A loss last week on the road damaged Hillsdale College's G-MAC title hopes, but the window is still open for the Chargers to give themselves a chance at a share of the crown with a strong performance over the final two weeks at home, beginning with Saturday's contest against Kentucky Wesleyan.
Saturday's game is also the Chargers' annual Military Appreciation Day, honoring veterans and active-duty military personnel who serve our country. There will be a pregame tailgate for all active and former service members at the Gridiron Pavilion outside of the Roche Sports Complex beginning at 11:30, and all veterans and active duty service members and their families can pick up complimentary tickets to attend Saturday's game at the tailgate. The Hillsdale College football team also will be collecting toy donations from attendees to support the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots Program at the game.
Schedule
Kentucky Wesleyan (3-6, 1-4 G-MAC) at Hillsdale College (4-5, 3-2 G-MAC) | 1 p.m. ET Saturday, Nov. 6 | Frank "Muddy" Waters Stadium | Hillsdale, MI
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Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Kentucky Wesleyan Roster | 2021 Hillsdale Stats | 2021 Kentucky Wesleyan Stats | G-MAC Schedule | G-MAC Standings | Game Notes
Last Game
The Chargers scored 17 straight points in the second half to storm back from a 25-0 deficit, but couldn't complete the comeback in a 28-17 loss on Saturday on the road at Ashland. Redshirt freshman tailback Logan VanEnkevort rushed for 65 yards and a touchdown, senior wide receiver Alec Foos added a nine-yard receiving touchdown from sophomore quarterback Garrit Aissen, and junior defensive end Kendall Tobin led the Charger defense with two sacks. Junior cornerback Mason Dooley also picked off a pass for Hillsdale in the fourth quarter to give the Chargers a chance at an improbable comeback.
Scouting the Opposition
While the record may not show it, there's no doubt Kentucky Wesleyan is bringing a much-improved team to Hillsdale this weekend and will give the Chargers a tougher test than their three previous meetings. The Panthers are just 3-6 overall but hung tough with MEC co-leader Frostburg State and GLVC leader Lindenwood in the non-conference portion of their schedule, and nearly pulled upsets of top-four G-MAC teams Ohio Dominican and Tiffin earlier this season.
Kentucky Wesleyan is a true passing spread team, with a base four-receiver set and 326 passing attempts to 243 rushing attempts on the year. Junior quarterback Christian Arrambide has thrown for nearly 2,000 yards and 17 touchdowns in eight starts, with receivers David Florence (598 yds, 7 touchdowns) and Chauncey Greer (590 yards, 5 touchdowns) both putting up big numbers.
Arrambide missed the Panthers' last contest against Lake Erie, with senior JaKwon Roberts starting in his place. Roberts was 21 of 40 for 233 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions against the Storm.
Junior Jatorian Dillard is the team's top rushing threat, going for 303 yards and three touchdowns on 78 carries.
Defensively, the Panthers have been middle of the pack in the G-MAC. Much like the Chargers, Kentucky Wesleyan has ceded yardage and struggled at times to keep opponents from scoring, but has made up for it with big plays, forcing 14 interceptions and recovering five fumbles. Cornerbacks Kishawn Walker and Shedrick Kirk have each picked off five passes on the year, while linebacker Jalen Humphrey leads the Panthers in tackles (77), tackles for loss (9) and sacks (3).
Kentucky Wesleyan has struggled with consistency in the kicking game. Kicker Chris Mangold is 4 of 8 on the year, though 3 for 4 at close range, and punter Micah Lackey is averaging just 36.8 yards per punt, though with a long of 61.
While the Panthers have been much more competitive overall, mistakes have cost Kentucky Wesleyan at times. The Panthers have thrown 18 interceptions, lost four fumbles and committed a G-MAC worst 68 penalties. A cleaner game on Saturday would be a big boost for Kentucky Wesleyan's chances.
The Panthers are coached by Craig Yeast, who has a 6-20 record in three years with the program. Yeast came to the Panthers after three seasons as offensive coordinator at Franklin University in Indiana, and also spend time as an assistant at Tiffin earlier in his career. A graduate of Kentucky University, Yeast played in the NFL with the New York Jets and also in the CFL with the Hamilton Tiger Cats.
The Series
The Chargers have dominated a short series with the Panthers to date, winning all three meetings by at least 27 points, including a 41-14 victory in 2019 in the two teams' most recent meeting. The series began on Sept. 30, 2017 with a 56-0 Hillsdale victory.
Other Notes
- Hillsdale returns 18 starters from the Spring 2021 season, as well as its kicker and punter, giving the team an exciting amount of experience to draw on. All three of Hillsdale's first team All-G-MAC honorees are back – offensive lineman Cole Johnson, defensive tackle Nate Chambers, and safety Zach Herzog – as well as 10 of the Chargers' 11 All-Conference players overall.
- The Charger secondary has been turning other teams over all season long, with a G-MAC and NCAA Division II-best 15 interceptions. Along with six fumble recoveries, Hillsdale's defense has 21 total takeaways this year, in the top 20 in the nation. Redshirt freshman Jackson Gillock is tied for sixth in the nation with five interceptions, and senior Joe Schneider is tied for 21st with four.
- Senior defensive tackle Nate Chambers is having a beastly season in his final go-around with Hillsdale this season. Chambers had 6.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss in his first three seasons combined entering the year, but in nine games he's added 6.5 more sacks and 11 tackles for loss to those totals, both marks that lead the G-MAC and place him inside the top 50 nationally in Division II in both stats.
- A standout for the previous three seasons for the Chargers, Alex Anschutz is making his final season his best yet. Hillsdale's STAR, a linebacker/safety hybrid position, is tied for fourth in the G-MAC in tackles (87), and is tied for 12 all of Division II in the stat. Anschutz is not the only Charger defender standing out – Zach Herzog, his teammate, is seventh in the G-MAC with 81 total tackles.
- Discipline and execution are always important for winning football games, and the Chargers have been one of the least penalized teams in the country this year. Their 36 penalties in nine games is the lowest in the G-MAC and tied for sixth lowest in the nation in Division II. Three of the five teams ahead of the Chargers in the stat have also played fewer games than Hillsdale has this season.
- The Charger football program brought home an impressive and historic award haul this summer. For the first time in program history, Hillsdale had three players earn CoSIDA Academic All-American honors – Johnson, senior safety Alex Anschutz and senior wide receiver Konnor Maloney, becoming just the sixth, seventh and eighth players in program history to receive the prestigious honor. All three return this fall. Additionally, 2021 graduate Joey Brenner was named the program's first G-MAC Scholar Athlete of the Year as well, and 79 of Hillsdale's 103 players posted a 3.0 or better GPA for the 2020-21 school year.
- The Charger football program has long been known for its strong family tradition, and that continues in 2021 with two sets of brothers in the starting lineup. Senior cornerback Matt Harding and sophomore tight end Michael Harding (Livonia, MI/Detroit Catholic Central) will start on opposite sides of the ball, following in the footsteps of older brother Steve Harding, who graduated from Hillsdale in 2014. On the offensive line, twin brothers Nick and Ben Affholter (Quincy, MI/Reading) will hold down the two guard spots. Both are the sons of Brad Affholter, a multi-year starter on the Charger offensive line in the mid-90s. There are two more sets of brothers on the team – Zach Herzog and his brother, Mike, a tailback, and Konnor Maloney and his brother Jacob, a defensive back. Additionally, H-back Calvin McNellie is joined by his brother, Carson, a student manager for the team in 2021.
- With 120 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.
