COLUMBUS, Ohio – Capital University football will be aiming to right the ship in their 100th season of competition this coming year. The Comets are coming off a truly challenging season that saw them finish the year winless where several results came by the slimmest of margins. Thus, 2023 will be poised for nothing but forward progress as the team looks to re-establish the program under fourth-year head coach
Brian Foos.
RETURNING PIECES
The Comets return a host of key contributors in 2023 that have proven themselves on the field. This core group of guys will be supported by a large incoming class that will be poised for big minutes on the field right away.
Back to lead the offense will be senior quarterback
Ben Everson. A year ago Everson played in eight games and threw for 529 yards and seven touchdowns. He also rushed the ball 52 times in his time under center. There will be plenty of arms that will support these efforts this season.
Supporting the offense out of the backfield will be redshirt-senior running back
Drew Engle. Engle was Capital's leading rusher a year ago with 230 yards on 75 rushes. Engle will be supported by fellow returner
Troi McClary. Last year, McClary rushed 23 times for 87 yards and a touchdown in his freshman season.
At wide receiver, returners
Mike Elmore,
Jamal Wiggins,
Dom Glenn,
Eddie Thomas and
Bennett Zerby will look to carry the weight. This grouping combined for 49 catches for 630 yards and five touchdowns in 2022. Sophomore
Nate Younker will also factor in this role as well. Younker saw time on special teams as a freshman but rarely ran routes.
The offensive line will feature the returns of
Damian Loya,
Garrett Anderson,
Cain Gonzalez, and
Jacob Hepner. These four guys all saw significant snaps last season, with Gonzalez not missing a snap all season long enroute to an All-OAC Honorable Mention honor.
Capital will have two important fifth year players returning to anchor the center of the defense in the form of
Nick Fisanick and
James Curtis. Both players finished 2022 with 60 tackles each. Fisanick suffered a season-ending injury in the fifth game of the year, when he was leading the nation in total tackles at that time.
Additional returners who will have big roles defensively this season will be
Griffin McKinney,
Cyrus Burden,
Diamonte Salley,
Chris Johnson,
Jesse Foster,
Ricky Scott and
Marvin Jean-Denis. This group combined for more than 200 tackles last season.
Along with a few other returners who saw time last year, the defense will be supported by several new players who aim to have a say when it comes time for snaps.
The special team unit will be guided by junior returner
Tyler Terrell. As a sophomore, Terrell took over both the kicking and punting duties yielding 51 punts for an average of 36.04 yards per punt and a perfect 5-of-5 on field goals. In addition to his five field goals, Terrell knocked in 14 PATs. He will have the support of two others in the kicking and punting responsibilities this season.
THE SEASON AHEAD
Capital's season will get underway this season with a 1:30 p.m. kickoff this Saturday at Bernlohr Stadium as the Comets will host Denison University.
After the Big Red, Capital will take on the rest of the OAC the rest of the way. Capital will play Ohio Northern, Wilmington, Mount Union, Baldwin Wallace and Heidelberg on the road. They will play host to Muskingum, Otterbein, John Carroll and Marietta.
The Comets' enticing Battle for the Oar against Otterbein will take place on September 30th at 1:30 p.m. as part of Homecoming and Hall of Fame weekend at Capital.
