Williams hosts the Bates Bobcats at Farley-Lamb Field on Saturday, Oct. 10, at 1 p.m.
Bates is 0-3, falling 24-14 at Amherst, 43-0 to Trinity and 22-21 to Tufts. The record is misleading: in two of the three games, the Bobcats held a fourth-quarter lead and lost it in the final minutes. Bates averages 231 yards and about 12 points per game while allowing 368 yards and about 30 points. Take away the Trinity game, though, and the defense has given up a respectable 286 yards per game.
QB Jack Gilmore (#16, So.) has thrown for 481 yards and is improving each week. His best outing came last week against Tufts, when he went 13-of-18 for 241 yards. His top targets are WR Riley Provencher (#3, So.) and WR Jeff Vidou (#0, Jr.). All-NESCAC RB Ryan Lynskey (#4, Sr.) was injured in the opener and hasn’t played since, but RB Ryan Foley (#26, Fr.) revived the run game with 103 yards against Tufts. Defense is the Bobcats’ strength. It is led by LB Ryan Rozich (#39, Sr.), DB Michael Spencer (#5, Sr.) and breakout LB Liam Keaney (#21, So.), who already has 4.5 sacks.
Both the Bobcats and the Ephs have played Trinity, and the results were nearly identical. Bates lost 43-0 at home, and Williams lost 45-0 in Hartford. Neither offense found an answer to the Bantams.
Bates has struggled in the red zone both offensively and defensively this year. The Bobcats have kept opponents from scoring just once in the red zone, and are only 3 of 7 offensively.
INSIGHTS: Bates is better than its record. Despite red zone woes, the Bobcat defense plays tough between the 20s. The offense struggled to run early in the season but found balance against Tufts and outgained the Jumbos. Turnovers and special-teams miscues cost Bates both close games. Williams obviously cannot count on those.
The Ephs must keep Keaney out of the backfield and convert when they get inside the 20. Look for Williams to lean on the ground game again; Bates couldn’t stop the Trinity running attack. QB Gilmore shredded the Tufts secondary, averaging almost 20 yards per completion. After last week’s shutout, the Ephs need a bounce-back day against a dangerous Bobcats team with something to prove.
Williams leads the all-time series 31-6 and has won eight straight. Last year the Ephs won 37-30 in Lewiston. Bates’ last win in Williamstown came in 2013.