{"id":1121,"date":"2010-07-29T22:53:20","date_gmt":"2010-07-30T02:53:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=1121"},"modified":"2010-07-29T23:09:21","modified_gmt":"2010-07-30T03:09:21","slug":"william-mary-tribegriffins-jmusb-caa-2010-football-preview-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=1121","title":{"rendered":"William & Mary Tribe\/Griffins: JMUSB CAA 2010 Football Preview #8"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Last of the Mohicans, or at least the feathers.<\/p><\/div>\n

Hey William & Mary readers, and we know you’re out there, enjoy those two lil’ feathers while you’ve got the chance cause they’re now collectors items.\u00a0 But JMUSB has a very special treat for you today as my brother Tim, himself a proud W&M alum, has proven once and for all who has the real talent in our family.\u00a0 At least the talent to leave the type of blistering rants and Griswoldesque bits of trivia our friends and family have come to expect (and hate, make fun of, and sometimes even learn to love).\u00a0 So our featherless friends, this long-assed, but humorous post is for you.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Basics:<\/strong> William & Mary is led by the legendary (at least by Colonial reenactment village standards) Jimmye Laycock.\u00a0 No, that “e” is not a typo.\u00a0 He played at W&M in the late 60’s and has been the Head Coach since 1980.\u00a0While some schools (Notre Dame) may blather on about how difficult it is to win while maintaining the illusion they have higher academic standards than their peers, Laycock’s teams have actually won and lived up to the College’s lofty expectations off the field.The Tribe return arguably the CAA’s best\u00a0RB in Jr. Jonathan Grimes and most of their back seven on defense including\u00a0CAA Defensive Rookie of the Year\u00a0B.W. Webb.\u00a0\u00a0Certainly lots of talent on the roster, but they’ll be attempting to replace the strongest parts of last year’s FCS semi-final team in QB R.J. Archer and 3\/4 of the no-doubt-about-it best defensive line in the nation.<\/div>\n
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JMUSB Prediction<\/strong>: 7-4; 5-3 CAA\u00a0 Ridiculously brutal\u00a0schedule, especially down the stretch.\u00a0 They miss Towson, one of the conference bottom-feeders, and they really need to hope whoever steps in at QB is ready to go at UMass to open the season because they absolutely must\u00a0be 5-1 when they get to their bye week October 16th.\u00a0 Down the stretch they play Delaware, @ North Carolina, @ New Hampshire, @ JMU, and finish hosting Richmond.\u00a0 I say Laycock has ’em ready for the opening stretch, they struggle the second half before getting back into the discussion with a win over the Ticks.\u00a0 Now on to the good stuff.\u00a0<\/div>\n
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Interview with Tim<\/strong><\/div>\n
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1) WM football games – what’s the tailgating scene like?\u00a0 Is there any?\u00a0 Where?\u00a0 Any particular traditions?<\/strong>\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/div>\n
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In order to understand the tailgating scene and level of student dedication, a brief history is in order.\u00a0 Unlike many schools, W&M’s famed Zable Stadium could not have lights at the stadium during my college experience.\u00a0 Rumor has it this was because the crazy “colonials” felt lights would ruin the “historic aura” of downtown Williamsburg.\u00a0 Therefore, almost every game was at noon or 1:00 p.m. (Footnote, portable lights were brought in for the Tribe v. Dukes playoff game in 2004 which led to permanent lights the following season).\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Due to the early hour, the tailgating tradition was to consume 6 kegs prior to kickoff, beginning at 9:00 a.m.\u00a0 Once kegs were banned from campus, this changed to a tradition of consuming 6 handles of liquor.\u00a0 Most fraternities have similar traditions and are ideally located for tailgating.\u00a0 They are located between the largest parking lot on campus (basketball arena) and the stadium.\u00a0 This led to such proud traditions as the old “Hitting charcoal bricks with golf clubs at VMI cadets walking to the stadium.”\u00a0<\/div>\n
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2) Best beer options in W’Burg?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/div>\n
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Green Leafe Cafe, especially on Sunday Mug Night.\u00a0 The Leafe is a must for visitors and old guys like us.\u00a0 Located across the street from Zable Stadium it has over 60 drafts and an even larger bottled beer selection.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Locals secret: Next to the Green Leafe is the Hospitality House hotel (“Ho House”).\u00a0 There is a bar on the ground floor now called the 415 Grill.\u00a0 In the back of the bar is a shuffle puck table and they have a decent sports viewing area at the bar.\u00a0 The shuffle puck (mini shuffle board) is great free entertainment after the game before you hit the Leafe.\u00a0 (ed. note: What’s with the extra “e”?)\u00a0<\/div>\n
