Season Preview: Football squad optimistic heading into 2018 campaign

By Tim Glon

ADA — Optimism is running high for the Ohio Northern football program entering the 2018 season.

The Polar Bears were 7-3 overall and finished second in the Ohio Athletic Conference with a 6-3 record under 15th-year head coach Dean Paul in 2017.

Paul and his staff welcome back 14 starters and 38 lettermen from last year's squad that posted its 21st upper division finish in the Ohio Athletic Conference in the past 22 seasons.

"Our goal, as always, is to continue to improve and be a very competitive team on a national level and in the best Division III conference in the nation," Paul said. "We were only two plays away from being 8-2 and in playoff consideration last year. On the other hand, we won a couple of very tight games that could have gone either way.

"We need to continue to build depth and stay healthy at some key positions to be successful. It is a very exciting time in the OAC with so much parity. Our players know that every OAC game will be highly competitive and hard fought, which makes doing the little things well every day so important to our success."

The Polar Bears feature six All-Conference players among their 14 returning starters and two special teams returnees.

ONU welcomes back eight starters on offense, six on defense and an All-Conference punter from last year's team.

Northern received votes in the D3football.com preseason poll.

The Polar Bears have been mentioned in a national poll in 15 of the past 17 seasons.

The Ohio Northern faithful are encouraged that another season in the national spotlight can happen in 2018.

Here is a breakdown of the 2018 Ohio Northern football team, by position:

Offensive Line

The Polar Bears return seven players with starting experience on the offensive line, led by senior Second Team All-Conference guard/tackle Kyle Gonterman (Wapakoneta).

Senior Wil Rankin (Wapakoneta) is a two-year starter at center.

Senior graduate student Sam Shook (New Philadelphia) started all 16 games at that he has been healthy since 2015 at left tackle and senior Jameson Curry (Zanesville/Maysville) has started 11 games at tackle the past two seasons.

Senior Joe Rinicella (Solon) and sophomore Eli Ulsh (Cincinnati/Glen Este) have each started games at guard for the Polar Bears and junior Ethan Hale (Galena/Big Walnut) also returns as a lettermen on the O-Line.

"We have one of the most experienced offensive lines in our history this year," Paul said. "We think this area will be one of our strengths. We have four guys back that have started a great deal of games and seven guys that have starting experience. We eare very excited about this group of men."

Offensive Backfield

Junior Anthony McFadden (Chillicothe/Paint Valley) returns as the starter at quarterback. He won the job in the last two weeks of the 2017 campaign, leading the Polar Bear offense to 91 points in victories over Wilmington and Baldwin Wallace.

Junior All-American running back Christiaan Williams (Sidney/Anna) will likely miss the 2018 season due to an injury, giving an opportunity to junior Holton Watson (Sunrise, Fla./Piper) and sophomore A.J. Marks (Guysville/Alexander ), among other newcomers, to fill the void.

Senior Kyle Tucker (Madison, Ind.) switched back from linebacker to running back this fall, a position he played in his first two seasons at ONU, and will also challenge for playing time.

"We have good talent and depth returning in the backfield," Paul said. "We have two talented guys at quarterback with starting experience that bring different skill sets, which gives up nice flexibility. Replacing Christiaan this season will be a challenge, but we are excited about watching our young guys develop and we think we will have a talented group running the football."

Receivers / Tight End

Four players with a great deal of experience return at receiver, led by First Team All-OAC honoree Chad Rex (Bradenton, Fla./Lakewood Ranch).

Seniors Brenden Hadley (Bradenton, Fla./Lakewood Ranch) and Caleb Saalfeld (Modesto, Calif./Fred Beyer) and sophomore Chase Rose (Kenton/Upper Scioto Valley) all return after solid 2017 campaigns.

Seniors Ethan Edwards (Urbana), Austin Jensen (Mason) and Kurt Wollenhaupt (Delphos/Jefferson) and sophomore C.J. Henderson (Hamilton/Princeton) also return to provide depth and will challenge for playing time in the receivers rotation.

Senior Alex Eblin (Columbus/Bishop Ready) and sophomore Ryan Rockwell (Broadview Heights/Saint Edward) split time as starters at the TE/H-Back spot.

"We are excited about our receivers," Paul said. "It's great to start with a First Team All-OAC guy in Rex. Hadley and Saalfeld have shown that they are quality receivers that I think will only get better. Rose came on strong late in his freshman year and we are excited about his development. We also have three more seniors that are good athletes that will push for playing time and give us very nice depth.

"Eblin and Rockwell are both very solid tight ends and h-backs that can give us some versatility at the position. If these guys continue to develop like we think they will, we could use the tight end position more in our offense."

Defensive Line

Second Team All-OAC defensive end Justin Croswell (Macomb, Mich./Lutheran North) leads the list of returners on the defensive line.

Senior Kyle Rowe (London/Southeastern) and sophomore Carlos Bunton (Saint Cloud, Fla./Harmony) each started 10 games at tackle, giving the Polar Bears a solid nucleus up front.

Junior Ben McGinnis (Cincinnati/Oak Hills) and sophomore Kyle Yoho (Heath) also lettered on the D-Line in 2017.

"With three of our four starters back we feel very good about our defensive line," Paul said. "McGinnis and Yoho came on strong at the end of last year and we have some other young guys that will challenge here.

Linebacker

Junior Second Team All-OAC honoree Mark Niles (Miramar, Fla.) is the lone returning starter at linebacker in Paul's 4-3 defense.

Niles led the team with 9 TFL and was second with 90 tackles last season and will likely move inside to middle linebacker this fall.

Senior Ledondrick Chapman (Bedford) and juniors David Haseleu (Pittsburgh, Pa./Montour) and Eddie Cooper (Eclectic, Ala./Elmore County) will switch from safety to linebacker and will be in the competition for the Will and Sam positions.

Senior James Martin, Jr. (Columbus/Africentric) and sophomore Kris Sullivan (Lancaster) will also battle for playing time.

"Niles had a breakout year on the outside last season and we are looking to move him into the middle into more of a leadership role," Paul said. "We expect to have very good competition for the two outside spots in training camp."

Secondary

The Polar Bears return both starters at safety in junior Greg Dennis (Mount Vernon) and sophomore Andrew Valenti (Farmersville/Valley View).

The two corner back positions are up for grabs. Seniors Luke Perkins (Lima/Allen East) and Bryce Bostelman (Deshler/Patrick Henry), juniors Jaymar Hines (Cincinnati/Marian) and Gianni McCrea (Miami, Fla./Southwest) and sophomore Ty Pegram (Medina) look to be the front-runners heading into camp.

"We return two very talented safeties that were outstanding for us last season," Paul said. "Cornerback is the position where we have the most question marks. But we are excited about the athleticism and talent of the guys that will be competing here."

Special Teams

Senior Second Team All-Conference pick Sean Devany (Cuyahoga Falls/St. Vincent-St. Mary) returns as the punter and senior Chase Watson (Lima/Elida) is back after making 3-of-4 field goals and all 30 extra points in 2017.

"We have several outstanding kickers on the squad this year," Paul said. "Devany is an All-OAC punter. Watson has improved every season and we expect that to continue this year."