The Muskingum football team are ready to kick-off their long-anticipated 2021 spring season after a postponement in the fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Muskies begin their new season at home against Mount Union on Friday, March 12 at 7:00 p.m.

The Coach: The Muskies are led by head coach Erik Ieuter who is entering his third season with the program. During his first year, Ieuter and his coaching staff injected new energy and commitment into the Muskingum program that propelled the Muskies to a four-win campaign for just the third time since 2003. The season was highlighted with wins against Waynesburg, Wilmington, Otterbein, and Heidelberg. The victory against Otterbein on Homecoming was the first against the Cardinals in 14 years, while the triumph against Heidelberg was the first against the Student Princes in eight years. Last season, the Muskies continued to make waves and ended the campaign with a number of record-setting performances on the ball's offensive and defensive side and on special teams.

The Captains: Muskingum will be led by junior quarterback Jordan Garrett, senior defensive back Brian Brown, senior defensive back Cortez McGinnis, senior linebacker Nehemiah Bowie, and senior offensive lineman Iggy Horvath will lead the Muskies. Garrett has played in 16 games and has thrown for 651 yards and seven touchdowns. He's also rushed for 232 yards and one score.

Brown, an All-Ohio Athletic Conference Honorable Mention honoree, has played in 30 games and has logged 169 tackles. He has recorded 10 interceptions and broken up 21 passes. McGinnis, a Second Team All-OAC selection, has played in 20 games, registered 79 hits, and snared two interceptions.

Bowie, an Academic All-OAC honoree, has played in 30 games and recorded 146 stops. He also had four interceptions and has forced a pair of fumbles. Horvath anchors the offensive line and has played in 19 games. His efforts helped Muskingum churn out 357 yards and 22.7 points per game during the 2019 campaign.

The Players - Offense: Looking to make an immediate impact on the offensive side of the ball this season is senior running back Cameron Near, sophomore wide receiver Ja'Lin Goodman, sophomore wide receiver Zuri Edmondson, and sophomore running back Donny Wilkinson. Near has played in 26 total games for the Muskies and has amassed 699 yards rushing on 166 carries and one touchdown, while he has also caught 45 passes for 312 yards and one touchdown.

During his freshman season, Goodman played in six games and tallied 175 receiving yards off 12 catches, while Edmundson played in seven games and Wilkinson played in all ten games for Muskingum.

The Players - Defense: Players looking to stand out on the defensive side of things are sophomore defensive back Yo-Vonne Roberts, senior defensive lineman Chris Shakespeare, junior defensive lineman Sean Andor, and sophomore defensive back Willie Smith.  Roberts played in all ten games his first year and recorded 32 tackles, with two of them for loss. He secured five interceptions and six pass breakups. During the Capital game, he ended the game being tied second all-time in interceptions for a game with three and ended the year with OAC Defensive Player of the Week honors.

Shakespeare has played in 16 games for Muskingum, registering 50 total tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks for his career. Andor played in all ten games in the 2019 campaign, notching 15 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss, while Smith competed in all ten games his freshman season registering 27 tackles, two interceptions, one returned for a touchdown and two pass breakups.

The Players - Special Teams: Returning for the special teams this season are senior punter Jarret Patton and junior kicker Gavin Costello. Patton has played in 30 career games registering 151 punts, and has averaged 35.3 yards per punt. He has downed 23 punts inside the 20-yard line, and 2019 booted his career-long punt of 71 yards at Mount Union.

Costello has played in 20 games for the Muskies and is 15-of-18 in field goals, and is near perfect in extra points with 44-of-45. In 2019, he made a career-high 11 field goals with a long of 41 yards and is tied first all-time at Muskingum in field goals made in a season with 11. He received OAC Special Teams Player of the Week accolades and ended the year being named First-Team All-OAC and D3football.com First-Team All-North Region.

Spectator Policy: Beginning on March 8, the following policies and protocols will be in place at Muskingum. 

• The home team shall receive two admissions per dressed student-athlete and coach. The visiting team shall also receive two admissions per student-athlete and coach, per established "Travel Squad Limits. 
• These admissions may not exceed 30 percent of spectator area capacity.
• There will be no public sales of tickets, and no passes will be issued for entry.
• Attendees at events will be required to wear masks and abide by social distancing guidelines.

Broadcasts: All home games will be played at Zanesville High school and will feature an HD video stream accessible through the OAC TV app and on fightingmuskies.com.