Non-conference play has concluded for the Waynesburg University Yellow Jackets following a 52-19 loss at the hands of Dickinson College this past Saturday. 

“When you look at Dickinson, they’re a team that has had some success in the years past, but more so they play in one of the toughest divisions,” head coach Cornelius Coleman said. “We knew we were going to see competition of that level week in and week out in the PAC, so why not go ahead and schedule those types of opponents to get a measuring stick of where you’re at.” 

Now 0-2, the Yellow Jackets will start their stretch of games against Presidents’ Athletic Conference opponents this Saturday, Sept. 20, against the newest member of the conference, the Hiram College Terriers. 

“With the notoriety as one of the most prestigious and deep conferences, we’re excited to get into play,” Coleman said. “There’s excitement that they’re [Hiram] apart of the conference.” 

Hiram announced its return to the PAC back in April of 2024, marking an end to a 36-year absence from the conference. 

According to www.hiram.edu, President of Hiram College, Dr. Robert Bohrer II decided to return to the PAC for the benefits it brings for the student athletes.

“We are pleased to accept the invitation to again join the Presidents’ Athletic Conference, which not only means that our student-athletes will compete with schools more locally and give our fans the opportunity to support our teams at away competitions, but also that our students will spend less time out of the classroom traveling for competition, helping to promote a balanced structure between athletics and academics,” Bohrer said in the same article.

Hiram is 1-1 heading into this week after defeating Oberlin 58-21 this past Saturday. Quarterback Sean Tejada ran for 54 yards and a touchdown while throwing for 319 yards and five touchdown passes to four different receivers.

The receiver who doubled up on scores last Saturday was junior Kevin Dycks, who had five catches for 110 yards. Jordan Stapleton, Jalen Davis and Da’Vaughn Lewis caught the other touchdown passes from Tejada. 

The win against Oberlin marked Hiram’s first since week 8 of 2023, when they also beat Oberlin. However, that was under a previous coaching staff. 

After a winless season in 2024, Hiram moved on from former head coach, Jack Mrozinski Jr.

Now under new head coach Xavier Dupree, the Terriers seem to have a new bark. 

“They’re a team who maybe haven’t had the success that they’ve wanted in the last several years, but with a brand-new head coach and coaching staff, you can see the excitement on film,” Coleman said. “They’re going to be a great opponent.”

Dupree, a former wide receiver at Middle Tennessee State University, is in his first season as the head coach at Hiram after spending the last two seasons at NCAA Division II Catawba as the wide receivers coach. Prior to that, Dupree spent three seasons at Hiram as the receiver coach. 

Dupree is looking to earn Hiram its first win against an opponent not named Oberlin for the first time since November of 2022, when they beat Hilbert.

For the Yellow Jackets, the message has been the same as always in practice this week.

“From our standpoint, the message has always been about us taking that next step, and letting others worry about us being 0-2,” Coleman said. “We are going to go to practice every day and focus on the things that we need to get better at so that we can play what we call Jacket football.” 

Waynesburg finished the 2024 season 4-6 in conference play. Now, in 2025, the Jackets only play eight PAC games, making the importance of winning these games even more important than before. 

Last week, senior running back Zayne Cawley scored his first two rushing touchdowns of the season, continuing the success of the Yellow Jackets’ run game going back to last season.

“Everybody knows that we can be dominant in the run game, now we want to match that up with an effective passing game,” Coleman said. 

The passing game continues to see both Tommy Burke III and Luke Hudson splitting time under center. Burke threw for a touchdown and two interceptions against Dickinson while Hudson went 9 for 15 for 139 yards and an interception. 

The passing game has been the Achilles heel of the Waynesburg offense going back to as far as 2023, but Coleman and the rest of the coaching staff are looking to change that, starting this Saturday.

Kickoff for this Saturday’s matchup between Waynesburg and Hiram is scheduled for 1 p.m. at John F. Wiley Stadium.