Schedule
Hillsdale College (1-5, 1-3 G-MAC) at Lake Erie (2-4, 1-3 G-MAC) | 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday, Oct. 19 | Jack Britt Memorial Stadium | Painesville, OH
 
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Additional Info
Hillsdale Roster | Lake Erie Roster | Hillsdale Stats | Lake Erie Stats | G-MAC Schedule | G-MAC Standings
 
Last Week
Hillsdale was stunned late in a 36-35 homecoming loss at Walsh, as the Chargers couldn't hold off a 15-point comeback by the Cavaliers in the fourth quarter, and despite scoring first in overtime, Hillsdale was bested on a Walsh touchdown and two-point conversion that ended the game. Logan Van Enkevort gave Hillsdale its first 100 yard rusher of the season with two scores on the ground, and Shea Ruddy added a receiving and kick return touchdown as well as Hillsdale put up 506 yards of total offense in the narrow loss, but gave up 495 to the Cavaliers.
 
Scouting the Opposition
Lake Erie comes in to Saturday's contest with an interesting resume – four blowout losses to teams with winning records and two narrow victories over two 1-5 opponents.

The Storm rely heavily for offensive success on the team's passing attack and particularly senior Central State transfer Alec Lewis, who seized control of the starting job in week 2 and has thrown for 250 or more years and multiple touchdowns in each of his last three starts, including a 434-yard day with four passing TDs against Walsh. Two transfers – Bowling Green St.'s Tae'Shaun Johnson and Notre Dame College's Ali Lee Jr. are Lewis' favorite targets, combining for 51 catches for just over 800 yards and nine touchdowns. Tight ends Devin Morgan and Emmanuel Sims also play a role in Lake Erie's passing attack.

Lake Erie has struggled to move the ball on the ground, averaging just 67.2 yards per game with two touchdowns. Krys Riley-Richardson, previously of Notre Dame College, and Nick Mosley, previously of Bowling Green State, are the lead backs, though holdover Keed Kpoto also gets carries as well.

 Up front, Lake Erie has retooled heavily from previous seasons, with sophomore Jayden Adelson the only returner among the five starters. Two Notre Dame College transfers (Joey Rozak and Logan Bernesser) team with two true freshmen (Maxwell Cochran and Jeremiah Hutcherson) to round out the unit.

Lake Erie's defense has been a huge problem for the Storm this year, giving up 42 or more points in four contests this year and ranking dead last in the G-MAC in both total defense and scoring defense. The strength of the Lake Erie defense is the linebacking corps and rush ends, where Notre Dame College transfer Emarion Perkins leads the team with 53 total tackles and two sacks, and holdovers Cameron Webb, Ronald Cutts Jr. and Cameron Prater also play big roles for the team.

Anthony Anderson leads the Storm secondary with 17 tackles, two pass breakups and an interception, along with Debonair Brown. Defensive tackle Jeremiah Penick has been disruptive on the defensive line as well with a team-high five tackles for loss.

Lake Erie has the G-MAC's top kicker and perhaps the best in Division II in Florida Gulf Coast transfer Jaffer Murphy, who is 10 of 11 on field goals with three makes from 50-plus, including a 60-yarder last week in a win over Kentucky Wesleyan. Daniel Jamieson returns as the punter and averages 37.4 yards per punt. Ali Lee Jr. is the team's kick returner, while Nick Mosley handles the team's punt returns.

The Storm are coached by Dave Price, who is in his first season at Lake Erie after spending five seasons at Tiffin, including 2023 as the defensive coordinator for the G-MAC Champion-winning Dragons. The Akron grad and former football player for the Zips also spent time at Hiram, Ohio Northern and Wheeling earlier in his career before moving to Tiffin.
 
The Series
Hillsdale is 10-1 all-time against Lake Erie in a series dating back to 2010, including a dominant 52-21 victory in Hillsdale last season. Despite the lopsided overall record, the Storm have been more competitive recently, handing Hillsdale a 33-14 loss in 2021 and losing just 35-31 on a late touchdown pass in Painesville in 2022.
 
