Statesmen Pick Off Eagles, 27-14

The Hobart College Statesmen defense picked off Brockport SR QB Ben Gocella five times, including three INTs by SR DB and Co-Captain Zeshan Dixon. who punctuated today's win with a 67-yard pick six with 1:45 remaining. 

It was a back-and-forth game early on and Brockport (1-1) took a 7-3 lead before Hobart scored 17 unanswered points on the way to a 20-7 halftime lead. Although the Golden Eagles threatened to make it a game in the fourth quarter, big plays by the Hobart defense got them the win.

Offensively the Statesmen (2-0) were led once again by SR RB EJ Taylor who scored his 36th career TD on a 1-yard run near the end of the first quarter. It was challenged by Brockport, but the call stood. He extended and broke the plane of the end zone. This was just one of the 112 yards he racked up on 28 carries. SO QB Aidan Conrath was solid, going 15-27 for 142 yards passing with a TD to JR WR Johnny Harding (his 20th career TD reception). 

SR WR Marcus Peterson led the team with 65 yards receiving, including one big haul of 45 yards at a fairly key point in the game. On special teams, FY PK Owen McNulty converted FGs of 42 and 26 yards. GR PK Vicente Lyon pinned Brockport inside their 20-yard line three times, averaging over 42 YPP. 

Other than Dixon, who had a team high 10 solo and 13 total tackles, the Hobart defense was led by SO DB Latrell Bonaparte with five solo and six total tackles. SO DB Isa Abdus-Salaam and SO LB Nate Bush tallied the other two INTs. 

The Statesmen will go on their first road trip to take on the also undefeated Utica Pioneers (2-0). The Pioneers just earned their long-time HC Blaise Faggiano his 100th victory in a 38-14 romp over RPI (1-1). More on that big game early next week. 

For now, it feels great to be 2-0. Way to go 'Bart!

Never Forget

The workday and other responsibilities prevented me from getting this up earlier, but there was no way I wasn't going to acknowledge this important 25th anniversary of the attacks on 9/11/01. This day had a direct impact on three Hobart Statesmen, including my former football teammate, Andy Glokin '93. 

Statesman alum and former Director of Alumni Relations John Norvell '66 wrote a nice piece remembering Andy, Scott Rohner '01 and Michael Simon '83, P'11 that I recommend everyone take a few minutes to read. 

The younger sister of a high school classmate of mine named Amy Toyen, was also lost on this tragic day. The bottom half of the photo below is a memorial that sits outside our hometown library in Avon, CT. 

Frank and I played a memorial address from former WPI HC Ed Zaloom on today's In the D3FB Huddle Week 2 preview show just as we have in prior years. We also added a more light-hearted video from Hobart, which you can see in the introduction of the show.

Although life moves on, and there will be football and other games played tonight, I hope we all take a moment to remember the lives lost and to make sure we honor days like today in order to Never Forget.

Week 2 - Brockport Game Preview

The Hobart College football team heads into Week 2 looking to extract some revenge after they gave up a 90-yard drive in the fourth quarter to see a 10-7 lead turn into a 14-10 loss to Brockport last season. 

Hobart and the Golden Eagles have only faced each other 13 times in the past, with the first game dating as far back as 1949. A long break followed with seven games played between the neighboring programs between 1974-1982. The series resumed with some very memorable games between 2016-2019 (ok, I was at the 2018 one, and that was one I'd like to forget). The Statesmen are 5-8 all time against Brockport, one of a handful of current programs they have a losing record against. 

The Golden Eagles (1-0) easily rolled over hapless Buffalo State (0-1) last Thursday night, so technically, they have an extra day of preparation / rest over the Statesmen (1-0) in this one. While the statistics against BSU are so lopsided it doesn't tell us much, we can extrapolate a few things.

Scouting Brockport

The Golden Eagles are a rushing team first and foremost, with OC Steve Potter having a successful history of calling the offense at Brockport. They averaged 6.7 YPR last week (calling 49 rushes out of 63 total plays) and will look to establish the run at the LOS with their big offense line. 

