Hillsdale College football heads to Albanese Candy Bowl this weekend
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HILLSDALE — After falling to 2-5 in mid-October, Hillsdale College football closed its regular season with a four-game winning streak to finish 6-5 and earn the Great Midwest Athletic Conference bid to the Albanese Candy Bowl. The Chargers will face Upper Iowa at 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, at Brickyard Stadium in Hobart, Indiana.
Since 2019, the South Shore CVA has hosted an NCAA Division II football bowl game. Going into the sixth year of this bowl game, they have acquired a title sponsorship from Albanese Confectionery that will carry through the 2027 season, renaming this event as the Albanese Candy Bowl.
The turnaround
Hillsdale’s turnaround began Oct. 25 with a 35-10 win over Lake Erie at home. The Chargers followed with a 24-10 road win at Thomas More on Nov. 1, then collected a 23-20 victory at Walsh on Nov. 8. They finished the regular season with a 31-14 Senior Day win over Ohio Dominican on Nov. 15, a game in which defensive end Drake Badger recorded 1.5 sacks. Badger finished the regular season with 10 sacks, the first double-digit total by a Hillsdale lineman since 2009.
The strong finish came after a difficult midseason stretch. Hillsdale fell at Tiffin 28-21, at Findlay 16-14 and at home to Northwood 48-19 during a three-week span. The Chargers opened the year with a 22-17 win at McKendree on Sept. 6 and a 44-0 shutout of Kentucky Wesleyan on Sept. 27.
Charger playmakers
Sophomore quarterback Colin McKernan (of Brighton) leads Hillsdale’s offense into the postseason. McKernan has completed 155 of 255 passes for 1,914 yards and 18 touchdowns and has added 400 rushing yards and five rushing scores. Freshman running back Ben Ngishu enters the bowl with 716 rushing yards on 143 carries.
Junior receiver and return specialist Shea Ruddy leads Hillsdale in all-purpose production with 1,510 yards. Ruddy has 598 receiving yards and six receiving touchdowns. He became the 30th college football player since 1977 to record a passing, rushing, receiving and kickoff-return touchdown in the same season. He averages 32.6 yards per kickoff return and has two return touchdowns.
Receiver Tutt Carrico leads the Chargers with seven receiving touchdowns and averages 16.6 yards per catch. Tight end Andrew Konieczny adds four receiving touchdowns. As a team, Hillsdale averages 342.8 yards per game, including 138.8 rushing yards.
Hillsdale’s defense allows 20.3 points and 324.2 yards per game. Opponents average 2.9 yards per carry. Badger leads the front with 14.5 tackles for loss and 10 sacks. Defensive tackle Evan Bienick adds 10.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Nose tackle Hudson Jones and defensive end Jayden Njoroge round out the starting defensive line.
Linebacker Jacob Vance leads Hillsdale with 64 stops and has 6.5 tackles for loss and a defensive touchdown. Defensive back Colin Morrow has three interceptions. Cornerback Ryan Niksa and safety Jack Trachet have combined for 19 pass breakups.
Special teams remain one of Hillsdale’s most productive units. Punter Ian Woodyard averages 40.1 yards on 42 punts and has placed 14 inside the 20-yard line. Kicker Dylan DeDario is 4-for-4 on field goals, all from inside 40 yards, and 18-for-21 on point-after-attempts.
The matchup
Upper Iowa enters the bowl 8-3 overall and 6-2 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. The Peacocks average 32.7 points per game and allow 341.9 yards per contest. Their offense is led by quarterback Darryl Overstreet Jr., running back Jayden Gordon and receiver Lonny Melvin Jr. Defensively, Shaquille Roman, Eddy Latanauskas and Yashua Pettis-Taylor anchor a front that allows 109.7 rushing yards per game.
This will be Hillsdale’s sixth bowl appearance in program history. The Chargers are 1-3-1 all time in bowl games and last appeared in 2021. Saturday’s matchup will also mark the final game for Hillsdale’s senior class, including captains Vance, Carter Cushman and Hunter Sperling.
Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. EST. Fans can purchase tickets online. The Heartland Sports Network will have the broadcast for fans watching at home.
This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: Hillsdale College football heads to Albanese Candy Bowl this weekend
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