was a good catch by freshman receiver Dexter Bridge. But they made more plays than we did.”
Second-half outburst dooms VMI
Thirty-five second half points, including 21 in the third quarter, broke open a close game and propelled the Stony Brook Seawolves past the VMI Keydets, 42-14, in Big South football action Saturday at VMI’s Foster Stadium in Lexington, Va.
Early on, the contest was a defensive struggle, with the only points coming on a late Stony Brook (4-3, 2-0 Big South) drive that gave the Seawolves a 7-0 halftime lead. The visitors then scored 21 points in the first six minutes of the second half, including 14 in a nine-second span at one point, to take a 28-0 advantage.
VMI responded with an 81-yard touchdown pass, as Adam Morgan hooked up with Aaron Lewis for the seventh-longest pass play in school history, but Stony Brook notched the next 14 points, including a 60-yard touchdown run by Miguel Maysonet, to take a 42-7 edge with 12:09 to play. Chaz Jones had a three-yard touchdown run with 5:13 to play, accounting for the final margin and moving him into eighth place on the Institute’s all-time rushing touchdown list, with his 17th career TD rush.
SBU’s Kyle Essington threw for 255 yards and two touchdowns, while the vaunted Seawolf rushing attack gained 228 yards on the ground, led by Maysonet’s 141. VMI used three quarterbacks, led by Eric Kordenbrock’s 14 for 26 effort. Morgan was 2 for 7 for 90 yards, and A.J. Augustine made his collegiate debut by going 0 for 3 on VMI’s final possession. In addition, Mike Smith had a career-high 11 tackles for the Keydets.
Neither team threatened in the first quarter, as the squads combined for seven punts and just 73 yards of total offense. Stony Brook had the first sustained drive of the game, as they had the ball at the end of the opening period and start of the second quarter. Their eight-play, 40-yard drive included a 21-yard pass from Essington to Kevin Norrell, but one play later, Charlie Jones forced a Maysonet fumble and A.J. Gross recovered at the Keydet 22, giving VMI the ball with 11:59 left in the half.
The next three drives, two by VMI and one by the visitors, ended in punts, and Stony Brook took over with 4:27 left in the half in a scoreless contest. After an incompletion to start the drive, Essington found Norrell for back to back first downs, putting the ball into Keydet territory. Three plays later, Matt Brevi had a 23-yard catch and run on third down, putting the ball at the Keydet 2, and Essington scored on third down, taking advantage of a bootleg and running in from one yard out. The touchdown and point after came with 27 seconds left in the half, and gave the Seawolves a 7-0 halftime lead.
Despite the touchdown drive, Stony Brook had still been held to just 51 yards rushing in the first half, but the tide of the game turned quickly after halftime. VMI’s opening kickoff went out of bounds, giving SBU a short field, and the visitors took advantage.
A second down pass from Essington to Jordan Gush went for 23 yards, and two plays later, the Seawolf quarterback found Norrell on a post pattern down the middle of the field. Norrell went up for the ball, which appeared to be slightly underthrown, and was able to come down with it in the endzone for the 31-yard touchdown, giving SBU a 14-0 lead just 2:33 into the second half.
After a Keydet three-and-out, the Seawolves came back once again. On first down, Maysonet galloped for 37 yards, and one play later, Essington found Gush for 18 yards, moving the ball to the VMI 15. Two runs for Brock Jackolski, the last of which covered seven yards, got the visitors in the endzone at the 9:16 mark. The point after made it 21-0, SBU.
On the ensuing kickoff, Tracy Hairston returned the ball to the VMI 29, but was hit there by SBU’s Jawara Dudley. Hairston fumbled the ball, Grant Nakwaasah grabbed it and brought it back for a touchdown, giving the Seawolves 14 points in nine seconds and a 28-0 edge.
Morgan relieved Kordenbrock at quarterback, and was able to move the chains, but SBU’s defense held and forced a punt. The Seawolves had to punt as well, giving VMI the ball with 4:18 left in the quarter, and the Keydets took advantage. Morgan lofted a deep pass for Lewis, who caught the pattern near the right hash mark and outraced the defender to the endzone for the 81-yard touchdown pass. The point after cut the lead to 28-7, as the completion was the seventh-longest pass play in school history, just one yard further than an 80-yard effort (Kordenbrock-Mario Scott) against the Seawolves last season on Long Island.
Stony Brook responded with a 10-play, 83-yard drive on which Essington went 6 for 6, ending on an eight-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Gush, on which the quarterback rolled to his right and threaded three Keydet defenders with the bullet pass to the corner of the endzone. Gush was ruled in bounds for the touchdown, and Wesley Skiffington’s extra point made it 35-7, SBU.