That said, SR QB Ben Gocella may be the best QB the Statesmen will face this season. He was a perfect 10-10 for 124 yards and 2 passing TDs in this season's debut. His favorite target is SR WR Nolan Slywka (pictured above), who made the SCTop10 with this amazing one-handed catch last week. He caught six passes for 82 yards and both receiving TDs in last Thursday night's game. Hobart will have their hands full trying to cover this tall (6' 4") and speedy receiver.

While former DC Mike Fox has moved on his strong defensive schemes have stayed behind. Fox's system was a tough 3-3-5 alignment that has caused Hobart, among other teams, fits in years past. In the shutout, the Golden Eagles held Buff State to only three first downs and a paltry 60 total yards on 40 plays. 

Keys to the Game:

1. Hold the Line - The Hobart DL had a great game last Friday night against Alfred and will need to be stout against this strong rush offense from Brockport. They will need to apply pressure on Gocella to get him out of his comfort zone, because if given time, he will pick the Statesmen apart. 

2. Bend, Don't Break - Slywka is a deep threat unlike any other Hobart will likely face in the regular season, and the reality is, he will be targeted and get some receptions in this game. What the Statesmen secondary has to avoid are the explosive plays he can generate and look to jam and frustrate him with physical play. This is one guy where committing a DPI foul maybe worth it versus allowing a huge gain. My expectation is that SR DB Zeshan Dixon will be locked up with Slywka (with potentially some help from a deep safety) for most of this game. How he fares will play a big role in the outcome.

3. Home Cooking - Last week Hobart improved to 33-4 all-time under HC Kevin DeWall '00 at the Boz. Only two teams have beaten the Statesmen there in the regular season in the last eight years and seven seasons (taking out the 2020 COVID year). Brockport hasn't won a game at the Boz since 2017, so I am hopeful Hobart's winning ways in Geneva can continue. 

Final Thoughts:

The next two weeks will tell us a lot about this year's Hobart squad. The Liberty League has been down the past couple of years, and both Brockport and Utica (1-0) are considered potential national playoff caliber teams this season. If the Statesmen can run this gauntlet prior to October with some success, we could be looking at something special this season. 

Ultimately, this is a game where Hobart is the underdog, but playing at home should provide them with a better opportunity to win. I will be keeping a close eye on this one Saturday.

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Statesmen Sack Saxons, 24-17

The Hobart College Statesmen defense racked up seven sacks and the offense gained over 400 yards in an occasionally sloppy (with 17 total penalties) and hard fought, Friday night lights game at the Boz to open the 2026 season. SR DL Hunter Vos and JR DL Billy Brosko combined for 12 tackles and four sacks, including a safety that gave Hobart (1-0) their first lead of the game, and one they never relinquished. 

SO QB Aidan Conrath got the start and had a solid game passing for 172 yards and two TDs. One of those passing TDs went to SR RB E.J. Taylor who had another monster game, rushing for 137 yards and a TD to go with 78 yards and his receiving TD. With his efforts Friday night, Taylor has rushed for over 3.000 yards in his memorable Hobart career. 

You can read more about the game, Taylor's stats and more in the HWSAthletics.com release here. 

The win improves the Statesmen home record under HC Kevin DeWall '00 to 33-4. While they were an undersized team, Alfred (0-1) made Hobart work for this win. SR QB Matt Parker (an Ithaca transfer who's played Hobart two times previously in his college career) passed for 242 yards and a TD. 

The Statesmen inexplicably almost gave this one away with a bizarre reverse call with under three minutes to go in the game. The defense would bail out this error and force the Saxons to a turnover on downs to close this one out. Not sure what else to say about that call, but when you have a guy like Taylor on your roster, trick plays like that aren't necessary. 

Hobart will host Brockport (1-0) who ran over hapless Buffalo State (0-1) last Thursday night, 68-0, next Saturday at the Boz. I'll have more on that game early next week. 

Until then, happy Labor Day weekend everyone. 

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Week 1 - Alfred Game Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen will open the 2026 season under the lights of Boswell Field this Friday night, September 4th at 7 PM. Hobart (0-0) is looking to make amends for a loss to Alfred (0-0) in last season's opener. 

