The Hiram Terriers’ football team’s time in the North Coast Athletic Conference may have ended but Coach Xavier Dupree said that the team is not dwelling on the past. The Terriers are looking toward the future as they prepare for a new challenge in the Presidents’ Athletic Conference.
“We are excited, the guys are excited, chomping at the bit,” the first-year coach said. “They are ready to play and we are excited about moving to the PAC and facing new opponents, getting to play in different places and different venues and just getting a clean start with everything.”
The 2025-26 school year marks the first season in which all Hiram athletic programs will participate in the PAC. The move was announced in April 2024 but the Terriers’ athletic teams still competed in the NCAC for the 2024-25 season, with the exception of the men’s volleyball program. It will be the first time since 1989 that the Terriers are full-time members of the PAC, when they left the conference to join the NCAC following the 1988-89 season.
For the Hiram football team, they will join a conference that qualified three of its member schools to play in the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III playoffs last year with Washington & Jefferson College sharing the PAC banner with Grove City College and Carnegie Mellon University to earn postseason berths.
According to Dupree, it is business as usual for the Terriers.
“The standard is the standard. What we want to do and what we are trying to do doesn’t change because the PAC had three teams in the playoffs,” he added. “What we want to do does not change anything; we still want to go out and practice the way we need to practice.”
In the Terriers’ inaugural season in the PAC, they enter the conference with a young offense but experienced defense.
On offense, Hiram’s offense will be directed by junior quarterback Sean Tejada, who returns to the program after transferring out following the end of his freshman season. The 5-foot-10 Tejada threw for 1940 yards, eight touchdowns and 12 interceptions on 166 completions out of 319 attempts while rushing for 60 yards and two touchdowns in 10 games during his freshman campaign.
“He is a quiet guy, but he is a silent assassin,” noted Dupree. “He is a gamer; he goes out there and plays football. He is a good kid to be around off the field, he is a good student, he is a football guy. Whatever he can do football-wise, he is always up here leading.”
The Terriers’ primary tailback will be R.J. Johnson, who will be Hiram’s most experienced tailback after rushing for 249 yards and two touchdowns while catching four passes for 40 yards and a touchdown in nine games last year.
He is one of those guys that was dynamic with the football in his hands and can make plays with the football,” Dupree said of the 5-foot-9 Johnson. “He is a guy who is going to be a big part of what we do offensively.”
Joining Johnson in the backfield will be sophomore Carter Addison and senior Nathan Feltner.
Dupree acknowledged that the Terriers’ wide receiving and tight end corps will be filled with players lacking significant experience, but he is optimistic about the explosive potential of Hiram’s offense.
Sophomore center Talon Frick returns to the offensive line as the starting center, with returning sophomores Alex Ramirez-Torres, Cade Allman, and Michael Hopson all vying for time on the offensive line.
“They are led by Talon, who was the center last year and was voted captain this year so he is a guy that is the boss of their front, getting everybody together and getting them set and where they need to be and that type of stuff,” Dupree said.
Dupree lauded Hiram’s defensive depth, as it is layered with a wealth of experience, including the linebackers and secondary with seniors Kole Tarary, who compiled 55 tackles, including 8.5 tackles for a loss and four sacks, Gavin Cruser, who recorded 38 tackles and four tackles for losses. Juniors Kade Scott, and Keinen-Markell Newsome and senior Navion Steadman forming the nucleus of the Terriers’ secondary.
Hiram’s defensive front will consist of senior Vance Boyd, sophomores Janado Taylor and Darius Cofield-Washington.
“I think those guys know how good they can be, so they are up for whatever challenge and things that are going to be thrown at them at their way,” Dupree said. “Our defense is going to be big-time for us this year.”
The Terriers will hit the road and face Heidelberg University in Tiffin at Hoernemann Stadium on Sep. 4 at 7 p.m
