Tribe can match up—if it makes the playoffs

VILLANOVA, Pa. The first rule of any game is "Don't beat yourself." The William and Mary Tribe football team no doubt was thinking about that rule on the long drive home to Wil liamsburg last night.

The Tribe was caught looking on Villanova's first play from scrimmage yesterday and trailed 7-0 when the game was just 19 seconds old.

From there, things went downhill for the Tribe in a 28-17 loss.

There were turnovers, mental mistakes and penalties. William and Mary held almost every statistical advantage against the Wildcats, but in the end, that meant nothing in the Colonial Athletic Association game.

Villanova is good, very good. The Wildcats entered the game ranked No.2 in the country in the Football Championship Subdivision. Barring a complete meltdown, the Wildcats will be in the playoffs and rated as one of the top contenders for the FCS championship.

But they are not that much better than William and Mary.

"When you play a good team, you'd better play pretty well and execute pretty well and not get penalties and not turn it over," Tribe coach Jimmye Laycock said. "That's why we're on the short end of the stick."

Villanova's first-play touchdown -- a flea-flicker that looked like a run and became a 57-yard touchdown pass -- stunned the Tribe. But it had plenty of time to get back into the game.

And William and Mary was in position to do that late in the first quarter. On third and nine at their 21, the Wildcats gained five yards on a pass to wide receiver Dorian Wells.

Cornerback Terrell Wells leveled Dorian Wells with one of those shots that brings ooohs, ahhs and groans from the crowd. Dorian Wells was down, nearly out, and the Villanova drive was stopped. A punt was coming that would give the Tribe, trailing by only a touchdown, excellent field position.

But a penalty flag hit the ground next to Dorian Wells.

Laycock said the official told him a William and Mary player, not Wells, who was pumped after delivering such a hit, said something. Villanova coach Andy Talley said it was a helmet-to-helmet hit, which brings a 15-yard penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct.

"That was a big play," Laycock said. "Any time you have them stopped on third down and get a dead-ball penalty, that's not smart.

"I don't know if it turned the tide for the overall game."

It certainly made a difference. Given a second chance, the Wildcats drove in for a touchdown and a 14-0 lead.

This was the first loss of the season for William and Mary, but it does not have to be a turning point of the season.

The Tribe entered the game ranked No.5 in the country in the FCS. Its offense can be potent -- it piled up 472 yards in offense yesterday -- and the defense is playing better than it has in years.

The CAA is perhaps the strongest FCS conference in the nation. Six of its teams were ranked among the top 14 in the country when games began yesterday. Five CAA teams made the playoffs last season, but William and Mary wasn't among them.

The Tribe can change that this season, if it avoids beating itself.

Contact Paul Woody at (804) 649-6444 or . Follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/World_of_Woody.