Oberlin College Men's Football

Recruiting Areas Quarterbacks & Offensive Line John Pont will enter his third season as the Oberlin College Head Football Coach in 2025, after being hired in January 2023. In his three years as the head coach of the Crimson and Gold, Pont has guided three All-North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) honorees while also leading 18 student-athletes to College Sports Communicators Academic All-District laurels, 13 National Football Foundation Hampshire Honor Society members, and 30 NCAC Academic Honor Roll recipients.  Prior to Oberlin, Pont held coaching roles across all three NCAA divisions. Most recently, he served as an offensive analyst and football athletic performance assistant at Indiana University (2021-22) after four years and three seasons (2017-20) as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at the University of Chicago. While with the Maroons, Pont led one of the top-performing offenses in Division III. His units consistently ranked among national leaders in multiple statistical categories while he also mentored two of the program’s all-time leading scorers. Before his time with Chicago, Pont held a position at Case Western Reserve University (2015-16) as the wide receivers coach and offensive passing game coordinator while also having additional coaching stops at the University of Akron (2012-15), Miami University (2011-2012), Colorado State University (2010-2011), University of North Texas (2010), University of North Alabama (2009-2010), and Florida State University (2008-2009).  Pont earned a bachelor's degree from Miami University (Ohio) in education in 2007 and went on to receive his master's degree in physical education from Florida State University in 2009. JOHN PONT CAREER COACHING RECORD Season Overall Record NCAC Record NCAC Finish 2023 1-9 0-8 9th 2024 1-9 1-7 8th 2025 0-10 0-8 9th Total (3 seasons): 2-28 (.067) 1-23 (.042)

Recruiting Areas Defensive Line & Linebackers Ben Hammer enters his third season as defensive coordinator of the Oberlin College football team after being hired in March 2023.  In his first season, he led Brandon Hall to All-NCAC third-team honors in 2023. Over the following two seasons, Hammer coached Green to back-to-back All-NCAC third-team accolades in 2024 and 2025, leading Green to finish second in program history in career tackles (354).  Before coming to Oberlin, Hammer spent the previous four seasons (2019-22) as a graduate assistant defensive line coach at Northwestern University, helping the Wildcats earn the Big Ten West Division Championship in 2020. During that season, the Wildcats led the Big Ten in scoring defense (15.9 ppg) and passing defense (195.9 ypg).  Prior to his time in Evanston, Illinois, Hammer was a graduate assistant coach at the University of Texas at El Paso, where he worked with the team’s linebackers and special teams for the 2017 season. From 2013-17, he held various coaching positions at Western New Mexico University (NCAA DII), eventually holding the roles of assistant head coach, special teams coordinator, linebackers coach, and video coordinator at the time of his departure.  Hammer has additional international experience, having coached for numerous clubs in Germany. His last overseas position was as the head coach, defensive coordinator, and special teams coordinator of the Kirchdorf Wildcats from September 2011 through May 2012.  Hammer graduated from Western New Mexico in the spring of 2017 with degrees in marketing and business management. He earned a graduate degree in leadership studies from UTEP in 2019 and earned a second master’s degree in sports administration from Northwestern in 2021.   

Kyle Zies is in his first season as an assistant coach for the Oberlin football team in 2025-26.  A central Ohio native, Zies was an exceptional high school player preparing for a Quarterback career at Mount Union before facing medical retirement. The First-Team All-Conference selection began his coaching career at Otterbein University, where he served as the Tight Ends and Wide Receivers Coach for the Cardinals. Moving the Quarterback and Recruiting Coordinator the following year, Zies took the Head Coach position at St. John Paul II Catholic High School in New Braunfels, Texas, in 2023.   Spending two years in one of the largest football regions in the world, Zies led the Falcons to back-to-back state playoff appearances. In his first year, he broke the school records for points scored (321), passing yards (2,785), total yards (3,464), and touchdowns (45).

Recruiting Areas Running Backs & Specialists (Kickers, Punters, Long Snappers) Roseanna Smith joined Oberlin College in 2021 and enters her fifth season on staff in 2025.  Smith has guided the running backs for five years, added coaching responsibilities on special teams, and leads the program's operations, recruiting, fundraising and events. In August 2024, she was promoted to program Chief of Staff and earned a Level 1 certification from USA Weightlifting. Smith has been selected to a myriad of prestigious coaching academies including the 2023 WeCoach/NCAA Women's Coaches Academy in Denver, the 2023 NCAA Women Leaders in College Sports Institute for Advancement, the 2022 NFL's Women's Careers in Football Forum, and was one of 12 NCAA coaches to present to the Minnesota Vikings staff at its inaugural Diversity Summit in 2022. Before Oberlin, Smith spent ten years working as a Georgia high school football coach. Concurrently, Smith was the Vice President of Communications for the American Junior Golf Association. With the AJGA, she focused on professional sports marketing leadership, premium sponsor activation with Fortune 500 brands such as Adidas and Rolex, and strategic national business operations in golf industry events and fundraising. As a football player, Smith was an All-World All-Star selection at center on the inaugural 2010 International Federation of American Football Women's World Championships United States national women’s tackle team, won two Independent Women's Football League national championships in Atlanta (2007, 2011), and lettered in high school football.   In 2004, Smith earned two Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Sports Studies from the University of Iowa. Two years later, she completed a Master's degree in Athletic Administration from her alma mater. 

Dante Reynolds is in his first season at Oberlin as an Assistant Football Coach in 2025-26.  Reynolds comes to Oberlin after a phenomenal professional career in The Spring League (TSL) and the Indoor Football League (IFL). In the TSL, Reynolds played two seasons with the Conquerors in the North Division. With the IFL, he competed for the Arizona Rattlers and the San Diego Strike Force.   As a coach, Reynolds spent time between Lower Moreland and Norristown Area high schools in Pennsylvania. The new Obie led the offensive line and run game at both schools, earning All-Conference PAC recognition in 2022. Reynolds was a four-year offensive lineman for Delaware Valley University (Pennsylvania). Securing Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) Championship titles in 2017 and 2018, Reynolds contributed to the Aggies' historic streak, winning 53 consecutive conference games from 2016 to 2024. Reynolds helped Delaware Valley to an NCAA Division III Quarterfinal appearance in 2017, followed by a first-round NCAA tournament match in 2018.  Reynolds earned his Bachelor's degree in Business Administration-Sports Management from Delaware Valley University in 2019.

Jay Peterson enters his first season as an Assistant Football Coach at Oberlin in 2025-26.  Peterson brings more than 40 years of coaching experience, including coaching stops at Eastern Michigan University, Illinois State University, Northwestern, Miami, and Wayne State, before making a move to the NFL coaching realm. Peterson spent four years as a Defensive Assistant Coach for the Baltimore Ravens. Previously, he also coached for the Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, and Indianapolis Colts in Linebacker, Special Teams, and Defensive Back roles. A standout running back at Miami University, Peterson played in all 44 games for the RedHawks, amassing over 3,200 yards and 22 touchdowns from the backfield.