After a VMI punt, Maysonet took a handoff with 12:19 to go, carrying it off tackle and into the second level of defense, where he found an extra gear and galloped for a 60-yard touchdown run, SBU’s longest play of the day and their final score of the afternoon as well. Skiffington added the point after, giving the visitors a 42-7 advantage. The teams traded punts, giving the Keydets the ball with 8:01 to go.
Kordenbrock returned to the game and went 5 for 5 on the drive, including three passes to James Rogers, and Jones carried the ball in from three yards out to cap the six-play, 83-yard drive and make it SBU 42, VMI 14 with 5:13 to go. That would cap the day’s scoring.
By moving into eighth on VMI’s all-time rushing touchdown list, Jones surpassed Howard Abegesah and Sam Horner’s 16 career TD runs. Rogers had five catches, while Norrell led Stony Brook with eight grabs for 129 yards.
VMI will be back in action next Saturday, as the Keydets travel to Charleston, S.C. to play The Citadel in a resumption of the Military Classic of the South series. Game time is set for 1 p.m.
QUOTES – VMI Head Coach Sparky Woods
“It was a shame to start the second half the way we did. We had the wind and we kicked the ball out of bounds. You can’t do that if you want to win. We’ve just got to put a whole game together. They (Stony Brook) have a good team, and you cannot make mistakes against them. They scored on the first drive of the second half, and later, we had the kickoff return taken back for a touchdown after the fumble. You can’t get behind like that. We got a touchdown and got everyone excited a bit, but too many errors in the first part of the third quarter made it tough for us.”
“We had too many three-and-outs on offense. If we’re going to win, we’ve got to try to score and not just lay on the ball. We gave up too many big plays, and long runs and long passes for touchdowns. We have to tackle and get them off the field. We have to force them to go three-and-out.”
VMI drops 34-10 decision to Coastal Carolina
Coastal Carolina quarterback Aramis Hillary threw for 245 yards and ran for 114, helping the Chanticleers win Saturday’s Big South battle with the VMI Keydets, 34-10. The matchup was the conference opener for both schools.
The homestanding Chanticleers (4-1, 1-0) scored the first 17 points before Jeff Sexton put VMI (0-5, 0-1) on the board with a 29-yard field goal with 4:30 left in the opening half. Coastal responded by scoring 10 points late in the half, aided by a Josh Norman interception, and took a 27-3 lead to halftime.
Adam Morgan led a fourth-quarter touchdown drive for the Keydets, capping the scoring by running for a touchdown in the final period. He also went 9 for 14 through the air during his time in the contest.
VMI loses at Akron to fall to 0-4
The Akron Zips rolled up 534 yards total offense including 359 in the first half to post a 36-13 win over VMI Saturday afternoon before a crowd of 14,257 at InfoCision Stadium.
The Zips won their first game of the year and utilized a balanced offensive attack to subdue the Keydets. Akron redshirt freshman running back Jawon Chisolm rushed for 154 yards on 20 carries in the opening half and finished the day with a career-high 188 yards and one touchdown, while sophomore wideout Keith Sconiers caught seven passes for 137 yards and two touchdowns. On the day Akron gained 294 yards on the ground and 240 through the air on 81 total offensive snaps.
VMI’s scores came on a 39-yard touchdown pass from sophomore quarterback Eric Kordenbrock to junior receiver Stefawn Ross late in the first quarter and a Chaz Jones 3-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter.
Akron controlled the ball for 37:44 of the game including nearly 12 minutes in the first quarter alone.
The Zips (1-3) threw long on their first play of the game as Sconiers hauled in a 41-yard reception from sophomore quarterback Clayton Moore to the VMI 37. After a pair of rushes by Chisholm for 16 yards, Bennett connected with Sconiers for a 31-yard touchdown strike. Placekicker T.J. Marchese missed the extra-point and the score remained 6-0, Akron with 12:45 left in the first quarter.
The Keydets’ Tracy Hairston took the ensuing kickoff to the VMI 43 and had an offsides penalty push the ball to the VMI 48 when VMI snapped its first play of the afternoon. Jones rushed 11 yards to the Akron 41, but an 8-yard sack and jarring hit on VMI quarterback Eric Korenbrock resulted in a fumble recovery by Akron’s Nico Caponi at the Zip 47 that squelched VMI’s first possession.
After an exchange of punts, Akron went to the ground and churned out an eight-play, 60-yard drive capped by freshman running back Karl Bostick’s 17-yard burst off tackle to the endzone. Marchese’s extra point made it 13-0 with 7:02 to go in the opening quarter. Chisholm contributed five rushed for 33 yards on the drive.
