The conference title may no longer be on the line, but tomorrow’s game is hardly meaningless; Amherst-Williams showdowns, after all, are never without significance.
For the 123rd time, the two colleges separated by just 60 miles and plenty of bad blood will face off on the gridiron before a packed Homecoming crowd. Since 1884, when the series started, Williams College has had the upper hand, leading the series, 69-48-5. Recent history has been particularly unkind to Amherst. In the last decade, the Jeffs have taken only three games from the Ephs. And last year, with the national spotlight upon them, the Jeffs hardly put up a fight, falling 20-0 on Willams’ home turf.
This year, Amherst is confident and out for redemption.
“The Williams game means everything. No matter the records of either team, this game is our championship,” said sophomore quarterback Alex Vetras. “Even with such a disappointing loss last week we still know how good we are and what we’re capable of. This is our last chance to prove that we’re a great team.”
Entering last Saturday’s game at Trinity College, the Amherst-Williams game had the potential to have league-title implications. Had the Jeffs beaten the undefeated Trinity Bantams, Amherst would have had the chance to claim the conference championship with a win over Williams. However, Trinity put those hopes to rest. In a game that was much closer than the final score would indicate, the Jeffs fell 30-13, as Trinity clinched the league title.
For most of the contest, Amherst hung with the Bantams. After entering halftime within a touchdown of Trinity, the Jeffs pulled to 14-13 on a Vetras touchdown toss to wide receiver Brian Murphy ’11 at the close of the third quarter. Though the touchdown momentarily raised the Jeffs’ spirits, the Bantams soon had something of their own to celebrate when Amherst kicker Matt Eberhart’s attempt at an extra point went wide.
From there, everything went the Bantams’ way, as the home team rattled off 16 unanswered points in the final period. The quarter was marked by missed opportunities by the Jeffs and big plays by the Bantams. With the score 17-13, the Jeffs were driving and found themselves in a critical spot on Trinity’s 20-yard line with a little over seven minutes remaining. Because of the earlier missed extra point, the Amherst coaching staff decided to go for it on 4th-and-5, opting to put the ball in the hands of its quarterback. Yet Vetras’ fourth-down passing attempt fell incomplete and the Jeffs turned the ball over on downs.
Trinity immediately capitalized. Just four plays later, Bantam junior running back Oliver Starnes pulled off the biggest offensive play of the game, emerging from a crowd unscathed en route to a 69-yard touchdown scamper.
From there, Amherst continued to fight, mounting a 56-yard drive that led them to the 24-yard line. This time, down 23-13 with just 2:15 remaining, the Jeffs elected to kick a field goal rather than go for it on fourth down. However, the kick hardly left the ground, as Trinity blocked Eberhart’s 41-yard field goal attempt.
In Vetras’ eyes the blocked kick was the turning point of the game. “Even though we were behind, you could feel us gaining some momentum,” he said. “We needed to score on that drive.”
“Our biggest problem was that we weren’t able to capitalize on our scoring opportunities,” added junior offensive lineman Wyatt Moss. “It happened a few times that we got into the red zone but weren’t able to come away with any points, and against an undefeated team like Trinity, you need to take advantage of those chances.”
A pivotal red-zone mistake came with a little more than five minutes remaining in the first half, as the Jeffs were poised to tie the game 14-14 and gain momentum going into halftime. With the ball on the Trinity 10-yard line, though, Vetras’ pass was picked off on an acrobatic one-handed end zone catch by Trinity inside linebacker Tyler Berry ’09. That was not the last time Berry would get in the way of a Vetras pass, as he had another interception at the start of the third quarter.
The most significant moment in the game may have come with three minutes left, when Vetras came up limping. Though he tried to shake it off, and made it through one more play, he eventually collapsed to the ground and had to be carried off the field in obvious discomfort. Diagnosed with a high ankle sprain after the game, Vetras’ status is not certain for Saturday. However, he plans to at least give it a go.
“If there’s anyway Vet[ras] is able to play, I know he’ll play,” said sophomore wide receiver Sean Legister. “He’s a trooper and our leader.”
“Obviously we want Alex on the field leading us, but in all honesty, we can get it done and players will step up and play,” said senior wide receiver Jim Eckenrode. “It’s a big stage and perfect time to shine.”
If Vetras isn’t able to take the field, the Jeffs will send first-year quarterback Brian McMahon into the line of fire. “You always want to go with the experienced guys, but [McMahon] is a tremendous kid,” said Head Coach E.J. Mills. “He’s a little more athletic than Alex, so it lets us do some different things offensively.”
This isn’t the first injury on offense that the Jeffs have had to contend with. For the Trinity game, Amherst’s top two receivers—Brandon Bullock ’10 and Ben Kettering ’11—were on the bench, both out with leg injuries. Even so, Vetras threw for 283 yards to eight different receivers.
“We definitely missed not having Bullock and Kettering on the field. They are both great athletes and they make our offense incredibly dangerous,” said Vetras, who has averaged 236.7 yards-per-game passing to Bullock, Kettering and the rest of the wide receiver corps. “Luckily we have a lot of depth and talent at the receiver position and we can continue running our same offensive packages.”
Unlike last year, Lee Corso and the rest of the ESPN College Gameday crew will not be at the Biggest Little Game in America. Amherst hopes that is not the only difference from last year’s matchup, at which Amherst fans had little to cheer about after the opening kickoff.
“I believe it will end differently because we want it more,” said Legister. “Not to say we didn’t last year, but we worked harder in the off-season, during the spring, summer, pre-season, etc., all for this game. All one can ask for is an opportunity, and here’s our chance.”
As if the Jeffs needed any more motivation, they have a chance tomorrow to send off the senior class with its first-ever win over Williams. “It’s fun,” said Mills of the game. “It’s just a great atmosphere. It’s all about the seniors. We want to send them out the best we can, and that’s with a win.”