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Five years ago, my college journey began earlier than most.
While everyone was at the beach, buying stuff for their dorms or sleeping in until noon, I was heading to training camp for football. This time, I had a different role.
My time in high school football with Seton Hall Prep was… terrible. Putting it lightly, I was awful as a receiver. Seriously, I genuinely might have been one of the worst players in all of New Jersey from 2018 to 2020.
During those three years, I dreaded going to training camp and in 2020, I knew my playing days were up. Despite having some aspiration to walk-on at the next level, that is not how it played out.
Instead, I took a unique path that I still look back at to this day. I decided I wanted to work for one of the best Division III football programs on the East Coast in Muhlenberg College. When August 11, 2021 came, I was the happiest I had been in years.
Now, why Muhlenberg? Why some private liberal arts college in Allentown, Pennsylvania that a surprising amount of people know about? Well, all credit goes to one of my former coaches at the Prep.
Former Muhlenberg WR John Merklinger helped me a lot during my time at the Prep as he was someone I went to when I needed advice about life. As a junior at SHP, Coach Merklinger taught a public speaking class which me and a few of my teammates took. Even for someone who was terrified of doing presentations at the time, I enjoyed it.
Sometime in December of 2019, Coach Merklinger spoke to the class about how his college (Muhlenberg) made it to the semifinals of the NCAA Division III playoffs that season and I became very intrigued. This fascinated me so much that it made me ponder the idea of attending the school.
Muhlenberg was a weird place looking back and I have plenty of memories that need their own separate stories. I believe at the time the school’s most famous alumni was Ariana Grande’s half-brother which makes sense because the college loves theater. Also, no I was not aware that the school was a huge performing arts school when I applied.
Football, however, was arguably the main attraction. In 2019, the team was an incredible 13-1 and they genuinely looked unstoppable. With their only loss coming against DIII power North Central (IL) in those semifinals, the future of the program was brighter than bright.
Back to move in day, the drive to Allentown was a beautiful one. The sun was glistening, the vibes were immaculate and I was beyond excited to reach campus. When I eventually got to the school, I checked in and met the leader of the program in head coach Nate Milne.
There have been a lot of great coaches who I have interacted with throughout my time playing and covering sports. When I was at the Prep, my coaches were vital to my development as a learner of the game and as a young man off the field. Despite never being close to an otherworldly star athlete, my HC Bill Fitzgerald helped me immensely and I have always appreciated that.
Coach Fitzgerald’s assistants were also great role models that I leaned on for advice about life. Whether it was NJ coaching great Tom Falato, now Mendham High School defensive coordinator Carlos Pasols and of course Coach Merklinger, they knew how to help young men like myself.
Covering sports, I have brought up Seton Hall women’s basketball HC Tony Bozzella numerous times in the past because he treated me and others with respect. He loves the media and it is only fair to show him the respect he deserves.
If you know Milne, you know that he is one of the most likeable guys you will ever meet. His knowledge of the game is incredible, his personality is awesome, and he knows how to turn successful players into outstanding players. He cares about the human side of players and he wants them to achieve amazing things when their playing days are over.
Even after I left Muhlenberg my freshman year, Milne still remembered me when I went to watch my friend Jimmy play baseball in 2025. Most coaches probably forget about their student managers which makes sense given the size of a football program. Not Milne though.
Throughout the next couple of days, I met many new faces who I would get to know well. I met special teams coordinator Trey Brown, defensive mastermind Kory David, and a Ramapo High School great in Ryan Curtiss. A young guy getting his feet wet in coaching, Curtiss and I bonded over New Jersey football and you could tell that he loved the sport.
Curtiss also helped me with editing some of the film from practice on Hudl and it was pretty cool in hindsight. Alongside me was the other manager named Colin who helped me a lot throughout my first season as a manager.
On the field, the team was nationally ranked. Entering my freshman year, the Mules were ranked 13th in the D3football.com preseason poll and were projected to win the Centennial Conference.
Now, football is a sport that requires everyone to be on the same page and come together as one unit. One person is not more important than another person. However, there was one player who, by all metrics, was the face of the program and that was quarterback Michael Hnatkowsky.
