Week 8 (Post Bye) - Saint Lawrence Game Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen got a much-needed bye week after a big win in Week 6 over the defending Liberty League Champions, Union College. While the 2026 season hasn't panned out how we hoped it might, things are certainly better than last year when the Statesmen (3-3, 1-2) were 1-5 after six games.

While it appears the NCAA playoff berth will go to the winner of the Ithaca-RPI game, Hobart still has designs on getting back into the postseason, especially if they can end the year with seven wins. That mark puts them in good shape for a potential ECAC Bowl bid.

The first step as always is going 1-0 this week, as the Statesmen hit the road for what will be their longest trip of the season so far. Up next are the Saint Lawrence University (SLU) Saints this Saturday for a 1 pm kickoff. Last season Hobart took care of the Saints early, with the Statesmen scoring 35 unanswered points in the first half on the way to a 49-17 rout. Then SO QB Jeremy Weiss had one of his best games of the 2025 season, going 13-17 for 329 yards and four passing TDs. 

Hobart and SLU's series is an old and long one, with the Statesmen having a 58-36-2 record against the Saints, going back to 1901. Saturday will be the 97th edition of this rivalry, with Hobart enjoying a 14-game winning streak that dates back to 2010.

Scouting the Saints

SLU has struggled this season, earning a 2-4, 1-2 record so far. The Saints wins have come against Norwich (3-3, 1-2) and Hilbert (0-5, 0-4). SLU has losses to two teams Hobart beat, Alfred (31-7) and Union (49-7), and were blanked by Ithaca, 66-0. They also dropped a 30-10 decision to Saint John Fisher back in Week 2. 

The Saints made a QB change midseason, giving JR QB Sean Miles the top job after JR QB Oliver Cheer started the season as QB1. Miles seems like a versatile athlete, having passed for 256 yards and two TDs to go along with 83 rushing yards (the net of his 143 of gains vs. 60 in TFLs or sacks) and three rushing TDs.

Regardless of who's throwing the ball, SLU's top receiver is JR WR Cole Phelan. He has 24 catches for 292 yards and three TDs so far this season. SR TE Ben Chapman has been used mostly as a blocker, but he scored a TD in the Hilbert game.

The offense, which leads toward the run (206 to 148 plays) is led by SO RB Caeden Perreault, who missed a few games this season, but logged two 100+ yard rushing games in the three he's played in. He rushed 15 times for 179 yards and a TD against Hilbert.

The Saint's defense is led by SO LB Luke Robillard with 34 total tackles and two TFL. Classmate SO LB Drew Lazcano has been good at getting into the opposition's backfield, leading the team with 3.5 TFL, three sacks and two FFs. 

On special teams, SLU has two PKs, the first being JR PK Aidan Morris who handles FGs. He's missed as many as he's tried (4-8) with a long of 37 yards. JR PK Rory McGuire handles punts and KOs, averaging 37.42 YPP and 58 YPKO this season. SR DB Jack Finnegan has been the primary punt returner, and it appears as though Perrault has had the best success of any Saints player in the KOR side of things.

Keys to the Game:

1. Get Off to a Good Start - The Statesmen's road woes have been well documented, so I don't want to dwell on it that much. Hobart is simply an average road team, and while they will be heavily favored to beat SLU, it would be nice to see them come out looking sharp and executing well in the first quarter. Hobart still hasn't scored a TD in the first half going back to Week 2, so yeah, that would be a nice thing to erase off the ledger on the opening drive.

2. Turnovers: The Saints defense has forced eight turnovers this season, including six INTs. SLU has given up 233 YPG and 12 TDs through the air this season, so I could see Hobart wanting to challenge that secondary, but they will need to be smart about it.

3. Business Trip: The Statesmen know the key ingredients of successful Hobart Football at this point - run the ball, stop the run on defense, and play with poise. I'm looking for a clean, well-executed game by all three units, without any silly penalties. 

