Statesmen Seek 10th Game for 2018

The fact that the Saint John Fisher and Hartwick games from 2017 were "one and done" contracts and Buffalo State won't officially join the Liberty League until 2019, the Statesmen will need to fill an open date in Week 5, at the end of September (which is also Homecoming / Parents Weekend for those "keeping score at home") to fill a 10-game schedule this fall.

The recent out of conference series against Brockport, Shenandoah and Endicott remain intact as do the current five Liberty League conference ones.

What we do know is on the calendar is a season opener on 9/1/18 vs. Brockport, who made it all the way to the 2017 Final Four, at Brockport. Another game that's been confirmed via press release is a "Saturday Night Lights" game against Shenandoah on 9/15/18 in VA at 7 PM. I would also say it's safe to assume that the games against Saint Lawrence and Rochester (who just added Hobart alum Chad Martinovich '94 as their new HC) will remain in their usual Week 10 and 11 spots (on 11/3 and 11/10, respectively).

The Endicott date is yet to be announced but it likely will remain in Week 4 like last year, which will be on 9/22/18 this upcoming season. This game will the final one in the series after Hobart having played Endicott every year since the 2014 season.

SUNY-Morrisville is reportedly the Week 2 (9/8/17) opponent. The Mustangs finished the 2017 season with a 4-6 overall record and a 2-5 mark in the Empire 8. Their wins were against Norwich, Nichols, Saint John Fisher and Utica. They dropped a close Week 5 contest to Union, 28-27, which started a five game losing streak until they rebounded with wins in Week 10 and 11 to close out the season.

Other games, including the LL conference schedule, will be officially announced at a later date. The Hobart Athletic Department does have a potential opponent on the radar for Week 5, but it is keeping it close to the vest for now.

That said we can predict the 2018 schedule as follows (assuming SUNY is a home game to ensure a balanced five-home and five-away game schedule - and avoid a four-game road trip to open the year - plus LL games flip-flop per usual):

Week 1 @ Brockport on 9/1/18
Week 2 vs. SUNY-Morrisville on 9/8/18
Week 3 @ Shenandoah on 9/15/18 at 7 PM
Week 4 @ Endicott on 9/22/18
Week 5 vs. TBD on 9/29/18 - Homecoming game, likely under the lights
Week 6 TBD on 10/6/18 (LL game - maybe @ RPI)
Week 7 TBD on 10/13/18 (LL game - maybe IC at Hobart)
Week 8 TBD on 10/20/18 (LL game or bye week - IC is playing UofR on this date)
Week 9 TBD on 10/27/18 (LL game or bye week - Union at Hobart could be in Week 8 like 2017)
Week 10 @ SLU on 11/3/18 (see comment below)
Week 11 vs. UofR at the Boz 11/10/18 - Senior Day / Centennial Cup game (see comment below)

This type of schedule would mean a couple of long road trips in the first half of the schedule, but the back half would be helpful with three home games, including two against Ithaca and Union in mid-to-late October as the conference title and playoff race starts to shape up. It's possible the SUNY game could be a night one, as the Mustangs do really like to schedule these, especially early in the season. They had a series against SLU in prior years that were 7 PM kickoffs. Either way, this is a solid slate if it pans out. Time will tell.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Woods and Prince Elected Team Captains by Class of 2018

According to HC Mike Cragg's monthly update, rising SR TE Matthew Woods and JR OLB Jayson Prince have been named as the Co-Captains for the 2018 Hobart College Football team. This approach was different than in prior seasons according to Cragg, and there will be two more Co-Captains named during spring football practice, but he's pleased with the Class of 2018's election of these two student athletes.

Woods was a key player in the running game as a blocker while also adding 15 catches for 169 yards and three TDs in 2017. He has 31 career receptions and five TDs in his two seasons of Varsity Football.

Prince earned one of the open starting OLB roles in 2017 and had an impressive season. He tallied 49 total tackles, including five sacks and 5.5 TFL. He also had an interception to go with one of the best defensive plays of the season - a 98 yard FR for a TD in Week 1 against Brockport.

Otherwise the team is getting back to work in off-season workouts, looking to improve on last season's 7-3, 3-2 record, the latter nearly matching the Statesmen's the worst finish in Liberty League play since 2010 (3-3).

There are several key position battles in spring practice that we'll be tracking, including QB, OL, DL, ILB and CB.

I'll have a few more posts in the coming days / weeks as more recruiting and other news rolls in from Geneva. In the meantime, thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Shed Shines in SoCal at NFLPA Collegiate Bowl

Hobart College SR WR Brandon Shed showed he belonged with some of the best players in College Football last week and this past weekend in Pasadena, CA.

Although he was only targeted twice in the game, he made both catches - 14 and 9-yard ones - and converted both of them for first downs for his National squad, which won the game, 23-0. He also had a key block on one of the National team's rushing TDs. Shed also appeared on special teams, playing on the National team's punt unit.

More importantly, Brandon also impressed in practice, getting a lot of social media recognition for his route-running and receiving skills.

Time will tell if Brandon's efforts will result in an invite to the NFL Combine, but it should continue scouts' interest and potentially lead to some tryouts over the next couple of months.

Make sure to checkout the Facebook fan page or my Twitter handle @D3FBHuddle for clips of Brandon's catches from last Saturday's game.

Congratulations to Brandon and a job well done! Pride high!

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Shed Looking to Shine Saturday in NFLPA Game

SR WR Brandon Shed will update his #5 jersey to wear #85 for the " National" team as part of this Saturday's NFLPA Collegiate Bowl in Pasadena, CA.

A link on Brandon's selection from HWSAthletics.com gives the backstor and can be seen here. Information on the bowl game, including rosters, can be viewed here.

The game will be televised on Saturday, January 20th at 4 PM ET on Fox Sports One. I'll be tuning in and hoping for a great game by Brandon (aka #Easy6)

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Griffin's Going to Geneva

While it's likely the Statesmen will take to social media in the coming months to announce the Class of 2022, word of a few commitments are starting to trickle in after the initial Early Decision rounds at HWS.

The first student athlete I've heard of joining the Hobart College Football program is SR LB/FB Bryce Griffin from Norwell, MA. Griffin played MLB in the Clippers 4x3 system while also playing FB. The Clippers finished the 2017 with a 9-2 overall record..

His highlight reel can be viewed here.

Please join me in welcoming Bryce and his family to the Hobart!

Thanks for reading, Happy New Year, and go 'Bart!