Williamsburg - William and Mary junior tailback Elijah Brooks (Largo, Md.) rushed for 135 yards and four touchdowns to lead the 17th-ranked Tribe to a stunning 42-10 upset of top-ranked New Hampshire in an Atlantic 10 Football conference game at rain-soaked Zable Stadium Saturday afternoon.

Playing in a steady rain throughout the entire afternoon, W&M powered out 190 rushing yards and held the Wildcats' high-powered offensive attack scoreless in the second half to notch its first win over a No. 1-ranked team in school history and improve to 3-2 on the season, 1-1 in the A10. UNH, which had spent two consecutive weeks atop the Sports Network I-AA Top 25, dropped to 4-1 overall, 2-1 in league play.

"We played a complete game this afternoon," said W&M head coach Jimmye Laycock. "We executed in all facets of the game and beat a very, very good football team in New Hampshire."

Tribe senior cornerback Stephen Cason (Richmond, Va.) set the tone on the game's first play, returning the opening kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown to give the College an early lead it would never relinquish.

Sophomore quarterback Mike Potts (Middletown, De.), who completed 11-of-19 attempts for 127 yards and a touchdown, efficiently directed the Tribe offense through the treacherous field conditions and made several big first-half throws, including a 20-yard hook-up with sophomore Joe Nicholas (Sugarloaf, Pa.) that set up W&M's second score.

"Our offense was well balanced," said Jimmye Laycock. "[The weather] did not affect us. We did exactly what we wanted to do [offensively]."

After the Wildcats' first two possessions resulted in punts, Potts found Nicholas for a 16-yard gain to start a Tribe drive from its 41. Brooks ripped off runs of four and nine yards to move the ball to the UNH 30, and after a short gain and an incomplete pass, Potts hit a streaking Nicholas over the middle for the 20-yard catch and run, setting up first-and-goal at the 7-yard line. Brooks took over from there, plunging in from seven yards out to cap a seven-play, 59-yard drive that put W&M ahead 14-0 with 5:27 remaining in the opening quarter.

UNH running back John McCoy fumbled on the Wildcats' second play after the touchdown, the first of four UNH turnovers on the afternoon, which set up Potts' 9-yard touchdown pass to senior wide receiver Josh Lustig (Erie, Pa.) on the first play of the second quarter that gave W&M a commanding 21-0 lead.

The Wildcats responded with a quick five-play, 79-yard drive on its next touch, as the dangerous duo of sophomore quarterback Ricky Santos and junior wide receiver David Ball hooked up twice of the drive for a total of 60 yards, including a 45-yarder, to set up McCoy's 5-yard touchdown run with 13:25 remaining in the second quarter to make it 21-7.

After a Tribe three-and-out, UNH appeared to be clawing its way back into the contest, effectively marching into W&M territory on a 54-yard drive, but Santos was stopped short on a fourth-and-one from the W&M 16-yard line, turning the ball over on downs.

Another W&M three-and-out gave it right back to UNH with just over six minutes left before half, but after a 13-yard Santos completion to wide out LeVan Keith, senior defensive end Jonas Watson (Hampton, Va.), who finished with seven total tackles and a solo sack, forced a fumble at the UNH 45, which was recovered by the Tribe.

Two plays later, on third-and-one from the 36, Potts lofted a perfect pass down the right sideline for Lustig, who pulled down the spiral for a 35-yard reception at the 1-yard line. After getting stopped for no gain on two-straight carries from the 1, Brooks finally plowed into the end zone on third down to extend the Tribe advantage to 28-7 with 2:16 remaining in the half.

UNH's Connor McCormack connected on a 30-yard field goal as time expired to send the teams into the break with W&M leading 28-10, an advantage the Tribe would only build on in the second half with a steady running ball-control offense, huge special teams plays and timely defensive stops.

As the Cary Field turf continued to deteriorate, neither team could muster much offensive production after intermission. With the teams exchanging punts on the first four series of the third quarter, the leg of junior Blair Pritchard (Mechanicsville, Va.) was a valuable weapon. Pritchard punted six times for 256, an average of 42.7 yards per kick, including a career-long 64-yarder he uncorked in the third quarter that was downed at the UNH 12-yard line.

