Princeton Football 2019 - A Look At The 150th Season

Photo by: Beverly Schaefer

Princeton Football 2019 - A Look At The 150th Season

September 11, 2019 | Football

The 150^th season of Princeton football will begin with the ceremonial removal of the numeral "1" from last year's record. The 2018 Tigers went 10-0, a record that reverts to 0-0 for the start of a new year.

Because of Princeton's role in the first football game back on Nov. 6, 1869, against Rutgers, the 2019 season will be historic regardless of what happens on the field. The Tigers, though, are looking to do something that only the 1951 team has managed to do since 1900, and that's follow a perfect season with another perfect season. Princeton has also won three Ivy League titles in the last six years, and these Tigers will be looking to do something that only the 1964 team could do – which is follow an Ivy League championship season with another Ivy League championship.

Princeton was hurt by major graduation losses on both sides of the ball, including a two-time Bushnell Cup winning quarterback and two dominant wide receivers, all three of whom are now in the NFL. Still, Princeton has played with great depth the last few years, so there is a still a great deal of experience in the lineup.

A position-by-position look at the 2019 Princeton Tigers:

Quarterback
Returning starter – none
Other returnees – Kevin Davidson, Zach Keller, Cole Smith, John Tracy, Brevin White
Newcomers – Joseph Hutchinson

There are so many storylines for the 2019 Princeton football team, but the No. 1 starting place has to be at quarterback, where two-time Bushnell Cup Offensive Player of the Year John Lovett has graduated to the Kansas City Chiefs. Lovett was as big a weapon as Princeton football has had in decades, with his versatility (he could run, throw and catch), ferocity (he'd rather run over defenders than around them, which made him a great short-yardage threat and resulted in 42 rushing touchdowns) and leadership (his intangibles touched every aspect of the program). Without him, Princeton has one player, senior Kevin Davidson, who has started a game, which Davidson did against Brown last year when Lovett was hurt. How did Davidson do in that game and in a backup role behind Lovett the other nine weeks? He completed 33 of 50 for 386 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions. A total of 299 of those yards came in a 48-10 win over Brown. The rest of Princeton's quarterbacks were a combined 15 for 17 last year, including an incredible 13 for 13 from senior Zach Keller, who figures to play a variety of roles, including as the short-yardage option now that Lovett is gone. Junior Cole Smith and sophomore Brevin White are also very capable options who could get playing time as well.

Running back
Returning starter – Collin Eaddy
Other returnees – Tyler Campbell, Austin Carbone, Trey Gray, David Harvey (FB), Davis Kline, Ryan Quigley, Rick Raga (FB)
Newcomers – Chiago Anyanwu, Lucas Warfield

Princeton was hurt by the graduation of first-team All-Ivy League running back Charlie Volker, who combined with quarterback John Lovett to rush for 1,660 yards and 27 touchdowns. That's a lot of production to replace, but Princeton's incredible running back depth from a year ago will pay off in 2019. Junior Colin Eaddy leads the returnees, with memories of his 266-yard performance against Yale last year (the fifth best total in program history) still pretty fresh. Eaddy, in fact, rushed for 663 yards and averaged 7.1 yards per carry last year. Perhaps most impressive for Eaddy is that he carried the ball 93 times and never once was tackled for a loss. Senior Ryan Quigley wasn't that far behind Eaddy's pace, averaging 7.0 yards per carry on 47 carries and matching Eaddy with four rushing touchdowns. Additionally, Eaddy and Quigley combined for 22 receptions, though they both interestingly averaged more yards per rush than reception. Sophomore Trey Gray averaged 5.5 yards per carry himself last year and figures to increase his 37 carries from 2018.

Wide Receiver
Returning starter – none
Other returnees – Jacob Birmelin, Dylan Classi, Andrew Griffin, Andrei Iosivas, Zach Kelly, Luke Montgomery, Michael Polk, Mitch Stroebel, Luke Timm
Newcomers – Michael Axelrood, Alex Cherry, Tamatoa Falatea

The wide receiver position at Princeton was something that could pretty much be taken for granted the last few years, what with 6-4 Jesper Horsted and 6-5 Stephen Carlson around to rewrite the Tiger record book. Last year alone those two combined for 123 catches, 1,730 yards and 18 touchdowns. Now both are in the NFL, leaving massive shoes to fill – and a huge opportunity for those trying to fill them. No returning Princeton wide out reached double figures in receptions last year, and in fact junior Jacob Birmelin and sophomore Dylan Classi lead the returnees with seven apiece. Those two, plus senior Andrew Griffin, figure to see the most time, along with an army of younger players, including Ivy League Heps indoor multi-event champion sophomore Andrei Iosivas.

Tight End
Returning starter – Graham Adomitis
Other returnees – Carson Bobo, Harrison Caponiti, Caden Dumas, Sam Johnson
Newcomers – Eddie Duggan, Luke Gibson

Graham Adomitis, a 6-4, 255-pound senior, is back after a first-team All-Ivy League selection his junior year. Adomitis caught 10 passes for 61 yards a year ago and also played a big role as a blocker for a team that averaged 6.5 yards per rush for the season. Adomitis will also be a tri-captain this year. Senior Sam Johnson and sophomore Carson Bobo are also big bodied tight ends who could see greatly increased playing time.

