How It Happened
A furious comeback come up just short as No. 10/12 William & Mary held off No. 18/17 Rhode Island 32-31 Saturday afternoon.

Trailing by 10 points with 8:51 to go, Rhode Island (5-3, 3-2 CAA Football) scored twice down the stretch, with Caleb Warren catching a 7-yard touchdown pass from Kasim Hill on the final timed down of regulation. The score capped an improbable 16-play, 99-yard drive to give the Rams a final chance. Rhody elected to attempt a 2-point conversion, but William & Mary (7-1, 4-1 CAA Football) made the stop to end the contest.

Rhode Island opened the game with a defensive stand when defensive tackle Dylan Brown stuffed Bronson Yoder for a 1-yard loss on fourth-and-1 at the William & Mary 46. Taking advantage of the short field, the Rams drove 46 yards in eight plays, as Kasim Hill plunged in from the 1-yard line with 8:33 left in the first quarter.

The Tribe (6-1, 3-1 CAA Football) appeared set to respond, driving deep into Rhody territory on the ensuing possession. However, on fourth-and-1 from the URI 7, William & Mary fumbled the snap, and linebacker Jake Fire recovered the loose ball to squelch the red zone chance. URI took the ball 90 yards for a touchdown. A 62-yard rush by Marques DeShields was the key play before Hill hit Kahtero Summers for an 8-yard touchdown pass to extend the lead to 14-0 just five seconds into the second quarter.

William & Mary responded with 14 unanswered points, as Bronson Yoder and Donavyn Lester scored on rushes of 7 and 14 yards, respectively. Lester's touchdown tied the score at 14-14 with 5:40 left in the half as the hosts took over momentum.

Rhode Island appeared on the verge of scoring just before halftime, but Hill was picked off by Jalen Jones on the William & Mary 24-yard line. On the very next snap, URI got the ball right back when Jorden Colbert stripped Yoder and Antonio Carter II recovered the fumble at the Tribe 41. Following a 27-yard pass from Hill to Summers, Rhody was able to line up for a 31-yard field goal attempt, but the kick went off the right upright on the final play of the half.

William & Mary forced a three-and-out by URI to start the third quarter, then took its first possession 73 yards in five plays to take its first lead of the game. Malachi Imoh scored on a 10-yard run to make the score 21-14 in favor of the Tribe. Later in the third, Rhode Island took advantage of another William & Mary turnover when James Makszin recovered a fumble at the Tribe 6-yard line. Two plays later, DeShields scored on a 1-yard yard run to tie the score, 21-21 with 3:18 to go in the third quarter.

The Tribe used its ground attack to move the ball 77 yards in 12 plays. However, on third-and-3 from the URI 3-yard line, safety A.J. Rogers stopped Hollis Mathis for a 6-yard loss to force a field goal attempt. Ethan Chang was good from 26-yards out, putting William & Mary back in front, 24-21, with 11:35 to go. Lester's second touchdown of the game extended the lead to 31-21, setting the stage for URI's rally attempt.

Inside the Box Score

• The last time Rhode Island and William & Mary met while both teams were ranked was the 2001 season, when No. 4 URI rallied to edge No. 25 William & Mary, 34-31.
• Running back Marques DeShields continued his explosive season, rushing for 132 yards and one touchdown. He now has 796 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground through eight games.
• It was his fourth consecutive 100-yard rushing game and his fifth of the season.
• Quarterback Kasim Hill accounted for 314 all-purpose yards, passing for 283 yards and two touchdowns while adding 31 yards and one score on the ground.
• It was the first time Hill has rushed for 30 or more yards and URI did not win. The Rams are now 8-1 when he reaches 30 yards on the ground.
• Wide receiver Ed Lee led the Rams with six catches for 86 yards, while Kahtero Summers added four grabs for 71 yards and a touchdown.
• Fellow wideout Darius Savedge added four catches for 42 yards.
• Tight end Caleb Warren had four catches for 45 yards and the touchdown on the final play from scrimmage.
• Rhode Island held William & Mary to 3-for-7 on third down and 0-for-2 on fourth down.
• However, the Tribe ran for 314 yards and four touchdowns.
• Rhode Island had a 4-1 advantage in turnovers, recovering three fumbles and picking off one pass.
• Safety Henry Yianakopolos led URI with nine tackles, including two tackles for loss. He also had an interception.
• Safety A.J. Rogers had five stops, including a big 6-yard loss in the fourth quarter that helped limit the Tribe to a field goal.
• Linebacker Jake Fire and safeties Malik Gavek and Jordan Colbert all had five tackles. Colbert also forced a fumble that was recovered by Antonio Carter II.
• Fire and defensive tackle James Makszin each recovered a fumble as well.
• Defensive tackle James Makszin… On William & Mary's second possession, Makszin had back-to-back tackles for 1-yard gains on second- and third-and-short in the red zone.
• Rhode Island was 1-for-3 on field goal attempts. The Rams are now just 4-of-9 on the season.
• The anchor bearer for the game was wide receiver Ed Lee, while the game captain was cornerback Jordan Jones.

What's Next
Rhode Island returns to Kingston to host Maine on Saturday, Nov. 5. Game time is 1:05 p.m.