BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University football team is ready to join the upper echelon of the Heartland Conference after winning three of its final four games and giving HCAC champion Mount St. Joseph all it wanted in a close contest on Senior Day at Alumni Field. Bluffton smacked Manchester and Anderson before winning an instant classic, 42-35, at Defiance in the final HCAC meeting between the two schools.
Outside of the quarterback position, Bluffton returns its entire starting unit on the offensive side of the ball. The men up front include a fifth-year senior, three seniors and a junior. Anchoring the line is Markus Finley (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) who was 2nd Team All-HCAC his first three years at Bluffton. Finley paved the way for an offense that gained nearly 400 yards per game after it averaged 327.3 in 2022. The Beavers moved the chains 201 times, the most first downs since 2017, as Finley collected First Team All-HCAC honors.
Lining up beside Finley and giving Bluffton one of the best left sides in the Heartland Conference is junior Qiyone Nelson (Harper Woods, Mich.). They gave All-HCAC quarterback Xavier Reyero time to pick apart opposing defenses to the tune of 260.4 passing yards per game (3rd in the HCAC). Bluffton finished 5th in the conference with 398.3 yards per game.
Center Antonio Garrett (Murfreesboro, Tenn./Stewart's Creek) is just a junior, while Armauri Freeland (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North) and David Warfield (Canton, Ohio/Glen Oak) are fourth-year seniors with a wealth of starting experience in the trenches.
Senior Kainan Stoner (Belle Center/Benjamin Logan), Bluffton's feature back, rolled up 698 yards on the ground despite missing nearly three games due to injury. He finished 5th in the conference in yards and carries (140), while averaging 5.0 yards per rush. Stoner is currently 20th all-time with 1,475 rushing yards and he is in position to get in Bluffton's top 10 following his senior campaign. He had a career day at Rose-Hulman, piling up 295 yards (3rd all-time) and three scores on a whopping 38 carries.
The Beavers sport a pair of game breakers at wide receiver as they were part of the first trio of Bluffton pass catchers to surpass 600 yards in the same season! Ethan Beringer (Findlay/Carey) entered his final game at Defiance needing five yards to make it three Bluffton receivers over 500 yards and eight catches later, the sure-handed Beringer went for 122 and three tubs. Despite not have a reception as a freshman, Beringer stands 2nd to all-time great Micah Roberson (31) with 21 touchdowns and his 1,190 career receiving yards are 11th all-time heading into season number five.
Junior Niegel Payne (Detroit, Mich./River Rouge) led the Beavers with 666 receiving yards (7th in the conference). He hauled in 39 catches, including six touchdowns, after cutting his teeth on special teams in 2022. His 17.1 yards per catch placed Payne 3rd in the HCAC.
On the other side of the ball, senior Nick Perry (Northwood/Lake) topped the Beavers with 51 tackles while playing just seven games. He was the leader of a defense that allowed 90 fewer yards in 2023 than it did in 2022! Perry racked up 23 solos, 2.5 TFL's, four quarterback hurries and a forced fumble. His 199 career tackles have him tied with Jake Luthy for 12th all-time at Bluffton.
A three-year starter, Marvus McWright (Westland, Mich./Thurston) was a wrecking ball in the backfield of Bluffton's opponents, finishing with 11.5 TFL's (6th in the HCAC) and 4.5 sacks. The defensive end had an interception, a breakup, a forced fumble and three QB hurries in 2023. McWright has 91 career tackles, 20.5 TFL's, eight sacks and three forced fumbles.
Jaydon McBreen (Portland, Ore./Westview) warmed up to college football in a hurry, stepping right into a starting role and never looking back. The 2023 freshman picked off four passes which placed him 2nd in the conference. The standout safety finished with 37 tackles, 3.5 TFL's, three breakups and a forced fumble in year one with the Beavers. His 26 solo tackles led Bluffton last season.
Bluffton's offense scored nearly eight points a game more than it did in 2022 and the improvement defensively was even more noticeable with a drop of over 12 points from 43.0 to 30.7! The 64 third-down conversions in 2023 were the most since 2015 and on top of that Bluffton moved the chains a school-record 23 times on fourth down, making it 87 times that the Beavers kept the ball after getting to third down.
The Beavers travel to Kenyon on Saturday, Sept. 7, and Albion on September 14 before welcoming Trine for the home opener under the lights a week later. Following a bye, Anderson comes to town for the Heartland Conference lidlifter on Homecoming Saturday, Oct. 5. Bluffton wraps up its 2024 home slate with Franklin (November 9) and long-time rival Defiance College (November 16) at Alumni Field.
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