Week 3 - Moravian Game Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen head back to the Boz for another new opponent, the Moravian Greyhounds of the Landmark Conference (formerly of the Centennial). Moravian (1-1) is coming off an impressive 18-13 win over a good Utica (1-1) team. The Greyhounds were down 13-0 at the half but rallied in the fourth quarter to get the win. 

Scouting the Greyhounds

Moravian is led on offense by SR QB Jared Jenkins. He is an accurate passer with a strong arm but doesn't seem like much of a rushing threat. Over the past two weeks, he's gone 42-63 for 488 yards, 3 TDs and an INT.

Jenkins' favorite target appears to be GR WR Jordan Bingham. The Indianapolis native leads the Greyhounds with 15 catches for 132 yards. Californian SR WR Diego Del Castillo has a team high 172 receiving yards on 9 catches and 2 receiving TDs. 

Shown above is GR RB Joey Richmond, a big (5' 10" and 220 lbs.) back who caught and ran in the game winning TD pass against Utica. He's rushed for 46 yards on 11 carries. He shares carries with JR RB Isiah Rico (21 carries for 59 yards) and backup FY QB Declan McCarthy, who's rushed for 48 yards on 7 carries (he's attempted two passes with one completion also). 

The Greyhound's defense is led by SR DB Chad Newhard with 16 total tackles and a TFL. JR LB Clay Basile is second with 14 tackles and 2 TFL. The Hobart OL will have their hands full with FY LB/DE Malachi McNeil-Harrison. He stands 6' 5" and has three sacks, three TFLs and an INT on the season already.

It appears that Moravian is a bit inexperienced on special teams. FY PK Ryan Child missed two PATs last Saturday and has yet to attempt an FG this season. Opponents have also racked up a decent amount of kickoff return yards (Muhlenberg had a 100-yard KOR for a TD in Week 1) against the Greyhounds, but not much in the punt return department.

Keys to the Game:

1. Stick to the Script: The Hobart defense will need to keep an eye on the Moravian deep threats, and if the offense can build on the passing game, leveraging their TEs, they can keep this Greyhound defense on their heels. On offense the Statesmen can lean on the run game to kill the clock and shorten the game.

2. Explosive Plays: Moravian has shown themselves to be weak on special teams and prone to giving up explosive plays on defense. Hobart should look to take a few shots early in this one and work field position to their advantage, assuming the defense keeps the Greyhounds stuck in a lot of 3 and outs.

3. Win One for the Gipper: Coach Cragg will be honored as part of this game and so I expect some alumni and former Statesmen players to be there to cheer him and the team on. 

Prediction:

We know Hobart has only scored 17 points in the first two weeks of the season, and that may not be enough to get by this Moravian team. I think at home on a nice fall Saturday, Hobart will get things going offensively and may even get a special teams or defensive TD. I'll take the Statesmen in another close one, 20-14.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Hobarts Loses OT Heartbreaker in Virginia, 14-7

The Hobart College Statesmen took #8/9 ranked Randolph-Macon to the wire, dropping a game they had a chance to win in the final seconds. The Statesmen (1-1) defense looked like a Top 10 unit, stuffing the Yellow Jackets (2-0) all day. Hobart held the Yellow Jackets to 206 total yards but came up short on a game winning field goal from 33 yards out.

The Statesmen defense kept RMC in check, forcing them to punt 11 times in the game (4-15 on third down). Still, the D1 transfer QB Dante Casciola had a good game, finding Landon Farriss in the back corner of the end zone on a fourth down in overtime from 17-yards out for the game winning TD.

There was some controversy with the finish, something Frank and I will discuss on the next In the D3FB Huddle show, as SR QB Johnny Columbi appeared to have gained a first down in the OT possession for Hobart, but a fumble was ruled, then reversed by the officials. They called the game when it may not have been over.

Either way, it was a fantastic effort for Hobart who showed a lot of grit in this tough loss to a great program. With other teams in the Liberty League struggling and Ithaca starting 0-2, things are looking up for the Statesmen. Still, Moravian beat a strong Utica team yesterday, 18-13, so Hobart needs to focus on Week 3 and not look ahead to league play.

