Football picked to finish sixth in 2023 OAC Coaches Poll

By Wes Mayberry

| 2023 OAC Football Poll and Players to Watch (.pdf) |

ADA — The Ohio Northern football team was picked to finish sixth in the league in the 2023 Ohio Athletic Conference Coaches Poll, which was released on Wednesday.

Northern garnered 37 points in the poll.

Mount Union, the 2022 national runner-up, was selected as the favorite in the OAC for 2023, receiving 81 points and nine first-place votes.

John Carroll was picked to finish second with 70 points.

Baldwin Wallace received the remaining first-place vote and was picked to finish third with 66 points.

Heidelberg was picked fourth with 59 points, and Marietta rounded out the top five with 47 points.

Coaches do not vote on their own teams in the balloting.

The poll also highlighted three players to watch from each school for the 2023 season.

ONU's representatives on that list are fifth-year senior defensive lineman Josh Bever (Ashland), junior defensive back Dalton Tjong (Cumming, Ga./West Forsyth) and senior tight end Noah Miller (Coldwater).

A four-time All-OAC selection, Bever posted a team-high eight sacks and 11 tackles for loss last season. He ranked second on the team with 61 total tackles and added two forced fumbles. He ranked fifth in the OAC in sacks and tied for ninth in tackles for loss. In 34 games at ONU, Bever has amassed 208 total tackles, including 85 solo, as well as 30 sacks and 43 tackles for loss. He ranks second in program history in career sacks and fourth all-time in tackles for loss.

Tjong shined in 2022, leading Northern in total tackles (110), solo tackles (52), assisted tackles (58), interceptions (4) and pass breakups (7). Those totals ranked first, second, second, tied for first and tied for eighth, respectively, in the OAC. His 110 tackles rank ninth in program history for a single season, and he has 169 tackles, including 84 solo, in his two-year career.

Miller, an All-OAC Honorable Mention pick as a freshman, recorded seven receptions for 54 yards and a touchdown last season and has 39 catches for 348 yards and three scores in his career.

The Polar Bears finished the 2022 season with a 3-7 record and were seventh in the OAC with a 3-6 conference mark.

ONU opens the 2023 season on Sept. 2 at Alma (Mich.) at 12 p.m. under 20th-year head coach Dean Paul.

2023 OAC Football Coaches Poll