FB Preview: DC opens conference play at Hanover on Saturday
September 29, 2023

FB Preview: DC opens conference play at Hanover on Saturday

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SATURDAY'S GAME: Defiance College plays its third straight road game and first Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference contest of the year against the Hanover Panthers at 1:30 p.m. DC looks to start 1-0 in conference action for the first time since 2010, which was a 24-10 win at Hanover. Defiance is also playing an undefeated team for the second game in a row.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Yellow Jackets set multiple program records in a heart-breaking 42-35 loss at Kalamazoo. DC's 663 total yards of offense and 31 first downs set new single-game marks while Jordan Ambrose set a new single-game record with 33 completions. Defiance held the upper hand at halftime but Kalamazoo was able to get a stop in the third quarter to grab the upper hand entering the final period. Each team scored every time they touched the ball in the fourth quarter except for Defiance on the final drive. DC had one final shot from Kalamazoo's 34 yard line, but Tawann Rome was ruled out of bounds after catching a pass in the end zone to finish the contest.
 
ABOUT THE YELLOW JACKETS: Defiance College continues to build upon a strong finish to the 2022 season that ended with a 3-7 record thanks to three victories in the final four weeks of the year. The final win of the campaign was on the road at rival Bluffton to give DC consecutive wins for the first time since 2016. Under second-year head coach Bill Nickell, Defiance leads the HCAC in rushing offense at 203 yards per game (37th in NCAA DIII) and ranks fourth in the conference in total offense.
 
ABOUT THE PANTHERS: Hanover College brings a 3-0 record into this year's meeting with the Yellow Jackets following an 0-3 start a year ago. The Panthers are 3-0 for the first time since 2002 when they reached the DIII Playoffs after winning the HCAC. Hanover is the last unbeaten team in the HCAC after a 28-point win over Trine in their home opener last week. Hanover leads the conference defensively with just 12.7 points allowed per game while letting up a league-best 301 yards per game, including just 83 yards per contest on the ground. On the offensive side of the ball, Hanover is second in the HCAC in scoring at 38.3 points per game and total offense at 494 yards per contest. Senior quarterback Kolton Richards earned HCAC Player of the Week last week for his 412-yard and four passing touchdown day. Last year, Hanover went 5-5 and return six of their 10 All-HCAC Players from a year ago. The Panthers are coached by Hanover alum Matt Theobald, who is in his eighth season and holds a record of 41-28.
 
THE SERIES: Saturday's contest at Hanover is the 44th meeting between Defiance College and Hanover College. The Panthers have won each of the last seven meetings with DC's last win coming in 2015. Since Defiance joined the HCAC in 2000, the Yellow Jackets are 9-14 against Hanover and 14-29 all-time dating back to the first meeting on October 4, 1924, which was a 20-6 Hanover win and the only loss of a 7-1 season for the Yellow Jackets. After that meeting in 1924, Defiance and Hanover's next meeting was not until 1975 and played every season through 1989. After a two-year break, the two schools played in 1992-95 and went on hiatus again after the 1995 contest until DC joined the HCAC.
 
HCAC PRESEASON POLL: The HCAC's conference slate begins today with four contests. The Yellow Jackets checked in fifth in the HCAC's preseason coaches poll after a fifth-place finish in the 2022 standings. Defending conference-champion Mount St. Joseph received seven out of eight first-place votes among HCAC head coaches as Rose-Hulman received the lone remaining first-place nod. Hanover was chosen to finish third.
 
THE JORDAN AMBROSE EXPERIENCE: Senior quarterback Jordan Ambrose has displayed his dual-threat skills early this season with notable marks through the air and on the ground. Ambrose ran for a career-high 144 yards in Week 2 at Adrian followed up with a 120-yard performance last week to become the first DC quarterback with consecutive 100-yard rushing games since Ricky Powell in 2010 and the first QB with multiple 100-yard rushing games in the same season since Sean Washington in 2013. Ambrose ranks second in the HCAC with 236 rushing yards. He is also making strides with his passing game after setting a program record with 33 pass completions in the Week 3 game at Kalamazoo while tossing for a career-high 369 yards. Responsible for seven total touchdowns, Ambrose has thrown and rushed for a touchdown in the same game four times in his career. A Tomball, Texas native, Ambrose threw for 1,282 yards with 11 touchdowns while also running for 395 yards and four scores to earn Honorable Mention All-HCAC in 2022.
 
TYSHAUN ON 2K WATCH: Senior running back Tyshaun Freeman came just four yards shy of his ninth career100-yard game during DC's last game at Kalamazoo. The Macon, Ga. native enters play 159 yards shy of becoming the eighth player in DC's football history to surpass 2,000 career rushing yards. Freeman is also 11 yards away from moving into eighth place on the career rushing yards leaderboard. Last season, Freeman led the Jackets in rushing with 633 yards and five scores in nine games.
 
ALL ABOARD THE COLTRAIN: Defiance's defense also had a number of key returners at all three levels and are led by senior linebacker Thomas Coltrain. The Leslie, Mich. native is a three-time First Team All-HCAC selection and reigning Second Team All-Region. Game-by-game, Coltrain is climbing DC's all-time total tackle list and now stands eighth in career stops with 278 after six more in the game at Kalamazoo, and also ranks fifth in solo tackles with 178. The career total tackle mark for the Yellow Jackets is 372 by Donny Mutters from 1988-91.
 
DEISLER'S DAY: Paulding native Jacob Deisler found the end zone three times in DC's last game at Kalamazoo, his first multi-touchdown game as a member of the Yellow Jackets. The sophomore rushed for the game's first score, his first career rushing touchdown, and caught a pair of long passes for scores from 29 and 52 yards away. Deisler's 147 all-purpose yards in that contests are the most by a DC offensive player so far this season.
 
ROME REELS 'EM IN: Tawann Rome caught a career-high 11 passes for 112 yards at Kalamazoo. His 11 catches were the first double-figure reception game by a Defiance player since Cody Wilson caught 14 passes on October 29, 2016 at Hanover.