From Hopatcong to Hobart, Rogers Selects Statesmen

It's officially summer and that means we're only two months away from talking about preseason football. In meantime, here's some more news on incoming FY players...

The recruiting trail in New Jersey was a fruitful one for the Hobart College Statesmen this offseason. The latest commitment from the Garden State comes from Sussex County as Hopatcong HS SR DB/WR Stephen Rogers has decided to enroll at Hobart.

Stephen starred on a Chiefs team that finished the 2013 season with a respectible 6-4 overall record in the very competitive Northwest Jersey Athletic Conference. He finished the season with 21 tackles on defense and 325 receiving yards (23 catches or a 14.1 YPC) and three TDs as a receiver. Rogers also racked up 110 yards on kickoff returns (five total).

Rogers is tall (6'2") and runs a 4.5 40 yard dash. This combo of speed and wingspan is evident in his highlight reel. Stephen was selected to the Paul Robeson Classic, a NJHS All Star game that regularly features DI caliber talent. Rogers showed well, doing a great job covering Cedar Grove HS's David Njoku, a receiver who signed with Miami.

Off the gridiron Rogers competes in track, running the 110 HH (15.5) and clearing 6'2", 20'.25 and 40'10.75 in the high, long and triple jump, respectively.

Overall it appears like Rogers has potential to be an impact player as he adapts to the college game. It's certainly been a while since a Hobart CB was over 6', which will help in the playoffs against some of the large, rangy receivers from the midwest.

Please join me in welcoming "Captain America" Stephen Rogers to Hobart!

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Something Funny's Going On In Geneva....

Go Statesmen!

 

Hobart Appears in Two Preseason Polls, SRs Coleman and Marpet Named Preseason All-Americans

Although the 2014 season is still 90-some days away, the Sporting News and Lindys have already released their preseason Division III college football polls.

The Statesmen landed in the Top 20 in both, at #12 in the SNCFB and #17 in the Lindys publications, respectively. While I think the #12 ranking is a bit high given graduations of key players, somewhere between 12 and 17 is probably just right given last season's 10-1 record and the fact Hobart has 14 returning lettermen (not to mention the Class of 2015 has lost only one regular season game during their college careers).

SR DE Tyre Coleman and SR OL Ali Marpet were named to Lindys Preseason First All-DivIII teams. The only other Liberty League Player mentioned was RPI's SR PK Andrew Franks. Franks also earned First Team recognition as a kicker.

Coleman also earned a nod on the SNCFB preseason All-America squad.

While the D3football.com poll won't be released for two+ more months, the above publications are on news stands (and online) now if you want to study up on the upcoming season.

Thanks for reading and Go Bart!

Lakeland's Wallerstein Headed to Hobart

Lakelandfootball.net (Wanaque, NJ) reports that SR QB Adam Wallerstein has commited to attend Hobart College. A link to the article can be found here.

Wallerstein led the Lancers to a 7-3 overall record in 2013 passing for 1,902 yards with 28 passing and three rushing TDs. Wallerstein is good size at 6'3"and 200 lbs and has a strong - in five games he had TD passes over 50 yards - and an accurate - going 93 of 168 attempts or 55.5% - arm. He scored seven touchdowns in a game, an impressive feat chronciled here by NorthJersey.com.

Wallerstein, a co-captain of the Lancers, showed a lot of maturity and leadership after the game when he stated "how the offensive line protected me phenomenally and how my receivers and running backs helped me out throughout the game." Aside from being an excellent QB, Adam is an aspiring writer a skill he's sure to improve on at HWS.

Unless another recruit or transfer comes into camp, Adam will be the sixth QB on the Statesmen roster this fall. Last season Hobart brought in (rising) SO QBs Troy Anthony and Dillon Russo. If you have concerns that the Statesmen are stockpiling QBs, you should note that this is luxury most teams would like to have. Hobart's multiple QBs (e.g., a strong starter with a solid, if not equal backup) running the offense has been a winning formula for the Statesmen for several seasons when you consider:

2010 - Vella and Strang: Vella started all but the Union game which Strang won in 2OT, scoring six TDs
2011 - Strang and Olney: Strang started all but the NCAA playoff game which Olney threw for 200+ yards in a narrow 35-28 loss to then #3 Wesley
2012 - Strang and Olney: Strang started but Olney played a significant role in several games, especially in the NCAA playoffs
2013 - Conlan and Bayly: Conlan started all but Bayly appeared in nine games, passing for two TDs

This depth is a big reason for Hobart's recent run of three straight LL titles and playoff runs.

Please join me in welcoming Adam into the Statesmen Football family.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Trinity Pawling & Tappan Zee Star Letizia Selects Statesmen

I hope you and yours enjoyed a happy and healthy Memorial Day Weekend. I was tied up on the home and work front for a bit, so thanks to Sean McGlynn '01 for sending along this recruiting news.

Last week, Trinity Pawling School (Pawling, NY) released their 2014 football student athlete college selections. Of the 11 players on the team with plans to pursue athletics in college, PG RB/WR Joseph Letizia selected Hobart College. A link to the release can be found here.

Letizia will be at the least the third Statesmen with TPS ties on the team this fall. (Rising) SO LB Zach Thorton and SO OL Matthew Mancuso are also TPS alumni.

Letizia also played SS at TPS, but my guess is the coaching staff have him teed up to remain a RB. The Statesmen's roster currently has five RBs listed, which isn't a lot, especially considering Hobart's "I" style of offense.

Letizia originally hails from Rockland County, having starred in football at Tappan Zee.

Starred may be an understatement as Letizia racked up an incredible 4,234 yards, 56 touchdowns, and 367 points over his four year career, earning Player of the Year, All County and other awards.

Please see this article from the "Varsity Insider Sports Blog" for more information on Letizia's accomplishments.

Please join me in welcoming Joseph to the Hobart family. Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Statesmen Name Captains for 2014 Season

Hobart College Head Football Coach Mike Cragg announced that six rising SR Statesmen have been elected Captains for the 2014 season.

In the announcement he noted how this group of SRs has lost only ONE regular season game in the three prior seasons. Hobart also comes into 2014 as the three-peat defending Liberty League Champions.

The Co-Captains are listed below:

TE Mike Berkowitz - led Hobart with six receiving TDs
QB Patrick Conlan - started all 11 games at QB
OL Ali Marpet - All-American candidate and anchor of the OL
OLB Matt McGriff - vocal leader, 16 tackles and a pass break up
ILB Jake Price - contributed 48 tackles, good for fifth on the team
WR Troy Robinson - team high 366 receiving yards and four TDs

Please join me in congratulating these team leaders. It looks like the Statesmen are in good hands for 2014.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Woodgrove's Hoffer Coming to Hobart

Owen Gotimer of the Loudoun Sports News team reports that Woodgrove SR OLB Will Hoffer (Purceville, VA) will suit up for the Statesmen this fall. A link to the article can be found here.

Based on his highlight reel Hoffer shows good speed and discipline as an OLB. He scrapes well down the line of scrimmage to the ball and is a solid tackler. At 5'11" 210 he has good size but may need to work on developing his rush against the larger OL he'll face in college.

Barring other recruits coming in, Hoffer will be the third Statesmen player from VA (rising JR FB/TE Chris Holoman and rising SO PK Ethan Miller being the other two).

Please join me in welcoming Will into the Hobart family.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!