WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (WTKR) — No matter how much he loved the fall Saturdays at Zable Stadium, Bronson Yoder never could have predicted he'd still be playing there in 2024.
"I would have told you I'd probably moved on to other things," said Yoder, who began his college football career with the Tribe in 2019.
"When you've been here six, 10, 12 years," joked head coach Mike London. "He's ingratiated himself with the community, with his teammates, wearing the William & Mary badge with pride."
That passion for the green and gold comes out every time the running back touches the ball. A physical runner that never shies from contact, Yoder amassed 2,660 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns in his first four seasons.
"He understands that when I go, I'm going to go 100 percent," London said. "I'm going to go all out rather than tippy toe, and he does not tippy toe."
That was the attitude he took into the Tribe's game against Maine September 23, 2023. Per usual, Yoder was impacting the game on every series with 25 carries and 163 yards with a touchdown as the fourth quarter was starting.
Then came the hit.
"The play itself was just a normal play. We ran wide zone and I didn't think the hit was anything crazy," he remembered. "Maine's safety...he just hit me the right spot to have (his shoulder) pop out, and then landing on it did most of the damage."
Yoder suffered a severe shoulder injury that forced him to be carted off the field. What he hoped would be a quick recovery would last until the winter.
"We were waiting to see if the numbness would subside and the feeling to come back because if it did, maybe I could go back in," Yoder said. "Unfortunately, it took until about January to have any feeling in my shoulder."
Just four games into the year, his season was over. As the impact of the injury kept lasting, the junior started wondering what his future on the field looked like.
"A few days after the injury, I went to the church on campus and I just prayed," he said. "When I say I went to the shrine and prayed, I mean I wept. I thought I was done playing football."
No matter the internal doubts, you can't take a football player off the field before the itch starts coming back.
"The conversations with my fiance, my family, my coaches about whether or not I should come back, is that the right move for me," Yoder said. "We just felt in our hearts, God was leading me back for another year."
"A guy that loves football, loves to play," London said. "The cumulative affect of all that led to, 'I can get better, this will heal, I can have a chance.'"
After going through non-contact Spring ball, Yoder was back delivering punishing runs again in fall camp. After an injury that ended a season, some might save a few of those physical runs.
That's not Yoder's mentality.
"It was just awesome. I just loved being out there and hitting again," the senior said. "If at anytime someone brought me to the ground, people would make a big deal about it but I'm always like, 'It's football. We're going to get hit.'"
If there's any rust, it's yet to show. Yoder has a team high 523 yards on the ground and five rushing touchdowns touchdowns. He's posted three straight games of at least 100 rushing yards.
A player who valued each chance to have the ball in his hands before, the running back savoring those carries even more now after the grueling road to get back on the gridiron.
"It was a lot to wrestle with so it's a great gift to be back here," Yoder said. "To have another year at is such a blessing."
William & Mary looks to improve to 5-1 with a trip to Towson on Saturday.
