Wittenberg opens season Saturday on road against top-20 team

The more recent past of the program, which was led by Joe Fincham, now an assistant coach at Kenton Ridge, for the past 25 seasons, is well represented in the lobby by a number of blown-up photos.

The success of the recent past (14 North Coast Athletic Conference championships under Fincham) and the distant past (five national championships between 1962 and 1975) is what Collins and the Tigers are pursuing in the fall of 2022. That starts Saturday with a noon game at SUNY Cortland. The Tigers will take an eight-hour bus ride Friday past Cleveland, Erie, Buffalo and Rochester on their way to Cortland, N.Y., 33 miles south of Syracuse.

“I’m excited,” Collins said in his office Wednesday. “The offseason in football lasts forever. It really does. From the moment I got hired last December, I knew there was a lot of things to do, but yet I just couldn’t wait for this opening day. I’m just like a player still.”

Cortland beat Wittenberg 38-16 in the season opener a year ago at Edwards-Maurer Field. The Red Dragons rode that victory to a 10-0 regular season. They beat Springfield (Mass.) 26-21 in the first round of the NCAA Division III playoffs before losing 21-14 to RPI (Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute) in the second round.

Cortland starts the season ranked 16th in the D3Football.com top-25 poll. Its top returning player is sophomore defensive lineman Nick Lardaro, who was named the Empire 8 Rookie of the Year last season. He led the conference with 18 tackles for a loss.

“They’re going to be really good,” Collins said. “(Lardaro) is an exceptional player. With what they’ve lost on defense, you have to assume they’ve got good players because they’ve been good and they’ve got tradition. They just restocked guys. The quarterback from last year was a really good player, and he graduated. We don’t know for sure what to expect out their new new quarterback, but once again, we’re going to assume he’s a good football player.”

Wittenberg finished 7-3 last season for the second straight season and missed the playoffs for the third straight season. Quarterback Collin Brown will lead the offense for the second straight year, and he has plenty of experience around him.

Here’s what Collins had to say about the rest of his starters:

Offensive line: “We’ve got experience up front,” Collins said. “We lost a couple, but the interior three — (Nathan) Pratt, (Kacey) Prospere and (Jeremaih) Mensah — they’re all older guys. The other two guys, they’re only sophomores, but they played a bit last year as true freshmen: (Angel) Bravo and (Wyatt) Osterhage.”

Running back: “Right now, it’s (Garrett) Gross,” Collins said. “He’s No. 1. He ran the ball really hard against Muskingum (in a scrimmage).”

The Bellefontaine High School graduate Gross, a junior, averaged 56.9 rushing yards in 10 games last season. Senior Bryce Anderson, who led Wittenberg with 66 yards per game, and junior Reed Hall, who averaged 40.3 yards, will also get carries this season.

Wide receiver: The top returners are seniors Jake Saus and Gene Nobles, who combined for 76 catches and 1,304 yards. Juniors Drew Sterett, Milik Bowe and Tyler May make this a deep position.

“All of them have made plays, and they’ve got speed,” Collins said. “They’ve got good hands. I really like our ability to throw the ball down the field, and those guys can can run after the catch. That’s a strong part of the offense. That’s a strong group.”

Tight end: Junior Troy Teepe, the starter last season, will get playing time along with senior Seth Jones and junior Isaac Grilliot.

“We’ll play three tight ends this week,” Collins said. “We’ll use them all. They’re all capable.”

Defensive line: Defensive tackle Mike Knock, a Springboro graduate who was the only Wittenberg player to earn an All-North Coast Athletic Conference first team honor last season, returns for a fifth season. He recorded 6½ sacks last season.

Another Greater Western Ohio Conference product, junior Centerville grad Conner Walls, will start at one end spot after leading the team with 7½ sacks last season, and senior Matt Render will start at the other. Senior Grant Hollinger will start at the other tackle spot.

“I think we’ve got some pass-rushing ability,” Collins said. “Mike is so active, and so is Conner. They’re high-motor guys. Render’s really athletic, and so is Grant.”

Linebacker: Junior Cameron Snurr, another Springboro graduate, was voted a team captain along with Knock, Saus and Prospere. Snurr led the team with 73 tackles last season and made the All-NCAC second team.

“Cam is one of those guys who can run sideline to sideline,” Collins said, “and he’ll hit you.”

Senior Dane Flatter, of Carlisle, will also start at linebacker, along with junior Tony Calovini.

Secondary: Wittenberg lost three All-NCAC second-team players: cornerbacks Jordan Burkey and Michael Feissinger; and safety Rashon Edwards.

The starters in Week 1 this year are cornerbacks Jourdan Stipe, a sophomore, and Max Yost, a sophomore from Springboro; and safeties Christian Sweet, a senior, and Tyler VanMeter, a sophomore.

Special teams: Wittenberg’s kicking situation will be similar to last year.

Sophomore Nathan Hawks, a Greenon graduate, will handle deep field goals. Junior Brandon Goodwin, a Northmont graduate, will take short field goals. Senior Nick Bowman will have kickoff, and senior Justin Maynard is the punter.