Roger Brown
nhfootballreport.com

New Hampshire football fans will have a fifth college team to root for next fall, when Franklin Pierce begins its inaugural season of play in the Collegiate Sprint Football League.

Sprint football is played by the same rules as 11-man football, but has a 172-pound weight limit. Franklin Pierce, which announced the addition of the sport last September, is the CSFL's seventh member, joining Army, Navy, Princeton, Pennsylvania,Cornell, Mansfield and Post.

"It's college football for lightweight guys," Franklin Pierce coach Peter Ewald said. "It's a quicker, faster game in general, but there really is not much of a difference."

Dartmouth (FCS), Plymouth State (Division III), St. Anselm (Division II) and UNH (FCS) are New Hampshire's other college football programs.

Ewald, who has spent the last two seasons coaching the sprint team at Post, played at Syracuse and has also coached college football at Marist, Bates, Lebanon Valley College and Sacred Heart. He also spent two seasons as the head coach at Sacred Heart High School in Waterbury, Conn., before he accepted the Post job.

"That was my first time with [sprint fooball]," Ewald said. "The big thing is I wanted to get back into college football. High school football just wasn't for me.

"When Frankilin Pierce was thinking about adding the sport they called me and wanted to come down and see the facilities and things were done at Post. That led to some conversations and I felt [Franklin Pierce] was a better opportunity for me in many ways. From a living standpoint it was very attractive, and from a professional standpoint they have a track record of success across the board at Franklin Pierce. The backing is here that I wasn't getting at Post."

Franklin Pierce will play its home games at Oakmont Regional High School in Massachusetts. Ewald said building a home field will soon become a top priority for the school.

The Ravens will play a four-game schedule next season. The opponents will be Penn, Mansfield, Post and Princeton.

"They allow you to ease your way into competition," Ewald said.

Ewald is currently spending most of his time on the job recruiting players. He said the New England states plus New York and New Jersey are his target recruiting areas.

"I need to get a team," Ewald said. "I'm hoping that New Hampshire embraces this and that[New Hampshire] players see this as a valuable option."

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Ewald is looking for candidates to fill the Franklin Pierce coaching staff, which will include two graduate assistants and four other paid positions.

"Anybody who is interested I would be interested in talking to," he said.

Anyone interested in a coaching position can contact Ewald at EwaldP@franklinpierce.edu.