The 2022 William & Mary Tribe football team represented the College of William & Mary as a member of the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) during the 2022 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Tribe, led by fourth-year head coach Mike London, played their home games at Zable Stadium. By finishing 7–1 in regular season CAA games, the Tribe tied with New Hampshire as conference co-champions. They went 6–0 on the road in the regular season for the first time in program history.[1] William & Mary earned the FCS playoffs automatic bid. They made it to the quarterfinals before losing 55–7 to the #3 team in the nation, Montana State. The 11 wins tied a school record previously set twice, in 2004 and 2009.
Preseason
CAA poll
In the CAA preseason poll released on July 28, 2022, the Tribe were predicted to finish in fifth place out of 13 teams following the departure of James Madison and the addition on Monmouth and Hampton for the 2022 season.[2]
Predicted finish
Team
Votes (1st place)
1
Villanova
270 (16)
2
Delaware
235 (7)
3
Rhode Island
224
4
Richmond
219
5
William & Mary
206 (2)
6
Elon
191 (1)
7
Stony Brook
151
8
Maine
134
9
New Hampshire
117
10
Monmouth
105
11
Towson
81
12
Albany
64
13
Hampton
31
Preseason All-CAA team
Junior running back Bronson Yoder, senior defensive lineman Nate Lynn, and senior cornerback Ryan Poole were named to the CAA preseason all-conference team.[2] Lynn was also named the preseason CAA Defensive Player of the Year.[2]
William & Mary had a league-high 13 players receive all-conference honors, highlighted by two major award winners in John Pius and Jalen Jones.[10] Pius was also named a top-three finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award, given annually to the most outstanding defensive player in all of Division IFCS.[11]
CAA Defensive Player of the Year – John Pius (linebacker, sophomore)
CAA Defensive Rookie of the Year – Jalen Jones (cornerback, freshman)
CAA First Team Offense – Bronson Yoder (running back, senior); Charles Grant (offensive lineman, sophomore); Colby Sorsdal (offensive lineman, senior)
CAA First Team Defense – Nate Lynn (defensive lineman, senior); John Pius (linebacker, sophomore); Ryan Poole (cornerback, senior); Caylin Newton (special teams, senior)
CAA Second Team Offense – Donavyn Lester (fullback / halfback, senior); Lachlan Pitts (tight end, senior); Ethan Chang (placekicker, sophomore)
CAA Second Team Defense – Carl Fowler (defensive lineman, senior); Isaiah Jones (linebacker, senior); Jalen Jones (cornerback, freshman)
^Johnson, Dave (November 19, 2022). "W&M CAA and Capitol Cup Football Champions". wm.edu. College of William & Mary. Retrieved November 20, 2022.
^ abcWashburn, Rob (July 28, 2022). "Villanova Picked To Win CAA Football Championship In 2022". Colonial Athletic Association. Retrieved August 21, 2022.
^"2022 William & Mary Tribe Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved June 18, 2022.
^"GAME NOTES: Home Opener – Charlotte vs. William & Mary". Charlotte49ers.com. August 31, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^"Tribe Overtakes Charlotte in Fourth Quarter". Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^"Scoring Summary Report 2022 Charlotte Football, William & Mary vs Charlotte Atlantic (Sept 2, 2022 at Charlotte N.C.)". September 2, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^"William & Mary vs Charlotte– Game Summary". ESPN. September 2, 2022. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^Bailey, Hunter (September 2, 2022). "Charlotte 49ers lose another QB, fall flat in home-opening loss to William & Mary". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved November 22, 2022.
^"Charlotte falls to William & Mary, 41–24". WCNC. Charlotte, North Carolina. September 2, 2022. Retrieved September 3, 2022.
^Washburn, Rob (November 22, 2022). "Monmouth's Shirden, W&M's Pius Headline 2022 CAA Football All-Conference Awards". CAAsports.com. Colonial Athletic Association. Retrieved December 11, 2022.
^Washburn, Rob (December 6, 2022). "William & Mary's Pius Among Top Three In Voting For 2022 Buchanan Award". CAAsports.com. Colonial Athletic Association. Retrieved December 11, 2022.