FUWolfpacker, THANK YOU ! Seriously Thanks ! I hadn't run across this
Wouldn't have guessed this one from the notes:
SUCCESS VS. FCS IN NON-CONFERENCE
W&M has won 43 of its last 45 games against non-conference FCS opponents during the regular
season. The lone losses during that span are Lafayette (2012) and Colgate (2018).
Additionally W&M owns a 46-3 record vs. FCS non-conference teams during the regular season
dating back through the 2002 season.
That's SICK. I mean SICK. maybe it's all VMI and Colgate? Still, you have to account for 4-turnover games (cough cough JK)... but seriously... somewhere in there you would think there is more variance than that. Just a bad day. High turnover game. Crazy things happen with an oblong ball... FORTY-THREE OUT OF FORTY-FIVE OOC games?? Do they play VMI 3 times every year
... I mean we have been great the past few years and have lost far more that. FAR MORE. that's wild.
I looked at 2023 - good opponents in general: Campbell, Wofford (yeah they stunk last year but had been much better), and CSU
2022 - Campbell, Lafayette, not sure others as I don't know CAA all that well
Norfolk State and Bucknell in some years.
So Not Great competition but like us vs. CSU just some variance would dictate you lose 5 or 6 of any 45 games. That is truly amazing consistency.