Final Thoughts:

Saint Lawrence hasn't beaten us in 14 tries, and Hobart is clearly the stronger side, but the Statesmen can't take anything for granted. We saw several higher rated teams lose to lower ranked conference opponents in Week 7 across D3FB.

Here's to hoping we see a polished and focused Hobart team coming out of the bye ready to finish the year on a nice long winning streak. 

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Statesmen Rally to Defeat Dutchmen, 18-12

The Hobart College Football team got their first Liberty League win of the season yesterday against long time conference rivals and defending champions, Union College. SR RB E.J. Taylor capped off an 11-play, 64-yard drive with a five-yard TD run with 52 seconds left to give Hobart (3-3, 1-2) a hard-fought victory over the Dutchmen (3-3, 2-1).

Although the Statesmen's first half offensive scoring struggles continued (they were shut out for the fourth straight week in a row), FY LB M.J. Wells read and intercepted a JR QB Luke Sheehan pass and returned it 42 yards to give Hobart an early 7-0 advantage. FY PK Owen McNulty struggled a bit on Saturday, going 1-3 on FGs, but the one he did make gave the Statesmen a 10-0 lead with 6:38 remaining in the first half.

Union would score after SR DL Jordan Black forced a JR QB Jeremy Weiss fumble which was cashed in on by Sheehan and SR WR Gil Rivera, his first of two receiving TDs on the day. The second TD would give the Dutchmen their only lead of the game, 12-10 (Union missed both PATs) with 11:13 remaining in the game. 

You know the rest and can read more about it here from the HWSAthletics.com recap.

The win gave HC Kevin DeWall '00 his 56th career victory at Hobart, making him the third winningest coach in Statesmen Football history. More importantly, it gave Hobart some needed confidence after three weeks of struggles. While the team showed grit and determination, they failed to find ways to win games until this weekend. 

Hobart goes into its bye week with an even mark, and a good chance to finish the year with a 7-3 regular season record. The Statesmen's final four opponents are currently a combined 5-19. This gives Hobart a great chance to earn another ECAC bowl bid and potentially host it. Time will tell but in a season of tough breaks, it was nice to see one go the Statesmen's way this Saturday in a tough, all-around effort. 

Congratulations again to the team and Coach DeWall on the big win over Union. I'll have a midseason review up later next week.

Thanks, as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Week 6 - Union Game Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen will look to break a three-game losing streak Saturday when they host the defending Liberty League Champion, Union College. The Dutchmen (3-2, 2-0) have won three in a row and come into this critical matchup with some momentum. Hobart (2-3, 0-2) is still looking for their first LL win, and even more importantly, a first half TD in the last couple of weeks. 

Last weekend, Union defeated Saint Lawrence (1-4, 0-2) by a score of 49-7. The Dutchmen (sorry I just can't call them the "Garnet Chargers") have been on a roll after losing to nationally ranked Susquehanna and Cortland in Weeks 1 and 2. They have put up 150 points while only surrendering 38 points in the last three games. 

While the Statesmen have shown some great heart and determination, the big first half holes they've dug themselves into in Weeks 3-5 need to stop. Union defeated an injury-riddled Hobart team last season (only about 50-55 players were able to dress), 33-16 at Frank Bailey Field. The Statesmen are 51-55-2 all-time against the Dutchmen, making this Saturday's matchup the 109th in the series. As stated in my last write up, Hobart hasn't lost to Union at home since 2008, enjoying a seven-game winning streak at the Boz against this conference rival.

Scouting the Dutchmen / Chargers

Union is led by long-time Hobart assistant coach and former OC, Jon Drach. Coach Drach runs a dynamic and fast paced offensive scheme that requires his QB be a playmaker. After struggling with turnovers in Week 1, JR QB Cole Brisson has been replaced by JR QB Luke Sheehan, a tall (6' 3") and athletic guy out of Middleton, NJ.

