Pre-Preseason Preview 2 - Roster (Over?) Analysis

HWSAthletics.com recently updated the Hobart College Football roster for this upcoming season. The current roster of SO, JR and SR players comes in at 64 Statesmen, but a large (~44) incoming FY class will push the roster to nearly 110 players, one of the largest in recent years.

One of the aspects of the 2017 roster I really liked seeing is that it's more specific with respect to player positions than we've seen before, other than specific game-day starting lineups and such.

As of today, the roster break down (in alpha order by position) is as follows:

1 C
6 CBs
6 DEs
3 DTs
3 FBs
3 FSs
6 ILBs
2 LTs
2 LGs
2 NGs
6 OLBs
1 P
3 QBs
4 RBs
2 RG.
2 RTs
3 TEs
10 WRs

Let's take a closer look, starting with the offense:

OL - Effectively Hobart has it's two deep set at G and T, and the good news for Statesmen fans (and QBs), is that four starters come back from last season. Part of that was due to injuries, but either way, an experienced OL is a great thing no matter what. The one aspect that will need to be settled in preseason camp is whether or not SR OL Liam Murphy will be taking over at center? He has backed up three time all conference Nick Testani '17 and has yet to see varsity action. He does know the system well and is in good hands with OL Coach Mike Green '14, a former center himself (and a third team D3football.com All American to boot) as his position coach. Either way, a competition for the best five players, whomever they may be, is likely.

RB - Although some may argue RB was under-utilized in 2016, Hobart will once again have depth and experience in the backfield this season. What remains to be seen is if one or more high-profile recruits makes a splash here? In lieu of that you can expect JR Tynard Barfield and SR RB Joe Letizia leading the charge.

WR - The deepest group on the team, mostly because of how many WRs the Statesmen like to spread the field with. Other than the obvious return of All American SR WR Brandon Shed, the second and third WRs in the Hobart offense will be determined during camp. The most experienced upper classman is JR WR Joe Barrocas who tallied 13 catches for 130 yards and a TD. There are a lot of talented SO WRs (six total), so Sweeney will have plenty of options this fall.

QB - SR QB and Co-Captain Shane Sweeney is the starter, but SO QBs Ryan Hofmann and Zach Brotzki will compete for backup duties. FY QB Matt Maute could be in the mix as well.

TE - SR TE and Co-Captain Zach Withers adds another dimension to the Hobart attack given his size and speed. JR TE Matt Woods had a good SO season, catching 16 passes for 127 yards and two TDs.

Now let's take a look at the defense:

DL - Hobart probably could use more depth in the interior line, and this was worked on in the offseason, recruiting wise. To be fair, the players returning at DT and NG positions like SR NG and Co-Captain Zackary Robak and JR DT Sean Moore should be poised for big seasons. While the call out of NG may have some Statesmen fans thinking the defense could try some different formations, I'd be surprised to see DC Coach Backhaus '00 move to far away from what has been Hobart's standard 4x4 set. More on that soon.

DE - The Statesmen have added depth here and saw players like JR DE A.J. MacFarlane and SR DE Brandon Ball emerge and really excel in 2016. Ball finished seventh on the team in tackles with 49 and led the defense with 11.5 TFL.

ILB - SR LB and Co-Captain Almamy Conde will hold down the middle again alongside SO LB Jedh Downey who surprised some by being the first FY starter at ILB for Hobart in quite some time. Downey had an excellent season and probably should have won the LL's ROTY award (not surprisingly it went to an offensive player, RB Sean McAllen of WPI, as those awards are often apt to do). Otherwise the Statesmen have good depth and experience here, with two SRs and two SOs filling out the roster.

OLB - The biggest question mark I have going into camp is who will fill the two open starting OLB roles for Hobart? JR OLB Kai Brandford and SR OLB Will Hoffer did each start one game a piece in 2016 and should be leading candidates, but there will be a lot of competition vying for these spots from players like SO OLB Jayson Price and SO OLB Josh Walker.

FS - Another opportunity for a first time starter in some time will be at FS. JR FS CJ Boleware backed up former Co-Captain Matt Cragg '17 last season but SO FS Marco King has converted from QB and got playing time at FS in 2016 also. King will look to transition to become a QB for the defense, not an uncommon route to take. Classmate SO FS Jack O'Shea will also vie for time.

CB - Hobart returns two of its strongest defensive players here in SR CB Tommy D'Antonio and SR CB Daryl Scales. Adding depth are two SO and two JR players, including JR CB Sam Wheeler who appeared in 10 games for the Statesmen in 2016.

The list for special teams is pretty short:

SR P Rio Schmidt returns to bolster the punting and potentially KO game, but otherwise, Hobart will look to incoming recruits such as FY PK Kyle Hackett and FY PK/ATH Wylie Sherman to take over the kicking duties now that Sean Kirshe'17 has graduated.

That's it for now on the roster. We will revisit this once the Class of 2021 are posted. Camp opens in less than 3 weeks, so we'll lay low until then. Enjoy the rest of summer - it's almost FOOTBALL SEASON!

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!