Bauman looks to change culture at Thiel in first season

Aug. 19—GREENVILLE — The Thiel football team is looking to turn around a long losing skid. They turned to a new coach this offseason with hopes of turning things around.

The Tomcats are in the midst of a 37-game losing streak — recording their last win on Sept. 16, 2017, in a 28-13 win over Bethany College.

First-year head coach Sam Bauman is aware of what happened in the past, but he doesn't focus on it. He wants to see gradual improvement out of a Tomcats practice to practice.

"I'm really excited about the direction we're going," Bauman said. "If we can stack a couple practices together, I think we can continue to improve, and that's really kinda been the mindset here. One isn't good enough. We got to get the second good practice and the third good practice."

Bauman made the move from the College of Wooster in Ohio to Thiel as he embarks on his first stint as a head coach.

He was a part of Frank Colaprete's coaching staff that took the Fighting Scots from a 2-8 record in 2013 to a formidable foe in the Ohio Athletic Conference.

Now the former Wooster defensive coordinator is looking for a similar turnaround with the Tomcats.

"If you look at what we're doing and what they're doing over at Wooster, you'd see a lot of similarities because that's what I learned from," Bauman said. "I couldn't ask for a better mentor as far as that goes.

"It's great to be able to call (Colaprete) and have what questions I have get answered. Even Zach (Dennis), the offensive coordinator over there — another guy I spent nine years with — talking through stuff."

Thiel has a sizable freshman class this season. Approximately 45 first-year players took the field during camp. Bauman is pleased with the high number of first years, but he also knows the upperclassmen will be the ones to push the Tomcats' culture change forward.

The added faces give Bauman some clay to mold for the future, but also provides some competition while he is implementing a new culture.

One area of competition is at quarterback. The Tomcats have an battle for starting signal caller. Owen Trumbull, Alexander Kovalyak and Clarion transfer Zech Sanderson have taken snaps at quarterback in camp.

Trumbull, last season's starter, threw for 658 yards, completing 62 of 121 attempts (51.2 percent) with two touchdowns and four interceptions in 10 games. Kovalyak completed 44 of 155 attempts (38.2 percent) for 466 yards, three scoress and nine interceptions in nine games. As a freshman at Clarion, Sanderson completed 80 of 169 throws (47 percent) for 919 yards four scores and 10 INTs.

At running back, sophomore Deon Logan returns for his second season after leading the Tomcats in rushing last season. He accounted for 235 yards rushing and one touchdown on 78 attempts. Freshman Kenyatta Taylor impressed in camp after playing at Woodlawn High School in Maryland last year.

Former Grove City Eagle Jake Reddick returns for his junior season. Reddick led the Tomcats with 20 catches for 250 yards and one touchdown last season. Donovan Blue returns for his senior season after catching 14 balls for 205 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore Justin Logan ranked last season among Thiel receivers with 151 yards on 14 receptions, but caught a team-high three touchdowns. Freshman receiver Jamar Jeter has been "doing really, really well," according to Bauman.

"I think our skill is really good," Bauman said. "We're putting the pieces together and there's a lot of competition. It's been fun seeing guys kinda rise up, guys fall off and then battle back."

On the interior D-line, Dominick Knierman comes back after tallying 29 tackles, 4 1/2 tackles for loss and two sacks in an All-Presidents' Athletic Conference Honorable Mention season. Sophomore defensive tackle Jaellen Rose returns after recording six tackles for loss and a team-high 2 1/2 sacks last season. On the edge, senior Jarren Daniels returns following a season that saw three tackles for loss and two sacks.

Former Reynolds defensive linemen Mitch Mason and Luke Faber have also stood out. Mason is a freshman and Faber enters his sophomore season after not appearing in a game last year. Faber record 33 tackles, five tackles for loss and two sacks, tied for second most on the team last year. Sharon graduate Jordan Volpe, a senior, comes back after making 27 tackles and three tackles for loss.

At linebacker, Joe Stoutamire comes back for his senior campaign after receiving All-PAC Honorable Mention. The inside linebacker recorded a team-high 65 tackles, including 9 1/2 for loss, last season. Fellow senior linebacker Andrew Plowden joins Stoutamire after totaling 39 tackles as a junior. Dante Edwards has stood out as a freshman.

Senior safety Darnell Jordan retains his position in the defensive backfield. Jordan 56 tackles and three pass breakups in 2021. Sophomore Randall Miller looks to build on a 2021 season that saw him make a team-high three interceptions at cornerback.

Bauman said a number of young players have impressed in the secondary but are still learning the finer points to their positions.

Bauman said the players are aware of the team's losing streak. But he wants them to focus on competing and getting better every practice. He wants the players to think about the positive change that could be on the horizon and continue.

"We're the only ones in this conference that thinks that we can even win a game," Bauman said. "That's fine. That's our mentality. We're gonna keep pushing forward. If we're 0-9 after nine games, we're expecting to win the 10th. That's really just the mentality.

"That's where the expectation is. Go into every week being able to compete. If we can compete, we can win."