Plenty of talk about our offensive scheme, returning an all-conference running back, having a veteran QB, etc. We all know none of that matters without great offensive line play from a group that loses two All-Patriot performers from 2025.

Roster

#53 | Kelsey Hundley | Junior

#56 | Sean Berntsen | Freshman

#57 | Brady Quist | Freshman

#62 | JT Sowell | Junior

#67 | Jason Smith | Junior

#68 | Godwin Burger | Senior

#70 | Ronald Anderson | Senior

#71 | Jax Thomas | Freshman

#72 | Bo Fowler | Junior

#73 | Boyd Rhodes | Freshman

#74 | Gabe Heard-Hernandez | Sophomore

#75 | Brady McIntyre | Sophomore

#77 | Kade Capristo | Senior

#78 | Luke Surrett | Junior

#79 | Brayson Bristow | Freshman

Additions

Sean Berntsen – Berntsen is a highly rated recruit from Connecticut, turning down offers from Albany, Rhode Island, Monmouth, and Army in choosing the Spiders. At 6’4″, 280 lbs., he played both ways in high school and has been working at tackle so far in camp.

Brady Quist – Quist received a PWO offer from the Spiders last December and committed the same day. It’s hard to get walk-on offensive linemen with good size (6’3″, 270 lbs.), plus he’s a local product from Benedictine High School, so Quist checks a lot of boxes for us. Quist is working with the centers so far.

Boyd Rhodes – Rhodes committed to Richmond this past February after being selected to the AutoZone Liberty Bowl All-Star Game. He was 3rd-team All-Metro in Tennessee and had offers from Denison, Hampden-Sydney, and Sewanee. Rhodes has been working with the guards during camp.

Jax Thomas – Thomas was a later add to the roster, listed at 6’4″, 275 lbs. Playing his high school ball in Texas, he was a top-100 private school offensive lineman who had interest from some smaller schools. Seemingly our 3rd walk-on in this class, the staff did a nice job of upping our O-line numbers after a very thin spring. Thomas has mostly been at guard this camp.

Brayson Bristow – Out of local Hanover High School, Bristow was a 2nd-team All-Metro lineman in 2025. He was heavily recruited by plenty of familiar names – Monmouth, Georgetown, Fordham, Lehigh, Campbell, Stony Brook, Elon, and Maine all had offers out before he decided to stay home. A true offensive tackle, Bristow was a big local recruiting win and adds talent to a position that could use some depth.

2025 recap

It took far too long for us to find our best five last season.  Injuries played a part, with Gabe Carbajal going down in camp and not being ready until October, however there were plenty of other changes alongside that.

The left side was fairly steady.  Ron Anderson took over at left tackle and played in all 12 games, alongside Scott Hummel at left guard.  On the other side, things were chaotic.  Kade Capristo started at center in Week 1, we switched to Trey Gray for Weeks 2-3, then back to Kade, and then ultimately back to Trey.  Both right guard and right tackle saw four different starters throughout the 12 games, with a couple guys playing both spots.  I do think we found our best combination down the stretch, but the early season dysfunction did not do us any favors.

This shows in the early season vs. late season numbers. In the first four games, we allowed 7.5 TFLs/game and 2+ sacks three times. In the following eight games, those numbers dropped to 4.5 TFLs/game and 2+ sacks allowed just once. Overall we did a great job of protecting the QB, allowing just 14 sacks all year (3rd best in the Patriot, 14th best in the FCS), however a steadier lineup would’ve improved our slow start.

What we should see in 2026

This starts with replacing lost experience. Without Hummel (1,740 career snaps), Gray (1,299), and Carbajal (819), the Spiders lose three extremely dependable starters. We’re also in a unique spot in that while we have a few seniors on the roster, zero players are in their final year of eligibility. There’s a real chance to establish continuity with a younger group up front; however that must begin earlier in the season. The good news is that our lineup has been steady throughout camp, as it looks like it will be these five guys to open Week 1.

Each player listed above had multiple starts in 2025, with four of them playing in at least half of our games. Again, not a crazy level of experience, but more than you may typically see after the experienced departures we’ve had the past two seasons.

The spot I’ll be watching a lot is left tackle. The Spiders were bottom third in the FCS in pressures allowed off the edge. Ron Anderson was thrown into a difficult spot late in camp last year, having to start at LT as a redshirt sophomore in place of the injured Carbajal. #70 made progress throughout the year, something that is displayed in his preseason All-Patriot League honor. Now with a full season’s worth of starts, I think he’ll use last year as a building block to shore up the left side of our O-line.

I’m also excited for Jason Smith and Godwin Burger. Once Jason Smith was plugged in at right guard things changed significantly. For the year, Smith finished as the 7th-best guard in the Patriot League of players with 300+ snaps. He clearly worked on snapping over the summer and has done well in the transition to center. We cannot afford another shuffle at center, so #67 locking that down would be huge. On a smaller sample size, Burger finished as the 3rd highest-rated Patriot League tackle for players with 150+ snaps. He started the final two games at RT and was the highest-rated Spider on the O-line during that stretch. Right tackle saw four different starters across 12 games, so Burger’s play helped end the season on a high note.

There’s still a long way to go across the board but we did see improvement as the season went along. Building on that, though, starts with consistency – we simply cannot afford to go through another early season shuffle.

Next Post

2026 Fall Camp: Update #2 – Wednesday, August 19th