FREELAND, Mich. -- Trine University football has been selected to finish third in the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) by association coaches in this seasn's preseason poll.
The Thunder received votes totaling 17 points to claim the third spot in the poll. The point totals are determined by votes cast by the association's coaches, who cannot vote for their own team, with low point total receiving the top spot. Albion College was selcted first receiving the six possible first-place votes and the minimum six points. Hope College received 14 points and the final first-place vote to come in at second.
Trine finished last school year's untraditional season with a 4-1 record overall while going 2-1 in MIAA play. The season spanned the fall and spring with the team participating in a pair of non-conference games in the fall followed by the three MIAA contests in the spring. The team's lone loss of the season came against eventual champion Albion College in the first game of the spring portion of the season.
The team is set to exceed expectations this season returning a core group of important personel while also expecting improvement from still more returning players.
On offense three All-MIAA selections return to the field. Senior Xaine Kirby (Sweetser, Ind. / Eastbrook) headlines the groupas a first-team selection. Kirby was the number one rusher in the MIAA last season turning in 458 yards with a 91.6 yard per game average over the course of his five games played. He also averaged 5.4 yards per carry and finished the season wtih six touchdowns.
The teams leading passer also returns for the season, junior Alex Price (Reading, Mich. / Reading) was a second-team selection last season after finishing the year with 1000 yards (third in the MIAA), averaging 200 per game (fourth in MIAA). He finished the season with six touchdowns and led the Thunder in all passing categories. Junior Connor Arthur (Bryan, Ohio / Bryan) is also set to make a return after being named second-team. He finished last season with 212 yards on 11 receptions.
Expected to make greater contributions this season are upperclassman wideouts Colin Goebel (Auburn, Ind. / DeKalb) and Julian Smith (Glenwood, Ill. / Calumet New Tech). Goebel finished last season with 102 yards on seven receptions while Smith came in with 58 yards.
Defensively the team returns five All-MIAA players from a squad that finished first in the league allowing just 77.7 rushing yards per game and third in points per game (23.7).
Two first-team selections returning including linebacker Kyle Naif (Riverview, Mich. / Riverview) and safety Keysean Amison (Sandusky, Ohio / Perkins) while three second-team selections returned: defensive tackle Jamon Gibson (Toledo, Ohio / Central Catholic), Aaron Dean (Fort Wayne, Ind. / Eastside) and Angel Sanchez (Valparaiso, Ind. / Portage).
Naif helped anchor a squad that allowed 368.0 yards of offense and accounted for 12 takeaways with eight fumble recoveries and four interceptions. Individually, Naif finished fourth on the team in tackles with 20. He was second in solo tackles with 16 and added four assisted stops. Two of his tackles were for loss and he also had a pair of pass breakups. Naif had a career-high effort of 13 tackles (12 solo and one assist) in the matchup against Albion (Mich.) College on Mar. 20.
Gibson was part of a defensive line that helped Trine make 11 sacks during the year. He had 10 tackles in his first season with the Thunder with five solo and five assists. He tallied a half tackle for loss and also had a pass breakup. Gibson had at least one tackle in each of the three games he played, including a season-high of five stops (three solo and two assists) against Adrian in late March. He also had a four-tackle game (two solo and two assists) the previous week against Albion.
Amison, Dean and Sanchez were part of the defensive secondary that accounted for a combined four interceptions on the year. Sanchez led the group with two interceptions, while Dean and Amison picked off a pass each. Amison finished second on the team in tackles with 27 (15 solo and 12 assists) and had a season-high of eight stops (six solo and two assists) against Albion. His eight tackles were part of four straight games of five or more tackles. In addition to his interception, Amison also recovered a fumble to go along with a fumble forced and a pass breakup.
Sanchez was fifth in tackles with 17 (10 solo and seven assists) and was second in pass breakups with three. Sanchez recorded a least a tackle in all five games with a season-best of six tackles (all solo) in the second meeting against Adrian on Mar. 27. He also had one his interceptions in that game which he ran back for a 54-yard touchdown and led to "Team of the Week" accolades by D3football.com. Dean led the team in pass breakups with four and had 13 total tackles on the year (nine solo and four assists). Dean's interception came in the second week of the season against Manchester in which he returned it 50 yards and led to a Trine field goal. In addition to the INT, Dean had a fumble recovery and blocked a field goal attempt in the season opener against Adrian that he ran back for an 84-yard touchdown.
