His final college football game included six catches, 79 yards and two touchdowns. And Lycoming senior Karson Kline could not have cared less.

Despite dominating the second half and rallying from a 14-point second quarter deficit, Lycoming fell short Saturday at the Cape Charles Bowl, falling 14-12 against Washington & Lee at Frank Girardi Stadium.

“No, not really,” Kline said after being asked about someday remembering scoring twice in his last game. “I’m going to remember the people more. The memories I got to make with these guys is the most important thing. I don’t really care about my stats. They can only take me so far, but the coaches and my teammates are going to take me a lot further.”

That response speaks volumes. It points to how the seniors kept Lycoming together doing a season which could have easily gone sideways and points to potential good times ahead.

On the surface, one can look at Lycoming’s final record and scoff. The Warriors went 5-6 and, obviously, want and expect a lot more. Still, look beyond the record and one sees tremendous growth.

Specifically, Lycoming started the season 1-5. It lost its first four games and a 69-7 defeat at powerhouse Susquehanna had it looking like a potential lost campaign. Instead, the seniors helped Lycoming make it something good. Better yet, they helped it become a potential launching pad.

When others might have crumbled, Lycoming picked up the pieces, pulled tighter together and started playing outstanding football. The Warriors won their next four games, making massive strides on both sides of the ball. Running back Terrence Oliver went over 1,000 yards for a second straight season but sophomore quarterback Joe Lyons settled in, and a well-rounded group of receivers made the offense both more well-rounded and explosive.

As the offense opened up, the defense stiffened. That unit allowed 17.4 points over the final six games and kept Lycoming in the game Saturday, denying W&J points on its final seven series, never letting it move across midfield those times.

Lycoming earned not just a bowl game berth, but another week together. It was another week to refine skills, build even more chemistry and lay more bricks in the foundation. The Warriors did not win the Cape Charles Bowl for a second time in three years, but fighting back to make it there and then nearly rallying to win it highlights exactly who this team is.

“It’s very positive going forward. It sucks to see all the seniors go out like this but there were a lot of good things coming from today’s game,” junior wide receiver Jared Zimmerman said after catching six passes and totaling 159 all-purpose yards. “Going into next year, I’m really looking forward to it.”

The seniors will not be on the field for those 2026 games, but their legacy could really take shape there if Lycoming continues what it started this season. It wasn’t just that Lycoming won down the stretch but how it did so. It was as much about the example those seniors set which brought out both their best and the team’s best.

“These seniors really helped re-establish the way things need to be done,” Lycoming coach Mike Clark said. “It didn’t necessarily translate to all the wins that we wanted, but this is a really good group of seniors. There’s a one game difference between last year and this year in wins, and I’m here to tell you this year was significantly better in terms of the quality of people and the way those guys on the team do things.

“Now we have to find a way to win games and do the little things right. That’s really what it’s all about.”

Little things hurt Lycoming against W&J, including a dropped touchdown, a missed extra point and two interceptions inside the 25-yard line. But those are mistakes which can be fixed. The will, work ethic and drive to succeed often comes from within.

The senior class exhibited those qualities and passed them down to the younger players. That is crucial, too, because the Warriors, as of now, are loaded with exciting players returning next fall. That goes double on defense where eight starters, many freshmen and sophomores could be back.

Of course, no none knows for sure how things will play out these days with the transfer portal in place, but if the players stick together as they did all this season, it could take a big jump forward.

The seniors will not be there for that, but they will have helped provide the push.

“I’m feeling really good about next year,” Zimmerman said. “I’m going to miss those guys, and they taught us a lot. They’re my guys, but I’m really confident going forward.”

“We have to make sure everyone stays here and I think, for the most part, they will, but you never know in this day of athletics,” Clark said. “I think there is an awesome group of guys here.”

Wins and losses do not carry over from one season to the next. Commitment, toughness and selflessness do. All those qualities helped Lycoming turn around its 2025 season. It was a team effort, but the seniors, as leaders, set the tone.

A lot of teams in similar situations might have folded, especially the younger players. They could have started looking ahead toward 2026. It was just not the seniors telling them to stay focused on this season, but the underclassmen wanting to do so to repay the seniors which tells an important story.

Lycoming has words plastered throughout its locker room like visualization, discipline and relentless. The seniors helped the entire team live those words. Sure, it did not lead to ultimate bowl victory, but it led to quite a comeback, both this season and in Saturday’s game.

Most importantly, it might just be a start. Take the baton from the senior leaders and Lycoming might continue ascending and soon climb to exactly where it hopes to go.

“I feel like the guys left behind understand what it takes. They know even if there are difficult times you can bounce back from those,” Kline said. “If you want to be a great football team, those are things you have to do.”

These seniors taught them that well.

–Masse may be reached at cmasse@sungazette.com. Follow him on Twitter at @docmasse