I'll have more on that game soon.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

Never Forget

On this 23rd anniversary of the attacks of September 11, 2001, I wanted to recognize former Hobart College football player and alumnus Andy Glokin '93 as well as fellow grads Scott Rohner '01 and Michael Simon '83, P '11 who lost their lives that unfortunate day.

HWS did a nice piece on their website commemorating and remembering this tragic event back in 2021.

I'd also like to recognize the Toyen family, who lost their daughter and sister Amy in the attacks. She was the younger sister of my Avon High School classmate, Heather.

Never Forget.

Week 2 - Randolph-Macon Game Preview

The Hobart College Statesmen will make one of their longest road trips in sometime, travelling over 425 miles and seven-plus hours to take on the #9 Randolph-Macon College Yellow Jackets. This will be the first ever meeting between these two schools.

RMC (1-0) is the defending Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) championship and coming off a national semifinal run and 13-1 mark in the 2023 season. The Yellow Jackets have been one of the best programs in the nation in recent years. They have a 56-8 overall record (.875) going back to the 2018 season.

Scouting RMC

This season the Yellow Jackets had to reload at several key positions but seem to have done so quite well. The Jackets used their opportunistic defense to blow past Dickinson (0-1) last Saturday by a 47-21 margin. Their new starter, SR QB Dante Casciola, was efficient in his debut, going 12-17 passing for 162 yards. He scored on a rushing TD and a three-headed backfield of SR RB Kwesi Clarke, JR WR Jason Moore (who also had 94 receiving yards) and JR RB Cameron Chatmon rushed for a combined 168 yards and 4 TDs on 31 carries.

Defensively the Jackets were led by JR LB Neftali Reyes with 10 total tackles. The RMC forced four turnovers (2 INTs and 2 FRs) to help rally their team after falling behind 14-7 going into the third quarter.

The Jackets have three specialists including SR PK Kyle Ihle (2-2 FG, 5-6 PATs), SO K/P Jordan Etz who averaged 45 yards punting and JR KO Tyler Graham, who had a busy day on KOs, with 9 averaging 48.2 YPKO. There wasn't much from a PR or KOR game against Dickinson to write much there. That said Hobart is always strong in ST coverage, so I don't view this as an important aspect of this game. 

Keys to the Game:

1. First Down Offense: Hobart (1-0) was terrible on first down in last Friday's game. Needless to say, on the road at a nationally ranked opponent, they have to do better and not always have 2nd and 10's.

2. Protect the Football: Dickinson was winning the game last week until turnovers did them in. RMC is clearly opportunistic, and SR CB Coleton Payne's pick six was the beginning of the end for the Red Devils. 

3. Nothing to Lose: In the grand scheme of things, while a win would be amazing, a loss here won't wreck the Statesmen's season nor really impact their playoff chances given the new NPI system. Win or lose, Hobart controls its destiny in what really feels like a wide-open Liberty League. I saw Union and RPI in person last weekend and watched most of the Johns Hopkins-Ithaca game. The Bombers still seem like the team to beat, but either way, a 9-1 (or 8-2 via a tiebreaker) Liberty League champion seems very likely. 

Prediction:

While I'd love to predict a Hobart upset that would shock the nation, I just don't think this young, inexperienced team is ready to pull that off. I'd rather see them execute better and gear up for what the real biggest game of the season is, Week 5 at home vs. Ithaca. RMC isn't a huge team, but they are skilled, well-coached and quick. I just hope we see a better offensive effort from the Statesmen from an execution standpoint, otherwise this could be a long game. The defense can keep us in it, but they will need some special teams and offensive plays to avoid being worn down.

Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart! 

Statesmen Survive Season Opener Scare by the Saxons, 10-7

The Hobart College Statesmen had the home crowd on the edge of their seats last Friday night, having to overcome offensive struggles, missed scoring opportunities, and enduring a couple of weather delays in order to beat Alfred University, 10-7.

Along with my recap below, you can check the HWSAthletics release and the Finger Lakes Times recap here also. 

