Seven teams will battle for the 2021 Liberty League Football Championship title as the 2021 season gets underway on Friday, September 3 with Hobart College playing a non-conference game at Alfred University. Six more non-league games are the following day (Saturday, September 4). Conference play begins on Saturday, October 2. The regular season Liberty League Champion will receive an automatic berth to the 2021 NCAA Division III Football Championship.
Team Previews (sorted by 2019 standings)
Union will look to replicate its recent success on the gridiron as they head into 2021. The Dutchmen closed out the 2019 campaign by winning their first Liberty League title since 2011 with an undefeated mark of 6-0 against conference opponents (10-0 overall regular season) and they advanced to the second round of the NCAA tournament. The 2021 squad opens the year ranked 15th in the D3fooball.com Top-25 preseason poll and Union returns with many of its standouts from 2019. Quarterback William Bellamy headlines the team’s returnees and he will be joined by two of Union’s top offensive weapons from 2019—Ike Irabor (2019 Liberty League Offensive Player of the Year) and Andre Ross Jr. (All-Liberty League First Team). Bellamy passed for 2,631 yards and 26 touchdowns, throwing a touchdown in nine of 12 games. Irabor paced the team and league in scoring (96 points) and rushing (229 times for 1,231 yards), averaging 5.4 yards per rush and he recorded a league-high 16 rushing touchdowns. Ross Jr. caught 57 passes for a league-best 929 yards and 13 touchdowns. Linemen Tim Driscoll and Chris Katchadurian are also back to bolster the offense. On the defensive side, linebacker Colin Lama returns as well as defensive linemen Daniel Gioioso (61 tackles) and Austin St. Pierre (42 tackles). All three made 12 starts in 12 games for the Dutchmen in 2019. Lama boasted a team-high 96 tackles (35 solo stops), good for fifth in the conference.
Hobart wrapped up the 2019 season in a tie for second place among the conference standings (4-2) and were 9-2 overall. The Statesmen will be seeking their first conference title since earning a share of one in 2016. The Hobart offense this season will be fueled by a pair of 2019 All-Liberty League First Team selections in Rayshawn Boswell and Tim Denham Jr. Boswell, the 2019 Liberty League Rookie of the Year, had a breakout season to start his career at Hobart as a kick returner and running back. He led the nation in kickoff return average (36.9 yards per return) and tied for the Division III lead in kickoff returns for touchdowns (2). In 11 games, he made 15 returns for 554 yards. In addition, he rushed for 315 yards and four touchdowns. Denham is also a dual threat for Hobart as a kick returner and running back. On kickoff returns, he was second on the team, averaging 23.2 yards per return. He also rushed for 298 yards on 62 carries and he accounted for two touchdowns. The Statesmen welcome back 2019 Liberty League Defensive Player of the Year Emmett Forde. Forde and the defense held opponents to 17.4 points per game in 2019, second among league leaders. Forde paced the team with 81 total tackles, 21 tackles-for-loss and seven sacks. Bryan Aguilar (77 tackles; 3 forced fumbles) and Jared Leake (55 tackles; 3 interceptions) are also back to anchor the defense.
Ithaca has seen a fair amount of success since joining the Liberty League in 2017, including a share of the league titles in 2017 and 2018. In 2019, they finished in a tie for second in the conference standings (4-2) and posted an overall record of 8-3. They will look to build upon that foundation this season as a core nucleus of players are back for the Bombers to open 2021. Wide Receiver Andrew Vito will lead the team’s offense after ranking second among league leaders with 107.4 yards per game in 2019. He recorded nine touchdowns and amassed 1,074 yards. Nick Bahamonde will also be a key contributor to the offense, the 2019 Liberty League Special Teams Player of the Year, was 10-of-12 on field goals and he paced the league with 81 points in kick scoring and he was ranked fourth in overall scoring. Defensive linemen Ed Longest and Antonio Valle are also back for Ithaca. Longest played in all 11 games in 2019, he totaled 50 tackles, 4.5 tackles-for-loss and 3.5 sacks. Valle, also played in 11 games, recording 42 tackles. Other key returnees include wide receiver Jacob Cooney, offensive lineman Jake Villaneuva and defensive back Cade Mcdermott.
