Transfer – Nothing But NESCAC

Tell The World I’m Comin’: Jared Lebowitz Comes Home To Lead the Panthers

Image result for jared lebowitz middlebury — Jared Lebowitz ’17 looks poised to take over as the next great Middlebury quarterback.

In the last decade or so, quarterback at Middlebury College has resembled the leading men in the James Bond franchise; a series of stellar performances, each one slightly different from the last. And of course, the debate constantly rages over which one was best. In my personal view Donnie McKillop was the most electrifying to watch and the grandfather of Middlebury’s line of stellar signal callers (although of course his Middlebury career is voided because he now works at Amherst.) But then again, McCallum Foote eclipsed most of his records and won back to back Player Of the Year trophies. And Matt Milano surprised many by tacking on a Co-POY trophy of his own in 2014, making him AT LEAST Pierce Brosnan in the Bond analogy.

This is the tradition into which transfer from UNLV Jared Lebowitz ’18 was thrown heading into this season. Lebowitz had spent a season at UNLV, and another season learning under Matt Milano, and it was time for him to take the reins.

Image result for moby dick — This book is an allegory for Jared Lebowitz’s development as a quarterback, as well as literally everything else in the realm of human existence.

Taking over any NESCAC offense is no easy task, but Middlebury may well be the most difficult one to master. As Lebowitz puts it, being a quarterback in the Panther offense is “about more than skill. You have to master the timing and the routes.” The Panther offense is heavily focused on no huddle and quick timing routes for receivers. This requires the quarterback to resemble Ishmael on the mast-head in Moby Dick; he must take in everything and remain singularly focused on the goal all at the same time.

This is why Lebowitz describes learning the timing of the Panther offense as the hardest part of his development as a quarterback, and something that just came to him this preseason. During his time off the bench in 2015, Lebowitz allowed that he was “thinking too much” about his role in the pocket. While this is not a valid criticism for say, a presidential candidate, for a quarterback it can lead to inconsistencies and even worse, turnovers.

This preseason, however, something clicked for Lebowitz. As he points out, much of his improvement in leading the intricate Middlebury attack comes simply from getting first team reps. “It’s not something you can memorize,” Lebowitz says about controlling the field. “You just have to feel it, and that feel can only come with starters reps.”

Both Lebowitz’s feel for the offense and prodigious natural gifts were on display in Middlebury’s Week One demolition of Bowdoin. Lebowitz was 26-39, for 369 yards and 6 total touchdowns (5 passing, one rushing) with several beautiful throws within the delicate framework of the offense.

But more than that, he showed a knack for improvisation that can only come with being totally comfortable in command. Lebowitz showed his singular skill in avoiding sacks on a 28 yard touchdown throw to Ryan Rizzo ’17, in which he evaded Polar Bears like a climate change denier and tossed a dart off his back foot to the end zone. Lebowitz later summed up what was obvious to the whole crowd. “When I’m back there now, I’m not thinking. I’m just getting my footwork right and letting the game come to me.” And he capped it off by taking home his first NESCAC hardware, the Offensive Player of the Week award.

Lebowitz’s success may also be due to several extremely important guests at every home game. “Mom and sister and dogs drive down for every game,” he told me with a smile crossing his face. But, to be fair, it’s not that long a drive. Lebowitz went to South Burlington High School, roughly 50 minutes north of Middlebury if they’ve finished the road work on Route 7. But don’t let his going to South Burlington fool you, he’s actually a nice guy (have to work in the local rivalries somewhere.)

Coming closer to home was Lebowitz’s central motivation for transferring from UNLV. “I wanted to be in Vermont. When I was in Vegas I didn’t really like the city. It wasn’t even really about the football, I just wanted to come home.”

And Lebowitz is a true local kid. He sees his family at every game of course, but in the offseason he estimates that he visits every two weekends or so, and sheepishly allows that he just now learned how to do laundry on campus.

For Lebowitz, getting to play in Vermont makes football a family affair, as does playing in the NESCAC as a whole. At UNLV, he says “you don’t have time to pursue things outside of football.” But the NESCAC offers a far different style. Of course, during the season the team is locked in, but in the offseason the coaches encourage players to live the full liberal arts lifestyle. Many players on the team join clubs, and several even play other varsity sports. Lebowitz uses the time to bond with teammates, playing IM sports and “spending time with the guys,” a value that is crucial for a quarterback.

The Panthers head off to Colby on Saturday, and then return home to take on Amherst the week after in a game that might well decide the league championship. Based on Week One, the Panthers have the right man at the helm to lead them through these games. It’s been a long road for Jared Lebowitz to end up an hour from where he was born, but it looks he ended up right where he needed to be.

