Senior quarterback Jack Berens (Wausau, Wis., Wausau West HS) is ready to play. Following a close loss to Cornell which would see him record the fifth most single game passing yards of any player in the conference all year, Berens would lead Ripon to a 24-17 homecoming win over Knox. It would be his last game of the season, with an injury sidelining him for the five remaining games on the Red Hawks schedule. Despite the setback, Berens remains positive. 

"Coming off a season ending injury was hard, but it allowed me to reflect and grow as a person, and as a player," said Berens. "I am feeling good to go and can't wait for the season to start."

The work Berens put in to get back to the field is reflected in what he knows the team has to do to be successful. 

"We can perform at our best this season by focusing on the details and taking the season day by day. Living by the RED Standard in all aspects of life and getting 1% better everyday will get us in the right direction."

For the offense he will lead, Berens places the emphasis on the team playing together. 

"The offense can perform great this year if we can get on the same page and trust each other. All positions on offense have to work together in order to be successful, I think that this group will grow a lot together during camp and into the season. We have a lot of talent, which is very exciting… We are going to have to be selfless and focus on our goals day by day."

Sophomore Peter Idsvoog (Wautoma, Wis., Wautoma HS) parrots the sentiment for his position. Idsvoog earned a starting job on the offensive line in his first year with the program, and was the only Red Hawks freshmen to start all ten games on either side of the ball. He and the line will face strong competition from the schedule this season, with high powered defenses like Lake Forest holding teams to under 100 yards rushing. Undeterred, Idsvoog sees the solution to the competition simply. 

"Our goal as a team is to be competitive in every game that we play this year and have a chance to win. The offensive line just needs to all be on the same page and do the basics well, and we will succeed." 

On the other side of the ball, linebacker Zane Vetter (Mayville, Wis., Mayville HS) returns to the team as a top defensive presence, coming off a 54 tackle season. The junior has a clear vision for what team success will look like. 

"Our team is at a point where there [are] a lot of older guys on the field. That means if we want to succeed, we need to stay locked in on our playbook, work together to correct errors, and not be afraid to call out someone… It's on our older guys to get the younger players ready for the future, so that elite performance isn't just a one off instance, but instead, a tradition at Ripon."

Vetter has taken on a role as a leader for the linebacker unit, holding Zoom calls with the other players at the position to discuss training and strategy in the offseason while doubling down on his own training. 

"For linebackers, we need to play physical but also smart. At linebacker it can feel like there's a thousand things going on, but as long as we're mentally sharp with our reads, physically developed in the weight room, and taking recovery seriously, there's no reason for us not to compete and win against other teams… I'm no longer a young guy anymore and I know some of those younger guys are gonna rely on me so I have to be ready." 

Also making their presence felt on the defensive side, linemen Gavin Engh (DeKalb, Ill., DeKalb HS) and Desean Smith (Lake Park, Ga., Lowndes HS) are eager for the opening kickoff. Engh, going into his senior season, recorded 29 tackles and 4 sacks last year for the Red Hawks, including 12.5 tackles for losses.

"There's nothing like game day in the fall at Hopp." Engh says as he looks to the incoming season. "I'm especially excited to run out onto the field with my teammates one last time and compete for something bigger than myself. The energy, the crowd, the grind of the season, there is nothing like it."

The excitement for the season felt by the players is matched by their focus on improvement. Echoing the offense's sentiments, Engh sees winning as a result of team unity.

"Success this season is going to come down to our ability to stay disciplined and trust each other, everyone doing their job, no matter how big or small. As a team we need to dominate the line of scrimmage and set the tone early. That starts with our effort, communication, and relentlessness every day in practice." 

Smith, coming out of a 22-tackle, 4-sack sophomore season, has been carrying that relentlessness throughout the offseason.

"As for how I've been preparing for the season, it's nothing short of hard work and spending extra time on conditioning and film so I'm ready to go from day one." 

Smith also stands with Engh on the keys to team success, with all of the Red Hawks unifying around the collective message of paths to success. 

"Trust our assignments, and play for each other instead of as individuals. For me and my group on [the defensive] line, it's all about executing the fundamentals and winning the small battles every snap."
 

The Red Hawks open their 2025 season at home on Sept 6 with non-conference opponent North Park. Last year's opening 41-42 loss to the Vikings still sits fresh, coming down to a missed two-point conversion from Ripon in the final seconds of action. North Park finished 2024 with a 5-5 record, and stands as a solid opening litmus test for the Red Hawks before the conference schedule opens on Sept 13. 