Sheehan has passed for 661 yards and nine TDs in the last four games, while adding 99 rushing yards and 1 TD on the ground. Union has four receivers with over 100 yards, led by SO WR Caden Gore with a team high 238 receiving yards and three receiving TDs. 

The Dutchmen also like to play a variety of RBs to keep defenses guessing and adjusting to their different running styles. SO RB Brady Markowski has the most attempts with 36 for 181 yards over the past three games. He's scored one TD. JR RB Jah'Cire Jones has rushed 33 times for 65 yards and two scores. He's more of their short yardage back. SO RB Justin Singh has run the ball 22 times for 98 yards and two scores. 

Defensively Union has an experienced unit, led by SR LB Dwayne Hinds. He has racked up 34 total tackles, 2.5 TFL, a sack and two PBUs. The DL is anchored by SR DL Jordan Black (who I interviewed on In the D3FB Huddle in the preseason). He has a team high 8.5 TFL and four sacks. It's imperative the Hobart OL blocks this guy well on Saturday. 

On special teams, the Dutchmen have a young but interesting group of kickers. FY PK Nathan Bearrows is the punter and JR PK Francesco Pileggi (what a great name for a kicker) has handled FGs and KOs. These guys are from CA and Brazil, so you have to credit Coach Drach for going out of his way to find these guys. Bearrows averages 40.65 YPP and has connected on a 62-yarder and seems to have been successful in pinning opponents inside their own 20-yard line. Pileggi has gone 1-2 on FGs with a long of 27, so his range seems short. FY PK Ben Stark seems to have taken over the KO duties from Pileggi, averaging 53.9 YPKO. He also seems to be their primary PAT kicker also.

In the return game, SO WR Kaden Gore has fielded most of the KOs and FY WR Peyton Kellett has handled most of the PRs.

Keys to the Game:

1. Get on the (Damn) Scoreboard: If the Statesmen are going to break this skid, they need to figure out how to score points in the first half. This offense is too talented to have been basically shutout in the first half for the past three weeks. The Dutchmen will look to get on the board quickly and the Union defense will attack early and often. The Hobart OL will need to win the battle at the LOS and open up running and passing lanes. The Dutchmen can be beaten for big gains due to their aggressive play, so the Statesmen will need to take those opportunities when they get them. They just need to execute better than they have of late.

2. Turnovers and Penalties: Union has a +6 TOM and has capitalized on their opponent's mistakes in recent weeks. It's common sense, but Hobart has to avoid giving the Dutchmen short fields, because they will make the most of those opportunities. The Statesmen also have to just play smarter, fundamental football. No more late hits and woofing after the whistle. Seriously, act like you've been there and done your job before and move on to the next play. Sure, celebrating and getting your teammates up is one thing, but Hobart hasn't picked their spots well, which is something the coaches need to get a better handle on, honestly. 

3. Home Sweet Home: If the Statesmen ever needed some "home cooking" aka home field advantage, it's this Saturday. Ithaca added the fifth loss in 38 games last weekend, but Hobart still has an 87% winning percentage under Coach DeWall '00 at home. The Statesmen will need some magic to turn the corner and slow down this Union squad. Sticking to what has gotten us 33 wins - running the football, explosive plays, excellent special teams play and a tough defense - should be the recipe.

Final Thoughts

Coach Drach is a great guy and a long-time friend, so I like to see him do well, but Saturday I will be pulling for a Hobart victory. This is a winnable game, just like the last three, but the Statesmen need to play smarter, fundamental football. Here's hoping we get that and start a turnaround for the second half of the regular season.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Sloppy Statesmen Spoil Homecoming Comeback, Drop Another to Ithaca, 27-20

What could have been.

The Hobart College Statesmen saw another slow start, falling behind 17-0, less than five minutes into the second quarter, while also committing nine penalties for -92 yards, take away what could have been a big win on Homecoming yesterday in Geneva. The Statesmen have only scored three points in the first half in their last three games. It's hard to win when you can't score. 

