By MILES SOUZA
The Beloit College Football team wrapped up their season this weekend with a 7-56 loss to the Midwest Conference Champions of Illinois College. The Bucs showed improvement from their last three seasons under their current head coach, but still look to battle the middle of the pack next season.
The Bucs started out their season with their first opening win since 2009. The game was the most energetic and electric Beloit football game I have been to in the three years I have been attending. Many fans looked towards this result as hope for the rest of the season.
Unfortunately, some realities were quickly seen and hope was quickly lost. Beloit fell back into the hole they have found themselves in for many of the past years. They ended their season with a record of 2-8, with a conference record of 1-8.
However, losses are beginning to get smaller, recruits are coming in more talented, and seniors are few.
With injuries plaguing the Buccaneers on both sides of the ball, it was difficult for the team to keep up with some of the great teams in the Midwest Conference. The offensive line became an issue at the end of the year, with so many injuries, their experience had been lost.
They did find some great new talent and returners showed their capabilities throughout the year. Highlights of the Bucs’ offense included running back Drake Marquez ’25, who had 581 rushing yards over the year, which led the team. When there were holes being created for him, Marquez was tough to bring down and was a consistent option for the offense.
The offense also had great contributions from tight end Cooper Larrabee ’25, who became one of quarterback Jacob Shafer’s ’25 main targets. He ended the year with 499 receiving yards. They also got great contributions from freshman Tommy Dixon ’27, who ended the year with 766 yards and was the team’s leading receiver as a freshman.
If the coaching staff can continue to bring in freshman talent like Dixon and some of the other key players who say playing time this year, they could start to challenge some of the other teams in the middle of the pack.
The defense still struggled, but was asked to do a lot for a struggling offense that left them on the field for long drives. It was highlighted again by a likely two time All-Conference cornerback Gavin Thorpe ’25, who led the team in solo tackles and constantly making plays all over the place.
Junior linebacker Christopher Croft Jr. ’25 also started to make a big name for himself, leading the linebacker core. He led the team in total tackles and had a couple big games at the end of the season. Freshman linebacker Brayden King ’27 also stood out, as he was the second leading tackler for the Bucs this season.
After potentially only losing two seniors after this season, The Bucs will look to recruit a lot of freshman talent looking to make an early impact, like they did this year. They will look to keep improving and competing for more and more wins in the future.
Featured Image: Gavin Thorpe’25, Beloit College
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