Ripon opens Midwest Conference (MWC) play against Knox College, and will look to continue their six game winning streak against the Prairie Fire. Despite a lopsided 9-1 record against Knox over the last decade, three of the last four games were decided by just one touchdown. The Red Hawks will take to the road for the match up, with the Prairie Fire carrying 1-4 at home last season. 

One of Ripon's toughest tests will come on Homecoming weekend, with the Red Hawks hosting Lake Forest on Oct 4. Ranked second in the 2025 Preseason Coaches' Poll, the Foresters are coming off a perfect 9-0 MWC Championship run in 2024. Focusing on their aforementioned dominant defense, Lake Forest would earn 34 sacks and 18 interceptions last season, all while maintaining an offense generating an average of 40 points on 415 yards per game. Despite a decisive loss last season, the Red Hawks keep a 2-1 over the Foresters in their last three games, with a 3-1 record at home since 2012 against the team. 

Senior day for the Red Hawks comes on Nov 1, as Beloit travels to Hopp Stadium for an afternoon game. Ripon has won seven straight against the Buccaneers, scoring an average of 46 points against Beloit while giving up 14, and holds a 15-1 advantage over the team across the last 16 years. Beloit was selected ninth in this year's coaches' poll. 

The following weekend, Ripon faces a different story, with the Red Hawks taking on Monmouth in Illinois. The Fighting Scots have won six straight against Ripon, and were voted in the top spot by conference coaches in this year's preseason poll. Monmouth averaged a MWC second best 440 yards of offense per game while keeping teams to 265 yards, also second best in the conference, picking up their sole conference loss to champ Lake Forest by just one touchdown. 

The Red Hawks conclude their season with a classic rivalry game against Lawrence University. Selected tenth in the coaches' poll, the Vikings ranked ninth in 2024's offensive metrics with an average of 251 yards per game, while giving up a conference-worst 433 yards per game. Ripon has defeated Lawrence in 25 consecutive games, with the Vikings most recent win against the Red Hawks coming last century in 1999. The Ripon-Lawrence football rivalry holds an important place in Ripon College history, with the first record intercollegiate athletics event for the college being a 2-1 win over Lawrence in an 1882 football game (at the time, scoring was influenced by rugby rules and revolved around kicking, with a touchdown counting as ¼ of a kicked goal). Ripon has outscored Lawrence by an average of 41-7 across the last ten match ups.
 

Ripon football largely matched their conference standings statistically, ranking in the middle of the pack for MWC offense and defense last season. Illinois College's 589.4 yards of offense per game ranked as the highest in all of Division III football, more than 50 average yards ahead of second place North Central. Defensively, Lake Forest's 261 yards per game allowed stood as the 24th best defensive average in Division III, with Monmouth close behind with the 27th fewest yards allowed (264.8). On the other end, Beloit's 172.4 yards of average offense stands as the fourth fewest in Division III, with Lawrence's 433.5 yards allowed defensively sitting as the 24th most.

Entering his ninth year with the Red Hawks and his third as Head Coach, Jake Marshall is looking for results on the field and off.

"We want to see our team GPA continue to rise, we want to see our guys coming together towards a common goal, and we want to keep doing it the right way. If we can take care of those things, we'll undoubtedly see improvement in the win-loss column."

Marshall circles one clear focus for the team in achieving the holistic success they look for. 

"The difference maker for us will be in our ability to respond to adversity. We didn't always handle it well last year, and it showed in some of our results. We have to be mentally tougher, and bounce back when something doesn't go our way. We obviously have to play well on the physical side, but for us, the focus is between the ears."

With the emphasis on mentality clear, Marshall sees a team ready for results.

"We had a tremendous off-season with our leadership development and I'm excited to see it come to fruition. With a large freshmen class, we're going to need our returners to set the tone and show the young guys how we operate quickly, to make sure everyone is on board and ready to go for week 1. They've taken a ton of ownership on this team, and that's what we're trying to create, so I'm excited to see them put their skills to work."

Associate Head Coach and Defensive Coordinator Mike Hepp also likes what he sees heading into the season.

"If we can show up, have a good process each day, stack good days on top of one another, this team can do a lot of special things." 

Hepp goes on to credit the coaching staff and the experience of the returners for the brewing potential.

"Our kids have really bought into the direction of Coach Marshall, both on and off the field which leads to exciting possibilities. We have a lot of game reps returning this fall, and you can't teach experience… That experience, combined with the work they put in and the talented incoming freshmen group, gives the 2025 Ripon College Football team higher expectations than we have had in a few years."
 

Ripon Football opens at home against North Park University on Sept 6; tickets for the game can be purchased at the gate. Follow the team's progress on social media @riponredhawkfb on Instagram.