There definitely will be some strangeness when the Hillsdale College football team takes the field on March 6 for the first official game played in the spring in Hillsdale's 128-year history of football.
But after a layoff of 476 days between games, the longest gap since World War II, the overwhelming emotion will be gratitude that the Chargers get to play at all, and compete for a championship, after so much uncertainty in the past year.
Hillsdale heads into an eight-game spring campaign that includes six G-MAC games looking to get back to the top of the conference after falling to fourth in the standings in 2019.
Fourth is exactly where the Chargers have been slotted at in the G-MAC Football Preseason Coaches Poll presented by Under Armour.
2019 champion Tiffin topped the poll with 34 points and four first-place votes, with Findlay in second with 28 points and two first place votes, and Ohio Dominican in third with 26 points and one first-place vote.
The Chargers enter the spring 2021 campaign coming off an up-and-down 2019 season. Hillsdale finished 6-5 and 4-3 in the G-MAC, and had the league's third best scoring offense (28.9 points per game), and fourth-best defense (23.9 points per game).
For the Chargers, improving upon that 2019 record and returning to conference title contention requires more consistency offensively, especially in the passing game. Sophomore quarterback Luke Keller had a solid first season for a freshman thrust into a starting role in 2019, passing for 2,113 yards and 16 touchdowns.
With a year under his belt as the starter, Keller will be looking to build on that promise and show improvements in accuracy and limiting turnovers, while creating more explosive plays in the passing game After a strong showing in fall practices, Keller seems poised to do just that.
Keller will have plenty of experienced weapons to throw to, as the Chargers return five of their top six receivers, led by senior Konnor Maloney, a second-team All-G-MAC player in 2019 who's eighth all-time in career receiving yardage for the Chargers and just outside the top 10 in both receptions and touchdowns.
Hillsdale does have holes to fill offensively with the graduation of tailback David Graham, who finished his career fifth on the Chargers' all-time rushing list, as well as three starters on the offensive line, including G-MAC Offensive Lineman of the Year Mark Konkle.
Several players will get a chance to win the tailback job and replace Graham, with sophomore Michael Herzog, who played at wide receiver last season, the closest to locking down the position after a strong fall camp.
Up front, Hillsdale will rely on its experienced junior guards, All-G-MAC honorable mention Cole Johnson and Jared Clark, to set the tone for a young but talented unit.
Defensively, Hillsdale must contend with some big losses from a unit that was more impactful than the raw numbers indicated in 2019.
Four of the Chargers' six leading tacklers move on, led by G-MAC Defensive Back of the Year Drake Temple, but the cupboard is far from bare for Hillsdale.
The Chargers return two impact players in the secondary in junior Zach Herzog, the Chargers' leading tackler in 2019 and a first-team All-G-MAC safety, and senior Alex Anschutz, a second-team All-G-MAC honoree and playmaker at Hillsdale's hybrid linebacker/safety Star position.
Up front, junior defensive tackles Nate Chambers and Joe Royer spearhead a line that should be more effective with better health in 2021. The Chargers are expecting big things from junior defensive end Kyle Parran, who looked poised for a breakout headed into 2019 but was limited by injuries for most of the season.
Kyle Kudla and Jonathon Burton step into the Chargers' starting linebacker roles after strong play in part-time action last season.
Special teams, always an emphasis for Hillsdale under Keith Otterbein, should be bolstered by the return of 2018 honorable mention All-G-MAC punter Jack Shannon, who missed all but one game last season with an injury. At kicker, true freshman Julian Lee will get the first crack at replacing graduated senior Bryce Sealock, a first-team All-GMAC kicker in 2019.
Lee is one of several true freshman who could play a bigger than normal role for freshmen this season for the Chargers. Thanks to the postponement of the season to the spring, the Class of 2024 got a full fall camp with Hillsdale, instead of the four weeks of practice they usually get in the fall before the season starts. That, plus a full semester in the weight room, has the freshmen far ahead of where they usually are at the start of the season and in a much better position to potentially contribute for the Chargers in 2021.
Hillsdale has five home games in the spring of 2021, starting with the March 6 non-conference contest against Saginaw Valley. The Chargers also host Gannon on April 17 in non-conference action, and have home games against G-MAC title contenders Findlay (March 13) and Tiffin (April 3), as well as Lake Erie (March 27).
You can find a complete schedule for the Chargers this spring here. Please note that times are subject to change for all of these games, so keep an eye on the calendar as the season approaches.
Due to restrictions imposed by the current Michigan Department of Health and Human Services mandates, we will not be selling general admission tickets at this time for our spring football contests. We will continue to evaluate our policies as the situation changes and mandates evolve. You can watch all Charger football games on the Great Midwest Digital Network at https://portal.stretchinternet.com/hillsdale/, and Hillsdale football is also broadcast locally on the radio at 99.5 FM The Dale and 101.7 FM Radio Free Hillsdale.
Great Midwest Football Preseason Coaches Poll Presented by Under Armour
1 - Tiffin (4 first-place votes) - 34 points
2 - Findlay (2 first-place votes) - 28 points
3 - Ohio Dominican (1 first-place vote) - 26 points
4 - Hillsdale - 25 points
5 - Walsh - 15 points
6 - Lake Erie - 10 points
7 - Kentucky Wesleyan - 9 points