JR LB Mike McGhee would save the day with a game winning interception and the home team would escape with a win. Hobart (1-0) went 1-8 on first down passing plays and really struggled to move the ball against a tough Saxons (0-1) defense. The Statesmen would eventually rack up 328 total yards, but scoring chances were few and far between. Hobart went 2-11 on third down and were flagged nine times for -76 yards, which didn't help.

On a more positive note, SO RB E.J. Taylor had an excellent debut as a starter, gaining a career high 159 rushing yards on a game high 19 attempts. He broke a 72-yard run at the start of the 4th quarter which finally got the Statesmen on the scoreboard thanks to a SR PK Tobias Wefering 26-yard FG to make it, 7-3 Alfred, with 11:04 remaining in the game. 

The Statesmen defense would hold Alfred on the ensuing possession, but the Saxons would return the favor, sacking SR QB Johnny Columbi for a 10-yard loss to the Statesmen 43- yard line. SR DB Chris Ntumba would recover the ball on the muffed punt return by Alfred, setting the offense back up at the Saxons 26-yard line.

Columbi would eventually call his own number and rush for the go-ahead TD with 1:52 remaining. You know the rest.

A couple of FY players had big contributions in the win as FY WR Johnny Harding would lead the team with four catches for 35 yards. FY WR Luke Hansen hauled in two passes for 40 yards as well.

SO DL Billy Brosko (a transfer from Drexel), helped the Hobart defense with seven tackles and two TFL. SR LB Jamien Bliss led the defense with eight stops and a TFL.

Up next for Hobart will be nationally ranked and defending ODAC Champions, Randolph-Macon College, who had a big 47-21 over Dickinson on Saturday. 

More on that one in the coming days. Thanks as always for reading and go 'Bart!

Week 1 - Alfred Game / Season and Home Opener Preview

The 130th season of Hobart College Football is set to get underway on Friday night, September 6th with a 7 PM kickoff against the Alfred University Saxons. This will be the 81st installment of this series that dates all the way back to 1902. Hobart has a 42-35-4 overall lead and has won the last 13-straight against their nearby Empire 8 foes.

The Saxons are coming off of a 4-6 season in 2023 and Alfred hasn't been an over-.500 team dating all the way back to 2018, when they went 7-4 overall. Last season Hobart jumped out to a commanding 24-0 lead before cruising to a 31-9 win over the Saxons. 

Scouting the Saxons

I don't believe the Empire 8 released a preseason poll like the Liberty League has, but they did produce a preview / overview for fans to read. 

Here are some of the highlights from the Alfred capsule:

• 70 players, including 16 starters return. 
• Senior linebacker and co-captain Joe Copp returns. He led the Empire 8 with 122 tackles (58 solo, 64 assisted) and was third nationally with 12.2 tackles per game to go along with 9.5 tackles for a loss and three sacks. Copp has 357 tackles in his collegiate career. 
• Four all-conference selections return in addition to Copp, including first team defensive lineman Danny Quinones, third team defensive back Adam Mietz and two-time All-E8 selection, running back Max Freeman IV and wide receiver Dion Anderson, on the offensive side. 
• Fellow upperclassmen Gavin Bartholomew, Carter Fronk, Tommy Welch, Roque Santiago, Luke Atlas, and TJ Marsh LB will look to play a greater role in 2024.

You can read more about the Empire 8 in their preview here. Alfred also published their own preview, which you can review here. 

So far, the Statesmen have scrimmaged both Brockport and Cortland, basically the top two teams in that conference. The results of those scrimmages, depending on how you look at them, can be somewhat concerning. The Hobart offense didn't score much, and one of the E8 coaches I texted with was complimentary of the defense, but basically said the offense needs more speed and a WR who can win 1:1, which isn't encouraging. 

That said I expect a defensive, lower scoring game on Friday night. 

Keys to the Game:

1. Win the LOS - The strength of the Hobart offense this year should be an experienced and big OL. Establishing a strong running game and moving the sticks on first and second down will be important. I expect the Saxons to stack the box and effectively dare the Statesmen to throw the ball, so some play-action and/or RPO calls could be helpful. 

