Schedule
Hillsdale College (0-2, 0-0 G-MAC) at Ashland (0-2, 0-0 G-MAC) | 7 p.m. ET Saturday, Sept. 16 | Jack Miller Stadium | Ashland, Ohio
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Hillsdale Roster | Ashland Roster | 2023 Hillsdale Stats | 2023 Ashland Stats | G-MAC Schedule | G-MAC Standings | Game Notes
Last Week
Hillsdale found itself in a deep early deficit to host Michigan Tech and couldn't rally to get back in the game despite a pair of touchdowns after halftime. The Chargers trailed 28-6 at halftime and although Hillsdale had more success offensively in the second half, Michigan Tech answered each score to stay ahead in a 45-20 victory. Michael Herzog had a second-straight game with over 100 rushing yards and scored a touchdown for Hillsdale, Garrit Aissen added a rushing touchdown, and Zachary Pardonnet and Logan VanEnkevort each recovered a fumble.
Scouting the Opposition
Records can be deceiving, and this is the case with the 2023 Ashland Eagles. An 0-2 start looks troubling until you look at who the Eagles have played in the first two weeks of the season – defending PSAC champion and D2football.com top 25-ranked Indiana (PA), 24-17, and two time defending national champion and top-ranked Ferris State, 38-28.
While no one can discredit the Eagles for those two losses, they do leave Ashland in a precarious position. With several tough games left in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference this season, the Eagles likely can only afford one more loss at most to still have any chance of making the NCAA DII Playoffs for the second straight year, and might have to run the table depending on how the rest of the region shakes out.
Still, the defending G-MAC champions were picked to repeat this season for a reason, and a sense of desperation could be just the motivation they need to get things in gear.
The strength of Ashland's offense is in the run game, as the Eagles return not one but two All-Conference level tailbacks in Gei'vonni Washington and Larry Martin. Arguably the best one-two punch in the G-MAC, the pair rushed for 1,706 yards and 16 touchdowns last season, and while they've gotten off to a slow start in 2023, that was against two of the best defenses at the Division II level. Washington and Martin are running behind an offensive line that graduated two first-team All-G-MAC starters from 2022 but returns two cornerstones in 2022 G-MAC Freshman of the Year Ethan Enders and fellow sophomore Nick Walker.
Last year's backup, Trevor Bycznski, has taken over as the starting QB for the Eagles. It's been a somewhat rocky start for the junior, who's completing just 51.7% of his passes so far, but those numbers have come against two elite defenses. Byczinski has a dynamic outside threat to throw to in senior Ferris St. transfer Dezmin Lyburtus, and Jent Joseph and Jake McLoughlin also get plenty of targets for Ashland.
Much like the offense, Ashland enters the season with big holes to fill on defense after the graduation of 2022 G-MAC MVP Michael Ayers and others, but plenty of talent returns for the Eagles to build around. Up front, 2022 All-G-MAC honoree Deeb Alawan and Youngstown State transfer Chris Julian lead a gifted unit, while Jackson Myers is an important holdover for a linebacker unit that lost two excellent starters to graduation. In the secondary, Ashland returns two strong cover corners with starting experience in Devin Prude and Jovohn Sewell, but are breaking in two new starters at the safety position.
Ashland returns an experienced kicker in All-G-MAC honoree A.J. Rhodes, who will look to get back on track after a shaky start that included going 1 for 3 in the first two games. Byczinski and sophomore Jaden Cook have split the punting duties, combining to average 35.7 yards per punt, while Riely Weiss and Lyburtus are the primary return men for the Eagles.
Doug Geiser is in his first year as head coach for Ashland, succeeding legendary Eagles head man Lee Owens in the position after 19 years with the Eagles as an associate head coach and offensive line coach, among other duties. A 1992 graduate of Cornell University, Geiser followed Owens to Ashland from Division I Akron, where Geiser spent nine seasons as an assistant coach.
The Series
Hillsdale renewed a dormant rivalry with Ashland in 2021 after the Eagles joined the G-MAC, with the two teams trading wins in the last two years. The Chargers won the most recent contest, upsetting sixth-ranked Ashland 36-20 at home in 2022 and handing the eventual G-MAC title-winning Eagles their only regular season loss. The Chargers have a 26-20 edge in a series that dates back to 1970, with the two schools competing for the Traveling Trophy on a yearly basis since that first game.
