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LANCASTER, Pa. – Coming off an 8-3 season, which marked the most victories since the Diplomats posted that same record during the 2018 campaign, the Franklin & Marshall football team is aiming high once again for the 2024 season. That 2023 season was capped by a 30-7 win over King's (Pa.) in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series. The postseason appearance marked the 16th bowl game in program history, with six of those appearances in the Centennial-MAC Bowl Series coming during the last seven seasons. That extended stretch of postseason appearances features five straight postseason victories. Third-year head coach Tom Blumenauer has posted a 14-7 record during his first two seasons with the Diplomats after tying for third place in the Centennial Conference standings last fall.

The Diplomats graduated a number of key seniors, but return five all-conference performers from the 2023 season. That group includes All-American Laurence Miller who was joined on the all-region team by defensive lineman Jeff Decker. Gary Lewis (wide receiver) was another first-team All-CC selection for the Diplomats last year, while Matt Scully (linebacker) and Matt Wertz (safety) also garnered all-conference recognition. Lewis, Scully, and Decker will serve as team captains alongside Logan Clouse, Jacob Hille, and Will Higson who were also voted as captains for the 2024 season.

Offense

Quarterback
Junior Ty Tremba is the incumbent after starting games during each of the past two seasons. Taking over as the starter for all 11 games last season, Tremba set career highs in yards (2,422), touchdown passes (29), and completions (171). His 29 touchdown passes were the second-highest single-season total in school history while also running for two more. Tremba already ranks first in Franklin & Marshall history in passing efficiency (150.6), average yards/pass (8.4), passing yards/game (213.4), and total offense/game (237.1). After just two seasons, he is also sixth in program history for touchdown passes (39) and completion percentage (58.4%), while moving into the top 10 for total touchdowns (45), and total offensive yards (4,505).

Classmate Jake Fant also has experience as the Diplomats' signal caller having appeared in eight games last season where he completed 50 percent of his passes while throwing for a pair of touchdowns. Fant's best game in college to date came against Lebanon Valley in 2022 where he threw for 152 yards and had 210 yards of total offensive, featuring an 87-yard touchdown run which was the third-longest carry in program history.

Running Back
The Diplomats will have to overcome the loss of Mitch Wagner who returns to F&M as an assistant coach, but they have a strong building block to do so as Aaron Rascoe returns to the team after earning first-team All-Centennial Conference honors during the 2022 season when he tied the school record of 14 rushing touchdowns which was originally set over 100 years ago by Elliott Weller. Rascoe averaged 5.25 yards per carry while going over 1,000 all-purpose yards in 2022.

While Rascoe will provide the senior leadership to a young group of backs, sophomore Seth Taylor did gain valuable experience during his rookie season where he carried the ball 20 times for 61 yards. That included a season-best 43 yards rushing on 10 carries during the team's home opening victory against The College of New Jersey.

Wide Receiver/Tight Ends
Entering his junior season after breaking the school record for receiving touchdowns (17) during the 2023 season, Gary Lewis is certainly a receiver that will give defensive coordinators problems. Lewis was a two-time Centennial Conference Offensive Player of the Week and was recently honored with having the conference's play of the year across all sports after catching a program-record five touchdowns at Muhlenberg. Lewis found the end zone during eight of F&M's 11 games last season, hauling in multiple touchdowns on five occasions while going for 100-plus yards during four different contests.

Senior Jack O'Hearen is another veteran option who has caught 60 passes for 776 yards and seven touchdowns during his career. O'Hearen set career highs in both receptions (10) and receiving yards (111) against Montclair State last season and has certainly been a force offensively when he is healthy.  Junior Matt Hanna did a lot of his damage on kickoffs where he averaged 20 yards per return, but additionally gained 119 receiving yards – catching his first career touchdown against McDaniel. Now sophomores with a year of experience in the offense, Hudson Zawadzkas and Jack Harrison will look for an increased role in the offense. Zawadzkas gave the Diplomats what they hope is a glimpse of things to come when he had a season-high 63 yards during last year's win against McDaniel. Harrison added 58 more receiving yards, catching a pair of passes during the win versus Kean.

Seniors Brady Aselton and Will Higson provide two strong options at tight end. Higson has played in 30 games during his career, catching 31 passes for 356 yards and six touchdowns. He has averaged over 11.5 yards per reception as a dependable option. Aselton and Higson split the starts at tight end last fall, with Aselton setting new career highs in receptions (9) and receiving yards (117). Aselton caught five touchdowns as a go-to player in the red zone, hauling in two touchdowns against both Johns Hopkins and Gettysburg.

Offensive Line
The offensive line was certainly a primary focus of the Diplomats' recruiting efforts for this incoming class as nine first-years join a young group that will look to build continuity over the coming seasons as the as the line features just two seniors and one junior. One of those seniors, Reese Bole played in eight games last season while making five starts. Bole was a versatile weapon for the Diplomats last year as he also saw time on the defensive line when injuries were plaguing that unit. Although just sophomores, Aidan Toomey and Nate Zawoiski will be two of the more experienced options as they made up the left side of the line for the majority of last year. Toomey started all but one game last season, splitting his time between the left guard and left tackle positions. Zawoiski made seven appearances during his rookie campaign, starting six games at left tackle.

Defense

Defensive Line
Returning all-region honoree Jeff Decker headlines the players up front who provided constant disruption last year. Decker has made 27 tackles for loss during the last two seasons, including 17 in 2023 which marked the seventh-best single-season total in school history. Decker set a career high with 53 tackles last fall, featuring 6.5 sacks and 14 quarterback hurries which broke the school's single-season record.