RPI is eyeing a return to the top of the Liberty League standings in 2021. The Engineers earned a share of the league title in 2015, 2017 and 2018. They finished the 2019 campaign at 6-5 (3-3 Liberty League). Quarterback George Marionopoulos, a three-year starter will be a veteran presence for the team. In 2019, he completed 232 of 361 passes for 2,356 yards in 11 games to go along with 23 touchdowns. RPI also welcomes back tight end Vincent McDonald and running back Dylan Burnett to the offensive corps. McDonald averaged 12.33 yards per catch and recorded a team-high six touchdowns in 2019. Burnett led the team in rushing with 403 yards on the year (36.64 per rush) and he had five touchdowns. Linebacker Joe Deputla and defensive lineman Amaechi Konkwo headline the defense as both made all 11 starts for the Engineers in 2019. Deputla had 41 tackles, including six tackles-for-loss and Konkwo was second on the team in sacks (3.5) and recorded 26 tackles.
St. Lawrence has steadily improved over the last two seasons of play. The Saints increased their win total by three from 2018 to 2019 to finish at 5-5 overall (3-3 Liberty League) and St. Lawrence hopes to build upon that in 2021. The offense will be in good hands with the return of quarterback Tyler Grochet (All-Liberty League Second Team) and offensive lineman Max Warden (All-Liberty League First Team). Grochet put together an impressive sophomore campaign in 2019. He shattered multiple single-season records for St. Lawrence—pass completions (247), attempts (426) and yards (2,978). His 26 touchdowns on the season rank second-all time for the Saints. Warden helped the team eclipse the 3,000 passing yards mark for the first time in program history in 2019 as the team totaled a league-high 3,301 passing yards (4,120 total yards). The Saints also welcome back a core group from the 2019 defense, including Caleb Null, Ryan Reinke and Max Gilbert. Null, an All-Liberty League Honorable Mention selection, recorded 24 tackles and two sacks as well as a league-high two fumble recoveries. Reinke was among the team leaders in tackles-for-loss with eight. He totaled 31 tackles on the year and 3.5 sacks. Gilbert accounted for 44 tackles, 24 of which were solo and he was second on the team with two interceptions.
Buffalo State will be looking to make strides in 2021; the Bengals second season as an associate member of the Liberty League. All-Liberty League Second Team pick offensive linemen Kyle Schreader highlights the squad’s returning players. He helped support an offense that averaged 346.0 yards per game in 2019. The team totaled 3,460 yards on the year and 23 touchdowns. Schreader will be joined by offensive lineman Henry Palmero. Other key returnees include long snapper Cole Jenkins, defensive back Brandon Barksdale and linebacker Michael Drywa. Barskdale and Drywa both saw limited action for the Bengals in 2019; five games for Drywa and six games for Barksdale, combining for 32 tackles. Both will take over the Buffalo State defense for 2021.
Rochester will rely on its upperclassmen with 17 seniors (Class of 2022) and 32 juniors (Class of 2023) to open 2021. Senior Cade Cole headlines the Yellowjackets’ defense after earning All-Liberty League Honorable Mention recognition following the 2019 season. Cole started all 10 games for Rochester in 2018 and 2019 while pacing the team in tackles both seasons. He totaled 71 in 2019; making 30 solo stops and recording 41 assists. He also had four pass break-ups and a team-best two forced fumbles. Senior wide receiver Noah Shinaman will lead the offense and was the team’s top receiver in 2019. He caught 30 passes for 396 yards. He averaged 39.6 yards per catch and recorded four touchdowns.
2019 Liberty League Football Standings
Union (11-1, 6-0 LL)*
Hobart (9-2, 4-2 LL)
Ithaca (8-3, 4-2 LL)
RPI (6-5, 3-3 LL)
St. Lawrence (5-5, 3-3 LL)
Buffalo State (1-9, 1-5 LL)
Rochester (0-10, 0-6 LL)
* = 2019 Liberty League Champions