Marcus Davis and the Dragons head to Hillsdale this week.
Posted: Mar 31, 2021
Sponsored by BAS Broadcasting Ohio
Tiffin University (2-0, 1-0 GMAC) takes on Hillsdale (0-1, 0-1) on the road this week as the 2020-21 football sesaon continues.
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Tiffin gets back to GMAC action after a big 42-7 win over Gannon in their home opener last week. It marks just the second game for the Chargers, who have had three games canceled so far this year.
Tiffin last played the Chargers on Nov. 10, 2019, staying perfect in conference play with a 35-24 win over Hillsdale on Senior Day. The Dragons, who never trailed in the game, managed to pull away with a solid second half and an aggressive defense that registered three sacks and two interceptions. The Dragons featured a punishing ground attack that racked up 274 yards (6.1 per rush). They outgained Hillsdale overall 403-305.
Tiffin is 5-8 overall against the Chargers, but the Dragons have won two of the last three meetings. Overall the Dragons are 3-3 against Hillsdale over the last 10 seasons.
Hillsdale Notes
- Hillsdale's 45-24 loss to Findlay back on March 13 has been its lone game so far this season after postponements against Saginaw Valley State, Kentucky Wesleyan, and Lake Erie.
- Hillsdale hung tough against the Oilers, erasing a 10 point deficit to tie the game at 24-24 near the end of the third quarter. Findlay bounced back, however, scoring the final 21 points of the game to pull away for the win.
- Hillsdale returns four All-G-MAC honorees from last season's squad: G-MAC co-Freshman of the Year Luke Keller, first-team defensive back Zach Herzog, second-team wide receiver Konnor Maloney, and second-team linebacker Alex Anschutz.
Hillsdale Offense
- Konnor Maloney, a senior wide receiver, is on track to become an all-time great in several statistical categories at Hillsdale College. The Lansing, Michigan native is already eighth all-time in career receiving yards at Hillsdale, with 1,936, and he needs just two receptions and two touchdown catches to break into the top 10 for those stats as well. Maloney's 891 receiving yards in the 2018 season are also tenth all-time on Hillsdale's single-season record list.
- Sophomore quarterback Luke Keller's 2,113 passing yards as a redshirt freshman in 2019 have him on an impressive career trajectory. He's just 1,901 yards behind Brian Boyse ('89) for 10th all time in career passing yardage. His 16 passing touchdowns also have him closing in on the top 10 all time list in that stat as well with several seasons of eligibility remaining.
Hillsdale Defense
- Senior captain Alex Anschutz led the Chargers against Findlay defensively with 15 tackles, junior safety Zach Herzog added nine tackles, and sophomore linebacker Kyle Kudla chipped in eight.
- The Chargers return two impact players in the secondary in junior Zach Herzog, the Chargers' leading tackler in 2019 and a first-team All-G-MAC safety, and senior Alex Anschutz, a second-team All-G-MAC honoree and playmaker at Hillsdale's hybrid linebacker/safety Star position.
- Up front, junior defensive tackles Nate Chambers and Joe Royer spearhead a line that should be more effective with better health in 2021. The Chargers are expecting big things from junior defensive end Kyle Parran, who looked poised for a breakout headed into 2019 but was limited by injuries for most of the season.
- Kyle Kudla and Jonathon Burton step into the Chargers' starting linebacker roles after strong play in part-time action last season.
Tiffin Notes- The Dragons are coming off a historic 2019 season where they made their first NCAA Championships appearance after winning the GMAC Championship with a perfect 7-0 record. They finished the year ranked 23rd in the country with a 9-2 record, posting back-to-back nine-win seasons for just the second time in program history (2006-2007).
- Tiffin was selected first in the GMAC Coaches Poll with 34 total points along with four first-place votes.
- The Dragons are led by Cris Reisert who is in his second year at the helm for the Dragons. Reisert led the Dragons to arguably the best season in program history finishing the regular season 9-1 in his first year and looks to build on that success in the upcoming season.
Tiffin Offense
- Tiffins' offense has been strong so far this season, ranking second in the GMAC at 31.5 ppg. They lead the conference in passing offense with 282.5 ypg, while also leading in rushing at 186.5 ypg.
- The Dragons are returning several veterans on offense led by Nick Watson who started in all 11 games last season completing 210 passes for 2806 yards and 30 touchdowns with just nine interceptions. Nationally, he ranked 10th in passing touchdowns, 20th in passing yards per game, 22nd in completions per game, 19th in passing efficiency, and 30th in completion percentage. So far this season he leads the GMAC in yardage at 267.5 ypg.
- Devin Butler is a returner as well for the Dragons. Last season, he started in all 11 games for Tiffin, and ranked in the top six in the GMAC with 54 passes caught for 679 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 60.6 ypg. This year TU has three receivers in the Top 10 statistically, as Butler (2nd-95 ypg), Anthony Lowe (4th-58.5 ypg), and James Dean (10th-52.0 ypg) all lead the attack.
- Running back Marcus Davis leads the GMAC with 74 ypg rushing, while Watson is 3rd with 63 ypg.
Tiffin Defense
- Tiffin's defense led the GMAC in total defense and were second in scoring defense, nationally ranked 17th in interceptions with 16 on the year, and boasted a top-25 turnover margin of +82.
- The Dragons' defense this season is 2nd in the GMAC, allowing just 10.5 ppg. Their passing defense is also tops, allowing just 117 ypg. Charlie Cleveland leads the attack and is 7th in tackles for loss (2.5) after posting 61 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 8.5 sacks and a forced fumble last year.
- The secondary is led Chrystian Watkins who started in all 11 games last year with 37 tackles, 1 tackle for loss and one forced fumble. He is currently 4th in the GMAC in passes defended, while Ladonnis Griffin is 5th in sacks with 2.