Other Notes

• New head coach Nate Shreffler may be in his first season as the man in charge, but the veteran coach is no stranger to the sport and to Hillsdale. Shreffler is entering his 26^th season as a coach for the Chargers after successful stints as the team's offensive line coach (1999-2009) and offensive coordinator (2010-2023). Hillsdale's all-time leading passer, rusher and receiver all played in offenses led by Shreffler, and he was the position coach of Hillsdale's most recent NFL draft pick, Jared Veldheer. A 1993 graduate of Hillsdale College, Shreffler was a three-year starter on the offensive line and an important part of the team's 1992 conference title.
• The biggest strength on paper for the Chargers is a veteran offensive line, and especially an All-Conference due at left guard and center who are all entering their third year together as starters. Senior center Nick Affholter, a two-time All-G-MAC player and two-time Hillsdale lineman of the year anchors the unit. He's flanked on the left by guard Eli Haidamous, another All-G-MAC honoree. Along with that gifted duo, Hillsdale also returns right tackle Carter Cushman as a second-year starter, while early-season starter Ryan Strasser made a return from injury at left tackle for Hillsdale last week.
• After struggling running the ball in the first four games of the season, Hillsdale's offense has been strong the last two weeks, breaking out on the ground with 149 yards to help topple Northwood and then putting up an impressive 278 yards and three rushing touchdowns against Walsh. Key to both efforts was senior Logan VanEnkevort, who has spent the last two years as a slot receiver but returned to the backfield against the Timberwolves and had Hillsdale's first 100 yard rushing day of the season with two touchdowns against Walsh. Maintaining that newfound success on the ground will be key to a strong finish, and Hillsdale will need VanEnkevort to keep his form and major contributions from Zach Tetler and Kyle Riffel as well.
• Sophomore wide receiver Shea Ruddy became the first Hillsdale player with multiple kickoff return touchdowns in a season since Chad Gurica in 2005 with a 95-yard return for a score against Walsh last week. Ruddy has been one of the top return men in the country, leading both the G-MAC and all of NCAA DII with 591 yards, and currently tying for the national lead in kickoff return TDs. The sophomore's versatility, as a ballcarrier, pass catcher, and a returner of kickoffs and punts have allowed him to put up massive numbers, leading all of NCAA DII with 1,278 all-purpose yards through six games. Hillsdale will look to continue to find ways to get the ball in Ruddy's hands down the stretch of the season.    
• Hillsdale's leading tackler in 2023 and Linebacker of the Year Jacob Vance returns for his sophomore season in 2024, after a meteoric rise the year before. As a redshirt freshman, Vance didn't dress for the first two games of the season, and didn't crack the lineup until a week four contest against Findlay. Despite the late start, Vance quickly established himself as one of the Chargers' most reliable defensive players and contributed greatly to Hillsdale's season-ending winning streak. Already in 2024 he leads the team in tackles with 43 and tackles for loss with seven, while also putting up two sacks as well.
• The Chargers' pass rush has been improving in recent weeks, with two defensive linemen leading the way. Junior Hunter Sperling leads the Chargers with 3.5 sacks, 2.5 of them in the last two weeks, while sophomore Drake Badger has made a big impact in his first season as a starter, with three sacks, three pass breakups, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
• Hillsdale's two permanent captains this season are VanEnkevort and junior defensive end Landon VanBeek. VanEnkevort was Hillsdale's Special Teams Player of the Year in 2023 and is one of Hillsdale's most versatile players, having played as many as six different positions for the Chargers over the past two seasons. His success on and off the playing field has earned him several accolades, including semifinalist recognition for the National Football Foundation's William V. Campbell Award, the sport's academic Heisman Trophy. VanBeek, meanwhile, has been a critical part of Hillsdale's defensive line for multiple seasons and is making the move to end this fall after excelling on the interior for Hillsdale in 2023.
• The Charger football program continued to shine academically this past season, with eight players earning College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors, including returners Benjamin Affholter, Bart Bixler and Ty Williams. In addition, 48 Hillsdale football players received Academic All-G-MAC honors for posting a 3.3 or better cumulative GPA through the spring 2023 semester.
• The Charger football program has long been known for its strong family tradition, and that continues in 2024 with multiple sets of brothers on the roster. On the offensive line, twin brothers Nick Affholter and Benjamin Affholter (Quincy, MI/Reading) will hold down interior line spots for the third straight season, and are joined on the roster by younger brother Zac Affholter, a true freshman lineman. All three are sons of Brad Affholter, a multi-year starter on the Charger offensive line in the mid-90s and an assistant coach with the team in 2023. There are several other sibling duos on the team -- sophomore wide receiver Corban Creason (Coppell, TX/Founders Classical Academy) and freshman defensive back Christian Creason; junior offensive lineman John VanOpstall (Jenison, MI/Jenison) and younger brother Chris VanOpstall, and sophomore wide receiver Shea Ruddy (Temperance, MI/Ottawa Lake Whiteford) and freshman defensive back Ryin Ruddy. Along with those sibling pairs, several other players on the roster have older brothers, fathers or grandfathers who suited up for previous Charger teams.