News

Hauschka Signs NFL Contract

Steve Hauschka signed a free-agent contract with the Minnesota Vikings at the conclusion of the 2008 NFL draft on Sunday. Hauschka, who graduated from Middlebury College in 2007 with a degree in neuroscience, had an extra season of eligibility and enrolled at North Carolina State’s graduate school this past fall. He earned a spot on the Wolfpack as the team’s placekicker this past season, making a combined 95% of his field goals and PAT’s.

2008 Schedule Announced

Following their 2007 NESCAC Championship season, the Middlebury football team has announced its 2008 schedule. The team opens with Bowdoin this season, with the Polar Bears replacing Wesleyan on the schedule.

Woodring is ECAC Northeast Player Of The Year - McKillop Is Rookie Of The Year

Middlebury College football players Erik Woodring (Cos Cob, Conn.) and Donald McKillop (Poway, Calif.) were honored today by the ECAC. Woodring was named the league’s Player of the Year, while McKillop earned ECAC Rookie of the Year honors. The duo helped lead the Panthers to the 2007 NESCAC Football Championship with a 7-1 mark in league play.

Woodring Named All-East & Honorable Mention All-American

Middlebury College linebacker Erik Woodring (Cos Cob, Conn.) has been named to the All-East team by D3football.com, after being named to the New England Football Writers Division II/III All-New England team last month. The senior linebacker helped lead the Panthers to an impressive 7-1 record this season, as they captured the NESCAC Championship. Woodring was also an honorable mention All-American selection by D3Football.com.

Ritter Earns Regional Coach Of The Year Honors

Middlebury College football coach Bob Ritter has been named the Region 1 AFCA (American Football Coaches Association) Coach of the Year. The seventh-year head coach led the Panthers to the 2007 NESCAC Championship with a record of 7-1 on the season. He along with four other regional winners will now be placed on the National Coach of the Year ballot, to be announced later this month.

Woodring Earns New England Honors

Middlebury College linebacker Erik Woodring (Cos Cob, Conn.) has been named to the New England Football Writers Division II/III All-New England team. The senior linebacker helped lead the Panthers to an impressive 7-1 record this season, as they captured the NESCAC Championship.

Four Football Players Earn Academic All-American Honors

Four members of the Middlebury College football team have been named District I Academic All-Americans by CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors Association). Senior David Randolph (Madison, Conn.), along with juniors Andrew Matson (Coventry, R.I.), Brian Marcks (Glastonbury, Conn.) and Thomas Brown (Ho-Ho-Kus, N.J.) were all named to the second team. The four players helped lead the Panthers to the 2007 NESCAC Football Championship with a 7-1 mark in league play.

Football Team Earns NESCAC Honors - Woodring is Player of the Year, McKillop is Rookie of the Year, Ritter is Coach of the Year

Nine members of the Middlebury College football team were honored today when the NESCAC announced its all-league teams. Senior Erik Woodring (Cos Cob, Conn.) was named the Defensive Player of the Year, first-year quarterback Donald McKillop (Poway, Calif.) was deemed the Rookie of the Year, while head coach Bob Ritter was named the Coach of the Year.

Earning first-team honors were Woodring, senior running back David Randolph (Madison, Conn.), senior offensive lineman Nick Welch (Cape Elizabeth, Maine), junior Andrew Matson (Coventry, R.I.), senior defensive back Brian Young (W. Bloomfield, Mich.) and senior punter Jack Britton (Carmel, Calif.). Holding a spot on the second-team were senior defensive lineman Chad Guerrero (Essex, Vt.), senior linebacker Nathan Clancy (Elmhurst, Ill.) and sophomore kick returner James Millard (Greenwich, Conn.). The group helped lead the Panthers to the 2007 NESCAC Football Championship with a 7-1 mark in league play.

Woodring Earns Player Of The Week Honors For The Third Time

Middlebury College linebacker Erik Woodring (Cos Cob, Conn.) has earned NESCAC Defensive Player of the Week honors for the third time this season. The senior linebacker capped an impressive career with the Panthers on Saturday at Tufts, recording 18 tackles, eight of which were solo. He also forced a fumble, recovered a fumble, had a pass break-up and recorded a half-tackle for a loss as Middlebury captured the NESCAC title. Woodring ended the season as the NESCAC leader in tackles with 106 and is now the school’s all-time leading tackler with 307.

McKillop Is Three-Time Rookie Of The Week

For the third and final time this season, Middlebury College quarterback Donald McKillop (Poway, Calif.) has been named the NESCAC Rookie of the Week. In the season finale at Tufts, McKillop compiled 198 yards as the Panthers won the 2007 NESCAC title with a 21-19 win at Tufts. He went 17 of 29 for 150 yards, with touchdown passes of two and 11 yards. He also rushed 10 times for 48 yards with a long of 11, ending the year as the league’s fourth-rated quarterback.

Football Wins NESCAC Championship

Middlebury won its first outright NESCAC Football Championship with a 21-19 win over Tufts in the season finale. The Panthers end the season with a 7-1 mark, a game ahead of 6-2 Trinity and Williams. Middlebury earned a share of the NESCAC title with a similar 7-1 mark back in ’00, the first year the NESCAC began awarding football championships.

Butch Appears On CBS Evening News & Boston Globe

The recent republication of “Picking Up Butch” by Rick Reilly of Sports Illustrated has helped generate a media buzz once again. Shortly after the article appeared, we were contacted by the Boston Globe for a feature story. The piece appeared in the Sunday, November 11, edition of the Boston Globe Magazine section of the Globe.

