al-time playof results HAMPTON PREVIEW COACHES PIRATES MEAC OPPONENTS REVIE RECORDS POSTSEASON Nov. 27, Zable Stadium, Williamsburg, Va. Hampton 13 0 8 14 35 William & Mary 0 7 14 21 42 Led by senior wideout Jerome Mathis, Hampton put forth a valiant effort before falling short of their first Division I-AA playoff win, losing 42-35 to William & Mary. Mathis’ record 394 all-purpose yards were countered by Lang Campbell’s 294 passing yards and three touchdowns for the Tribe. After going three-and-out on the first series, the Pirates (10-2) opened their second drive with a 45-yard play-action pass from Princeton Shepherd to Mathis. Three plays later, Ardell Daniels plunged into the end zone from one yard out to give Hampton a 7-0 lead. The Tribe (10-2) answered with a 10-play, 70-yard drive later in the first quarter, but Greg Kuehn missed his 23-yard field goal attempt wide right. One play later, Shepherd found Mathis again, this time for an 80-yard touchdown strike. It was the longest scoring play the Tribe had allowed all season, and it gave the Pirates a 13-0 lead after William & Mary blocked the extra point. Campbell, the Atlantic-10 Player of the Year, quickly cut into Hampton’s lead by directing an eight-play, 80-yard drive. Campbell went 5-for-5 in the air for 58 yards on the drive, tossing an eight-yard score to Adam Bratton with 9:23 left in the half. Hampton led 13-7 at the intermission, thanks to an interception of Campbell late in the second quarter. Campbell had thrown just one other pick all season. William & Mary raced 74 yards in just under two minutes to start the second half, taking a 14-13 lead on Campbell’s second touchdown pass – a 27-yard strike to Dominique Thompson. Scoring for the Tribe meant kicking off to Mathis, the country’s leading kick returner. Kuehn, trying to angle the kick away from Mathis, knocked the ball out of bounds. Having to kick again, the Tribe had no choice but to give Mathis the ball. Mathis took the kick, and 93 yards later the Pirates regained a 21-14 lead. Mathis’ return gave him five touchdown returns for the season, a Division I-AA record. The Tribe needed just three plays on the ensuing possession to tie the game, thanks to a 40-yard scamper from Jon Smith near the end of the third quarter. Mathis then scored his third touchdown of the afternoon, a 43-yard reception to give the Pirates a 28-21 lead. But William & Mary tied the game again immediately, with Dion Thompson running the ensuing kickoff back 92 yards for the score. The Tribe then forced the Pirates into a three-and-out before Dominique Thompson gave William & Mary the lead with a 45-yard touchdown reception. Smith’s second rushing touchdown with 1:56 remaining put the game permanently out of reach. Shepherd’s 242 passing yards and two scores were a school playoff record, as were Mathis’ six receptions, 188 receiving yards and three touchdowns. 2005 Playofs – First Round Richmond 38, Hampton 10 Nov. 26, Armstrong Stadium, Hampton, Va. Richmond 7 3 14 14 38 Hampton 0 10 0 0 10 Richmond scored 28 unanswered points in the second half, breaking open a 10-10 halftime tie and cruising to a 38-10 win over No. 2 Hampton in the first round of the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs. The loss ended Hampton’s 11-game winning streak and 12-game winning streak at Armstrong Stadium. The Pirates (11-1) went three-and-out on their first driver, but regained possession when Richmond’s Ryan Mace fumbled the punt. Jimari Jones recovered, giving Hampton a first down on the Spiders’ 29-yard line. But on the ensuing play, Princeton Shepherd was intercepted by Richmond’s Joe Mallory – Hampton defensive back Jermaine Mallory’s brother. Hampton drove 54yards on its next possession, but came up empty after Andrew Paterini missed a 20-yard field goal try wide left. The Spiders (9-3) responded with a power rushing attack, led by David Freeman and Tim Hightower. The duo combined for 55 rushing yards on the drive that ended with a one-yard score by quarterback Stacy Tutt with 2:28 left in the first quarter. Antwan Smith came in to replace Shepherd, immediately sparking the Pirates offense. He connected with Onrea Jones twice for 39 and 15 yards, while also running for a 17-yard gain on the drive. The drive stalled, though, at the Richmond 27-yard line, and Hampton had to settle for a 44-yard field goal. Smith hit Jones twice again on the next possession, for 44 and seven yards – the latter proving to be the Pirates’ only touchdown of the game. It gave Hampton a 10-7 lead before Richmond added a 22-yard field goal to tie the game going into the half. The Spiders relied on their running game coming out of the locker room to wear down the Pirates’ defense. Tutt rushed four consecutive times following a 25-yard punt return by Mace for 48 yards, setting up Hightower’s three-yard touchdown. The Pirates failed to field the ensuing kickoff, giving the ball back to the Spiders on the Hampton 37-yard line. Four plays later, Freeman ran in from two yards out and the pirates were down 24-10. Hampton couldn’t mount a ground game, so Jones did all he could to keep the Pirates in it. He set a Hampton playoff record with 11 receptions for 192 yards and a touchdown, but he had little help from the rest of the offense. Alonzo Coleman and Ardell Daniels, Hampton’s pair of 1,000-yard rushers, were held to just 46 yards on 20 attempts, while Shepherd and Smith were sacked a combined five times. Hightower and Freeman each added fourth-quarter touchdowns to break the game open. Freeman finished with a game-high 117 rushing yards and Hightower added 73 as the Spiders ran for 251 yards against a Hampton defense that came in allowing just 124 a contest. This was Hampton’s fourth straight layoff loss since moving to Division I-AA in 1995. 