All Gordy Combs could do was put his hands on his head. There was no way the Towson University football coach, or anyone on the sideline, could explain why senior Eric Yancey tried to field a bouncing punt alongside a James Madison defender.
The Tigers fumbled three times in a 38-3 loss to James Madison and, in the process, coughed up any playoff dreams.
“I feel bad for our seniors who went out on a negative note,” Combs said. “But on the other side of the coin, to be 7-4 at this point when you were picked sixth in the league for the second year in a row … it?s a great accomplishment for our players.”
Towson (7-4) was in need of a victory Saturday to reach the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs. But for the third straight season, the Tigers were upended by the Dukes (9-2).
In front of 4,543 fans at Unitas Stadium, Saturday?s loss marked the fourth of the season at home versus a 5-0 record on the road.
After a big opening-kick return by Yancey, the Dukes forced sophomore quarterback Sean Schaefer to fumble the ball. James Madison scored a short drive later and didn?t look back.
Towson was still in the game when Yancey uncharacteristically misplayed a bouncing punt late in the second quarter.
“I went and tried to make a playfor the ball,” said Yancey, who thought a nearby teammate had touched it. “It wasn?t one of my better decisions.”
That play didn?t crush the Tigers? hopes, however.
“We have to stay together, stay unified,” said Schaefer, who failed to throw a touchdown pass for the first time in 21 career starts. “We can?t let games like this break us apart.”
While that moment was turned out to be crucial, so was a James Madison pass rush that limited the Tigers? timing-based passing attack.
“If you can get a pass rush with four people, that?s pretty good,” Combs said.
Still, this year?s Tigers squad showed marked improvement over last season, looking nothing like the team that James Madison played in its national championship season of 2004.
“They?re a much-improved football team,” said James Madison coach Mickey Matthews, whose team rebounded from its own tough loss a week earlier. “It was the wrong week to play us.”