NY QB Brandon Tobin to Transfer to Hamilton College for 2015 Season

Brandon Tobin '18 will join Hamilton College this fall to play quarterback. (Courtesy of Pace University Athletics) — Brandon Tobin ’18 will join Hamilton College this fall to play quarterback. (Courtesy of Pace University Athletics)

Brandon Tobin ’18 started three games at quarterback for Division-II Pace University this past season as a true freshman, and before that was the Section I-AA Offensive MVP in the state of New York as a senior at Arlington High School.

In 2015, Tobin will be taking snaps as a member of the Hamilton Continentals.

Tobin joins a long list of higher-division quarterbacks to join the NESCAC over the past half decade, which includes two-time NESCAC Offensive MVP McCallum Foote ’13 (via Brown), Williams’ starting QB Austin Lommen ’16 (Boston College), Colby backup Michael Ecke ’17 (UCONN) and the incoming Jared Lebowitz ’17 (UNLV).

The 6’1″, 200 lbs. righty signal-caller will complete the spring semester at Pace University, focusing on lifting and finishing strong academically before turning his attention toward learning the Hamilton playbook this summer and joining the Continentals in the Fall.

According to Arlington High School Head Coach Dom DeMatteo, Tobin showed an ability to pick up the offense quickly as a junior for the Admirals, but ceded time early on to a senior at quarterback. By the fourth week of Tobin’s junior season, DeMatteo was unable to keep Tobin off of the field, and the junior began playing more and more snaps as the season went along. As a senior Tobin spent the entire season as the Admirals’ undisputed starting quarterback and leader.

Nor was Tobin a one-way player. According to DeMatteo, Tobin earned the starting job at field corner with ease as a junior, and were it not for the need to be cautious with the team’s future star QB, Tobin’s toughness would have allowed him to move to linebacker.

And, lest we forget, Tobin also dabbled in punting, kickoffs and placekicking.

The last of which did not come easy to Tobin. Realizing a void at the kicking position, DeMatteo decided to have Tobin try out his leg. The first day was pretty unsuccessful, but DeMatteo says that Tobin went home that night, researched placekicking and came back the next day looking like a professional.

Tobin admits that he spent three to four hours watching YouTube videos that night in an effort to improve his placekicking.

Coach DeMatteo put it quite simply.

“He’s not just a quarterback. He’s a football player.” – Arlington HS Head Coach Dom DeMatteo

That is an easily tossed around cliché but one that certainly applies to Tobin.

But for Tobin, the moniker “student-athlete” means something, which was the NY native’s primary motivation for deciding to transfer from Pace.

When first looking at colleges, Hamilton was on the shortlist of schools that Tobin and his family had to decide among, but in the end the opportunity to play under scholarship at Division-II Pace became a deciding factor.

Brandon Tobin signing his national letter of intent to play football at Pace University in March 2014. (Courtesy of Arlington High School Athletics)

After a semester in which Tobin was unimpressed by the academic landscape at his current school, Tobin decided to pursue his release from Pace and began searching for a new home. The QB also stressed that his decision was not driven by football, but rather was based primarily on his desire to challenge himself academically.

Now that the decision is final, it is time to turn our attention to next season and decipher what this means for the Hamilton College football program.

Current sophomore Chase Rosenberg ’17 will be the incumbent at quarterback for Head Coach Dave Murray, who chose not to comment on the news of Tobin’s transfer. However, with the Continentals coming off of an 0-8 year in Murray’s first at the helm, one has to believe that nothing will be guaranteed to any of the returning players.

Tobin stated that Murray had not promised the transfer anything in terms of playing time, but certainly allowed that there would be an opportunity for Tobin to compete for a starting job with Rosenberg once camp opens.

For Tobin’s part, he has not seen Hamilton play with Rosenberg under center, nor has he spoken to his future teammate, but he looks forward to the position battle that will take place this Fall.

Tobin, it would seem, has the skills to play in the NESCAC. As a senior at Arlington, Tobin threw eight touchdowns and secured eight more on the ground, compiling over 1,400 yards of total offense. In his first season at Pace the results were much more varied, but his 17-35 (48.6 percent), 1-0 TD-INT performance against Southern Connecticut State provides a glimpse of what the righty can do.

Aside from the statistics, Tobin should be a great addition for a team that will need to stay committed despite a history of poor performance. According to DeMatteo, Tobin is the rare type of player that combines his athletic gifts with the ability to lead both vocally and by example. Since taking over at Arlington in 2007, DeMatteo has not had a more complete football player.

“[He was the] best compete package, intelligent, athletic, physical, could make all the throws on the field. There was really nothing that we asked Brandon to do on the field that he could not do.” – Dom DeMatteo

The recent lack of success for Hamilton did not deter Tobin, who encountered a similar situation when he enrolled at Pace last year, where he joined a program in the midst of a coaching change looking to turn over a new leaf. Now, Tobin hopes to be part of a rebirth for the Hamilton program under Dave Murray, and the transfer is excited to play for his new coach and the Hamilton staff.