2. Look for 88 - If the WRs still need time to develop, the return of SR TE Luke Hescock from injury could be a much-needed outlet for the Hobart passing attack. Standing 6' 5" and 230 lbs., Hescock is a big target that Alfred will struggle to match up well against. 

3. Do Your Thing on Defense - Since renewing this rivalry back in 2021, the Statesmen defense has only allowed 3, 6 and 9 points in the last three games against the Saxons. This stingy approach should help carry the Hobart offense as they form their identity and game plan. 

Prediction:

I think Hobart will see SR PK Tobias Wefering kick a few FGs, the defense will have some big plays and SO RB E.J. Taylor should find the end zone at least once, so I'll take the Statesmen to win this one, 23-10.

Thanks for reading and go 'Bart!

The Hobart College Football 2024 Season Preview

The 130^th season of Hobart College Football is almost here!

The Statesmen are coming off an 8-3 overall 2023 campaign that had its share of ups and downs. With a number of Liberty League teams graduating a lot of key talent, an expanded 40-team NCAA playoff field and a favorable home “Boz” schedule, many Hobart fans are hopeful this is the year the Statesmen finally return to the top of the league and back into the playoffs.

The Statesmen have 38 lettermen returning along with a big (48 player) incoming recruiting class. I expect we will see a lot of familiar faces in key roles, with a few newcomers making contributions this 2024 season.

Let’s take a look at Team 130 starting off with what was the strength of the 2023 team, the:

DEFENSE

Hobart will have to replace around half of the defensive starters from last season after the graduations of DE Connor Gunn, DT Caleb Pulver, CB Abdoulaye Diallo, and SS Joe McCoy. JR CB Mekhi Rodgers opted to transfer out, moving closer to his hometown of Philadelphia and enrolling at Saint Francis University which is a NEC Division I program. We wish him the best. While not technically a transfer, Gunn decided to use his final year of eligibility as a GR player at Johns Hopkins. The defending Centennial Conference champions come into 2024 as the 8^th ranked team in the D3football.com preseason Top 25. Also opting out of his final year of eligibility was DE Alex Karpawich. He was a big contributor to the defense last year and will be missed.

Coming back will be a core group of outstanding players including SR LB Anthony Romano, SR LB Jamien Bliss, JR LB Mike McGhee, SR LB Cashon Young, SR LB Vincent Giordano and JR FS Alex Smith. The hard-hitting LB group accounted for 262 total tackles, 24 TFL, 7.5 sacks, and four INTs. Smith added 34 tackles as well as a TFL and INT in 2023.

Filling in for the Statesmen DL will likely be JR DE Dante Randle, who rotated in a good deal last year, as well as JR DL Nick Provenzano to take over at NT/DT. Three other DEs will be competing for the third and final DL starting role, so we’ll have to wait and see how preseason camp shakes out. One name to keep an eye out for is FY DL Bill Brosko.

In the secondary we should see SR DB Chris Ntumba take one of the starting CB roles. SO DB Zeshan Dixon is expected to compete for the other starting CB role with some incoming FY players. At safety, SR DB Zac Ambielli rotated in at FS last season, so he should be ready to replace McCoy as the starter here.

OFFENSE

The returning offensive starters include SR QB Johnny Colombi, SR OL Ethan Kowalski, JR OL Ashton Mejias, JR OL Ben Goodell, and JR OL Quinn Broggy. Coming back after missing 2023 due to injury is former starting SR TE Luke Hescock.

While the explosiveness and versatility of Rayshawn Boswell and Tim Denham, Jr. will be missed, Hobart is looking for “the next man” up to fill in their large shoes. SO RB E.J. Taylor (named the offensive rookie of the year by the team) was productive in a backup role last season, rushing for 333 yards and three TDs. He made three catches for 25 yards and one TD also. There could be a few others who get looks at the RB spot over the course of the season.

The RBs will benefit from an experienced OL that’s bringing back four starters. While it’s possible you could see some movement of the lineup with the graduation of former center Matt Seigel ‘24, I would expect these four players be the foundation of the team this season. Right now, it’s possible JR OL Quinn Broggy could take the center job, meaning there would be a competition for the fifth and final tackle spot on the OL.