2006 Playofs – First Round New Hampshire 41, Hampton 38 Nov. 23, Armstrong Stadium, Hampton, Va. New Hampshire 13 21 0 7 41 Hampton 21 0 14 3 38 Eighth-ranked Hampton outscored New Hampshire 17-7 in the second half of their firstround NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision playoff game, but the Wildcats scored on 4th-and-16 with under five minutes to play to take the 41-38 victory. Ricky Santos’ 25-yard score to Chad Kackert kept the Pirates from winning their first Division I playoff game and ended the career of more than 20 Hampton seniors – a class that would go down as the second winningest in school history, going 38-9 over their four years. “Both sides came out and put forth an outstanding effort,” Hampton coach Joe Taylor said. “I knew it would come down to who had the ball last, and it just came down to one play on fourth down. But I’m proud of our football team and the things we have accomplished.” Both teams combined for 34 points in the first quarter, with the longest drive by either team taking three minutes and 10 seconds. The Wildcats took the opening drive and marched 75 yards in 2:27 to take the lead on a one-yard pass from Santos to Aaron Brown. Kevin Teel returned the ensuing kickoff 69 yards for the Pirates, giving them position on the New Hampshire 21-yard line. From there, quarterback Princeton Shepherd completed all four of his passes, including a 4-yard score to Marquay McDaniel to tie the game at seven. New Hampshire scored again after J.E. Frederickson came up big on special teams, blocking a Jahmal Blanchard pint and giving the Wildcats possession on the Hampton 28-yard line. Santos threw his second touchdown of the day, a 25-yard strike to Keith Levan. The Wildcats missed the extra point, going up 13-7 with less than six minutes to go in the first quarter. Hampton scored on the next possession, as Alonzo Coleman reeled off a 65-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage. Coleman’s longest run of the season gave Hampton a 14-13 lead. Shepherd led an 80-yard touchdown drive to close out the first quarter, connecting with Onrea Jones and McDaniel for consecutive 16-yard completions. Shepherd then found McDaniel for 12 yards, which set up a four-yard score for Kevin Beverly. Santos, the Atlantic-10 Player of the Year, responded by completing his next six passes – including a 15-yard score to David Ball – to bring the Wildcats within one. Ball was the all-time leading receiver in Division I-AA history, surpassing Jerry Rice. The Pirates went three-and-out on their next possession and New Hampshire took advantage when Santos connected with Ball for a seven-yard touchdown with 6:44 left in the first half. That gave the Wildcats a 27-21 lead. Hampton then gave New Hampshire prime field position after Maurice Riley snapped the ball over punter Jahmal Blanchard’s head. Blanchard had to run after corralling the ball before being tackled at the Hampton 29-yard line. Robert Simpson ran into the end zone from two yards out on the ensuing drive to give New Hampshire a 34-21 lead at the half. Coming out of the locker room, Hampton went back to running the football, looking to take advantage of a Wildcats defense that gave up over 150 rushing yards a game. “They went back to what they do well,” New Hampshire coach Sean McConnell said of the Pirates. “They threw more than we expected early, but with a back like Coleman, I knew they would go back to the running game. “He’s as good a back as we’ve seen all year.” Coleman and Beverly rushed for 61 of Hampton’s 80 yards on the opening drive of the second half, and Shepherd ran into the end zone from six yards out to cut New Hampshire’s lead to 34-28. Hampton’s defense appeared to settle from there, forcing the Wildcats to punt on their first possession of the half. Santos then threw an interception on New Hampshire’s next possession, inadvertently finding safety Darius Swinton – who returned the ball all the way to the Wildcats’ 23-yard line. Shepherd then found McDaniel again, this time for six yard to give Hampton a 35-34 lead going into the fourth quarter. When Andrew Paterini booted a 43-yard field goal with just under nine minutes to play, it looked as if Hampton would collect that elusive first Division I playoff win. But Santos and the Wildcats fought back. Forced into a passing situation, Santos was sacked on consecutive plays by Pat Preston and Kendall Langford to put the Wildcats in a 3rd-and-long. An 18-yard completion to Matt O’Brien made it 4th-and-5 on the New Hampshire 33-yard line. The Wildcats lined up in punt formation, but Maurice Duper took the snap and raced 19 yards to the Hampton 48-yard line. New Hampshire drove to the Hampton 25-yard line before again facing fourth down – and the potential end to its season. With Ball surrounded by defenders, Santos found Kackert out hamptonpirates.com 2013 Hampton Football 163
Hampton Football Media Guide 2013
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