(WILMINGTON, Ohio) – The Wilmington College football team begins their 2026 season on the road at The College of Wooster next Thursday at 7:00 P.M.

This will be the Quakers fourth season in a row opening up against the Fighting Scots, as they look to win their third game during this stretch and second in a row. They blew out Wooster at home last season 59-35.

The Thursday night battle will be the Quakers first game on a Thursday since taking down Southern Virginia University, 52-27, in their season opener in 2022.

Quakers Head Coach Kevin Burke will be heading into his third year with Wilmington and looks to turn some heads after a promising 2025 season.

A Look Back
Wilmington finished last season with a deceiving overall record of 3-7. Four of their losses came by seven points or less, with two coming by three points or less.

Key Pieces Lost
Three of the Quakers four All-Ohio Athletic Conference (OAC) performers graduated. These were leading wide receiver De'Anta Sanon, rock solid offensive lineman Dylan Alltop, and quarterback Isaac Ross, who emerged into one of the best QB's in the conference during his final campaign. 

Sanon caught 40 passes for 803 yards and seven touchdowns, while also contributing 31 kick returns for 706 yards with one return touchdown in an all-around great season.

Alltop protected Ross's blind side on the offensive line all 10 games last season and was one of the Quakers most consistent lineman for several years.

Ross completed 179 passes for 2,777 yards and 23 touchdowns. His touchdown mark was tied for fifth in program history. He threw for 331 yards or more in four games as a senior and had two games throwing for over 400 yards.

Find an overview of each Quakers position group below:

Offensive Line
The Quakers return five offensive linemen from 2025 with starting experience. Junior Parker Love appeared in six games last season with one start. Junior Peyton Bell appeared in eight games last season for the Quakers, making five starts.

Senior Tyler Tolson appeared in all 10 games with eight starts, while Jack Robinette made four starts on the line before going down with a season ending injury. Junior Austin Barton made eight appearances with seven starts.

Wilmington also has seven freshmen brought into the offensive line room this season, along with a few returning sophomores.

Quarterbacks
The Quakers have three returning quarterbacks this season along with a pair of freshmen. Juniors Isaiah Henderson and Miles Hostetler have made a combined three starts in their Quakers careers, with all of them coming during the 2024 season. Hostetler did not appear last season while Henderson was 8-15 for 60 yards.

Sophomore Cale Leitch will also be competing for the Quakers job after not appearing in a game last year.

"There is a competition going on right now. All three of them we can move the ball with, all three of them we can win with," says Burke.

Running Backs and Full Backs
The Quakers lone returning running back is senior Bryce Stout, who appeared in all 10 games last year. He was second on the team with 308 rushing yards and scored three touchdowns on the ground. His best performance of the season was at Otterbein University, where he rushed 17 times for 128 yards and a touchdown.

Freshmen Kaiden Molnar and Jacob Corbin also look to see the field this season for the Quakers.

Senior Tyler Barth returns as the Quakers starting full back, after appearing in all 10 games for Wilmington last season. He caught a one-yard touchdown pass for the Quakers last season on his lone reception of the year.

Tight Ends
Sophomores Lincoln Clark and Erik Rogers return at the tight end position for Wilmington while freshmen Logan Ridenbaugh joins them in the room.

Wide Receivers
"The wide receivers are our deepest position on offense. We have 8 to 12 guys that are ready to see the field," says Burke.

The headliners for Wilmington are senior Joseph Spann and fifth year player Darryl Story. Both players caught three touchdown passes last year, with Story catching 23 passes for 318 yards and Spann 14 for 261 yards. They were the second and third leading receivers on the Quakers squad last season.

Also returning is sophomore Xander Logan and junior Amare Middleton, who were the fourth and fifth leading receivers on last year's team. Logan caught 13 passes for 249 yards, including a four catch, 135-yard performance in the final game of the season against Capital University. Middleton also hauled in 13 passes for 228 yards.

Other players to watch for are juniors Sammy Amnah and Jaliq Wilson and sophomore Jalen Jordan and Zach Chaney.

Defensive Line
Highlighting the defensive line crew for Wilmington are juniors Darrick Perdue and Jelani Hunter, along with senior Cody Workinger and sophomore Tristen Malone.