In that game, the Statesmen struggled with turnovers, including a pick six to fall behind, 28-10, late in the third quarter. Hobart did fight back, scoring 13 unanswered points, before running out of time. It was Hobart's first loss to Alfred, snapping a 14-game winning streak dating back to the 1996 season. The Statesmen are 43-36-4 all time against the Saxons, with the series beginning in 1902. This will be the 84th game between these two Upstate NY rivals. 

This year the Saxons went to the transfer portal to get former Ithaca QB and team captain, Matt Parker, to take over at QB. Alfred had a disappointing 2025, going 4-6 overall and only 2-5 in the Empire 8 conference. HC Bob Rankl (68-51) is hoping 2026 is a better year for his Saxons squad.

Scouting the Saxons

Week 1 scouting is a fool's errand of sorts, with no games played or statistics to review. We can glean some tendencies from 2025, however, which should carry over into this season. 

What those tendencies told me is that Alfred runs a fairly balanced offensive attack (56/44% run to pass ratio). They averaged just over 300 YPG of offense and had very similar rush (143.5 YPG) and passing (162.2 YPG) statistical totals. They just didn't score enough, though, only averaging 3 TDs per game which led to a 23.1 PPG result. 

The Saxons defense struggled defensively last season, allowing nearly 400 YPG and 46 total TDs. The Alfred special team's unit did well, usually winning the field position battle, but the defense was just too porous at times to get them more wins. The Saxons were -7 in turnover margin (TOM), which didn't help their cause as the season wore on. 

This season the Saxons are led by five co-captains: SR DB Jack Bestpitch, SR PK Dominic Bronco, JR RB Tommy Nyquist, SR LB Michael Davis and SR RB Steven Bidwell. 

Bestpitch finished third on the team with 51 total tackles last season, including two INTs. Bronco went 7-9 on FGs with a long of 43 yards. Nyquist and Bidwell combined for over 1,300 rushing yards and 11 TDs. Nyquist was the featured back, carrying the ball 222 times, while Bidwell had only 60 carries in seven games last season. Davis (who stands at an imposing 6' 2" and 235 lbs.) tallied 42 tackles to go with 6.5 TFL and four sacks. 

Keys to the Game:

1. Protect the Football - Hobart committed three turnovers (two fumbles and one INT which was returned for effectively the game winning TD) in last year's contest. With many new starters on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, the Statesmen need to focus on fundamentals. While not confirmed, it sounds like SO QB Aidan Conrath (who threw the INT and went 13-28 in his first collegiate start against Alfred last year) could be the man under center for this game. He'll need to play better than he did last season to get Hobart to an important 1-0 start. 

2. Panic Parker - Last time the Statesmen saw Matt Parker, he had a good, but not great game, passing for 140 yards and a TD in a 13-7 win for Ithaca over Hobart last season. With a new DC and players at LB, Hobart's defense may not be what Alfred is expecting. The Statesmen need to apply pressure and get to Parker who can be prone to mistakes when rushed. 

3. Home Sweet Home - Hobart has had a remarkable run under HC Kevin DeWall '00 as the home team. The Statesmen are 32-4 at the "Boz" dating back to 2018. Only Ithaca, RPI and Utica have claimed victories on Hobart's home turf, and Alfred hasn't accomplished that feat since my junior year (1994).

Final Thoughts:

I've heard mixed reviews coming out of preseason camp. One key defensive player is apparently lost for the season due to an ACL injury, and rumor has it the OL didn't look great in the last scrimmage. I am holding out hope that Hobart can shake off some preseason cobwebs and/or jitters and get back to playing the Statesmen football we remember from 2024. Time will tell, as every year is different. We still have a lot of questions about this group, and with still no preseason preview from the HWS SID, we will have to keep wondering, close to or right up until kickoff. 

I'm hopeful the Statesmen can ride their strong rushing offense and defense to a hard-fought win on Friday night. 

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Taylor and Brosko Named Preseason All-Americans

It only took five days for my preview to be wrong (well, about Hobart being overlooked in the preseason awards category, anyway). Today SR RB EJ Taylor and JR DL Billy Brosko were named to the second and third preseason All-American teams published by D3football.com. 

