No. 1 Mount in debut

Mount Union College will launch its 111th season of football today when the No. 1-ranked Purple Raiders play host to St. John Fisher (N.Y.) at 1:30 p.m. at Mount Union Stadium in Alliance.

Mount Union is ranked No. 1 in the nation in NCAA Division III by the D3Football.com Top 25 poll, while St. John Fisher is rated No. 10 and as high as No. 6 in the USA Today poll.

The Purple Raiders list seven area players on the roster, including starters Luke Summers (Springfield) and Caleb Crowl (Lisbon). Summers, a senior, will start at right offensive tackle while Crowl, a junior, will get the call at left offensive tackle.

Summers, a business administration major, is a two-year letter-winner. He played in 13 games last season and all 15 contests in 2006.

Crowl, a history major, played in 11 games last season and won a letter. Crowl’s backup will be Justin Smith, a sophomore from New Castle Laurel.

The other area players are Scott Thomas, junior running back from West Branch; Jarrell Murray. sophomore defensive end from Rayen; Mike Maietta, sophomore defensive lineman from Hubbard; and Mike Shinn, sophomore wide receiver from United.

Mt. Union, St. John Fisher were playoff opponents

Mount Union and St. John Fisher are in their third meeting after having played each other in the playoffs the past two seasons, with the Purple Raiders winning both meetings (26-14 in 2006 and 52-10 in 2007 in a quarterfinal).

After winning last year, Mount Union went on to defeat Bethel (Minn.), 62-14, in a semifinal but then lost to Wisconsin-Whitewater, 31-21, in the Stagg Bowl. The Purple Raiders have won nine of the last 15 NCAA national championships, and the last 16 Ohio Athletic Conference titles.

Larry Kehres, a native of Diamond and one of the most successful coaches in college football history, enters his 23rd season at the Mount Union helm with a 260-21-3 (.923) record.Among his assistants with area coaching ties are Keith Wakefield, Austintown Fitch High coach; Clyde Ross, assistant at Salem and United, and Joel Cockley, Youngstown State assistant, while Jason Candle, a former Mount Union wide receiver, is from West Branch.

Kehres said his coaching staff has been an important part of the team’s success over the years.

“We have built a successful program, in part, because our coaching staff has remained intact and is committed to our system,” said Kehres.

Micheli, Kmic return to lead Purple Raiders

The Purple Raiders, who have the best winning percentage and most wins in all of college football since 1990 (230-11-1/.948), return 32 letterwinners and seven starters.

Senior quarterback Greg Micheli and running back Nate Kmic along with fellow senior Chad Reynolds at tight end are the returning starters on offense.

A pair of defensive ends — senior Joe Millings and junior James Herbert — join senior defensive back Daryl Ely as returning defensive starters.

The other starter back is junior punter Jay Carpenter, who also takes over placekicking duties.

Kmic owns virtually every Mount Union and OAC rushing record while Micheli needs only 2 yards to crack the top five for career total yards at the school.

Kmic and Micehli also will be Mount Union’s captains along with Ely and linebacker Chas Yoder, all seniors and selected by their teammates.

XJohn Kovach writes about college athletics for The Vindicator. Write to him at kovach@vindy.com.