Front Porch Football

2019 Wofford Season Preview

Southern Conference|Spartanburg, SC|Gibbs Stadium, 13,000|2018: 9-4 (6-2) 

By Andrew Sargent 

As the dust settled on the 2018 football season for the Wofford Terriers, many players and fans couldn’t help but feel disappointed. The Terriers fell short to Kennesaw State 13-10 in the Quarterfinals of the FCS Playoffs. One or two more plays and the boys in Old Gold & Black are dancing as one of the last four teams left standing in the country. Now, the casual fan might be confused as to why players and fans are disappointed with back-to-back conference championships and a third consecutive deep run in the FCS Playoffs. The answer is simple. Wofford College boasts the slogan “Commit to Excellence” and that is the exact standard that the Wofford football program and their fanbase have come to expect. Excellence. To come so close to taking that next step and seeing it slip through your fingers hurts. 

The Terriers plan on using that pain from the 2018 season to fuel themselves throughout the coming season. Coach Josh Conklin enters his second season manning the ship for a team that returns 15 of 21 starters from last year’s team that won the SoCon and a preseason ranking of 9th in the country. With the mixture of strong senior leadership and a stable of young and exciting talent, there is no reason why those pesky, short haired dogs can’t make a run at a 3rd consecutive conference championship and ultimately continuing their quest for a FCS Championship.

Offense 

Wofford’s offense started the transition last season from a traditional, wing-t, triple option offense, to the new popular and shiny spread offense. Fans were excited to see the Terriers throw the ball significantly more last season, amassing over 1500 yards through the air as a team. Expect this trend to continue into the 2019 season given the depth and experience at QB and the talented playmakers that this offense has. However, Wofford has not lost it’s identity as a run-first offense. Three things in life are certain: death, taxes, and Wofford College running the football down opposing team’s throats. With the talent and explosiveness of this group of offensive line and running backs, the Terriers will continue to be tops in the nation in rushing attempts, yards and touchdowns. 

Quarterback 

Going into the 2018 season, the biggest question mark for the Terrier offense was who would be the signal caller, or how the staff planned on splitting snaps between the QBs on roster. 31 year Wofford coach Wade Lang elected to go with a 2 quarterback system with Joe Newman and Miller Mosley. The two combined for over 2100 yards of offense a year ago, with Newman taking a larger fraction of the snaps compared to Mosley. Expect to see this same two-headed monster under center for the Terriers in 2019. Newman (5-11 185) is a speedster with extreme playmaking ability which he has showcased through his 3 year career that makes him essential to the Terriers attack on the ground. He has worked hard last season and in the offseason to continue to develop his throwing ability and becoming more comfortable as a true pocket passer. Mosley (5-11 190), an Air Force Academy transfer, is widely regarded as the better passer of the two and showcased his ability to throw the long ball routinely last season. 

Sophomore Jimmy Weirick (5-11 185) made the most of his snaps last season before a knee injury caused him to redshirt. An interesting wrinkle was thrown into the QB race this offseason as Peyton Derrick (6-2 195), a true pocket passer from Appalachian State, transferred to Wofford. It will be interesting to see how he fits into this QB rotation going forward. Regardless, Newman and Mosley have cemented themselves as the starters on this team and will continue to build on a great 2018 campaign.