Perdue was injured after six games last season, but before the injury, he racked up 17 tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss and added in a 10-yard scoop and score at Otterbein.

Hunter led the team with 3.5 sacks and tied for the team lead with 5.5 tackles for loss in a 33-tackle season over nine games.

Workinger appeared in nine games and made nine tackles with 1.5 tackles for loss, while Malone jumped into a starting role at the end of the season and shined with 18 total tackles, two tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks as a freshman.

Sophomore Zane Schneider transitioned from linebacker to the defensive line during the offseason and is another player to keep an eye on for the Quakers.

Outside Linebackers
Junior Tyler Gregory and fifth year James Rankin are the two to look out for here for the Quakers as Gregory transitions from the safety position. Gregory started all 10 games for Wilmington last season and was second on the team with 75 tackles, while also contributing 1.5 tackles for loss, three pass breakups, a fumble recovery and forced fumble.

Before an injury, Rankin started six games and made 16 tackles with two tackles for loss, one pass breakup and a forced fumble and fumble recovery.

Several newcomers also look to contribute for the Quakers and make an impact.
Inside Linebackers
Senior Gavan Hunter was arguably the Quakers best defensive player last season, as he returns, looking for his best season yet in a Wilmington uniform. He made 80 tackles to lead the team with two tackles for loss. 21 of his tackles came in the final game of the season against Capital.

Junior Nick Morrow appeared in all 10 games for the Quakers last season, making 28 tackles with two tackles for loss and an interception.

Jeremy Hamm will look to get snaps this season along with Dmitri Rose, who moves from the lacrosse field to the football field for the first time at Wilmington this year.

Secondary
The two cornerbacks for Wilmington to look out for are sophomore Jordan Fitzpatrick and sophomore transfer Javon Pray, who comes from Livingstone College. Fitzpatrick was great as a freshman for Wilmington, leading the team with three interceptions and being named the OAC Defensive Player of the Week during the season. He made 25 tackles and had four pass breakups.

Pray looks to be a key addition for Wilmington, working primarily as a corner but can be used as a safety when needed.

The key safeties this season for Wilmington are senior Nathan Nemeth and sophomore Jarrett Thompson. Nemeth was third on the team with 73 tackles and had four tackles for loss to go along with two interceptions, three pass breakups and two forced fumbles. Thompson started the season as a primary corner before making his way to safety before the end of the season. He had one interception and two pass breakups, paired with his 17 tackles and one tackle for loss.

There are several freshmen who will look to be solid players throughout the season when needed and be primary breakout candidates next year.

Kickers
Sophomore Camden Marx returns as the Quakers kicker this season after a solid 2025 season. He was 8-10 on field goals with a long of 38 yards. He also kicked off 61 times with 14 touchbacks.

Freshman Drew Rossman joins Marx as the other kicker on the Quakers roster.

Punters
Senior Avery Ernst led the Quakers with 16 punts last year and a long of 55 yards, with five punts going inside the 20-yard line.

Junior Jace Thuma follows him with 13 punts last year and a long of 43 yards with three punts inside the 20-yard line.

Marx will also look to get some work as a punter, after getting one punt last season.

Punt and Kick Returners
Darryl Story will work as the Quakers primary punt and kick returner this season. He became the Quakers first returner to be named an All-Region performer last year, taking six punts back for 137 yards with a touchdown to go along with two kick returns for 92 yards and a touchdown.

He was one of nine players in Division III to return both a kick and punt for a touchdown during the 2025 campaign and was the first Quaker since at least 1990 to accomplish the feat.

Javon Pray and Kaiden Molnar will also be kick returners for the Quakers this season.

From Coach Burke
"We are very excited for the season. We are trying to close the gap, not only individually for our players to help them reach their max potential, but also between us and the rest of the OAC. Every day we prepare for team success and every day we are getting better."

What to Watch For
Wilmington opens the season with a pair of games on the road before returning for a 7:00 P.M. showdown with Otterbein University in their home opener and Homecoming game on September 19th.

Other home games include a 7:00 P.M. game vs. Hanover College on October 10th, 4:00 P.M. kickoff against Muskingum University on October 17th, Halloween showdown vs. Baldwin Wallace University and their final regular season game against Heidelberg University on November 14th at 1:30 P.M.