With a strong nucleus returning from a 10-win team that won an opening-round playoff game in 2023, the University of Charleston entered this season with somewhat heightened expectations as preseason favorite in the Mountain East Conference.
Those expectations only grew when the Golden Eagles opened with consecutive non-conference victories, including a four-point win over California (Pa.). Two weeks later, in the first MEC game against UNC Pembroke, which was picked second in the conference preseason poll, UC put its high-powered offense on display and then some in claiming a 58-36 victory, but lost standout quarterback Javonte Howard for the season due a broken clavicle.
A fifth-year player at UC, Howard had passed for 2,699 yards and 30 touchdowns one year earlier.
All the Golden Eagles have done since is rattle off eight more wins in as many games, each one by at least 12 points and all but one by 19 or more points as they prepare to put their unbeaten mark on the line at 1 p.m. Saturday when welcoming Ashland for an opening-round playoff matchup.
“When you lose an All-American type quarterback, some teams would get a little nervous,” third-year Charleston head coach Quinn Sanders said. “We were able to persevere. It’s a credit to the leadership, not blinking an eye or missing a beat. For a lot of teams, losing a player like that could be a detriment to your season.”
Following the injury to Howard, Charleston turned to sophomore Ean Hamric at quarterback. A former standout at Gilmer County High School,
In nine games, Hamric has completed 98-of 136 passes for 1,414 yards with 13 touchdowns and two interceptions. The dual-threat has also rushed for 442 yards and six TDs.
“It’s definitely not the most ideal way to get the opportunity, but the whole team was supportive through all of it,” Hamric said. “There was never an ounce of doubt — like we have a backup in. Everybody always had full confidence in me, which made me feel better and I just tried to keep the team going and rolling. We’ve hit our stride and that’s been nice. On the sidelines after every series, Javonte will tell me what he sees and I’ll tell him what I see, and that’s helped, too.”
After redshirting in 2022, Hamric saw spot action behind Howard in 2023. While those reps were beneficial, they pale in comparison to his present role.
“Last year, I didn’t start a game, but I still prepared that way,” Hamric said. “That way, if and when you do get the opportunity, you’re used to the routine of film, meetings and all that, so you know what to expect.”
Sanders has been impressed with not only Hamric’s production, but his ability to steadily improve and make a seamless transition to being the team’s top quarterback.
“He’s such an incredible worker. He comes to work the right way and he puts his hard hat on and grabs his lunch pail every day,” Sanders said. “As a backup, he took every rep seriously and that’s how you get to where you’re at now. Our offensive coordinator [Mike Tesch] has done an incredible job making sure we didn’t rush him along or give him more than he could handle and did an incredible job to adapt the offense to his skill set.”
Hamric has shown he more than belongs at this level after excelling at the Class A level in high school.
“Coming from one of the smallest schools in the state, it especially means a lot to show that we can play at the collegiate level,” Hamric said.
UC (11-0) enters the postseason with the No. 3 scoring offensive in all of Division II averaging 44.5 points.
While Hamric has shown he’s plenty capable of running the show, he’s also benefited from playing alongside the nation’s leading rusher in tailback Chavon Wright.
A repeat winner as Mountain East Offensive Player of the Year, Wright has rushed for 2,009 yards and 37 touchdowns on 313 carries. He scored multiple touchdowns in every game and became the 28th player in D-II history to eclipse the 2,000-yard mark in a season.
“You have the best back in the country,” Hamric said. “That makes my job easier, takes a lot of stress off of it and lets me go play ball.”
While Wright rushed for 1,518 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2023 and has 65 rushing scores over three seasons at UC, he has upped his game to another level as a redshirt junior.
“It’s unheard of, the numbers and pace he’s been on,” said Sanders, a repeat winner of MEC Coach of the Year with a 27-7 career record. “It’s a credit to him and our offensive line. He’s so unselfish. His No. 1 thing is winning. For us to get to where we are, it’s been special for him. There’s not a person in the world you’d want it more for. To watch him grow up in our program and turn into this player is something so special.”
But there’s been much more than offense to attribute for the Golden Eagles’ unprecedented success, and the defense enters the postseason 24th nationally in scoring defense, allowing the opposition 16.7 points on average.
Eight UC opponents have been held to 21 or fewer points.
The team’s balance and versatility showed up this week on the MEC All-League First Team, with UC having five offensive and four defensive players honored on the top unit.
“The day and age we play in now, scoring is sexy and everybody wants points,” Sanders said. “The offense gets a lot of credit. The defense gets their credit when they deserve it and they don’t really care. We have such incredible leadership on that side. They know we win as a team and lose as a team. There’s no finger-pointing.”
If UC can advance past Ashland (8-3), a potential rematch with California (Pa.) could await November 30. Two playoff wins could set up a Super Region I final with Kutztown, a team that scored 15 points over the final 4:38 of last season’s second-round playoff matchup to prevail with a 32-31 victory at UC.
Charleston is assured of being home at least the first two weekends of the postseason if it’s fortunate enough to advance beyond the opener.
“It’s such a special thing. It keeps the routine,” Sanders said. “Everybody wants to sleep in their own bed. You don’t have to figure out all these special plans for walkthroughs and where you’ll eat meals.
“Each year is a new journey and you’re never the same team from year to year. Having the opportunity to coach this team one more week is so exciting. There’s 162 Division II teams in the nation and 28 made the playoffs, so 134 of them are turning in equipment and having exit meetings, and I don’t ever want to get to that point. You get into coaching to coach in these football games. As much as I love recruiting and paperwork, I love these ball games. It’s so fun for our players and staff to see how far we can take this thing.”