R.J. Archer was a senior at Albemarle High School in 2004 when William and Mary advanced to the semifinals of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. The reasonable expectation for any recruit was more, or at least some, of the same—which made the playoff drought that ensued that much tougher. Archer, a fifth-year senior quarterback, and the rest of his classmates finally get a chance to make their mark in the FCS playoffs when sixth-ranked William and Mary (9-2) plays host to No. 15 Weber State (7-4) today at 1 p.m. in the first round.

Elon (9-2) will play at the University of Richmond (10-1) on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the first round of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. UR and Elon, of the Southern Conference, played in the opening game for both teams last season at Elon, which is located near Burlington, N.C. UR won 28-10 in Mike London’s debut as the Spiders’ coach. Richmond, which shared the Colonial Athletic Association championship with Villanova, is seeded No. 4 in the 16-team field, which has only four seeded teams.