Taylor returns as the second leading active rusher in D3FB and first in rushing TDs. Brosko is coming off a dominant year in the trenches where he logged 63 tackles and 12.5 TFL earning him an All-Region second team nod from D3football.com last season. 

I noticed that GR P Vicente Lyon was conspicuously absent from this list after earning third team All-American recognition from the same publication last season (he earned higher marks in the AFCA and AP lists). I just have to assume Pat Coleman (the Executive Editor who makes the list), just either didn't realize he was coming back this year or simply thought there were three other options he preferred over Lyon, which is certainly his prerogative. 

Congratulations to EJ and Billy on this recognition!

Go Bart!

Hobart College Football 2026 Season Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen football program is looking to bounce back after a challenging 2025 season where injuries and close games got the better of them, at least for the first half of the year. While the Statesmen struggled at times, they did manage to win their final five games, including an impressive 42-14 romp in the ECAC James Lynah Bowl game. 

The positive momentum won’t get them any preseason poll votes, but with changes and graduations across the Liberty League, Hobart could be a team flying under some people’s radar with potential to surprise this year. The Statesmen return a good core from the 2025 squad but will need some up-and-comers to make their mark also. 

Let’s take a look, starting with the Hobart:

DEFENSE

The biggest change from 2025 to 2026 is the graduation of half the starting LB corps, particularly Mike McGhee ‘26. There will be a lot of production to replace here, but one thing HC Kevin DeWall ’00 has shown in his eight years leading the Statesmen is his ability to keep finding excellent LB talent.

Season ending injuries to players like SO LBs Nate Bush and Tyler Cummings impacted the 2025 group, but both return healthy. SO LB Jeron Atwater, Jr., who also missed part of the season due to injury, finished his FY campaign with 36 tackles, 5.5 TFL and 2.5 sacks. SR LB Jack Ligarzewski and JR LB Matt Huliev will be expected to make bigger contributions in 2026 also. 

Up front, Hobart welcomes back some proven players in JR DL Billy Brosko and SR DL Hunter Vos. These two combined for over 100 tackles, nearly 20 TFL and four sacks. I expect JR DLs Perry Goodridge, Jon Regan and Trey Dillabough to play bigger roles this season.

The secondary also returns a strong and experienced unit that includes JR DB Ryan Van Tassel, SR DB Zeshaun Dixon and SO Isa Abdus-Salaam. 

OFFENSE

Injuries to SO QB Aidan Conrath and SR QB Tru Styles affected the early QB play to start the season, and eventually SO QB Jeremy Weiss’s improvements landed him the starting job. He finished the season with a 62.5% pass completion mark (80-128), for 1,447 yards and 15 passing TDs. He set a couple of records against SLU with a 96-yard TD pass and finishing with the highest pass efficiency rating in Hobart history (316.7). That said Styles and Conrath also return, meaning the Hobart QB preseason battle will be a competitive one once again. 

The Statesmen OL lost some experience due to graduation but returns a couple of cornerstone players in JR OL Jake Jeffay and JR OL Javon James. There are several other strong OL players that will be working their way into the starting rotation / depth chart this preseason. 

Leading the rushing attack for the fourth year in a row will be SR RB E.J. Taylor. He has rushed for 2,883 yards and 33 rushing TDs in his great Hobart football career. Last season he had a career high 19 receptions for 172 receiving yards also, including one receiving TD. Behind Taylor is a strong group of unproven, but still very talented, RBs.

The WR corps return all three starters from last season including JR WR Johnny Harding, SR WR Marcus Peterson and JR WR Tristan Reynolds, the latter who missed half the season with injury. Also back is JR WR Jordan Nolan (the guy on the receiving end of Weiss’s 96-yard TD pass that was mentioned above) and JR WR Luke Hansen. This group tallied over 1,600 receiving yards and 15 receiving TDs in 2025.

