#24 William and Mary football tops Elon, 17-7

The No. 24/25 William and Mary football team earned a 17-7 victory against Elon at Zable Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

W&M (6-4, 3-3) built a 17-0 lead in the first half and held the Phoenix (1-9, 0-6) just a touchdown in the final 30 minutes en route to securing the conference win.

In addition to piling up 246 rushing yards and outgaining Elon, 413-282, the Tribe recorded a pair of interceptions and blocked a field goal – the team’s nation-leading 10th blocked kick this season.

Junior running back Mikal Abdul-Saboor led W&M offensively and rushed for 189 yards on 30 carries with a touchdown, as his effort ranks tied for the ninth-best rushing performance in school history. It comes just two weeks after he rushed for 198 yards in the victory against Delaware.

Sophomore running back Kendell Anderson also posted a rushing touchdown, while senior wide receiver Tre McBride totaled seven catches for 43 yards.

After Elon missed a 46-yard field goal on the game’s opening drive, the College took an early 7-0 lead with a 1-yard touchdown run by Abdul-Saboor. The score punctuated an eight-play, 71-yard march that lasted 3:53.

W&M increased its lead to 14-0 when Anderson rattled off a 23-yard touchdown run midway through the second quarter. The scoring drive covered just 41 yards after the Tribe took over in Elon territory following a EU personal foul during senior Sean Ballard’s 6-yard punt return.

Elon had an opportunity to put points on the board on its following possession when it drove to W&M’s 12-yard line, but senior safety Ivan Tagoe intercepted quarterback Mike Quinn’s pass in the end zone off a deflection by redshirt freshman Keanu Reuben.

The Phoenix’s next possession also stalled in W&M territory, as senior linebacker Airek Greenintercepted Quinn at the 32-yard line and returned it 39 yards. Two plays later, senior placekickerJohn Carpenter connected on a 32-yard field goal with just 0:02 remaining in the second quarter to give the College a 17-0 advantage.

In addition to outgaining EU, 218-144, in the opening 30 minutes, it marked the seventh time in the last two seasons that W&M has held an opponent scoreless in the first half.

After neither team was able to generate much offensively during much of the third quarter, Elon posted its first points with a 26-yard touchdown pass from Quinn to wide receiver Demitri Allison with 3:59 left in the frame.

The Phoenix had an opportunity to cut the margin to just seven early in the fourth quarter, but senior defensive tackle Jasper Coleman blocked John Gallagher’s 20-yard field goal attempt.

W&M was then able to control the clock, as it held the ball for 9:08 of the final 9:54 en route to earning the win.

Running back Tracey Coppedge led Elon with 120 rushing yards on 21 carries, while Allison finished the contest with five catches for 64 yards and a touchdown.

The Tribe will return to action when it plays at Towson next Saturday at 3 p.m.