Due to these offensive struggles and defensive mental errors, Ithaca (4-1, 3-0) was able to keep their drives alive, especially in the second half when the Statesmen (2-3, 0-2) needed to get the ball back. The Hobart rally eventually happened, just like last week at Utica, but the mistakes helped the Bombers dominate TOP (37-23 minutes) and keep the Statesmen at bay.

Hobart was held to under 100 rushing yards again, and while SO QB Jeremy Weiss did set a Statesmen record with a 99-yard TD pass to JR WR Johnny Harding, it was too little too late as the penalties killed Hobart in the fourth quarter and let the Bombers steal another win, their 33rd out of 39 tries in this lopsided series.

Ithaca SR QB Michael Reed was a very efficient 21-27 for 178 yards and a fantastic play by SR WR Nick Lang boosted the Bombers to that previously mentioned 17-0 advantage after an earlier Hobart miscue (either a bad call and/or badly executed lateral play from the Hobart 27 which counted as a fumble against Weiss that Ithaca recovered at the Statesmen 21). Lang would finish with seven catches for 84 yards.

Defensively, Hobart was led by FY LB Tyler Cumming, who was a bright spot in an otherwise disappointing day for the Statesmen defense. He led all tacklers with nine stops, including two TFL and a sack. To be fair, if not for a few stops here and there, the score could have been worse. The Hobart defense did hold Ithaca to two FGs and 6-14 on third down. Unfortunately the Statesmen offense just couldn't get going, missed a makeable FG on the first series, went 5-12 and 0-2 on third and fourth downs in the game. 

This leaves Hobart out of the NCAA playoffs again and they will need to get back up off the mat to deal with a Union College (3-2. 2-0) squad that's on a three=game winning streak. The Dutchmen are another key rival that HC Kevin DeWall '00 has a losing record (3-4) against. The good news is Union hasn't won a game in Geneva since 2008.

I'll have more on that big game early next week.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart.

Week 5 - Ithaca Game Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen will try and break a two-game losing streak and get their first conference win this Saturday when the Ithaca College Bombers head up from Cayuga to Seneca Lake for another clash at Boswell Field. Hobart has only been able to beat the Bombers (3-1, 1-0) in Geneva, and did so in their last visit, 16-7, back in 2024. Otherwise, the series has been very lopsided with Ithaca winning 32 of the 38 matchups, dating back to 1961.

The Bombers are riding a three-game win streak where they have steamrolled their opponents by a 169-9 margin. Hobart (2-2, 0-1) is coming off a bad game at RPI (2-2, 1-0) and will need to get themselves together to avoid being embarrassed at home. While the Statesmen have won 33 of 37 games in Geneva since HC Kevin DeWall '00 took over in 2018, two of those losses have been to Ithaca. 

Scouting the Bombers

Ithaca's statistics have been boosted of late, and they are averaging an eye-popping 536 YPG on offense and nearly 49 PPG in scoring. The Bombers have more than twice the number of first downs (111-50) as their opponents.

SR QB Michael Reed leads the offense, passing for 834 yards and nine TDs (compared to four INTs), while also leading the team in rushing with 284 yards and three rush TDs. JR RB Chris Scully has rushed for 218 yards and a team high five rushing TDs. Reed's favorite target is SR WR Nicholas Lang, who's caught 21 passes for 425 yards and five receiving TDs. 

The Ithaca defense has a pair of SR DBs in Joe Spirra and Andrew Swierbut who have 26 total tackles each this season. SO DL Landon Varley leads the team with 5.5 TFL and SR DL Chris Clax has a team high four sacks to go with three TFL this year. 

Kickoffs are handled by SR PK Luke Savino (62.5 YPKO) and JR PK Caleb Wandell is the punter and FG kicker. He averages 40.67 YPP and has hit 2-2 on FGs with a long of 26.

Keys to the Game:

1. Don't Fall Behind: Hobart has seen two slow starts end up in two consecutive road losses. The Bombers will come out looking to assert themselves early, so the Statesmen need to be able to win the field position and LOS battle and hopefully take an early lead. 

