THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, November 21, 1994 TAG: 9411210161
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C4 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CHARLIE DENN, CORRESPONDENT
LENGTH: Medium: 59 lines
Good, but not good enough.
In a nutshell, that summarizes William and Mary's season, which ended Saturday with a 21-20 victory at Richmond.
The Tribe, which finished 8-3, did not receive a bid to the Division I-AA playoffs which were announced Sunday.
Conference rivals James Madison, New Hampshire and Boston U. got in.
It was a frustrating end to a roller-coaster season which saw William and Mary win its first four games, lose three of its next four, then close with three consecutive victories.
But in many ways, said coach Jimmye Laycock, the season was still satisfying.
``To have gotten eight wins when you had to replace your entire defensive secondary and almost your whole offensive line is pretty darn good,'' Laycock said. ``I think it says a lot about the kids we have in this program.''
Yet the midseason slump, when quarterback Shawn Knight and several other key performers were injured, was a hurdle the Tribe was unable to overcome.
``We think we belong in the playoffs,'' said linebacker Greg Applewhite, ``but we have only ourselves to blame. We lost a game (Oct. 15 against Massachusetts) that we should have won. And the next week we didn't play well at Madison. We had injuries during that stretch, but we still didn't play well.''
Ironically, the Tribe ended the season probably as healthy as it had been in several weeks.
``We're healthy now,'' said linebacker Jude Waddey, ``and we think we belong in the playoffs.''
The Tribe's schedule did little to help argue its point. Despite an 8-3 record, William and Mary only beat one team (Delaware at 7-3-1) with a winning record. William and Mary's rivals had a 48-71-1 record.
Looking ahead to next year, Laycock will have to fill a big hole at quarterback. Knight graduates, and understudy Matt Byrne did not distinguish himself in two games when he replaced the injured Knight.
But elsewhere the picture is bright. Of the 22 players who started Saturday, 19 will return. Running backs Derek Fitzgerald and Troy Keen will be back, which leaves the running game in good shape.
Keen was the Tribe's leading rusher, amassing 1,175 yards. That's the third-highest single-season total in school history behind only Robert Green (1,408 in 1990) and Phil Mosser (1,386 in 1970).
Fitzgerald came on strong at the end of the year, posting consecutive 100-yard games. Look for him to be paired with Keen in the backfield.
And the offensive line returns intact.
The entire starting defense, with the exception of Applewhite, also will be back. Waddey, defensive end Melvin Griffin, linebacker Stefon Moody and free safety Darren Sharper key a unit which held opponents to less than 300 yards per game.
Playoffs in 1995, anyone? by CNB