Serving as an assistant coach for 13 years across various levels of NCAA football left Ryan Larsen with some ideas he wanted to someday try.
Now in his second season as Division III Carnegie Mellon’s head coach, Larsen said he finally got to attempt one during a recent August preseason practice.
“I took our staff and we walked off the field halfway through practice and went up in the stands and sat there for a half an hour and watched our team run practice without us there,” Larsen said.
What Larsen said he saw left him optimistic about Carnegie Mellon’s chances to win its 10th Presidents’ Athletic Conference championship and earn a third consecutive NCAA Division III postseason appearance this fall.
“They did it seamlessly and flawlessly for a half an hour straight,” said Larsen of his team’s self-run practice. “They didn’t miss a beat. Not a play on the script, I mean, everything was run perfectly, and I think that’s a testament to how these guys are taking our team right now and how they’re taking accountability and ownership of what we’re trying to do. It’s pretty cool to see.”
Carnegie Mellon opens its season at 7:30 p.m. Saturday with a trip to Beaver Falls to play Geneva College at Reeves Field.
The Tartans — who finished with their seventh undefeated season in school history, a program-record 11 wins and a trip to the second round of the NCAA playoffs in 2022 — are returning 10 of 11 starters from one of the PAC’s top defenses a year ago.
“We always strive to do better than the previous year,” said senior linebacker Logan Young, who is a Moon graduate. “Once you become complacent that’s when you’ll be passed up. We’re trying to improve from last season and do even better.”
Carnegie Mellon ended the 2022 regular season ranked third in the nation in turnover margin, fourth in tackles for loss and interceptions and fifth in turnovers. The Tartans allowed a conference low 10.9 points per game and 74.9 rushing yards per game, while also finishing second in the PAC with 38 sacks and a conference-best 23 interceptions.
“Our confidence is really high,” said senior defensive back Adrian Williams, who is a Peters Township graduate. “We have a lot of trust in each other, and we know each other well.”
Williams and Young each recorded a team-high five interceptions.
Williams recorded a PAC-high 76 tackles, 52 solo, with 18 passes defended, which was good for fifth in the nation. Young had 48 tackles, 29 solo, with one sack and eight tackles for a loss.
“It’s definitely nice to happen,” Young said. “Our coach always prides ourselves on trying to get our hands on the football and do something once we do. It’s nice. It’s the whole defensive kind of helping.”
Senior inside linebacker Robert Coury has done his fair share of helping the entire defense. The Phillipsburg, New Jersey, native led Carnegie Mellon with 99 tackles, 18 for a loss, and finished second on the team with 8½ sacks.
Thomas Coury, Robert’s brother, is also a returning outside linebacker. He had 83 tackles with 2½ sacks.
Fifth-year senior nose tackle Eric Hoeffel should also play a large role for the Tartans this season, Larsen said.
“I think they can compete with anybody in the country,” he said of his defense.
And that is just what Carnegie Mellon has in mind.
“I think our No. 1 goal is to be national champion,” Young said. “I think that’s the only thing that we’re really striving for. Obviously that comes with being 1-0 every week.
“I think we’re all fully committed to that goal and know that’s what our standard is and that’s what we want to achieve.”
And for Williams, doing that with Carnegie Mellon’s core of 11 former WPIAL players would be even more special.
“We know that WPIAL football is real gritty and toughness,” Williams said. “We all grew up watching the 2009 Steelers in the Super Bowl and how good that team was. We take a lot of pride in how we play defense here flying around and making big plays. We just want to represent the city.”
Washington & Jefferson, which was picked to finish second in the PAC preseason coaches poll behind Carnegie Mellon, is also leaning on its strong defense.
Senior defensive lineman Dawson Dietz, a Hampton graduate, led the PAC and was seventh in the nation with 23.5 tackles for loss in 2022. He also recorded 83 tackles and 11 sacks to lead the Presidents defense, which was third in the nation with an average of 3.82 sacks per game and 15th in the country with 8.2 tackles per loss per game.
Senior defensive lineman Alex Keith also had 11.5 sacks and 13 tackles for a loss.
Sophomore quarterback Jacob Pugh, who is a Thomas Jefferson graduate, is also poised to lead W&J’s offense.
Pugh completed 110 of 183 passes for 1,376 yards, 15 touchdowns and seven interceptions in 2022.
W&J is set to open its season at 1 p.m. Saturday against Saint Vincent at Chuck Noll Field in Latrobe.
Sophomore quarterback Tyler McGowan will enter the season as the starting quarterback for Westminster, which was picked to finish third in the PAC in the preseason coaches poll.
McGowan, a Moon graduate, appeared in six games for Westminster in 2022. He completed 57 of 98 passes for 626 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions as a freshman.
Westminster will open its season at 1 p.m. Saturday at Grove City’s Robert E. Thorn Field.
Derry graduate Justin Flack could be among the PAC’s top running backs in his final season with Waynesburg.
Flack carried the ball 127 times for 834 yards and 11 touchdowns. The 5-foot-7, 190-pound Flack was third in the conference in yardage but first with an average of 6.4 yards per carry.
The Yellow Jackets will open their season at 1 p.m. Saturday at John F. Wiley Stadium against Allegheny.
John is a copy editor and page designer at the Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at jsanta@unionprogress.com.