The Hobart College football team will make its 13th postseason appearance since the start of the 2000 season. The Statesmen (8-2) will travel to New Wilmington, Pennsylvania, to take on Westminster College (8-2) in the 2021 Asa S. Bushnell Bowl. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 20.
Hobart is coming off a 31-0 win at Rochester on Saturday. Running back Tim Denham Jr. was named the Liberty League Offensive Performer of the Week for the second week in a row for his efforts against the Yellowjackets. Linebacker Emmett Forde and kicker/punter Tobias Wefering earned a spot on the league’s weekly honor roll.
For the second straight game, Denham rushed for more than 100 yards and scored three touchdowns. He finished the game with 159 yards on 14 carries (11.4 yds/rush). He gained 77 yards on six first-quarter carries. In the second quarter, Denham broke free for 78 yards and three touchdowns on seven carries. He scored on runs of 13, 6 and 12 yards. The performance put him over the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season, the first Statesman to accomplish that feat since 2013.
Through 10 games, Denham has 182 carries for 1,078 yards and 12 touchdowns. He also has 12 receptions for 84 yards and eight kick returns for 207 yards, including a 90-yard touchdown at St. John Fisher.
Forde shared team-high honors with eight tackles as the Hobart defense pitched its second shutout of the season. The league leader in tackles for loss and sacks added two more stops behind the line of scrimmage against the Yellowjackets, including one of Hobart’s two sacks in the game. The Statesmen defense forced Rochester to turn the ball over on downs six times.
In eight games this season, Forde is third on the team with 49 tackles. He has 14.5 tackles for loss, including six sacks. He also leads the league with three forced fumbles, has a fumble recovery and an interception.
Wefering made a season-long 43-yard field goal and averaged 37.0 yards per punt at Rochester. His fourth-quarter 3-pointer matched the longest field goal by a Statesman this season. In fact, only one player in the league has kicked a longer field goal this year.
Wefering has played in every game this season, averaging 36.0 yards per punt. He is 2-for-3 on field goal attempts and 3-for-3 on point after tries.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].