I knew about Hnatkowsky way before I even reached the campus of Muhlenberg. I can’t remember if Coach Merklinger said anything about him in class, but I remember college football accounts on Instagram adored him. The lefty pocket passer was one of Division III's best players and honestly, I thought he had a shot at an NFL rookie minicamp.
For most people when left-handed QBs come to mind, Michael Penix Jr., Tua Tagovailoa and Steve Young are the first ones that they can name. For me, “Neeko” is the first one I can name and I would probably win some football “ball knowledge” game by default.
However, the guy is genuinely one of the nicest human beings I have ever met. This guy was Fernando Mendoza before Fernando Mendoza. The guy loves life, his teammates, his family, everything honestly.
I remember one of the first meals I had with the team and I had nowhere to sit because well, I didn’t know anyone personally. The table I sat at featured Hnatkowsky and a few seniors who returned and they welcomed me with open arms.
It was a blessing that because of COVID, Hnatkowsky and a few others decided to return to the program because their senior season was canceled in 2020. The fact I got to know him was simply just, really cool.
Over the next couple of months, the journey to win the conference and make another NCAA Tournament appearance was a fun one. I loved traveling to different parts of Pennsylvania, I loved shooting highlight footage on the sideline during away games and doing this as a freshman was amazing. Some players didn’t make the travel roster while I did which honestly, was such a surprise to me.
I saw the farmlands of western Maryland, I met up with a couple of old SHP teammates at Susquehanna, I went to Amish country when we played Franklin & Marshall. Heck, I even got a taste of that Friday night magic when we took down an outstanding Johns Hopkins team at home.
By the end of the regular season, we were conference co-champions with Johns Hopkins. The only blemish on our 9-1 record was an upset loss against Ursinus at home which took place on a very rough day for me. I will not disclose it here but um… it had to do with a girl.
Anyway, the playoffs were a fun ride. After two strong victories vs Framingham State and Delaware Valley, our quarterfinal round game would be on the road against Division III’s strongest team historically.
Mount Union (OH) is by far DIII’s winningest program and when we faced them on that first Saturday of December, I was nervous and I wasn’t even a player. We left Friday morning from campus, stopped at Bucknell University for a walk-through, passed through Youngstown, Ohio and arrived Friday night to our hotel. Now apologies to the great YouTuber Sir Yacht but Ohio was… interesting.
Then, Saturday December 4 came and it was extremely cold and windy. Everyone say thank you Lake Erie.
For a Division III stadium, it was probably one of the best I have been to and the fans made it difficult. Even with facing adversity, even with facing two incredible players in QB Braxton Plunk and WR Wayne Ruby Jr., we manage to get it to overtime. Sadly, a Stagg Bowl appearance was never meant to be as the Purple Raiders won 35-29 and that was it.
The aftermath of this game was depressing. It was eerily similar to my junior year of high school when we lost in the playoffs to St. Augustine Prep. No one spoke, tears ran down faces and it was sadness from as far as you can see.
Trying to get home to Allentown was exhausting in its own right as we didn’t leave for hours. It was mainly because someone was getting drug tested and yeah it took a bit. Also, if I had a nickel for every time I saw a girl I liked dancing with a dude at a party the night after a loss, I’d have two nickels.
With that loss, I wrapped up the best season I had ever had with any team I was a part of. I still ended up filming spring practices and that was something. But, after the spring semester, I transferred to Seton Hall.
When I arrived on Muhlenberg's campus five years ago, I didn't know what to expect. Even with getting a conference championship ring, getting to travel to different schools and learning football from the best coaches, I gained something greater from this experience. Simply put, a friendship was born.
Because of football, I met a great dude by the name of Tristan Alfonso. A former Don Bosco Prep player, we got along greatly and the memories we made with our friend group off the field were priceless. Like me, he transferred out of Muhlenberg after the spring semester and his playing days were over.
I have not seen him since we both transferred, but we have kept in touch.
Knowing how everything turned out, I’m grateful for my short time with Muhlenberg football.
I am happy I got to work for a premier college football team. I am happy for the people I met. Lastly, I am happy for the lifelong memories that I will never forget.