1000 posts.....really?!?
While I'm not sure if this is an impressive milestone or just confirmation of my loyalty, longevity, and perhaps insanity as a Hobart alumni and football fan, this feels like an important opportunity to step back and take an opportunity to reflect.
I was a terrible football player at Hobart and only lasted one season until I realized my talents were better suited to playing rock and roll in the college bars and fraternity parties. Still, that year of 1992-1993 taught me how much effort, athletic talent and mental toughness is required to play college athletics. While I didn't have much of the latter, I was able, through this and other mediums, to excel as a fanatic (remember the SAA motto is "Be A Fan") and I've tuned into pretty much every Statesmen football game since. Special thanks need to be mentioned to Ted Baker (get this guy in the HOF please), who's been the voice of Hobart Football (among several other HWS teams) teams past 20 years. His broadcasts with Dave Gage and Coach Muffley were and remain a vital lifeline for the alums and families to live far away from Geneva and New York State like me.
Anyway, the backstory here started when I originally found D3Boards.com in the early 2000's as a way to connect with fellow D3FB and Liberty League fans (like Frank Rossi, for instance) while I was living on the West Coast. I started emailing friends and classmates Hobart Football write ups as early as 2004 or 2005 and I'd post recaps and previews on D3Boards for a few years until I found this site and officially decided to "become a blogger."
Since August of 2009 until now, I've found this as an enjoyable pastime which has allowed me to stay connected to my alma mater, while also making some friends along the way. I'll never forget when Jarrid Blades '12 called me from the bus after Hobart upset Saint John Fisher, 56-20, to let me know my prediction was way off.
Over the years this blog (and podcast) has gotten me connected to many Hobart players, friends and families. While obviously HWSAthletics.com is the source of record, many of these people have come here week in and out to get a different take on upcoming matchups, game recaps and news.
I have a lot of fond memories from the last 16+ years including, but not limited to, the epic 41-5 run from 2011-2014 where Hobart took its place as one of the top programs in the nation. There was some bad news in there sometimes, but I always tried to focus on the positive. I enjoyed putting together compilations like the "Best 20 Games of the Last 20 Years" in June and July of 2016. I also posted about the "Hobart Team of the Decade" in January of 2011 and March of 2020. I did my best to cover the wins, losses, bowl bids, schedules, new recruits and other news as it came up along the way.
I'm not sure how much longer I will continue to keep going here, but with the plan to retire from In the D3FB Huddle after 20 years/seasons (after the 2028 season), it seems like going for another 3 years to hit 20 years here makes sense.
While it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things, I do appreciate the website traffic and positive feedback from everyone. It's been an enjoyable hobby and ride these 16+ years now. I probably should have upgraded to a better website a long time ago, or maybe even figured out ways to monetize the site, but that's never been the point.
As I always say, thanks for reading, and go 'Bart!