2. Turnovers: The Bombers haven't forced many turnovers this season (in fact their TOM is -1), but Hobart gave up the ball three times last week and it cost them dearly. 

3. Be Better on Third Down: The Statesmen went 4-12 on third and 1-3 on fourth downs last weekend, and that number will need to drastically improve to have a chance against this Ithaca squad. The Bombers have held opponents to only 16-60 (26.67%) third down conversions on the season, so these will be at a premium for the Hobart offense to stay on the field. 

Final Thoughts:

I know the Statesmen are a completely different team at home, and that's the only thing that gives me hope that this won't be a lopsided rout. Still, given all the issues we saw last week, Hobart needs to turn things around in several areas to have a chance Saturday. Here's hoping a little Boswell magic and home cooking will be just what the Dr. ordered for the Statesmen.

Thanks, as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Hobart Gets Runover by RPI, 33-7, For the Second Season in A Row

I caught something on a recent trip that has had me feeling pretty sick the past couple of days. That said I'm not in the best mood and so will apologize up front for what will probably be a rather critical recap of yesterday's game. If you want to read a blander and tamer one, HWSAthletics.com has got you covered.  

The bottom line is that the Statesmen's 33-7 loss yesterday is a signal of what's to come and it's not good. Hobart (2-2, 0-1) are looking more like a team that's destined to repeat last season's 6-5 mark than one who went 9-2 just two seasons ago. RPI (2-2, 1-0) will likely end up in an ECAC bowl with about six wins, and they ran Hobart off the field yesterday. It was just as embarrassing a loss as we saw at Homecoming last season. The Engineers just seem to have our number of late, and it doesn't get easier or better for the Statesmen from here. 

RPI racked up 248 yards compared to the Statesmen's 55 at the half. SR RB Kayden White made the Hobart defense look toothless, as he gained 192 yards on 36 carries and two TDs. By comparison, Statesmen star SR RB EJ Taylor was held to only 62 on 16 carries. SO QB Jeremy Weiss relieved SO QB Aidan Conrath and turned the ball over three times, and HC Kevin DeWall '00 stuck with him.

In fact, nothing seemed to work for Hobart offensively, but we didn't make adjustments (or if we did, we simply couldn't execute them successfully). In spite of the slow start, the defense was able to keep it close - it was only 10-0 at the half, but the game got away from the Statesmen in the third quarter, and it seems like the whole season may have also. 

Thankfully, the Statesmen still have games against Rochester, Hilbert, Saint Lawrence and Buffalo State who are a combined 3-13. So, while they can get another "winning" season under their belts, until this program starts winning road games like yesterday, we're looking more like a mid-tier team from a bad conference (and the LL has been bad this year, going 7-15 in OOC games, ranking them 24th out of 29 conferences in the nation) than a national one. 

Up next is Ithaca (3-1. 1-0), who owns Hobart by a 32-6 margin and has beaten the Statesmen six out of seven times in the DeWall era. We know Hobart is a better team at home (33-4 since 2018), but they will be big underdogs in the next two games after yesterday's dreadful performance. 

I can only hope the team can fix the errors and make better plays, otherwise, a four-game losing streak is headed our way. The Bombers have dropped 66 and 76 points on their opponents in the past two weeks, and the Statesmen could be in for an epic beating if they don't learn from yesterday's mistakes.

I'll break down this matchup in another couple of days, but this one needs to sting for a bit. This loss tells me we have a long way to go to get back to what we got used to as the standard for Hobart Football the past couple of decades.

Week 4 - RPI Game Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen (2-1, 0-0) head into Liberty League conference play this Saturday against RPI (1-2, 0-0). What's interesting about this year's game is both teams are coming into it after playing two of the same opponents, Utica and Brockport, but on different weeks. The Engineers lost to both in fairly one-sided fashion, 38-14 to the Pioneers (3-0) and even worse last weekend to Brockport (1-2), 45-10.  