The Statesmen will also welcome back some talented blockers and receivers in the TE group, which will be led by players like SR TE Timothy McKeever and SO TE Harry Salters.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Hobart welcomes back three experienced PKs in GR Vicente Lyon, a 2025 All-American, SR PK Luke Monteyne and JR PK Colin Goff. Monteyne attempted seven FGs in 2025, with four successful tries with a long of 37 yards. He added 39 successful PATs also. Goff averaged 52.3 YPKO with six touchbacks last season. 

SCHEDULE

Hobart will play the same opponents as 2025, but in a slightly different order. The schedule is also highlighted by the fact that this season the Statesmen get six, instead of four, home games. This is a welcome change, given the longstanding home field advantage (and winning percentage) Hobart has at the “Boz.”

The Statesmen will open the 2026 season at home under the lights on Friday, September 4th against Alfred University of the Empire 8, then welcome Brockport to the Boz in Week 2. The first road trip of the year will be to Utica in Week 3, then Hobart kicks off Liberty League play in Week 4 on the road against RPI. Weeks 5 and 6 feature big home games against Ithaca and Union. After these blockbusters, Week 7 brings Hobart a much-needed bye week. Week 8 opens on the road at Saint Lawrence, followed by home games in Week 9 and 10 against Rochester and Hilbert (LL affiliate). The latter will serve as the Statesmen’s Senior Day game. The regular season finale will be at Buffalo State in Week 11.

LOOKING AT THE LEAGUE

Union and RPI will be auditioning new QBs in 2026, and Ithaca has a new HC in Brandon Maguire. The Bombers seem to be in the best shape, returning nine offensive and eight defensive starters. QB Michael Reed, RB Chris Scully, WR Nick Lang, S Joe Spirra and CB Marcus Boyle are all back at Ithaca. I would expect to see them “receiving votes” in some polls, and they could be the LL preseason favorite. 

RPI hasn’t reported returning starters, and Union will need to replace players like QB Patch Flanagan, TE Cam Fries and DT Charles Johnson, who helped them win the LL last season. The Dutchmen reported five returning offensive and nine defensive starters back, meaning they will likely need to lean on their defense early in the season, but they should have an established QB and offense by the time they arrive in Geneva come Week 6.

FINAL THOUGHTS

While the memories of a 6-5 season from 2025 (Hobart’s worst since the 2010 and 2018 seasons), still sting a bit, Team 132 is a fresh start that shouldn’t be burdened by last year. This Statesmen squad has a great opportunity to turn around some of the struggles from 25 and make 2026 a special year. 

I am looking forward to Ted Baker and Coach DeWall’s weekly podcasts and following the team this fall. 

Thanks as always for reading and go ‘Bart!

Here Comes the Class of 2030 (Reprise) - Part V

We wrap up the work week with the fifth (and potentially final) group of new Statesmen players. This one's only six versus the seven a day we saw from Monday-Thursday; so perhaps things are either slowing down, or this is the final bunch to bring us to 34 (which is a good-sized recruiting class). 

We clocked of a couple of the below commitments in the spring (e.g., Larsen, Wells and Oji), but the other three are new names to Hobart fans and extended families.

Let's take a look below:

If that's a wrap on recruiting news, up next will be my 2026 preseason preview. More to come.

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Here Comes the Class of 2030 (Reprise) - Part IV

Moving right along to the fourth batch of incoming Statesmen football players, we see a more familiar names from earlier this year (Mongno, Lopez, Lawrence and Perez), with a couple of newer ones.

Cummingham will join SO RB Juah-Siblay Kolliegbo as the second St. Paul's player from MD. Cheaton is an interesting get as he'll be the only Hobart player from the state of DE on the roster.

That gets us up to 28 new Statesmen in the Class of 2030. Stay tuned for another group tomorrow - at least I suspect there will be at least one more, we shall see.

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Here Comes the Class of 2030 (Reprise) - Part III

Good morning, Statesmen fans and families! 

Here are the next seven incoming first year players, as posted this morning by Hobart Football HC Kevin DeWall '00. 

This group features at least one future Hobart player we caught back in June, as well as an apparent teammate to one we captured in February. A strong showing from the Tri-State area, plus a young man from Jacksonville, FL to mix things up a little. So far, this class has players from Texas, Florida, and North Carolina. 