Offensive Line
Returning starters – Alex Deters, Brent Holder
Other returnees – Luke Aschenbrand, Henry Byrd, David Garfunkel, Riley Held, David Hoffman, Ryan Huth, Nikola Ivanisevic, Ford Roberts, Connor Scaglione, Zackary Zambrano
Newcomers – Nick Basten, Kurt Bernard, Jonathan Boyd, Blake Feigenspan, Richard Krebs

Princeton is without three starters from last year's offensive line, including a pair of first-team All-Ivy League selections, George Attea (graduated) and Reily Radosevich (injured). The returning starters are senior center Alex Deters and senior right tackle Brent Holder, two players who give Princeton a pair of strong anchors. The left tackle is sophomore Henry Byrd, who played a great deal last year as well. As for the two new guards, there are a number of options, including juniors Nikola Ivanisevic and David Hoffman and sophomores Zackary Zambrano and Connor Scaglione.

Defensive Line
Returning starters – Joey DeMarco, Jake Strain, Samuel Wright
Other returnees – Michael Azevedo, Tola Banjoko, Adam Buchanan, Alex Kilander, Uche Ndukwe, Charles Tomassetti
Newcomers – Carter Christopher, Reece Hite, James Stagg

Senior Jake Strain is one of Princeton's tri-captains and a veteran who returned last year and played a key role in the undefeated season after missing almost all of 2017 due to an injury. He helps make the defensive line one of Princeton's strengths heading into 2019. So too do the two other returning starters, senior Joey DeMarco and junior Samuel Wright. Between those three, Princeton got 76 tackles and eight sacks a year ago, numbers that figure to go up this year. Sophomore Uche Ndukwe had a huge spring and is ready to make a big jump in playing time for 2019, as could fellow sophomores Michael Azevedo, Tola Banjoko and Alex Kilander.

Linebacker
Returning starters – Jeremiah Tyler
Other returnees – Zach Beagle, Daniel Beard, Kevin Bruce, Sean Chambers, Ike Hall, Larkin Ison III, Matthew Jester, James Johnson, Manus McCracken, Tyler McDonald, Tavaris Noel, John Orr, Edward Rudisnki
Newcomers – Cole Aubrey, Jaylen Bailey, Joseph Bonczek, Anthony Corbin, Joseph Dalsey, Will Perez

Princeton had two first-team All-Ivy League linebackers who graduated, as Mark Fossati and Tom Johnson went from 1-2 on the team in tackles (83 between them) to earning diplomas in the spring. Again, though, Princeton had very good depth at this spot, and that'll pay off this year. Among the returning players are the third tri-captain, senior John Orr, who was the third-leading tackler on the 2017 team, and 2018 starter and second-team All-Ivy selection jenior Jeremiah Tyler, who had 29 tackles, five for loss, and a pair of interceptions last year. Junior James Johnson, the younger brother and 2018 backup of Tom Johnson, had 24 tackles himself last year. Sophomore Matthew Jester could also move into the starting lineup, with players like juniors Tyler McDonald and Tavaris Noel and sophomores Daniel Beard, Larkin Ison and Ike Hall also having made a big jump in spring practice.

Defensive back
Returning starters – Christian Brown, TJ Floyd, Tervor Forbes, Delan Stallworth
Other returnees – Dawson Di Luliis, Phillip Frost, Will Johnson, Ian Lawrie, Che Rogers, John Santillo, Sultaan Shabazz, Christian Sullivan, Chase Williams, Matthew Winston
Newcomers – Zachary Bouggess, Ken Lim, Michael Ruttlen Jr., Jayden Wickware

Because Princeton had so many early leads last year, opponents had to try to throw the ball more to try to get back in the game. It usually didn't go well. Princeton's opponents threw the ball 323 times last year, and the defense intercepted more passes (15) than it allowed TDs (11). Princeton returns four starters – who combined for 111 tackles and eight interceptions last year - and it also has strong returning backups from last year. Additionally, this is one spot where freshmen could make an immediate impact. The group of returning starters are led by senior T.J. Floyd, a three-year starter, four-year major contributor and 2018 first-team All-Ivy League selection after his six-interception, 33-tackle junior year, but he's hardly the only impact defensive back on the team. Junior Delan Stallworth was a second-team All-Ivy pick after making 56 tackles, and fellow junior Trevor Forbes and sophomore Christian Brown, also a hurdler in track, combined for 32 tackles with an interception each. Princeton has extraordinary depth here and could also get big contributions from senior Chase Williams, also a special teams weapon and lacrosse player, juniors Sultaan Shabazz and Matthew Winston and sophomores Will Johnson and Dawson Di Luliis, not to mention freshmen Jayden Wickware and Michael Ruttlen Jr.

Specialists
Returning starters – Ryan McNeil (LS), Nicolas Ramos (PK), Tavish Rice (KO), George Triplett (P)
Other returnees – Antonio Ferrer (P), Chris Sayan (LS)
Newcomers – Will Powers (P)

Senior Ryan McNeil will be in Year 3 as the long-snapper after not having a bad snap either of his first two seasons. Princeton has two experienced place-kickers in 2018 starter junior Nicolas Ramos and 2017 starter senior Tavish Rice, while sophomore George Triplett was the starting punter last year. Freshman Will Powers was one of the top high school punters in the country last year.