VMI responded quickly with its first points of the day set up by a Hairston kick return to the Akron 39. Two plays later, Kordenbrock floated a 39-yard TD pass to Ross down the right sideline for his third TD pass of the year and the first career scoring reception for Ross. After Jeff Sexton’s extra point, VMI cut the deficit to 13-7 with 6:04 left in the first quarter.
The score remained that way until 36 seconds left in the first quarter when Marchese booted a 26-yard field goal to cap a 12-play, 69-yard drive that was aided by a running into the punter penalty after the Keydets had forced the Zips to punt from midfield.
VMI moved to the Akron 37 on the ensuing drive, but Koredenbrock was sacked for a 10-yard loss by tackle Dan Marcoux and the Keydets were forced to punt. Akron failed to move the ball and after an exchange of punts, the Zips put together their longest drive of the day moving 72 yards in 10 plays utilizing two key third down conversion and a face mask penalty to set up a 10-yard touchdown pass from Moore to Sconiers with 6:34 left in the half. Akron’s run attempt for the two-point conversion failed and the Zips took a 22-7 lead with 7:02 left in second quarter.
VMI moved to the Akron 38 on the ensuing drive following an 11-yard pass from Koredenbrock to Hairston, but the drive stalled with a 2-yard loss sandwiched by a pair of incompletions to force the Keydets to punt to the Akron 15. Chisolm ripped off a 33-yard jaunt on Akron’s first play of the next drive that helped set up a seven-play, 9-yard possession capped by a Chishom touchdown run from 9 yards out. Marchese booted through the extra point at the 1:46 mark and Akron took a 29-7 lead into halftime.
After a scoreless third quarter, both teams managed one score in the final frame as Moore connected on his third TD pass of the afternoon on a 23-yard pass to Jerrod Dilliard with 8:28 left in the game. VMI capped the scoring when Jones slammed in from three yards out to give the Cleveland native his fourth rushing touchdown of the year.
Moore completed 13 of 28 passes for 223 yards and three scores to help the Zips even the gridiron series in just the second ever meeting between the schools.
Kordenbrock connected on 13 of 29 attempts for 133 yards while Adam Morgan came in the fourth quarter and completed one of two passes for six yards. Defensive back Micheal Johnson led the Keydets defensive charts with a career-high 12 tackles including five solos and safety Demetrius Phillips added a career-high nine tackles in his first college start. VMI racked up six tackles for loss for 16 yards. Hairston finished with 162 all-purpose yards including 131 on kickoffs.
VMI (0-4, 0-0) will have an off-week before resuming action at Coastal Carolina in Saturday, October 8 at 7 p.m. in a televised Big South Conference opener in Conway, South Carolina.
QUOTES – VMI Head Coach Sparky Woods
“Akron did a good job of controlling the ball on both sides of the line of scrimmage. We had trouble protecting for the downfield pass and they batted down a bunch of the short passes. On defense, we have to play the run better and we got hurt early on double moves – our corners have to play man on that. We had a couple of turnovers on offense and we didn’t get any on defense – we’ve got to get some of those. We’ve got to control the ball to get the defense off the field, but the defense has to get itself off the field, too. They had too many third down conversions that went for big plays. Credit Akron, they had a big strong football team and they stayed with their game plan and as the game went on they had the clock on their side.
“I think we will find later in the film that we executed a little bit better than we thought, but we just got beat in individual battles at times. It’s been hard for us to put together more than a 1-2 plays together at a time. We’ll go back to try to evaluate where we are and get those guys back healthy and ready for conference play.”
Keydets fall to #5 W&M
After a scoreless first quarter, the #5 William & Mary Tribe scored the next 24 points and went on to defeat the VMI Keydets, 24-7, Saturday afternoon at Foster Stadium in Lexington, Va.
The story of the day was the Tribe’s (1-1) ground game, as they pounded the ball for 216 yards on the ground, including 87 by starting tailback Jonathan Grimes. Two of W&M’s three touchdowns came on the ground, as Grimes and Keith McBride each scored via the run, while Grimes also caught the first score of the game, a six-yard touchdown pass from Michael Paulus.
VMI was held scoreless until the fourth quarter, when Adam Morgan relieved Eric Kordenbrock and marched the home team 90 yards in 16 plays, a drive that was capped by a fourth-down touchdown pass to Trent White. The TD strike was not only VMI’s first passing touchdown of the season, but it averted what would have been the first shutout against VMI at Foster Stadium since the 2001 season.
Morgan went 5 for 9 during his time in Saturday’s contest, while Kordenbrock was 13 for 26 with two interceptions. T.J. Talley led the Keydets in receptions with a career-high six, White’s four grabs tied a career-best and Chaz Jones paced the Keydet ground game with 64 yards on the afternoon.
