FCS: Towson Has Used Playoff Loss As Motivation For A Year

If you want some motivation, there's nothing like a good punch in the face to make the hackles rise. Just ask Towson, the program that came into the 2018 postseason and received a reminder of how a game isn't determined by what conference you come from or how many points you've scored coming in, it is settled in the here and now. Duquesne plays in a smaller conference and has fewer scholarships, but took it to the talented Tigers, and they've had every single day since Nov. 24, 2018 to think about it … to get in one more lift and wake up that much earlier to put in the work.

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After nine excruciating months, Towson finally gets a chance to fix this glitch, and a senior-laden and talented roster is serious about erasing the memory of giving up 28 unanswered points in the second half of that playoff game. And the Tigers aren't playing a patsy to open up 2019, they're traveling to Charleston, S.C. to play The Citadel, which has a nice contingent back on the roster also. It is arguably the most critical FCS non-conference matchup in the country this weekend, and both programs may end up looking back at this Aug. 31 game as the reason they did or did not get into the FCS Playoffs. 

"Everybody was disgusted with how (the Duquesne loss) played out, and we can't blame the bad weather that day for that game because both teams have to adapt to their environment," Towson all-purpose All-American Shane Simpson told HERO Sports. "We might have been content going in, but after that game, I think we as captains and leaders of the team really thought that out and we're not happy with it. We're not happy now just to make the playoffs and we're OK. We don't want to go out that way again. We have a special team and we're not going to overlook any of our opponents ever again."

FCS PREVIEW: Towson

One thing's for sure, nobody up in Towson, Md. is overlooking The Citadel. The Bulldogs have a program made to beat you with assignment football, limited mistakes, clock-hogging execution and discipline. In fact, last year's leading Towson tackler, Robert Heyward (99 tackles, 10.5 TFLs), used the word "discipline" about five times in the first two minutes of his interview with HERO Sports. This wasn't just coaches' talking points spewing forth from the mouths of the players, Heyward meant it. And he made it clear he and the defense need to be equally disciplined to match it. He respects The Citadel's approach and he knows his team had better be prepared for it. 

Remember that "… not going to overlook any of our opponents ever again" thing Simpson said? It's in full play this week.

"I just remember last year how hard they played," Heyward told HERO Sports, referring to Towson's 44-27 win against The Citadel last year. "Their offensive line and their backs played hard. They just make smart plays. Every down, they're going to do their job. Every play. So we just have to match that. We have to focus on our game this week and we can't worry about November."

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All in all, this program feels like it has major potential. Head coach Rob Ambrose guided the Tigers to the 2013 national title game in Frisco, Texas. He's been there, done that. Though he isn't going to predict that result for the 2019 collection just yet, he had good things to say when the "comparison question" between the two teams, six years apart, was asked. 

"Athleticism and how close they are as a team, those are some of the things they have in common," Ambrose told HERO Sports when asked about the similarities. "When the first group of guys came through here (in 2013), we were three or four spots from the bottom of the FCS. That's where we were then. They didn't come here for nice things, they came here for a challenge. They came on a dream and a promise. There's that culture in the locker room (in 2019), and it has snowballed and they've become a really, really tight football team."

This weekend, we'll get our first glimpse at how far Towson has come since that November day last fall. It will be challenged from the beginning to end on Saturday, and Ambrose said he wouldn't have it any other way.

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