That said the key item to note is the second half of the record column and what it means. Both teams are 0-0 in the LL, and over the next seven games, a championship and playoff berth will be decided on that record alone. Now, I don't have any allusions Hobart is going to win a national championship this season, returning to the NCAA playoffs, potentially earning a home game and first round bye as a 9-1, 7-0 team is definitely something this team can achieve. A ten-win season and potentially a third round / sweet sixteen game would be the cherry on top.

Now I am not normally someone who believes in or advocates for revenge, but when it comes to Hobart Football, I might be willing to make an exception. Last season RPI gave the Statesmen an embarrassing 36-10 loss at homecoming, in a game where it seemed everything went wrong. Hobart holds a narrow, 34-33-1, edge in the all-time series that dates back to 1910. The Statesmen have a 16-19 record in Troy against the Engineers and HC Kevin DeWall '00 is 1-2 on the road there. Hobart did win there in 2024, 27-21, in a game where the Statesmen almost let a big lead slip away.

Scouting RPI

Unfortunately, the Engineers haven't tabulated any stats on their website for 2026, which makes this preview a lot more cumbersome than the previous ones. Bear with me, and I'll do my best to cobble some things together, starting with the below:

Offensively, it appears RPI has used two different QBs so far this season. There are no injury reports in D3FB, but in reading the box scores of their last three games, season starter JR QB Micah Balzarini was injured in the Utica game and SR QB Frankie Garbolino relieved him. Balzarini passed for 221 and 2 TDs in the season opener vs. WPI (2-1), but struggled against Utica, passing for 156 yards, a TD and an INT.

Garbolino started in Week 3 and seemed to fare even worse, passing for only 98 yards, a TD and two INTs. One constant for the RPI has been SR RB Kayden White. He's rushed for 216 yards and three TDs this season, averaging five YPR and about 72 RYPG. 

The Engineers also appear to have a solid receiving group with players like SR TE Grayson Hunter (5 rec., 80 yds.), JR WR Connor Cruz (4 rec., 68 yds.) and JR WR Nate Ehui (7 rec., 178 yds, 3 TDs). 

Defensively, RPI has been led by SR LB PJ Poknis with 38 total tackles and 4.5 TFL.

On special teams, JR PK Nick Esterly handles punting duties (with a career average of 40.9 YPP), and SR PK Kevin Lukash handles FGs, PATs and KOs. Lukash has one FG attempt from 20-yards that he converted in the Brockport game.

Keys to the Game:

1. Start Fast, and Don't Let Up - Last weekend against Utica, Hobart got down early and had to chase the Pioneers for the rest of the game. In 2024 at RPI, the Statesmen did get out to a great start but let the Engineers creep back into the game, barely hanging on at the end. This year, I'd like to see a few strong possessions to build up a nice lead and keep adding to it as the game progresses. It feels like this RPI team is down a bit this year, compared to 2025. Let's take advantage of it.

2. Third Down Defense - Hobart has to do a better job forcing three and outs and just getting the defense off the field better than they did last week. RPI's punter doesn't have a great average, so we can potentially get some good field position opportunities if we can play solid third down defense. 

3. Don't Look Ahead, Just Win - Not to belabor the point, but the Statesmen haven't been a great road team over the past several seasons. This is a game where they need to win and set themselves up for a huge homestand coming up in Weeks 5 and Week 6 against Ithaca (2-1, 0-0) and Union (1-2). That said they can't look past this RPI team who needs this win as badly as they do.

Final Thoughts:

Based on results against the same opponents, everything seems to favor Hobart in this one, but I do worry about the distractions of Week 5 and 6 looming. Hopefully the Statesmen can lock in on this game, get the win, and then prepare themselves for Ithaca. The Hobart defense got a bit exposed last week in the passing game, and RPI's offense has a lot of motion and flanker/split end receiving routes to it. A strong performance on both sides of the ball would do the Statesmen well. 

Thanks as always for reading, and go 'Bart!