The Northwestern Lehigh football program has developed a close-knit family atmosphere over the past few seasons, and it has led to a lot of success on the field. It’s also led to many players going on to good colleges that provide both academic and athletic opportunities. Connor Snyder became the latest player to find a comfortable spot in college when he chose to attend Millersville University.

The family atmosphere that Snyder helped develop at Northwestern was actually one of the things that he looked for in a college football program. He found it at Millersville, where coach J.C. Morgan has built the same atmosphere into the Marauders football program and Snyder recognized the feel right away.

“Right when I went there, I really liked the feel of the football program and the vision that the coaches have,” he said. “It’s the same kind of family atmosphere that we have at Northwestern. There is really a good feeling all around the campus and I just felt comfortable with the surroundings.”

Snyder found a productive role with Northwestern, especially on defense. He has an affinity for getting after opposing quarterbacks, which led him to become the school’s all-time sack leader. That tenacity is part of what attracted Millersville to Snyder and they’ll continue to play him at his defensive end position and may work him into somewhat of a hybrid player where he’ll be playing the edge and serve as a pass rusher.

“It took a lot of hard work and I like to be aggressive and go after the quarterback,” said Snyder. “I’m proud of the fact that I was able to pick up as many sacks as I did, and I think that I can have the same type of role at Millersville.”

Snyder, who also played basketball and baseball at Northwestern, has a lot of good memories to look back on from his time as a Tiger. Now that he’s moving on to college, he is happy to have had such a good high school experience.

“I think it was amazing how the whole community supported us and how the team became its own little community where we were always working hard and supporting each other,” Snyder said. “I’m going to remember the relationships that I made and the times that we went through with each other.”

Snyder considered other schools but, in the end, Millersville was the place that he felt would give him the best opportunities both academically and athletically. In fact, Millersville will likely provide a very familiar feel for Snyder. After all, they wear the same black and gold as Northwestern and the atmosphere around the team is much the same as well.

Another criterion for Snyder was to find a school that was close to home, but not too close. Millersville also checked that box, making it somewhat of an easy choice.

“I looked at places like Moravian and Muhlenberg, but Millersville just had the right feel and the right atmosphere,” said Snyder. “It’s just the right situation.”