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MIDDLEBURY, VT—The Williams College
football team (2-2) got back to .500 today, beating formerly
undefeated Middlebury (3-1) by a score of 30-22. In an
atypical performance for Williams, the Ephs were actually
out-passed by 52 yards as quarterback Pat Lucey was held to
just 171 yards through the air, well below his season
average. But as the Ephs learned early in the year, turnovers
can be fatal, and on Saturday Williams turned this
lesson on the Panthers by picking off rookie quarterback
Donald McKillop five times, just one shy of tying an Eph
record.
Williams played some old-fashioned football in overpowering the
Panthers, running the ball 48 times and out-gaining the Panthers
231 to 180 in that department. Leading the way for Williams
was a familiar name as junior Brian Morrissey carried the ball 27
times for 137 yards and three touchdowns. His first of the
day was also his most impressive as Morrissey scored on a 34-yard
run to put Williams ahead 7-0. The run came shortly after a botched
snap led to a woeful 10 yard Middlebury punt, setting Williams up
with great field position.
Middlebury's next two possessions would result in
interceptions, however Williams was unable to score on
either. Surprisingly Williams wouldn't score on a
Middlebury turnover all day, as the Panthers' prized
defense would hold the Ephs after all five Panther turnovers.
After the two picks McKillop would bounce back, hitting receiver
Andrew Matson for a 23-yard touchdown to even the score at
seven. The play ended a 10-play, 75 yard scoring drive
for Middlebury.
The Panthers would take the lead on their next drive but take
considerably less time, as an 83-yard run by David Randolph (14
rushes, 124 yards) set up a 2-yard touchdown dive for Gary Cooper,
giving Middlebury a 14-7 lead.
Williams would answer back with a solid drive of their own, going
73 yards in 11 plays and punching it in on a 3-yard run by
Morrissey. On the extra point the Ephs' mysterious PAT
problems this year would resurface, as linebacker Eric Woodring
blocked Williams kicker Scott Sobolewski's attempt.
Woodring had a monster day for the Panthers, tallying an impressive
19 tackles in addition to the blocked PAT.
Williams would finally take the lead with 4:04 to go in the third
quarter, as Brian Egan capped off a 77-yard drive with a two-yard
scoring run.
Middlebury might've answered on their next possession were it
not for a lost fumble on a fourth and one attempt at the Williams
23-yard line. In contrast, Williams went 3 for 3 on fourth
down conversions during the game, allowing them to sustain some of
their longer drives.
On the ensuing drive a Scott Sobolewski field goal from 20 yards
out would give Williams a 23-14 lead with 10:33 to go in the
game.
Williams would come up with some big defensive stops on
Middlebury's next two drives before sealing the deal on a
touchdown drive culminating in yet another Morrissey touchdown,
this one with only 3:43 left in the game.
Middlebury would show some fight in getting down the field for a TD
and 2-point conversion on their next drive, but after Williams
recovered the subsequent Panther onside-kick, the game was
essentially over.
Jordan O'Reilly and Tim Batty led the way for the Williams
defense, racking up 15 tackles and one interception, and 8 tackles
and two interceptions respectively.
Quarterback Pat Lucey went 18 for 30 for only 171 yards and no TDs,
but controlled the ball well throwing only one interception.
Eph Coach Mike Whalen was proud of the way the team practiced
leading up to this game.
“We won this game with our effort in practice this week, this
was our best week of practice all season…and this game was
definitely our best overall performance.”
It'd be tough to doubt Whalen's assertion, as Williams
had a plus-four turnover margin against the Panthers, a number they
hadn't attained yet this year.
Another number Williams has not often been close to this year is
the amount of rushing yards and attempts they totaled in this
game.
“They [Middlebury] did a great job of jamming our receivers
at the line…they're a fast team but a little
undersized, and we thought if we ran it right at them maybe we
could wear them down.” The strategy seems to have worked as
evidenced by Williams' final scoring drive in the fourth quarter to
ice the game.
Coach Whalen and the team hope to have another strong week of
practice, as they'll face an undefeated Tufts team (4-0)
fresh off a 16-10 upset of Trinity next week. Game time is
set for 1:30 pm at Weston Field.
