Weber State football: Wildcats prove no match for Tribe

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. — Weber State learned the hard way that William & Mary's highly-touted defense wasn't a bunch of hype.

The Tribe thoroughly dominated the Wildcats 38-0 in a first-round FCS game on Saturday afternoon. William & Mary advances to play Southern Illinois in the quarterfinals, while Weber State finishes its season with a 7-5 record. It was the first time the Wildcats have been blanked in a game since September 2006.

As lopsided as the final score was, the game was actually dominated by the Wildcats for the first quarter and a half. Weber State controlled the ball early on, but it wasted scoring opportunities and a turnover by quarterback Cameron Higgins turned the game's momentum for good.

William & Mary linebacker Jake Trantin intercepted a Higgins pass and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown to give the Tribe a 7-0 lead with 9:05 left in the second quarter. With a defense that ranks third in the FCS and is nearly impossible to run on, it was all the Tribe needed on Saturday.

But they poured it on through the remainder of the game. After falling behind 10-0 late in the second quarter, the Wildcats tried to make up some ground before halftime. Higgins, however, threw another pick-six, this time to freshman cornerback B.W. Webb, who took it in from 58 yards out.

The Wildcats appeared capable of pulling off the upset early in the game. They had two quality drives going before stalling. Kicker Mike Snoy missed two field goals to prevent Weber State from taking an early lead. Receiver Tim Toone also uncharacteristically dropped what could have been a touchdown reception early in the game.

Through 22 minutes in the contest, the Wildcats had a 134-39 edge in total yards and doubled the Tribe in time of possession.

But it was all William & Mary from there. The Tribe opened the third quarter with a 73-yard scoring drive capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by quarterback R.J. Archer. William & Mary added two more touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

It was a forgettable day for Higgins, who finished the season with 20 interceptions, four of them returned for touchdowns. He completed 21-of-40 passes for 167 yards with four interceptions against the Tribe.

William & Mary entered the game allowing a measly 1.8 yards per rush. The Wildcats didn't even reach that total, rushing 18 times for minus-6 yards. Running back Trevyn Smith rushed 15 times for 22 yards, finishing a season with less than 1,000 yards for the first time in four seasons at Weber State. His longest rush against the Tribe went for five yards.

The Tribe had no trouble running the ball. They had 221 rushing yards, with Jonathan Grimes gaining 139 of them. Archer ran his offense efficiently, throwing for 187 yards while scoring two rushing touchdowns.

Toone had six catches to tie Weber State's school record for career receptions. He'll share the record of 206 catches with Trevor Shaw.