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3) Carroll’s restaurant – fine dining or storage depot for a Medellin cartel?<\/strong>\u00a0<\/div>\n
A. Carroll’s Bistro was formerly one of the best places to eat in Williamsburg.\u00a0 However, once the owner was incarcerated, the chef left for greener pastures.\u00a0 The name is now Alize Bistro and the martinis are a mere shadow of their former greatness.\u00a0 Stay away!\u00a0<\/div>\n
4) Best player (non-friend) during your time at WM?\u00a0 Best player ever?<\/strong><\/div>\n
Instead of best player during my time, I will discuss the best game I witnessed during my tenure.\u00a0 November 24, 2001.\u00a0 During Thanksgiving Break, the Tribe took on the Villanova Wildcats on a rainy Saturday in Williamsburg.\u00a0 The Tribe pulled off a late win against the Wildcats and their star Brian Westbrook.\u00a0 During the game, Westbrook broke the all-time NCAA record for all-purpose yards.\u00a0 However, it wasn’t enough and the Tribe won 47-44.\u00a0 This was the last regular season game and the win resulted in the Tribe being A-10 co-Conference Champions (with Villanova) and qualifying for the I-AA playoffs.<\/div>\n
Best player: I just missed seeing Darren Sharper at W&M.\u00a0 I would consider him the best player around my time without question.\u00a0 He played on the same W&M team as Mike Tomlin and Eagles def coord. Sean McDermott.<\/div>\n
Best coach: Jimmy Laycock, hands down.\u00a0 However, Lou Holtz led us to our last bowl appearance in the 1970 Tangerine Bowl. (Marv Levy also coached the Tribe, but I’m quite sure they were The Indians still in his time)\u00a0<\/div>\n
5) Who is WM’s biggest rival?\u00a0 UR? JMU?\u00a0 Do you think this will change when they start playing ODU next season?<\/strong><\/div>\n
No question, Richmond is the biggest rival.\u00a0 The winner now takes home the Capital Cup (formerly the I-64 trophy).\u00a0 The schools have played each other 119 times since 1898 and is The South’s Oldest Rivalry.\u00a0 The rivalry is the fourth oldest in college football.\u00a0 Historic Note: Both cities have been the capital of the Commonwealth.\u00a0 \u00a0This will not change when ODU comes to town.\u00a0 However, the modern rivalry with JMU has quickly grown to a close second.<\/div>\n
6) Anything you’d like to share about attending the game in Charlottesville last year?<\/strong><\/div>\n
This was our App. State v. Michigan!\u00a0 After getting over the initial shock of seeing so many Lacoste shirts in one location, I was able to focus on the game.\u00a0 The Tribe was simply the better team and there was no question they had the better coach.\u00a0\u00a0Having attended a number of college football rivalry games (WVU v. VT, WVU v. Pitt, FLA v. GA, FLA v. LSU, etc.) I feel UVA could be more successful if they made Scott Stadium more intimidating.\u00a0 Somehow, fear doesn’t course through your veins when Dave Matthews\u00a0is played during breaks and the students are in dress shirts and ties sipping wine coolers.\u00a0 However, the female student body in sundresses is a wonderful tradition and should never cease!\u00a0 Maybe JMU will have their big win this year in Blacksburg…probably not.<\/div>\n
7) Tougher loss – JMU ’04 in the semis or this past year in the semis?\u00a0Tougher loss was last year in the semi-finals?<\/strong><\/div>\n
After having only lost two games all season, I felt we really had a shot at the national title.\u00a0 The loss to JMU in ’04 was tough but it was nationally televised and was the first night game.<\/div>\n
#8) Please share your feelings on the Griffin?\u00a0 What would your choice have been – Griffin, Wren, Pug, or King & Queen?\u00a0 What the hell is this all about?\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n
9) Overall feelings on the NCAA cracking down on “Tribe” while other schools like FSU continue their “traditions”?<\/p>\n
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Griffin, yes, the Griffin<\/p><\/div>\n

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These questions are intertwined.\u00a0 Apparently, if an institute of higher education is located in an area where Indians, I’m sorry…First Americans, are extinct, you must change your mascot.\u00a0 However, if\u00a0a few\u00a0Indians are alive and well in that area, you can offend them by having a white guy dressed up like an Indian ride a horse to midfield\u00a0and throw a flaming spear in the ground.\u00a0 I’m sure all the Indian nations were grossly offended by W&M being called The Tribe (which we still are) and having two ubiquitous feathers behind the letters W&M.\u00a0 Thank you NCAA!\u00a0 By making us remove our feathers from our logo, you have single-handedly made up for such smaller incidents like the Trail of Tears, smallpox, taking all of their land, and unoffensive professional team names like the Redskins.\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I was in favor of either the Wren (named after the oldest building on campus) or the King and Queen.\u00a0 Could someone please tell me what a Griffin has to due with my school?\u00a0 At least our mascot isn’t the Phoenix.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n