WILLIAMSBURG— As the William & Mary Tribe get ready for the 2024 football season, WYDaily caught up with some of the team’s players ahead of Thursday night’s kickoff.
Tribe linebacker Alex Washington is hoping to step into a leadership role this season as a fifth-year senior.
“We lost a lot of veterans on our side of the ball and we have some young dudes this season. I’m trying to instill in them that they need to be starving. A lot of our players left, and this is a big field, and we haven’t even made it to the mountaintop yet. I’m trying to tell all the guys that they need to be hungry out on the field, in the weight room, at practice, and during games,” Washington said.
Washington, who comes from a football family, played several positions on the field growing up. A native of Mineral, Washington played football at Louisa County High School before attending William & Mary. He earned a spot on the team as a walk-on.
In 2023, Washington saw action in all 11 games and was a starter in four. He ended the season with 51 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack, and one forced fumble.
As a team, he felt there was more they could have done.
“Last season was a little bit disappointing. We always have expectations to definitely be in the postseason, but even with that, we felt we had a national championship caliber team,” Washington said.
Washington has earned a slew of accolades during his time at William & Mary and has been a key playmaker during some tough games. On the field, Washington is one of the team’s leading sack playmakers and is known to force fumbles.
When Washington talks about the team, he says they won’t back down this season.
“Our FBS games will always present a challenge but we don’t back down from those challenges. Those schools may have bigger resources, but football is played with heart and we know that those teams put on their pants just like us. We’re not ducking anybody, we’ll line up anywhere, play anybody anywhere, and we’re all looking forward to the opportunity,” Washington said.
In his freshman spring season, Washington earned the William & Mary Provost Award for academic excellence and earned distinction on the CAA Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll. In his sophomore season, Washington was selected in the preseason as All-CAA as a specialist.
Looking ahead to the 2024 season, there is one thing on Washington’s mind.
“I want a national championship. It’s all I think about. This last go around, it means a lot. I want to end on the mountaintop.”
For more information on all things William & Mary football, visit tribeathletics.com.