Here's the latest group:

That gets us up to 21 new Statesmen for the Class of 2030, but I imagine we have at least 1-2 more groups to post about before this week is up. Stay tuned!

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Here Comes the Class of 2030 (Reprise), Part II

Another round of seven new Statesmen was released this morning with one familiar name (Magley) from earlier this year. A kicker from NC was an interesting get, as well as a lineman named Mania. 

Here's the next group in Coach DeWall's latest update:

Another strong group, bringing the Class to 14, so far. This one is a nice group from places Hobart has had success in the past - NJ, Boston area and Southern CT - along with the usual NYS group. 

More to come here on the recruiting front as I would expect another group tomorrow and likely into Thursday. 

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Here Comes the Class of 2030 (Reprise Edition), Part I

With only two weeks to go until fall preseason camp, Hobart Football HC Kevin DeWall '00 has taken to the app formerly known as Twitter to start introducing the new members of the Statesmen Class of 2030. 

Let's see who he's recognized, and we'll keep adding updates as we see them:

A strong group to start us off. I had previously tracked down the commitments from Watson and Regan, but the other five are new players to me. Very interested in the Milligan commitment. Hobart doesn't often get student athletes from Texas. 

More to come here on the recruiting front as I would expect another group tomorrow and likely into Wednesday or Thursday. 

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

More Moye's To Attend Hobart

Hope everyone is enjoying a happy and healthy summer. It's already pretty hot here in Florida and it's only June!

I was recently given a heads up that the Pingry School (NJ) SR QB Ryan Moye, younger brother of rising SO WR Jack Moye, will be coming to Hobart this fall as part of the Class of 2030.

Moye was a three-sport student athlete at Pingry, also playing basketball and baseball. You can check out his football highlight reel here. 

Moye had a record-breaking career on the gridiron for Pingry, passing for 4,389 yards, 50 passing TDs compared to only 15 INTs in his four years there. A dual threat, he also rushed for 956 yards and 13 rushing TDs over the same time period. 

Needless to say, he looks like he has the tools to be a QB of the future for the Statesmen, but time will tell as he adjusts to the college game. 

Please join me in welcoming Ryan to the Hobart College Football family. Great to have more Moye's on the team!

Thanks as always for reading, and go 'Bart!

Hunterdon Central's Mongno Says Yes to Statesmen

Hunterdon Central Regional HS (NJ) SR WR/FS James Mongno took to Instagram to announce this commitment to attending and playing football at Hobart College. 

Mongno appears to be a WR who can play slot or on the outside. He runs good routes and creates separation with the defense. You can check out his highlight reel here.

Please join me in welcoming James and the extended Mongno family to the Hobart College football one!

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

We're less than 100 days away from the 2026 season! 

Red Hook's Oji Signs with Statesmen

Red Hook HS (NY) recently posted on twitter / X feed that their graduating SR WR Brantley Oji officially committed to playing football at Hobart in a signing day ceremony last Wednesday.

 You can see Brantley flanked by his proud family and coaching staff in the photo below. 

Based on his Hudl film, Oji uses his height (6' 2") and long stride to create separation and outjump would be defenders. He definitely will cause some matchup problems for most D3 DBs.

Please join me in welcoming Brantley and the extended Oji family to the Hobart Football one!

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Webster-Thomas High's MJ Wells is Staying Close to Home with the Statesmen

Webster-Thomas HS (NY) SR RB/LB MJ Wells took to twitter recently to state that:

"I am excited to announce my commitment to Hobart to continue my academic and football journey. I would like to start by thanking my mom and my family for guiding me along the way and helping make the right the decision thank you. I would also like to thank my coaches as-well as teammates for helping me get better and motivating me to push through. Finally, I would like to thank the coaches at Hobart for believing me and giving me this opportunity to play at the next level."

With his hometown only about an hour away, MJ's family won't have to travel far to see his home games in Geneva. Standing 6' and weighing 200 lbs., MJ shows a lot of the skills we've come to expect from Statesmen LBers. You can see for yourself here. 

Please join me in welcoming MJ and the extended Wells family as the latest edition to the Hobart Football Class of 2030!

Thanks, as always, for reading and go 'Bart!