While a worldwide audience saw an ESPN SportsCenter feature on Butch, millions more saw his story on the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric. Butch was featured in Steve Hartman’s “Assignment America” segment, which aired on Friday, November 2.

Click here for the link to the CBS story and more.

Click here for an interview with Russ Reilly.

Click here to read the Boston Globe Magazine article.

Click here for more information on Butch.

Football Clinches Share Of League Title With Shutout Over Hamilton

Middlebury (6-1) guaranteed itself at least a share of the NESCAC title with a 28-0 shutout over Hamilton (2-5) on Youngman Field at Alumni Stadium. The shutout is the third of the season and the fifth for the Panthers in their last nine games. Middlebury wraps up its season next Saturday at Tufts and can win the league out-right with a victory. Hamilton ends its year when they host Bates on Saturday.

Marcks Named Defensive Player Of The Week

Middlebury College football player Brian Macks (Glastonbury, Conn.) has been the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Week. The junior defensive back had a big day against Trinity on Saturday in a 23-14 victory for the Panthers. Marcks made five tackles, forced a fumble, and intercepted a pass late in the game while breaking up three others.

McKillop Earns Rookie Of The Week Honors

Middlebury College football player Donald McKillop (Poway, Calif.) has been named the NESCAC Rookie of the Week for the second time this season. The rookie QB completed 14-of-22 passes for 145 yards in the Panthers rain-soaked 23-14 win over Trinity on Saturday. McKillop tossed touchdown passes of 40 and 25 yards, while contributing 20 rushing yards on seven carries.

Football Defeats Trinity

Middlebury (5-1) picked up its first win over Trinity (4-2) in the last six years as the Panthers earned a key 23-14 NESCAC win over the Bantams. The Panthers entered the game ranked fourth in New England, while the Bantams sat in the second spot. The game took over 3:30 as it was delayed twice by lightning, on a rain-soaked Youngman Field. The Bantams had lost just three times in their last 46 contest entering the game. Middlebury now sits atop the NESCAC standings with Tufts, both boasting 5-1 records.

Football Earns Shutout At Bates

The Middlebury football team ran its record to 4-1 on the year as they picked up a 13-0 shutout win at Bates. The Panthers out-gained the Bobcats 378-189 on the afternoon, holding them to just 82 yards passing. The win is the 19th straight for Middlebury over Bates.

Woodring Again Named Player Of The Week

For the second time in three weeks, Middlebury College football player Erik Woodring (Cos Cob, Conn.) has been named the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Week. The senior linebacker continued to provide solid play for the Panther defense, racking up 19 tackles, seven of which were solo, against Williams on Saturday. Woodring also recovered his first fumble this season and blocked an extra point attempt. He leads the NESCAC with 59 tackles through four games, averaging a conference-high 14.8 per game.

Panthers Fall To Williams

Williams’ Brian Morrissey rushed for 137 yards on 27 carries with three touchdowns to lead the Ephs (2-2) to a 30-22 win at Middlebury (3-1). Both teams amassed over 400 yards of offense on the day, with the Panthers throwing five interceptions. Williams was unable to score on any of the five turnovers, with the Middlebury defense standing its ground.

McKillop Named Rookie Of The Week

Middlebury College football player Donald McKillop (Poway, Calif.) has been named the NESCAC Rookie of the Week. The quarterback went 15 of 34 for 168 yards and no interceptions in a 19-16 win for Middlebury at Amherst on Saturday, pushing the Panthers to a perfect 3-0. McKillop’s longest strike of the day was for 31 yards in the second quarter that set up an eventual Middlebury touchdown. He is now the third-rated passer in the league and will look to move the Panthers to 4-0 when they host Williams this Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

Football Tops Amherst

Middlebury improved to 3-0 for the second consecutive season with a 19-16 win at Amherst. The Panthers and this week’s opponent Williams, are now 11-2 in their last 13 games, second only to 12-1 Trinity. The visiting Panthers took a 19-9 lead into halftime, which proved to be too much for the Jeffs to overcome, as Middlebury hung on for win.

Woodring Named Player of the Week

Middlebury College football player Erik Woodring (Cos Cob, Conn.) has been named the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Week. The senior linebacker was a strong force for the Panthers on defense this past Saturday afternoon, as he helped his team secure its second shutout in as many years over Colby during a 41-0 win. Although he saw limited action in the second half, Woodring still racked up 15 tackles, including 4.5 for lost yardage, and recorded a sack for a six-yard loss.

Football Earns Shutout Over Colby

The Middlebury College football team earned its second shutout of Colby in as many years as the Panthers blanked the Mules 41-0 in Middlebury’s home-opener. The Panthers followed up last week’s 229-yard effort on the ground with 226 today as they took advantage of five consecutive Colby turnovers in the first half.

Football Opens With Win At Wesleyan

The Middlebury College football team won its season-opener for the second consecutive year as they picked up a 24-10 win at Wesleyan. David Randolph rushed for 105 yards with a touchdown as the Panthers out-gained the Cardinals 229-75 on the ground.

Follow Middlebury Football All Season Long

It won't be difficult to stay in touch with Middlebury football for the upcoming season. All eight games will be broadcast on ESPN 1490 WFAD, while all four home games will be covered by campus radio WRMC-91.1 FM.

In addition, you can watch all four Panther home games, as well as select road games live online.

CLICK HERE for the webcast schedule.