Coach DeMatteo feels strongly that a wave of success is coming for Tobin and his new team.

“I sincerely believe that Hamilton College hit a home run with this kid.” – Dom DeMatteo

As for Tobin, he stuck to his humble nature and refrained from predicting the heights that his new team will achieve, saying only,

“I’m very thankful to be given the opportunity.” – Brandon Tobin

Williams’ Duncan Robinson Mulls Transfer

“Robinson 2 Mich?” Thus read the text I received from David, my fellow grade A NESCAC basketball junkie (and current card-carrying member of the Tortured Williams Basketball Fan Society) at roughly 9:30 AM yesterday morning. Once I recovered from being awakened at such an ungodly hour, I did my best Chris Broussard impression and reached out to my other sources, in hopes of distinguishing truth from the various hysterical rumors. The most updated news I’ve found maintains that, as Duncan Robinson ’17 himself told The Wolverine, a Michigan-focused branch of Rivals.com, he is heavily leaning towards transferring, and is weighing interest from Michigan, Davidson and Creighton, all noted Division One schools. However, he will not make a decision before meeting with new Williams coach Kevin App. He has already visited Davidson and Michigan, and is planning to visit Creighton next week.

Robinson’s announcement comes on the heels of three other major stories involving Division One and NESCAC relations. Matt Hart, last year’s leading scorer left Hamilton for George Washington, Amherst was able to snag two Division One players for themselves in Jayde Dawson from Fairleigh Dickinson and Eric Conklin from Arizona (cue Lord Vader’s March). Finally and most notable in regards to the Duncan Robinson decision, Williams coach Mike Maker accepted an offer to take over the program at Marist. It seems like a safe assumption that the departure of Maker, a former assistant of Michigan coach John Beilein, was a major factor in Robinson’s decision to explore transferring. Maker’s system at Williams was heavily derived from the principles he learned under Beilein, namely a focus on ball movement and outside shooting, two things in which Robinson specializes. Throw in the personal connection between Beilein and Maker, and it becomes clear that Maker’s departure set up that of Robinson, and possibly Michigan’s interest in him. Robinson is first visiting Davidson this weekend and Michigan early next week.

There will be no shortage of speculation over the next week or so as to where Robinson will choose to go, and how he will fair, but the effects that his departure will have on the NESCAC if he does indeed transfer are equally intriguing, and that is what I would prefer to focus on, at least until there is a concrete place for that speculation to center on. In the short term, Robinson’s departure creates a fascinating paradox in NESCAC. On the one hand, it creates what appears to be a top two in the league. Amherst will be in the mix as usual, with the Division One players joining talented junior Connor Green ’16 and rising sophomore David George ’17. The newcomer to the upper crust would be Tufts, with an experienced returning class, including last year’s Rookie of the Year (non-Robinson division) Hunter Sabety and the possible return from a year off of 2012-2013 NESCAC Rookie of the Year Tom Palleschi ’16.

Yet, Robinson’s departure also greatly opens up the league, with teams like Middlebury, Bowdoin, Colby, and Trinity all having somewhat equal chances to contend for the spot at the top that Williams will presumably forfeit. And, even Amherst, with lots of unproven commodities, and Tufts, who were only 13-12 last year, could lose their presumed spots at the top to one of the younger, upstart teams that were previously swallowed by the Williams-Amherst juggernaut. The idea of a NESCAC top three without Williams is hard to fathom for those of us who have followed NESCAC basketball over the last ten years, but it seems like it could be the case next season, and possibly for the next few years as Coach App tries to launch his program without its wings. A good amount of talent including Dan Wohl ’15, Hayden Rooke-Ley ’15, Mike Greenman ’17, and Dan Aronowitz ’17 will return to Williams no matter what Robinson decides, but the amount of talent they lose is huge. Besides Robinson, Michael Mayer ’14 and Taylor Epley ’14 were the first and third leading scorers respectively and both have graduated.

The long-term ramifications of Robinson’s move are naturally more difficult to project. However, depending on his success in Division One (if he does indeed choose to transfer), we could see a continuation of the high levels of Division One-Division Three interaction we’ve seen this offseason. This would hopefully benefit both leagues, with players ideally transferring back and forth, as Division One teams see the value of Division Three players, and Division One players who aren’t stars opt for the playing time and better educational experience that Division Three schools can offer. However, this could also increase the level of shady recruiting tactics. Regardless, this is an incredible opportunity for Robinson to play at a Division 1 level.

This will certainly not be the last piece we post about Duncan Robinson this year. In fact, it probably won’t be the last one this week (Editors Note: It won’t. Expect another article after Robinson makes his decision). But wherever he ends up, his progress and the effects it has on NESCAC will be fascinating to follow and cover, and all NESCAC fans should be rooting for him at his new home. Unless, of course, he somehow ends up at Amherst.