Weekend Sports Review: William & Mary stands up, ODU breaks down, Heinicke remembers better days vs. JMU and more
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Looking back at sports in the 757 this weekend, which was mostly forgettable in football unless you follow the Tribe ...
Tribe keeps truckin’
William & Mary turned in another impressive performance Saturday, and now coach Mike London and Co. have their sights set on a Colonial Athletic Association title and then a possible long FCS postseason run.
The Tribe trucked Villanova 45-23 — rushing for 203 yards before halftime — and with the win W&M improved to 9-1 (6-1 in the CAA) and kept a share of the conference lead with Richmond and New Hampshire. That makes next Saturday’s game against the Spiders in Richmond a potential conference clincher.
William & Mary stayed in line for a top playoff seed, which would give them a possible first-round bye and second-round home game.
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ODU breaks down
A sellout crowd stumbled in from the tailgate lots at S.B. Ballard Stadium on Saturday, and pretty early it was evident James Madison was the superior team.
JMU marched for a touchdown on its opening drive and before the second quarter was two minutes old led 14-0 and had outgained ODU 176-26.
The Monarchs never recovered and lost 37-3 — ending ODU’s bowl hopes with the team’s fourth consecutive loss. ODU fell to 3-7 overall and 2-4 in the Sun Belt Conference. JMU, in its first game in Norfolk in more than a decade, improved to 6-3, 4-2.
Star wide receiver Ali Jennings III joined standout tight end Zack Kuntz in street clothes on ODU’s sideline, but no matter the reason a 37-3 loss didn’t sit well on social medai with the Monarchs faithful. As it shouldn’t.
Elsewhere in college football Saturday:
UVA’s QB Brennan Armstrong opened the game with pick-sixes on his first two passes of the game in a loss to Pittsburgh.
Virginia Tech QB Grant Wells connected with Da’Wain Lofton on a 53-yard scoring strike on the team’s second play, but the Hokies never scored again in a loss to Duke.
Hampton U hung tough with another nationally-ranked opponent but fell 38-24 to No. 19 Elon.
Norfolk State dropped to 1-9 and will go the entire season without a home victory after losing 48-14 to N.C. Central.
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Better days vs. JMU
Although Saturday was a forgettable day for the Monarchs, an ODU legend last week reminisced about his role in the rivalry with JMU.
“We were in the FCS so we had a lot of rivals, playing William & Mary, Richmond, JMU,” Washington Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke told reporters in Ashburn last week. “All those in-state games were huge for us but JMU was the biggest.”
Heinicke, set to start his third game this season for Washington tonight against Philadelphia, played twice for ODU against JMU. As a freshman, he guided the Monarchs to a 23-20 win against a Dukes team ranked eighth nationally.
“It was a rainy one and I think there was a hurricane going on at that time and we pulled an upset, which was huge for us,” Heinicke said. “We came out in the second half and dominated.”
In 2012, Heinicke threw for 357 yards in a 38-28 victory over JMU.
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Video you have to see
Cleanse your palette, ODU fans, with this fond memory ...
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Title town times 3
Three field hockey teams brought home Virginia High School League championships on Sunday:
Somehow dynasty doesn’t quite do justice to Cox’s field hockey dominance. The Falcons won the Class 5 championship — the program’s state-record 24th VHSL crown.
Tabb capped a 24-0 season with the Tigers’ third consecutive state title and 10th overall.
Great Bridge went back-to-back and won the Wildcats’ fifth state championship.
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What we’re looking forward to this week
Monday: Norfolk State’s men’s basketball team — after falling 87-70 to No. 5 Baylor on Friday — fights above its weight class again with a 10 p.m. game at UCLA.
Tuesday: Old Dominion returns home for a men’s basketball game against Virginia Wesleyan.
Wednesday: ODU women’s team hosts William & Mary, and the Hampton U men visit East Carolina.
Friday: High school football playoffs contine with the region semifinals. Among the games: Western Branch at Oscar Smith in a rematch of a game the Tigers won 2-0 during the regular season.
Saturday: William & Mary at Richmond in a CAA football showdown.
Jami Frankenberry, 757-446-2376, jami.frankenberry@pilotonline.com