Junior LT Kelley was a force from the nose tackle position where he appeared in all 11 games and started the final seven games of the season. Kelley made 21 tackles and recovered three fumbles a season ago for the eighth-best single-season total in school history. With just one first-year on the defensive line, this unit should have plenty of experience as three seniors, two juniors and five sophomores will all have the chance to contribute after already making immediate impacts earlier in their careers.

Linebackers
Franklin & Marshall will certainly have plenty of veteran leadership in its linebacker corps with captains Matt Scully and Jacob Hille among six seniors for this position group. That experience will be vital as the Diplomats look to replace a pair of all-conference performers in Owen Walsh and Kevonte Beard. Although not on the field, Walsh will still have an impact as he returns as an assistant coach. Scully has a flare for the big play with a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown as a first-year and 71-yard interception return as a sophomore. As a junior, he led the team with 70 tackles while intercepting two passes, forcing two fumbles, and breaking up eight additional pass attempts. Scully had a least six tackles during seven of his 11 starts last season and was named to the D3football.com National Team during Week 3 of the regular season. Jacob Hille was named second-team All-Centennial Conference selection in 2022 after leading the team with 72 tackles, but saw his 2023 season limited to just three starts due to injury. He was poised for another great year nine tackles (seven solo) during the season opener against Lebanon Valley.

Fellow senior Daniel Shakal has experience as a starting linebacker and finished last year with 34 tackles. He was playing his best football at the end of the season with at least four tackles during six consecutive contests. That included two of his three interceptions coming during the regular season finale against Gettysburg. Junior Sam Keenan is another veteran of this group who appeared in 11 games last season while registering 13 tackles. Classmate Anthony Bonanno played in nine games last year with perhaps his most notable contribution coming on special teams when he blocked a PAT during the back-and-forth battle with Johns Hopkins.

Secondary
Junior Matt Wertz gives the Diplomats a returning All-Centennial Conference selection at all three levels of the defense as the secondary looks to replace a pair of starters, including 2022 All-American Justin Gerhart. Wertz started all 11 games at safety last year and tied for the team lead with 13 passes defended, breaking up 12 and intercepting another. Wertz ranked third on the team with 65 tackles, including 38 solo efforts. His defensive totals included back-to-back games with 13 tackles against Johns Hopkins and McDaniel. Nico Medlar, the younger brother of Dante Medlar who was constant presence in the F&M secondary during his career, appeared in eight games as a cornerback and started four of those contests last fall. He made 35 tackles, featuring 22 solo stops, during his sophomore campaign. That included a 12 tackle and one interception performance against Johns Hopkins as he made multiple stops during all but one of his games played. There will certainly be opportunities for new stars to emerge in the secondary for the coming years as the last line of defense features three juniors, six sophomores, and six first-years who will be looking to make an impact.

Special Teams
All-American Laurence Miller is the headliner after becoming just the second kicker in program history to make a 50-yard field goal attempt when he did so against TCNJ. Although that kick grabbed the headlines, Miller was steady throughout the year with 12 field goals on 16 attempts while adding 36 PATs. A three-time Centennial Conference Special Teams Player of the Week, Miller also handled the punting duties where he averaged 36.7 yards per punt, with a long of 59 yards. Those totals included landing 17 of his 45 punts inside the opponent's 20. He was also constantly pinning the opposition back on kickoffs with 20 of those 59 kicks resulting in touchbacks.

Hanna handled the bulk of the return duties last year, averaging 20 yards per kick return and 8.4 yards per punt return. Sophomore Chris Albero also lined up deep on kickoff returns and averaged 13.6 yards on his returns.

Coaching Staff
Coach Blumenauer's staff has stayed very consistent, with Matt Quattrone and Michael Phelan returning as offensive and defensive coordinators. Leondre Simmon (passing game coordinator), Chyron Brown-Wallace (defensive line), Ryan Hunt (running backs/tight ends), and Andy Loucks (defensive assistant) also return to the staff. In addition to Wagner and Walsh returning to coach at their alma mater, former United States Naval Officer and US Presidential Food Service Director Frank Fuller will lend his leadership skills to the team.

Schedule
With the same 10 opponents on the docket for 2024, the Diplomats just flip the home and road games for this coming fall. The season gets underway on Friday, September 6 at 7 p.m. against Lebanon Valley for the annual football and fireworks game under the lights of Shadek Stadium. F&M will also host Montclair State (Sept. 21), Dickinson (Oct. 5), McDaniel (Oct. 26), and Muhlenberg (Nov. 9) inside Shadek Stadium. Johns Hopkins is the defending Centennial Conference Champion after going 6-0 in conference, with one of its toughest battles being a thrilling 34-27 battle in Lancaster. That rematch is set for October 19 in Baltimore while F&M also makes trips to TCNJ (Sept. 14), Ursinus (Oct. 12), Kean (Nov. 2), and Gettysburg (Nov. 16).

In the Polls
Franklin & Marshall was picked to finish fourth in the Centennial Conference last year and ended up in a tie for third. Expectations continue to be high for the team as they garnered one of seven first-place votes in the conference's preseason poll conducting by the league's head coaches. The Diplomats earned 22 votes in the poll to edge out Ursinus for the third spot. Johns Hopkins (four first-place votes) and Muhlenberg (two first-place votes) were slotted first and second in the preseason voting. To view the complete poll, click here.

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