The other big special teams play came on the Wildcats third possession of the second half, when junior defensive back Leonard Muldrow (Virginia Beach, Va.) blocked a UNH punt near the Wildcats' 40-yard line that trickled out of bounds back at the 21.

Brooks carried for six yards on first down and covered the final 15 yards right up the middle for his third score of the game, pushing the W&M lead to 35-10.

UNH had perhaps its last opportunity to get back in the game on its next series, as Santos completed 6-of-8 attempts for 51 yards, including two throws to Ball who finished with a game-high 116 yards on six catches, to set up first-and-goal at the Tribe 9-yard line. But, junior defensive end Josh Wright (Madison Heights, Va.) sacked Santos on first down for a 7-yard loss, and Cason intercepted Santos in the back-left corner of the end zone on second down, ending the threat.

W&M forced turnovers on downs on UNH's next two possessions, and Brooks capped his day with his fourth rushing touchdown of the game, a 4-yard scamper with 4:26 remaining, that set the final margin at 42-10. Brooks became the first Tribe back to score four rushing touchdowns in a game since James Blocker-Bodley accomplished the feat against VMI in 1993.

It was Brooks' fourth 100-yard game of the season, bringing his career total to five, which ranks fifth on the W&M career list.

"[Brooks] is a much better runner this season," said Laycock. "He has more confidence and runs hard."

Lustig finished with a season-high five catches for 68 yards.

Cason led the defense with nine total tackles, including six solos, to go along with his interception and kickoff return for a touchdown. It was his second score of the season, having also returned an interception for a touchdown against VMI on Sept. 10. Sophomore linebacker T.J. O'Neill (Duxbury, Mass.) recorded eight total stops and his first career interception, which came in the fourth quarter.

W&M continues its A10 slate next weekend, traveling to Northeastern for a 2 p.m. kickoff Saturday at Parsons Field. UNH also returns to league play on Saturday, hosting Rhode Island at 12 noon.

Box Score

Game Notes: Saturday's win was W&M's first victory over a No. 1-ranked team in school history ? Previously, the highest-ranked team W&M had defeated was second-ranked Hampton, 41-34, in 1998 ? UNH was the first top-ranked team W&M had faced since 1997, when No. 1 Villanova left Williamsburg with a 20-13 victory ? The win extended W&M's regular season home winning streak to nine games ? Junior RB Elijah Brooks rushed for 135 yards and four touchdowns, his second consecutive game with four scores after running for three and adding a receiving TD against Liberty on Sept. 24 ? It was Brooks' fourth 100-yard rushing game of the season and fifth of this career, moving into a tie for eighth on the W&M career listing for 100-yard games ? Brooks is the first Tribe back to rush for four TDs in a game since James Blocker-Bodley did it against VMI in 1993 ? Brooks' 32 attempts were a career-high and the most for a Tribe RB since Jon Smith ('05) ran 32 against UNH in 2002 [for 198 yards] ? W&M has now out-rushed four of its five opponents on the season (3-1 in those games) ? Overall, W&M has out-rushed its opponents 1056-653 ? Senior WR Josh Lustig had a season-high five receptions for 68 yards and a touchdown ? With 31:27 in time of possession, W&M recorded its fifth consecutive game with over 30 minutes of possession ? W&M's defensive held UNH to just two scores in five red-zone opportunities ? In its last eight quarters, the W&M defense has surrendered one touchdown ? With two interceptions on the afternoon, W&M brought its season total to 10, which is just two picks shy of its entire 2004 season total set over 14 games ? Sophomore QB Mike Potts has now thrown 93 consecutive passes without an interception ? Junior P Blair Pritchard punted six times for 256 yards, an average of 42.7 yards per kick ? Pritchard recorded a career-long punt of 64 yards in the third quarter and downed three punts inside the UNH 20-yard line ? Junior DB Leonard Muldrow's third-quarter blocked punt was the Tribe's second blocked punt of the season (RF Derek Cox vs. VMI).