By Brian Lester
D3sports.com

"I told myself I’d never run from another fight. I was going to work as hard as I could no matter what adversity I faced or what I was going through." UMass-Dartmouth athletics photo

Dante Aviles-Santos is among the nation’s most prolific quarterbacks in NCAA Division III and one of the primary reasons Mass-Dartmouth is in the playoffs for the first time in 20 years.

Interestingly enough, the signal caller, in his second year as a starter, almost didn’t play a key role in the Corsairs’ run to the postseason as a quarterback.

He was almost one of the guys catching the ball rather than slinging it all over the field.

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“Being the genius that I am, when he first came in, we had some very, very good quarterbacks, and I kept trying to get Dante to move over to wide receiver, and kept politely saying no,” Mass-Dartmouth head coach Mark Robichaud said. “He ends up, after two years, being one of the best quarterbacks I’ve ever seen. He makes such great decisions and has such great focus. He’s the heart and soul of our program.”

Aviles-Santos didn’t say no because he wasn't a team guy. He’s willing to do whatever it takes for the team.

His reason for standing firm on wanting to play quarterback in college stems from the start of his high school career.

There was a quarterback ahead of him back then and he opted not to compete for the job, playing wide receiver that season instead.

“I played quarterback my entire life, and when I got to high school, there was someone a year ahead of me. My thing was I kind of let him have that role. I didn’t even fight for it,” Aviles-Santos said. “There’s been a fire burning inside of me ever since then. I told myself you put yourself at receiver because you ran away from the fight. I told myself I’d never run from another fight. I was going to work as hard as I could no matter what adversity I faced or what I was going through.”

Betting on himself turned out to be the right choice for Aviles-Santos, who has helped put the Corsairs in the NCAA playoffs for only the second time in program history after the team clinched the MASCAC championship last week with a 46-21 win over Plymouth.

Aviles-Santos was the offensive rookie of the year in the conference last season, throwing for 2,197 yards and 25 touchdowns while also rushing for eight scores. This year, he is fifth nationally in passing yards (2,940) and 16th in touchdown passes (26), directing an offense that puts up 42.1 points per game. 

He points to the trust others have instilled in him and the trust he has instilled in others as one of the reasons for his continued success in college football.

But take up the entire spotlight? Well, that’s something Aviles-Santos simply won’t do.

“I have a great relationship with my coaches and the guys around me are all making the right plays,” Aviles-Santos said. “I can’t single-handedly accept all of the attention and accolades. A lot of people have helped me be successful.”

The Corsairs are 9-1 and riding an eight-game winning streak into their first-round matchup with unbeaten Ithaca (10-0) on Saturday in New York.

For Robichaud, who has spent close to 20 years as the head coach of the program, the wait to get to the postseason has been worth it. He always believed getting there was only a matter of time.

“I’ve been here 16 years, and it’s essentially taken me 16 years to figure it out,” Robichaud said. “We have a great group of young men, a great staff and great support from our administration. I always knew we could get here. We knew we’d figure it out at some point. Everyone believes in what we are doing. We are focused and ready to go.”

Last week’s clincher against Plymouth State was a special day for the program Aviles-Santos completed 26 of his 29 passes for 316 yards and three touchdowns, connecting with Angel Sanchez on two of those scoring strikes as the Corsairs won their first ever MASCAC title.

For Aviles-Santos, it was his first time playing for a championship in his career.

“It was very surreal to capture that moment with these players and coaches,” Aviles-Santos said. “Our AD was there, our strength and conditioning coach was there. It was a family affair. I’ve gotten a lot of texts telling me they are going to be at the playoff game to support us.”

Aviles-Santos has plenty of support within the offense, which is putting up 42.1 points per game.

Seven receivers have caught at least two touchdown passes, including Sanchez, who has 51 catches for 1,104 yards and nine touchdowns.

The rushing attack features four running backs who have run for at least two scores, the group headed up by Luis Gonzalez, who has found the end zone 14 times and has rushed for 462 yards. Aviles-Santos has been a threat on the ground as well, scoring three rushing touchdowns behind an offensive line that has allowed the Corsairs to crank out 545.8 yards per game.

“It feels good to have the right people in your corner,” Aviles-Santos said. “I can’t sit here and take all of the credit. The guys around me are making plays. And when we score and give the ball to the other team’s offense, they have to go against our defense. We’re not just out here putting up points. Our points allowed by the defense are minimal.”

Indeed. The Corsairs give up just 18.1 points per outing and have held three teams to single digits, including one shutout.

Javien Delgado (52), JP Mason (49) and Sam Alicea (41) all have 40 or more tackles. Nine others have at least 20 tackles.

“We’ve been able to bring in some very talented young men here on both sides of the ball,” Robichaud said. “Not only are they great football players, but they are young men with outstanding character who take care of business in the classroom and outside of it.”

The road to a postseason opportunity, though, for this program began right after last season ended with a 42-16 win over Alfred State in the New England Bowl.

“We played our bowl game on November 20 last year, and the next day, I can’t count on my hands and toes the amount of guys who were in the weight room the next day. You could tell the buy-in was there right away.”

And now the Corsairs want to cash in on that hard work and make a postseason run.

“Not a lot of people believe we are going to win. We’ve seen some of those blogs where we are supposed to get beat by 30. Nobody cares,” Aviles-Santos said. “We know we have to show up and show out. No one is scared. We’re ready to go seize the moment.”