Other Notes
- Senior tailback Michael Herzog is off to a great start in 2023, putting up back-to-back 100 yard games on the ground to open the campaign, with both coming against excellent run defenses. Herzog had a breakout season last year, putting up 940 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground and earning first team All-G-MAC honors. Now, he's aiming to be the first Chargers running back to go over 1,000 yards in a season since All-American David Graham in 2019. The dynamic back gets plenty of help up front, running behind an experienced offensive line that returns all five starters from last season's squad, led by All-G-MAC center Nick Affholter.
- The Traveling Trophy game between Hillsdale and Ashland grew out of a shared tie between the two schools in the form of Hillsdale College graduate Donald R. Mossey. A World War II veteran from Elkhart, Indiana, Mossey graduated from Hillsdale College in 1951 after starring as a guard on the Charger football team. Mossey went on to become an incredibly successful entrepreneur in several fields, and played an important role on both the Seminary Board at Ashland University, where he served for nearly 40 years, and on Hillsdale College's Board of Trustees from 1966 until his passing in 2010. The Traveling Trophy between the two schools was originally dedicated in his honor, and the tradition persists to this day.
- Junior captain Riley Tolsma was a revelation in 2022, becoming Hillsdale's most effective pass rusher at defensive end in his first full season as a starter with team highs in sacks (7.5) and tackles for loss (11). Tolsma's 7.5 sacks were the most by a Charger in a single season since current Los Angeles Ram Zach VanValkenburg had 8.5 in 2018. The junior will be a major player up front for the Chargers in 2023 along with veteran nose tackle Zachary Tokie and defensive end Trevor DeGroote, both of whom played significant roles in 2022.
- 2018 graduate Zach VanValkenburg made his NFL debut with the Los Angeles Rams as a linebacker this past weekend, seeing the field in the Rams' 30-13 win over the Seattle Seahawks. VanValkenburg was the G-MAC Defensive Lineman of the Year in 2018 while leading the Chargers in sacks and helping Hillsdale win a 2018 G-MAC title and make the NCAA DII Playoffs. After graduating from Hillsdale, VanValkenburg went on to play two seasons at the University of Iowa while getting his masters degree. He was signed by the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022 but did not make the final roster. In January, he was signed by LA and made the 53-man roster for the 2023 season in August, becoming the first Charger since Jared Veldheer's retirement in 2021 to appear in an NFL game last Sunday.
- The Charger football program continued to shine academically this past season, with five players earning College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors, including Harding and Tolsma. In addition, 51 Hillsdale football players received Academic All-G-MAC honors for posting a 3.3 or better cumulative GPA through the spring 2023 semester.
- The Charger football program has long been known for its strong family tradition, and that continues in 2023 with multiple sets of brothers on the roster. On the offensive line, twin brothers Nick Affholter and Benjamin Affholter (Quincy, MI/Reading) will hold down interior line spots for the third straight season, and are joined on the roster by younger brother Zac Affholter, a true freshman lineman. All three are sons of Brad Affholter, a multi-year starter on the Charger offensive line in the mid-90s and an assistant coach with the team in 2023. There are several other sibling duos on the team – twin brothers Josh Lee and Sam Lee (Toledo, OH/Central Catholic) return as sophomores this season, as do junior tight end Ben Hinrichs and his younger brother, Christian (Escondido, CA/Classical Academy). Also in 2023, Hillsdale sophomore wide receiver Corban Creason (Coppell, TX/Founders Classical Academy) is joined by his younger brother, Christian, and sophomore offensive lineman John VanOpstall (Jenison, MI/Jenison) is joined by his younger brother, Chris. Along with those sibling pairs, several other players on the roster have older brothers, fathers or grandfathers who suited up for previous Charger teams.
- Hillsdale's longest-tenured assistant coach received a prestigious honor in the offseason as Offensive Coordinator Nate Shreffler was named the American Football Coaches Association's NCAA DII Assistant Coach of the Year for 2022. Shreffler is entering his 25th season with the Chargers and was recognized for both his outstanding contributions to Hillsdale's success on the field, and his work running the Chargers' "Guys With Ties" program that helps teach elementary school kids confidence and proper etiquette through interactions with players on the football team.
- With 127 wins to date, Otterbein is third all-time in career coaching victories at Hillsdale, trailing two Charger Athletics Hall of Famers in Frank "Muddy" Waters (138) and Dick Lowry (134). If he maintains his current career pace of wins per season, Otterbein would pass Waters for the all-time record in the fall of 2024.