On Saturday, Sept. 10, the Mules returned to Scotty Wood Stadium to immobilize the Dickinson College Red Devils.
During the 2021 season, the Mules’ strong defensive unit led the team all the way to the Centennial Conference championship. Throughout the entirety of last season, the Mules’ defense only gave up more than 30 points in one regular season game and were able to hold opponents to zero points in three different contests. However, in their first game of the year against University Mary Harlin-Baylor (UMHB), the defense did not play up to their standards as they gave up nine touchdowns in their 62-13 loss. In the team’s home opener, the defense managed to bounce back against the Red Devils with a 34-21 victory, collecting six sacks along the way.
A highlight of the defensive attack last Saturday was outside linebacker Isaiah Lobelo ‘24, who led the team in tackles for loss (TFL), with 2.5 TFLs for 10 yards. Lobelo and the rest of the defense knew that they couldn’t let one bad performance affect their next game. “Last week didn’t turn out the way we wanted it to and we were all out there just trying to do too much instead of just doing our jobs. The focus this week was just to do what we’ve been taught all through camp and to not overthink things. One thing that Coach Milne always says to us is that this game is the most important one because it’s the next one. And that’s how we really didn’t let our last game’s performance damage our confidence this week,” said Lobelo.
With a new quarterback following the graduation of Michael Hnatkowsky ‘22—who had been in the Mules’ pocket since 2017–the defense knows that they must be elite to stay atop the Centennial Conference. “After Saturday’s win the goal now is to do better and improve game by game. One of our themes for the season is called ‘championship climb.’ This is the daily improvement that we must go through to get to where we want to be by the end of the season. When we all play on the same page and do what we’ve practiced week in and week out, we can be a top defense in this conference and that’s how our mentality is going into each and every game,” Lobelo said.
With Joe Reppetti ‘25 under center, the Mules’ offense has adjusted the system and been able to make significant improvements through their first two games, adjusting the system to their new QB (quarterback.) Despite struggling against UMHB, the offense was able to show improvements, scoring four touchdowns and kicking two field goals on the way to 34 points. In his first career conference start, sophomore starting quarterback Joe Repetti ‘25 started strong, throwing for 241 yards and scoring three total touchdowns (two passing and one rushing). “I think Joe has been doing a great job so far. He’s been gaining confidence these last two games and I think it’s only going to keep growing from here. Joe is great at keeping plays alive for us and finding receivers when we’re open. I think his mobility makes it very tough on the defenses because they have to worry about him running and then the DBs (defensive backs) have to cover receivers for a longer time which is very hard. I think [Repetti] will keep progressing and we’ll have a very successful season,” said wide receiver Pelton Esannason Jr. ‘24.
Esannason Jr. also spoke on how he and the rest of the receiving group have been able to build a strong connection with Repetti despite being just two games into the season, saying, “I think the key has been the countless hours in preseason and practice. From Aug. 10 (the first day the team started practicing together), we’ve been practicing everyday trying to create that chemistry that a WR (wide receiver) and a QB needs to be successful, and I feel like it’s been going great. With all of those reps comes trust, and that is vital to being successful. You gain trust by seeing your teammate do it day in and day out, and the trust increases because we see each other make plays and then it translates to games.”
The Mules go up against the Ursinus College Bears this upcoming Saturday, Sept. 10 looking for vengeance after Ursinus was the sole team to beat them during the regular season in 2021.