Adding to the experience on the OL, is a strong TE corps that’s complimented not only by Hescock’s return but also strong and experienced players like JR TE Lukas Ruby, SR TE Kevin Christ and SR TE Ryan Hinman.

Going into preseason camp, the WR position is wide open. SR WR Rane Daramola opted to transfer out, so it will be SO WR Marcus Crowell and JR WR Ahmad Crowell returning with the most experience. Also in the mix will be SR WR Christian Donnelly, GR WR Benjamin Farrell, and JR WR Anthony Ruscetta looking to contribute. We could also see two to three incoming FY players step in quickly also. Overall, the WR group should be deeper and more competitive after these Statesmen get some more game experience.

I believe improving upon last season’s 1800-yard passing/receiving yards performance will be critical to Hobart’s success in 2024. Last year, the Statesmen ended up being ranked fifth in the LL (only Buffalo State and Saint Lawrence had lower yardage totals), and the Hobart’s 11 receiving TDs was sixth (second to last) in the league.

The Statesmen’s experience on the OL and a younger, and hopefully healthier RB group could pay dividends as Hobart has not broken the 2,000 yards rushing mark since the 2021 season.  

SPECIAL TEAMS

SR PK Tobias Wefering returns after a successful 2023 season where he led the LL in FG percentage (11-14 or 78.6%) and finished in second place with a 40.8 YPP net average, leading the LL with eight punts over 50 yards.

JR PK Vicente Lyons is back after missing the prior season. He was Hobart’s starting punter in 2022, averaging 37.53 YPP with a long of 73 yards and dropping 12 punts inside the opposition’s 20-yard line. 

I suspect we'll see a number of newer Statesmen audition take over the KO and PR duties now that Boswell and Denham, Jr. have graduated. GR WR Benjamin Farrell did have a team-high seven PRs and SO RB E.J. Taylor was second on the team with seven KORs in 2023. 

SCHEDULE

The Statesmen look to maintain their home field advantage at the “Boz” with a couple of critical league contests, as well as welcoming a new opponent to Geneva in 2024. Since HC Kevin DeWall ’00 took over the program, the Statesmen have had an impressive 21-2 record at home.

This year the Statesmen will open up under the lights at home against long-time Empire 8 and local rival, Alfred University on Friday night, September 6^th. Week 2 features a big matchup against the defending ODAC champions and national semifinalists, Randolph Macon. It will be one the longest road trips (425+ miles) the Statesmen have made in recent memory. Week 3 has Moravian University coming to Geneva for the first time ever, followed by another trip to Keystone College (PA) in Week 4.

Week 5 is the LL opener against Ithaca. The Bombers are enjoying a six-game winning streak over Hobart that dates back to 2017. A win against Ithaca in this game at home would go a long way for the confidence of the players and put Hobart in a great position to make it to the NCAA playoffs for the first time since 2016.

Week 6 is a short road trip to Buffalo State followed by a Week 7 trip up to Canton, NY to take on Saint Lawrence. In Week 8 the Statesmen will welcome former QB Coach and OC Jon Drach, who’s the newly minted HC at Union. This is another big game, as it’s Hobart’s second oldest rivalry (this will be the 103^rd game in the series), with five of the last seven games have been decided by a TD or less. The Statesmen’s last home loss to the Dutchmen, now the “Garnet Chargers,” goes back all the way to 2008.

Week 9 presents another tough challenge as Hobart will travel to Troy, NY to take on the RPI Engineers in what could be a potential LL Championship game scenario. Week 10 will be a late bye week to help Hobart gear up for their Week 11, regular season finale and Senior Day against Rochester.

With a combination of focus, determination, and a little bit of health and luck, this Statesmen football squad has a great opportunity to return Hobart back into the national conversation and playoff picture. It will require stronger overall play from the offense, which has been hampered by inexperience and injuries in prior seasons, and the defense maintaining their aggressive, turnover-causing style with some great special teams play mixed in.

 I feel very confident that this could be a special season for the Statesmen, but as the old adage goes, they will just have to do their best to go 1-0 every week and see how it stacks up by November. It would be really nice to knock off some old rivals along the way. We will see.

 Thanks for reading and go ‘Bart!