WILLIAMSBURG, VA (WTKR)- William & Mary head basketball coach Brian Earl says he doesn't talk about the history of the Tribe in terms of the NCAA Tournament, but players seem to already know when they enter the program.
The green and gold is one of a trio of teams coined "The Forgotten Three," the three programs who have been eligible for the Big Dance since its inception in 1939, but have yet to make an appearance in the event. This year's William & Mary squad, however, is hungry to shed that title.
"That makes you legends around here on campus," pointed out junior guard Reese Miller. "We saw the women do it last year and we see how much praise they get. We want the same praise."
"The vibe is very much like 'this is the team that can do it,'" senior forward Jo'el Emanuel added. "It's definitely a thought process of that's a chip on our shoulder. We want to be that team."
This Tribe squad appears to be a capable one. Earl isn't looking ahead to March yet, rather focusing on the next possession, especially with his team suffering a couple setbacks this past week. William & Mary fell to Elon and Campbell, bringing its record to 5-5 in the CAA, but is still 9-1 at home and 14-8 overall. Winning the conference will be the Tribe's ticket to the Field of 68 and with eight games remaining, the group hopes its best basketball is yet to come.
"We're still learning, as is every other team in this environment, how to finish out a few games," noted the head coach. "There's not a lack of effort in trying to do that together."
"Everyone can put the ball in the basket," Miller said of his teammates. "Everyone can score and we all can shoot and it makes us a dangerous team at the end of the day. If we play to our strengths like that and we work together, play together, we'll win."
While the program itself hasn't experienced March Madness, this year's roster has a taste of that big stage. Emanuel played in three NCAA Tournament games with Farleigh Dickinson back in 2023, which included helping the No. 16 seed Knights to an upset of top seeded Purdue.
"It's a blessing that I want to share with the guys," he smiled. "I love this team so much and it really is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, so being able to do that with this group would be special."
"We like to write storybook endings," said Earl, who won conference championships and played in the NCAA Tournament as a player at Princeton. "A lot of the time, if a couple shots go in, you win a tournament game or whatever it may be. We've been in every game."
February will mark a focus on fine-tuning for the Tribe with the hopes it can lead to blazing a trail to madness in March. With a CAA Tournament win and automatic berth in the field the program has never seen before, the 2025-2026 roster would etch itself into William & Mary basketball immortality.
"It would be special if we somehow made a run," Earl said. "I don't know if it's a failure if we don't, but it's something that won't be forgotten."
"We'd be very proud of that fact that this was the group of guys that did it together," added Emanuel. "I would be talking to these guys for the rest of my life about it for sure."
William & Mary is back in action Thursday at UNC-Wilmington. The Tribe handed the Seahawks their only CAA loss back on January 22. A 757 showdown at Hampton awaits Earl's team Saturday.
