Team of Distinction: 1993 Hobart Football
Paige Mullin
The 1993 football team was named a Team of Distinction on Oct. 26, 2013. The team was the first Hobart gridiron gang to earn a postseason invitation. Led by the late Bill Maxwell, the Statesmen compiled a 7-3 regular season record and an ECAC Bowl bid. At the time, the Colleges were still on a trimester schedule and the bowl game would have required the team to travel to Maine during finals, so the invitation was declined.
The team overcame a 1-2 start with a six-game winning streak. The run got started with a pair of extremes. On Oct. 2, Hobart rang up a 32-7 win at St. Lawrence. The 32 points and 25-point margin of victory marked season-highs. The following Saturday at Rochester, the Statesmen managed a paltry 2 points, but it was enough as the defense pitched the first of its two shutouts. The six-game run was capped off with a 10-0 blanking of Buffalo State.
Four Statesmen earned All-ECAC Upstate honors: offensive lineman Dave Gibbons, linebacker Rich Memeger, and defensive backs Pete Afrooz and Bill Palmer. Additionally, three garnered a spot on the Champion USA All-America teams. Palmer, who recorded a Hobart record nine interceptions, earned first team recognition. Afrooz, a second team pick, led the Statesmen with 102 tackles. Memeger rang up a team-high 13 sacks.
