GENEVA, N.Y.—Hobart College Football Head Coach Mike Cragg announced today that he was promoting longtime linebackers coach Aaron Backhaus '00 to defensive coordinator for the 2017 season. He replaces Kory David, who joined the coaching staff at Muhlenberg last month.
 
"I'm excited to work with Aaron this fall," Cragg said. "When it comes to supporting our student-athletes on and off the field, he checks all of the boxes. Aaron was an all-conference linebacker, so he knows what it takes to succeed on the field. With degrees from Hobart and Alfred, he knows the value of a liberal arts education and can help our student-athletes find their path to graduation and beyond. Aaron's been a part of our coaching staff since 2004 so he knows our system and what's expected of the students and staff."
 
Backhaus will begin his 14th season with the Statesmen as a full-time staff member. In his previous 13 seasons, he coached the linebackers part-time while working full time as a counselor in the Geneva City School District.
 
Over the past 13 years, 35 of Backhaus' linebacker protégés have earned All-Liberty League recognition, including Defensive Players of the Year Tony Clemente '06 (2005), Justin Hager '09 (2008) and Devin Worthington '14 (2011).
 
Backhaus has been a part of eight of Hobart's 11 Liberty League Championships, winning a share of the 1998 title as a player and coaching the Statesmen to the top in 2004, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2016. The Statesmen are one of only two teams in the NCAA Division III East Region with at least 50 wins since the start of the 2012 season, boasting a 50-8 record with a pair of NCAA quarterfinal appearances.
 
Last season, outside linebacker Marcus Jemison '17 picked up his third consecutive first team All-Liberty League award while inside linebackers Almamy Conde and Jedh Downey earned second team and honorable mention recognition, respectively. Conde, who led last year's team with 96 tackles, will be a senior on the 2017 squad while Downey, who was second with 86 stops, will be a sophomore.
 
In 2008, Backhaus mentored Hager to a record-setting season. Following a junior campaign that saw him finish with a league-high 114 tackles, Hager registered 134 stops, breaking Jesse Truley's 13-year-old season standard. Hager also produced two single game performances that surpassed Truley's record for tackles, notching 21 at Carnegie Mellon and 20 at Mount Union.
 
A former Statesman, Backhaus was a four-year starter at inside linebacker. The four-time All-Liberty League pick left the gridiron with 279 career tackles and six interceptions. He led Hobart with a career-high 98 tackles as a first-year. After earning a bachelor's degree in psychology in 2000, Backhaus went on to complete a master's degree in education at Alfred University.
 
Backhaus and his wife, Nicole, live in Geneva with their sons, Theodore and Miles.
 
Hobart is coming off a 9-2 season in 2016. The defending Liberty League champion Statesmen are No. 16 in Street & Smith's preseason ranking and No. 19 according to Lindy's Sports.
 
Hobart's 10-game schedule features six home games, including a four-game homestand to start the 2017 campaign. The Statesmen will kickoff their 124th season on Sept. 2 against Brockport.