COLLEGE FOOTBALL CAA MEDIA DAY
W&M, HU ignore the hype
Tribe picked first, Pirates last in CAA poll, but both schools focus on building off last season
BY MARTY O'BRIEN STAFF WRITER
It matters not whether you’re picked first, as William & Mary is in Coastal Athletic Association football, or last, as Hampton University is. Preseason forecasts seem to be an exercise taken by players and coaches with a grain of salt.
CAA coaches overwhelmingly picked W&M to repeat as champion after it shared the title with New Hampshire a year ago. In addition, seven W&M players have been picked to the All-CAA preseason team and linebacker John Pius is the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year.
None of that is a surprise considering the Tribe returns 16 starters from a team that went 11-2 and reached the Football Championship Subdivision quarterfinals last season, when Pius was a consensus All-American with 11½ sacks and 19 tackles for loss. But the Tribe is mostly ignoring such hype, mindful that one of the best seasons in program history ended with a 55-7 loss at Montana State in the FCS quarterfinals.
“We acknowledge all of these things,” Tribe coach Mike London said of recognition to his team and players. “I’m happy for the preseason accolades.
“But what matters for us is the end of the season and that’s what we’re focused on.”
Hampton, 4-7 overall last season, was picked No. 15 and put only linebacker Qwahsin Townsel on the All-CAA preseason team. This despite the fact that the Pirates, 1-7 in league play, also return most of their starters from a team that pushed playoff teams W&M and Elon to the final moments before succumbing.
“We can only go up from here,” Townsel said. “We’re not going to pay attention to the preseason rankings.
“We naturally have a chip on our shoulders from last year, knowing we were all the way in a lot of games to the end. There were a lot of games we could came out (on top) if we finished and we didn’t finish.
“That’s our real main focus.”
William & Mary
Lynn, a consensus All-American in 2021, said the loss to Montana State “left a bad taste in my mouth.” So much so that during CAA Media Day held online he showed a photo of the scoreboard from the end of that December playoff game.
London loved it.
“I didn’t know Nate had that as his screen saver,” London said. “That’s motivation right there.
“It speaks to the kind of individual he is, a great player, great person and great captain.”
That does not mean the loss to Montana State ruined a great season that ended with a No. 5 FCS national ranking. All-CAA preseason running back Bronson Yoder — a standout in the backfield that set school records with 265.8 rushing yards per game and 5.9 yards per carry — indicated the momentum from a run to a CAA title and second-round playoff victory will carry over to this season.
“It definitely gave us confidence,” he said. “It showed us we can do big things, that we’re not just an academic school.
“We’re here to play football and win championships.”
Joining Lynn, Pius and Yoder on the All-CAA preseason team are offensive lineman Charles Grant, linebacker Isaiah Jones and defensive backs Jalen Jones and Ryan Poole.
Hampton
Pirates coach Robert Prunty began Hampton’s time in the media day spotlight by reflecting on the lessons learned from a first season in what is regarded as one of the elite conferences in FCS. Close games in CAA play included losses to Villanova and Maine and an overtime win over Albany in addition to those competitive outings against playoff teams W&M, Elon and Delaware.
“We learned that this is a league full of depth,” he said. “You’ve got to have depth when it comes to the offensive and defensive lines.
“Week-in and week-out, anybody can win (because it’s a) tough conference (with) great coaches.”
The Pirates have one of the CAA’s toughest schedules, with four games against 2022 FCS playoff participants.
Before the Pirates tackle CAA play, they will run an opening gauntlet of three non-conference games against other HBCUs to open the season: Grambling State, Norfolk State and Howard. The Oct. 28 Homecoming game against CAA foe North Carolina A&T means the Pirates will remain close to their roots with four HBCU opponents.
“You talk about (former Hampton coach) Joe Taylor, you talk about (late Grambling coach) Eddie Robinson (and) we’re excited about that game,” Prunty said. “You talk about the Battle of the Bay (Norfolk State-Hampton), little kids coming with their parents to watch it (and) everybody dressing up.
“Howard (The Battle for the Real HU) is so much emotion. And I was telling the players the other day, having A&T coming in for Homecoming — what a great environment.”