The Carthage College football season is almost here, as the Firebirds prepare to open up their 125th season of competition in 2021. Head coach Dustin Hass begins his fourth year at the helm on Saturday, September 4, when they travel to take on University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, the fourth-ranked team in the country.
 

Preseason Notes

• Last spring, Carthage was one of 47 collegiate football teams who went undefeated during the 2020-21 academic year, and one of 24 NCAA Division III programs.
• Carthage was picked to finish sixth in the 2021 CCIW Coaches Preseason Polls.
• The Firebirds' fourth game of the season on Saturday, October 2 at Millikin will be the 1,000th game played for the Carthage program.
• Carthage's first home game will be September 25 when they host Illinois Wesleyan, their latest home opener since 2013 (September 28).
• Over half of the Firebirds' opponents this season earned votes in the D3football.com Top 25 Preseason Poll, with three in the top five: No. 3 North Central (Oct. 9), No. 4 UW-Whitewater (Sept. 4), and No. 5 Wheaton (Oct. 23), while Illinois Wesleyan (Sept. 25), Millikin (Oct. 2), and Washington University (Nov. 13) all earned votes.

 

Head Coach Dustin Hass Position Breakdown

 

Quarterbacks

"At quarterback we're young, but we've got a couple of guys that we're excited about; but they'll have to grow up fast. It'll be interesting to see how they do in our scrimmage before the season starts when we go live. A couple of guys are doing some really good things, Bryce Lowe and Raphael Bendo have taken the lead a little bit. Cristian Beltran and Kyle Jessie are right behind them, so those four guys are doing really well. Another guy to watch is Mike Bojesen, he did really well before an ankle injury, but once we can get him back healthy and in the mix, it will bring on some good competition."
 

Running Backs

"We're pretty deep at this position. Jacob Boucher is going to start for us, he's a senior that's been around and had good carries since he was a sophomore. He's super reliable and great in the pass game. Noel Wright II is another guy to watch, he got hurt in the spring, but he's a super dynamic back that we're really excited about. After that we have a good trio of freshmen that are some really explosive kids, Mekhi Williams, Jah Belcher, and Tyrikk Lawson."
 

Wide Receivers

"Wide receiver-wise, we return three guys from the spring that were really good for us, Alex Jarvis, Eddie Ell III, and Cole Vercelli; all guys are back and look really good. Jordan Wiles is a kid in the slot that's been good for us in camp. Gibson Groves and Johnny Ugo are providing some good depth for us as well. Some young guys that have really flashed for us are Jaylen West and Sylvere Campbell, they've run well and picked it up quickly. We have some explosive wideouts and we're excited to get the ball in their hands."
 

Tight Ends

"Tight end is another position that we're pretty deep at and we're excited about. We'll be able to run some two-tight end sets as Sam Limbaugh is back for us, and Kyle Williamson is back from injury, healthy, and has looked good in camp. Garrett Buckner and Clayton Markech are tight end and fullback hybrid guys that block really well and can still turn short flat route throws into first downs."
 

Offensive Line

"This is probably the position that we're most excited for, everybody comes back that played for us in the spring. We have a couple of seniors on the left side that are good football players; Drew Neville is an all-conference kid playing really well and Omarr Roberts has a lot of upside. Omarr didn't play too much football in high school, he was more of a basketball guy, but now that he's playing more football and figuring out his body he's become a really explosive kid. From last spring, Trey Grabot, Adam Gilmeister, Alex Diaz, and Christopher Sandoval-Terry are all guys that came back for us and are healthy. We really brought in a good freshman crew to add a lot of depth, and they have the ability to play if they need to. This is a group that overall, top to bottom, we're very excited about."
 

Defensive Line

"We're not as deep at the defensive line as we'd like. However, we have guys like Dylan Ramirez, a good consistent starter and fourth-year player, and Jalen Slater back, he missed spring and is back as a senior playing really well at defensive end. Matt Ranieri and Hayden Fischer have played meaningful snaps for us which is good. Some young guys we're excited about are Cameron Penny and Nick Levey, they're having a good camp and will push to play. Those guys behind them have to do a little growing up and understanding of the game, but they'll be good for us. Marlon Sam is a guy that's played a ton of football for us, he's out now but should be back in a few weeks, and we're excited to get him back into the mix as well."
 

Linebackers

"This is a group that we had questions about coming in as we graduated guys like Steven Shipp, Joe Montoya, and Kevin O'Boyle. But Jalen Dennis, who started for us at safety last spring, has moved down to nickel now. Athletically, it's great for Jalen and he has a better feel for the position. Zach Hale and Anthony Martin played a little nickel this past spring, but they're probably better suited in the box. Zach is a guy who waited behind Kevin O'Boyle for a couple of years and has really begun to take on a leadership spot and is taking control of the defense. We're excited to let him loose and let him play. We're a little younger than we would probably like at linebacker but we have good depth with some newcomers playing well. Guys like Isiah Waller and John Pettit help add some depth, and make us feel good about throwing them in and looking good. Our concern here is the youth but they really look the part physically."
 

Defensive Backs

"As long as we can stay healthy at the defensive back position, we'll be good, but we have a couple of starters that are back. Bobby Baker III and Keith Freeman have played quite a lot of football for us. Jake Tomczak is going to play safety for us, and Garrett Warner has been our strong safety since the spring. Tommy Williams can play either safety spot and can come in to fill both positions. We've had some young guys play well for us like Tanner Ludwig and Tre Mitchell, a couple of freshmen that have done well. Anthony Clevenger has bounced between safety and corner, as has Matt Wood, and they've both done well. Avante James is another guy that's popped around and handled playing both safety and corner quite well.
 

Kicker and Punter

"David Collins is coming back for us and he's been great. He has a couple of game-winning field goals for us and has a big leg, he can kick it a good way. He'll punt for us as well and can stand in the pocket and get it off or roll out rugby style. When he hits it he can really flip the field for us. Behind him we'll have Max Wrasman, who has a big leg and is a much better kicker than a punter at the moment, but he's working on that and getting better."
 

"Overall as a football team we're excited about where we're at. We have a group of guys that are fun to be around and have a great attitude. I'm excited to see how we stack up, and how we do early as we obviously have a top-five opponent in week one, and it'll be a good measuring stick to see how we stack up in the CCIW."


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