As the winningest football program in NCAA Division III history, Wittenberg University always has high expectations. In 2004, those expectations may be elevated -even for Wittenberg.
That's because 17 starters and 43 letterwinners are expected to be back in the fold when practice opens in August. After making a great run of six straight NCAA Division III Tournament appearances and winning five consecutive North Coast Athletic Conference championships between 1997 and 2001, the Tigers reloaded in 2003. Young, unproven players received ample playing time in an 8-2 season that would have been top-notch by most standards.
But Wittenberg football doesn't live by most standards, and Head Coach Joe Fincham - he of the 81-11 record in eight seasons - doesn't merely expect winning seasons. He coaches for championships, and he hopes to have the pieces in place to win some more in 2004.
Offensively, the Tigers took some graduation hits, but they will most assuredly be explosive once again. After averaging 43.2 points per game compared to 17.4 for their opponents the Tigers return their leading receiver, top three rushers, quarterback and three offensive linemen. Wideout Jered Glover (Middletown, Ohio/Middletown), a junior, has led Wittenberg in receiving each of his first two seasons, and he already ranks among the top 10 in school history in catches and receiving yards. He is unquestionably the go-to guy in 2004 after sharing the spotlight the Skip Ivery, an NCAA track champion and one of the top five receivers in school history, the last two years.
Senior quarterback Ryan Holmes (Oxford, Ohio/Talawanda) is the incumbent under center. After completing 58.4 percent of his passes for more than 1,700 yards in his first season as a starter, Holmes will be pressed for playing time in 2004 by sophomore Chris Clark (Springfield, Ohio/South) and junior George Andress (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior), a pair of highly touted signal-callers. Andress served as the top back-up a year ago and completed 24-of-33 passes for 253 yards and four touchdowns in mop-up duty.
The running back position is also loaded for the 2004 season, starting with three-year starter and two-year All-NCAC selection Raymar Hampshire (Lima, Ohio/Elida). He moved from fullback to tailback three weeks into the 2003 season and wound up carrying the load, finishing with 895 yards and 15 touchdowns on 139 carries, good for a whopping 6.4 yards per carry average. Hampshire's blocking back in 2003 was sophomore Tyler Harmon (Indianapolis, Ind./Perry Meridian), who finished with 468 yards rushing and 109 yards receiving and eight touchdowns combined. Backing them up was sophomore Joe Brumfield (Springfield, Ohio/Kenton Ridge), who ranked second on the team with 510 rushing yards and five TDs. Those three returnees will be joined by Tristan Murray (New Carlisle, Ohio/Tecumseh), a transfer from NCAA Division I-AA Brown, where he was a part-time starter. Murray was the Springfield area prep Player of the Year in 2001 and a state champion wrestler at nearby Tecumseh High School.
Tyler Harmon had a big freshman season for the Tigers.
On the offensive line, the Tigers lose two-time All-American Chad Thompson and two-year starter Andrew Wheeler, but a strong core of talent remains. Leading the charge will be 2003 Honorable Mention All-America choiceBrad Kassner (Circleville, Ohio/Circleville). He will be joined by returning starters Corey Chatman (Mansfield, Ohio/Senior), a senior, andJake Kallgren (Cincinnati, Ohio/Madeira), a junior. Six other players who earned 2003 varsity letters are expected back to battle for the two remaining spots.
Turning to the defensive side of the ball, just two starters are lost to graduation, and 21 letterwinners are back to compete for playing time in 2004. The top returning players are All-NCAC junior cornerback Mike Freeman (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne) and All-NCAC junior safety Yusef Abdul-Zahir (Canton, Ohio/McKinley). They are joined in a solid defensive backfield by junior cornerback Brandon Slade (Louisville, Colo./Monarch), the team leader in interceptions with six in 2003, and sophomore safety Mitch Fonseca (Miami, Fla./Christopher Columbus), who ranked among the team leaders in tackles in his first collegiate season.
