Golden Bears set to kick off another championship run Thursday (updated)
(This story has been updated with comments from Kutztown coach Jim Clements.)
Kutztown University won 12 games, a Pennsylvania Conference championship, and reached the NCAA Division II semifinals last season.
A lot of people are expecting the Golden Bears to do the same kind of things this season.
Led by PSAC East Freshman of the Year quarterback Judd Novak of Manheim Central and Conrad Weiser lineman Adam Kase the Golden Bears enter the season ranked No. 9 in the nation in one poll, No. 10 in another, and favored to repeat as PSAC East champs.
The Golden Bears open at home Thursday at 7:30 against Assumption.
Head coach Jim Clements returns after guiding the Golden Bears to nine straight winning seasons.
“I think every year your returners are going to take from the previous season,” said Clements. “Having that experience, playing 15 games last season. That was a long year, but there are a lot of guys back that gained a lot of valuable in-game experience that you can’t match.
“This group knows what it takes. Coming off an 0-2 start to get to the NCAA semifinal round gave our guys a lot of faith in what we do here and what we can accomplish with hard work.”
The Golden Bears will be bolstered by several Berks grads.
Kase, an all-league pick last season after starting all 15 games, has been named one of the top 100 players in the nation by D2Football.com. Kase is a 6-4, 310-pound, fifth-year senior and two-year starter at right guard.
Daniel Boone grad Nate Millard returns to handle both placekicking and punting duties after being named to the PSAC All-East first team as a sophomore. He averaged 43.3 yards on 58 punts and made his only field goal attempt, from 44 yards. The 5-10 junior kicked off 72 times in 15 games last year with 32 touchbacks.
Gov. Mifflin grad Eden Johnson is listed as a starting linebacker on the depth chart. The 5-10, 200-pound redshirt sophomore played in all 15 games last season and recorded 30 tackles. He was Berks Defensive Back of the Year in 2021 and started at quarterback for the Mustangs.
Brandon Strausser, a 5-11, 230-pound redshirt junior, is listed as a second-team linebacker on the depth chart. The Gov. Mifflin grad played in 14 games last season and was credited with six tackles.
Wilson grad Jack Dendall, the Lancaster-Lebanon League Section 1 Lineman of the Year last season, and Gov. Mifflin grad Kabine Toure, a defensive lineman, are in their first season at Kutztown.
Other top returning players include All-PSAC performers Kurtis Ravenel Jr., a fifth-year wide receiver, and redshirt junior Billy Everitt, and offensive lineman.
The Golden Bears started 0-2 last season before winning 12 straight and finishing with a 12-3 record. They won their second PSAC title in three seasons with 31-7 victory over Slippery Rock.
“Our goals stay the same every year,” Clements said. “It starts with winning with the PSAC East. If we do that, it gives us the opportunity to play for the (PSAC) championship. And if we’re in that game, there’s a pretty good chance we make it into the NCAA playoffs. Playing for championships is what we do here at KU.”
Kutztown recorded wins against five nationally-ranked opponents last year, including four in a row in the postseason before falling to No. 1 Colorado School of Mines in the national semifinals.
