GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart College football team was picked to win the Liberty League in a preseason poll of the conference's coaches. The Statesmen received five of a possible seven first place votes (coaches can't vote for their own team) and 47 total points.
Hobart has won four of the past five Liberty League titles. St. Lawrence, which shared the title last season with Rensselaer, finished second in the preseason poll, garnering two first place votes and 43 points. The Engineers are third with the final first place vote and 33 points. Springfield (30), WPI (30), Rochester (20), Merchant Marine (12), and Union (9) round out the poll.
The Statesmen are coming off a 7-3 season that saw them go 5-2 in league play. Hobart welcomed back 42 letter winners, including seven starters on offense and eight on defense.
The offense features the league's top passer,
Shane Sweeney (221.0 yds/g), the league's top returning receiver,
Brandon Shed (37 rec, 700 yds, 8 TDs) and a pair of all-conference offensive linemen,
Patrick O'Connell III and
Nick Testani.
The defense—which ranked in the top 10 in the nation in passing yards allowed (2nd, 129.5), total defense (6th, 246.0 yds/g)—is led by D3football.com preseason second team All-American, linebacker
Marcus Jemison as well as 2015 All-Liberty League picks, cornerbacks
Tom D'Antonio and
Todd Collier. Jemison is Hobart's top returning tackler after producing 49 last year, including a team-high 4.5 sacks. D'Antonio was third on the team with 45 tackles in 2015, and scored his first career touchdown, recovering a fumble and running 72 yards to the end zone against Springfield. Collier led the Liberty League in passes defended last season (1.33/g), breaking up 10 passes and intercepting two more. He finished the year with 33 tackles.
Hobart will open its 123rd season on Saturday, Sept. 3 at Brockport. The game will be the first between the Western New York schools since 1982, a 21-12 road win for the Statesmen. The Golden Eagles lead the all-time series, which dates back to 1949, 5-3.