The linebacking corps loses two starters, but five letterwinners return to compete for three open spots. Sophomores Serge Thebaud (Naples, Fla./Gulf Coast) andDevon Combs (Columbus, Ohio/South) and junior Anthoni Fazio (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Chagrin Falls) all started at least two games in 2003 as injuries forced the Tiger coaching staff into a game of musical chairs. They will go into preseason camp as the odds-on favorites to man the three linebacker spots in Wittenberg's traditional 4-3 alignment.
Plenty of experience returns along the defensive line, starting with All-NCAC seniorJarrett Brown (Columbus, Ohio/St. Charles), already a two-year starter. He teams with junior Clinton Tiggs (Huber Heights, Ohio/Wayne) in the interior to provide excellent rush defense. On the outside, junior Matt Stechschulte (Columbus Grove, Ohio/Columbus Grove) took over at one end spot halfway through the 2003 season and sophomore Willie Jordan (Canal Winchester, Ohio/Canal Winchester) was a standout in his first collegiate campaign. Three other letterwinners are due back along the line, including senior Chris Vennefron (Somerville, Ohio/Edgewood), who started several games in 2003.
The special teams take a hit with the departure of Conrad Hindert, who handled kicking and punting chores in 2003 and set a record for consecutive extra points (39). But senior Jacob Thomas (New Albany, Ohio/New Albany) is back for another go-around after missing all but one game in 2003 with a broken leg. He was the team's kicker and punter in 2002 and has already earned two varsity letters.
2003 Record 8-2
NCAC Record 4-2 (t-2nd)
Letterwinners Returning (43) Offensive: 21, Defensive: 21, Specialist: 1
Letterwinners Lost (13) Offensive: 7, Defensive: 5, Specialist: 1
Starters Lost (7) Offensive: 4, Defensive 2, Specialist: 1
Starters Returning (17) Offensive: 7, Defensive: 9, Specialist: 1
Offense: Multiple I
Defense: Multiple 4-3
Letterwinners Returning (43):
Offense (21) - Corey Chatman, Billy Evans, Jered Glover, Raymar Hampshire, Ryan Holmes, Jake Kallgren, Brad Kassner, George Andress, Trevor Armstrong, Joe Brumfield, Nate Cherry, Brian Connell, Braden Freeman, Tim Funke, Tyler Harmon, Jon Kirkwood, Eric Kubilus, Ted Londot, Dymond McDonald, Jeff Moler, Joe Rumschlag
Defense (21) - Yusef Abdul-Zahir, Jarrett Brown, David Bazzel, Ken Bibb, Clinton Tiggs, Joe Torrens, Devon Combs, Anthoni Fazio, Mitch Fonseca, Mike Freeman, Adam Hewitt, Avery Howard, Tyler Jenkins, Willie Jordan, Kyle Keriazes, Andrew Nichols, Brandon Slade, Matt Stechshulte, Serge Thebaud, Chris Vennefron, Lavon Wilborn
Specialists (1) - Jacob Thomas
Letterwinners Lost (13):
Offense (7) - Kurt Forrest, Mike Flickinger, Skip Ivery, Chad Thompson, Andrew Wheeler, Ryan Stafford, Alex White
Defense (5) - Tim Gaal, Peter Franz, Gary George, Jordan Siler, Jake Christian
Specialists (1) - Conrad Hindert
Starters Returning (17):
Offense (7) - TB Raymar Hampshire, FB Tyler Harmon, G Brad Kassner, QB Ryan Holmes, C Corey Chatman, T Jake Kallgren, WR Jered Glover
Defense (9) - DT Jarrett Brown, DT Clinton Tiggs, DE Willie Jordan, DE Matt Stechschulte, LB Devon Combs, CB Mike Freeman, CB Brandon Slade, S Yusef Abdul-Zahir, S Mitch Fonseca
Specialists (1) - K/P Jacob Thomas
Starters Lost (7):
Offense (4) - WR Skip Ivery, T Andrew Wheeler, G Chad Thompson, TE Mike Flickinger
Defense (2) - LB Peter Franz, LB Gary George
Specialists (1) - K/P Conrad Hindert