The visitors received the opening kickoff and began the game with a heavy dose of Grimes, as he carried the ball eight times on W&M’s first 14 plays from scrimmage. The senior amassed 45 yards on the ground in the opening quarter, but the VMI defense held the remainder of the Tribe to 36 yards of total offense to keep the visitors off the scoreboard. Unfortunately for VMI, W&M did the same, holding the Keydets to just 47 yards, and neither team could dent the scoreboard in the opening period.
W&M had the ball to open the second quarter, continuing a drive at the Keydet 22. Grimes converted a third-and-two, rushing for five yards, and three plays later, Paulus found Grimes for the game’s opening touchdown. After the point after, the Tribe held a 7-0 lead just over two minutes into the second period.
Kordenbrock then marched his team down the field, a drive that saw VMI convert three consecutive third-down attempts. On the fourth third-down try, Kordenbrock found Talley for a nine-yard gain, setting up a key moment on fourth down from the W&M 24. With just a yard to go, VMI opted to go for the first down, but the Tribe defense stopped Chaz Jones to force the turnover on downs.
After an exchange of punts, the Tribe got the ball back on its own 43 with 3:49 left in the half. Three plays later, Paulus found Woolfork on a fade pattern down the left sideline, throwing the ball just beyond the VMI defender for the 34-yard completion and a first-and-goal. McBride ran the ball into the endzone on the next play, doubling the W&M lead to 14-0 and capping the first half scoring.
Grimes had 75 yards rushing at halftime, while VMI’s Talley had four of his eventual six catches. Emilio Calvin had seven tackles at the intermission.
The Keydets got the ball to open the second half, and were unable to pick up a first down on the initial series. On fourth down, Cameron Murray’s punt was blocked by the Tribe’s Marcus Hyde, and the visitors took over in VMI territory. The Keydet defense stiffened, however, and forced a punt.
VMI then took over on its own nine, and in one of the game’s bigger plays, Kordenbrock’s first down pass was tipped and intercepted by Hyde for the game’s first turnover. Three plays later, Grimes notched a three-yard touchdown run with 10:18 remaining in the third quarter, and the extra point made it 21-0, Tribe.
W&M took over again with 6:02 left in the quarter, starting a 17-play, 88-yard drive that would end early in the fourth period with a 20-yard Drake Kuhn field goal. The short kick put the Tribe up 24-0 with 12:27 left in the contest.
Kordenbrock was again intercepted on the ensuing drive, but Logan Staib notched his first career interception in the endzone, preventing further scoring. Morgan then took over and on his initial third down, scrambled for 18 yards and a first down. With a face mask penalty tacked on, the play was good for 33 yards, more than one-third of the distance on the 90-yard march.
Completions to Tracy Hairston and Talley, and three Chaz Jones runs, moved the Keydets into position for their scoring play, the 11-yard Morgan to White TD strike. It was Morgan’s fourth career touchdown pass and White’s second career TD grab, pulling the Keydets to within 24-7 and capping the scoring.
Defensively, Miguel Marshall made a career high 10 tackles, while Trae Watkins’ 10 stops were just one off his previous career-best.
VMI (0-2) will be back in action next Saturday, as the Keydets begin a three-game road trip by traveling to Richmond, Va. to take on the Richmond Spiders. Game time is set for 6 p.m.
QUOTES – VMI Head Coach Sparky Woods
“William & Mary was a tough football team. They were impressive and proved that they were the team we thought they were at the beginning of the season and prior to what happened to them at the Virginia game, and they controlled both sides of the line of scrimmage.”
“If we want to win games, we need to make our fourth and one plays, and we didn’t make ours today. They scored right before the half, and that was tough for us, as 7-0 at the half would have been a lot better than 14-0, but our team played better than last week and improved a lot. Our guys played hard, and managed to fight back after good plays by them. I thought we improved after a great week of preparation last week, and I thought we actually played better, not real good, but better this week. I think we at least narrowed the gap and improved our play against William & Mary since I’ve been here with Coach Laycock having a great staff that knows how to win. Overall, I thought we made some strides with our team today.”
Football Roundup: Dukes win with goal-line stand, W&M pastes Richmond, VMI falls
James Madison’s defense kept Maine out of the end zone for all but the game’s initial series, including on a play from the three-yard line to end the contest, to lead the Dukes to a 14-10 victory Saturday in the season-finale for both football teams.
Maine pulled to within 14-10 early during the final quarter and ran 16 plays during the closing possession before JMU stopped a Black Bear receiver as time expired.
