'Let's play football': Hillsdale seniors look to get payback against LCAA rivals in 2024

HILLSDALE — The Hillsdale varsity football program enters 2024 with a new leader at the helm, coach Joseph Williamson, while also bringing back several other members of the staff who have been with the program since the 1990s.

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While the retirement of MHSFCA hall of fame coach Marc Lemerand has brought some changes to the program, this year's group of returning playmakers bring senior leadership, stability and experience that will help put Hillsdale in a path to compete in the LCAA in the months of September and October.

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Playmakers in the backfield and on the line

Among those returning impact playmakers is senior Jace Lennox, who created some of 2023's biggest impact plays for the Hornets, including a school-record breaking 99-yard kick return touchdown. The honorable mention all-conference and first team all-area dream team honoree ran for 968 yards and nine touchdowns. Now a senior, Lennox hopes this season is the biggest and most successful of his career.

“It’s crazy because you're in those rec football pads, you're in middle school and all you dream about is high school football,” Lennox said. “You just want to be out there under the lights on Friday night, and knowing it’s my last season, it’s kind of a bittersweet moment. But it's also fun because I feel like this is going to be my biggest year for football and it’s better to do it this year.”

Also joining Lennox in the backfield will be senior Miles Brown, a runner-turned football player who spent two years on the Hornet cross country team before playing his first football season last year. Brown showed flashes while playing behind strong 2023 senior leadership, including Hillsdale College Charger RB Stephen Petersen.

“I was new but I didn’t feel, like very new,” Brown said. “Everybody knew me and accepted me.”

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Hillsdale hopes to be a formidable running team behind an offensive line returning first team dream team honorees Wyatt Coshatt and Wyatt Wahtola. Their experience is helping lead the younger core of the Hornets to learn the new systems being installed.

“It’s been a challenge learning all the new phrases and blocking schemes,” Wahtola said. “It’s been a learning gap, but other than that we looked pretty good and (are) handling getting acclimated to the words.”

Coshatt, who transferred from Jonesville at the beginning of his high school career, has fell in love with playing for the Hornets and the coaching staffs while here at Hillsdale. He wants his fellow seniors to join him with their new opportunity to build off of the new changes coming to the program.

“I love playing for Hillsdale,” Coshatt said. “I know for us seniors, we wanted to help leave the football team specifically in a better spot…and just build that up. So, if we can help these kids learn and give as much knowledge as we can to them, to set them up for the next three years, that’s the goal."

Family tradition

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Many of these athletes will be on both sides of the ball, including another senior playmaker, John Petersen. Petersen was a first team all-region MHSFCA, first team all-league and first dream all-area dream team honoree last year for his work at defensive end, where he racked up 56 tackles, including seven for a loss.

John Petersen is the last in a line of Petersen brothers who have made an impact for Hillsdale football in the past several years. John and his brother Stephen Petersen won district and regional wrestling titles in their respective weight classes this past year before both earned all-state honors at Ford Field at the state finals.

Now a senior himself, Petersen believes beating some of the best their conference has to offer like regional finalist Clinton, or 2021 state champion Hudson are obtainable this year. But how will they accomplish those lofty goals this year? Petersen says the team has been focused on team bonding, leadership and keeping everything non-football related off the field when they put the pads on.

"We’re ready more than ever," Petersen said. "Now it’s just ‘Let’s play football’, let’s learn the plays, let’s learn the scheme and let’s go beat teams.”

Getting payback and playing for league titles

The challenge of beating Hudson and Clinton is one, specifically, that Lennox is looking forward to on their 2024 schedule.

“Those are two teams that I’ve not beaten as a football player in Hillsdale,” Lennox said. “And those are the top teams in our league. One of our goals this year is to be in the talk of winning league. We want to beat those good teams.”

For Miles Brown, getting revenge against Dundee after a 15-14 loss last year is the biggest game he has penciled in as a must-win. Wahtola and Lennox are both looking forward to playing the Blissfield Purple Royals again, believing that loss in 2023 was a potential win that got away.

For Petersen, the challenge of beating a Lake Fenton team on the road is one he is looking to earn payback against. The Hornets lost a non-conference game 35-0 against the Blue Devils at home last season.

Certainly, if Hillsdale wants to be in the discussion of winning the LCAA, a strong start against longtime rival Jonesville in Week 1 and Lake Fenton in Week 2 will be key to making those goals get crossed off week-by-week.

The Hornets make their 2024 season debut on Thursday, August 29, 7p.m., at home against the Comets.

This article originally appeared on Hillsdale Daily News: 'Let's play football': Hillsdale seniors look to get payback against LCAA rivals in 2024