VIDEO: Coach Keith Otterbein previews the 2013 season
AFCA Division II Preseason Top 25 Poll
GLIAC Football Preview Central
August 26, 2013 - An old sports cliché goes something like "It's not how you start, it's how you finish." Finishing is one of the key themes for the 2013 Hillsdale College football team.
The 121st football team in the history of the college opens its newest season at home on Saturday, Sept. 7 against California of Pennsylvania, starting what is sure to be one of the most challenging schedules in all of NCAA Division II. This marks the first time since 2010 the Chargers will begin a season at home.
Hillsdale was selected to finish in fifth place in the GLIAC North Division in a poll of GLIAC coaches. The Chargers received one first-place vote. The poll, along with complete previews of the other 14 GLIAC football programs, can be found in the link at the top of this story.
After the non-conference game against Cal-Pa., Hillsdale heads on the road to face two GLIAC South Division opponents, Ohio Dominican and Malone University before returning home to face the University of Indianapolis for its annual homecoming game. Last year, Hillsdale played Notre Dame College in Week 4 of the regular season, and won 63-14. However, the Greyhounds figure to be a much tougher opponent, coming off a 2012 season that saw them easily win the Great Lakes Valley Conference and advance to the second round of the NCAA playoffs.
After playing Indy, the team begins running the gauntlet that is the GLIAC North Division. After a 10-hour trip to Marquette to play Northern Michigan, the Chargers fall into a pattern of two home, two away, then two home games to wrap up the regular season. Five of those six games will come against teams that finished .500 or better last season.
Hillsdale was part of a four-way tie for the GLIAC North Division crown a year ago, finishing with a 7-4 overall record and 7-3 in the conference. It was the sixth straight season Hillsdale has won at least seven games, the longest such streak for the program since the heyday of Hall of Fame coach Frank "Muddy" Waters in the 1950s and 1960s.
Head coach Keith Otterbein, now entering his 12th season leading his alma mater, said the ability to finish, whether it is a season, game, practice or drill, is something he is emphasizing to his team entering the new year.
"Finishing is something we have consistently addressed with our guys. We want to be a strong finishing football team," he said. "We're fortunate to have so many players back on this team that have played big roles in our success over the past few years. We're counting on them to lead the way for us."
The Chargers lost key players on offense, including all-time leading rusher Joe Glendening, two-year starting quarterback Anthony Mifsud, All-Conference center D.J. Loy, and All-American H-back Cam White. But four members of the offensive line return, led by three-year starters Tim Hornak, Nick Landry and Patrick Ryan.
All of the wide receivers are back, highlighted by senior Andrew Mott, junior Brett Miller and sophomore John Haley. Mott has led the team in receptions each of the past two seasons. Tight end Mike Carter is back for his second season as a starter, while sophomore Alex Fogt steps in as the team's new H-back. Fogt has a skill set reminiscent of White, and will play his biggest role on the field to date in 2013.
Stepping in as the starting quarterback is senior Sam Landry. A lefthander who has a strong
arm and excellent mobility, Landry was impressive in limited time on the field last year. Otterbein said Landry should fit into the team's offense seamlessly.
"Sam is a guy who can really throw the football and is hard to bring down when he gets into the open field," the coach said. "He gives us a lot of options back there."
With Glendening's departure, the starting tailback spot is up for grabs, with veteran Isaac Spence and redshirt-freshman Bennett Lewis entering fall practice high up on the depth chart at that position. Spence is a powerful between-the-tackles runner, while Lewis will look to make an impact in his first active season on the roster.
The defense returns nine of 11 starters from a year ago, including the entire front seven. Anchoring this unit are returning senior linebackers Steven Embry, Brett Pasche and Devin Moynihan. This group will enter their third season starting together in 2013, a true rarity for any position in college football. Pasche is the middle linebacker and has been named First-Team All-GLIAC twice. All three players are similar in size and skills, and have a combined 65 college starts between them.
The defensive line has featured a deep rotation of players in recent years, and everyone who received significant playing time last year is back. Otterbein said he is looking for big years from linemen such as Roger Stewart, Bryan Siegert and Tyler Jenks. Junior Joe Snyder emerged as a difference-maker in his first season as a starter in 2012, and will be another leader of the team at that position.
Seventy-five percent of the starting secondary returns, led by junior Daniel Pittman, who had a break-out 2012 campaign. Pittman led all secondary players on the team with 71 total tackles last year and earned GLIAC Defensive Player of the Week honors during the season. He'll be joined by returning starters Matt Payne and Tim Moinet, while senior Steve Harding makes a much-anticipated return after missing the entire 2012 season due to injury.
Junior punter Matt Eltringham returns for his third year starting, and was one of several Chargers to be named honorable mention All-GLIAC last year. He improved his punting average by five yards in 2012 compared to 2011, and figures to be a reliable weapon for the team, especially in close, low-scoring games where field position carries greater importance. Taking the place of three-year starting kicker Colin McGreevy is sophomore Steven Mette, with Paul Wendt backing him up.
In his 12th season, Otterbein is firmly entrenched in a spot as the dean of football coaches in the GLIAC. He has the longest continuous tenure as head coach of any football program in the conference, and when including his 60 wins at Ferris State from 1986-94, has the most career victories of any current head football coach in the GLIAC with 132.