2010 NEC Football Preseason All-Conference Team
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Northeast Conference 399 Campus Drive • First Floor • Somerset, NJ 08873 (732) 469-0440 • Fax (732) 469-0744 • www.northeastconference.org For Immediate Release August 4, 2010 CCSU First for First Time Ever in NEC Football Preseason Coaches Poll Blue Devils Picked to Repeat 2009 Title; Preseason All-NEC Team Announced Somerset, NJ - The Northeast Conference (NEC) has a different preseason football favorite for the first time in five years. Central Connecticut State halted Albany’s bid for a third consecu- Northeast Conference Football tive league title last season, and has followed up by ending UA’s four-year run atop the NEC’s 2010 Preseason Coaches Poll preseason poll. 1. Central Connecticut State (4) Coming off their best season in four decades, the defending NEC champion Blue Devils 2. Robert Morris (3) garnered four first-place votes to earn the No. 1 ranking in the annual summer survey of the 3. Albany (1) conference’s nine head coaches for the first time in program history. If the preseason prog- 4. Wagner (1) nostication holds true, CCSU will become the first NEC champion to earn the league’s newly- 5. Monmouth acquired automatic berth into the NCAA FCS playoffs. 6. Bryant 7. Duquesne Following a bullish finish to the 2009 season, Robert Morris has its eyes on the prize, too. 8. Sacred Heart RMU garnered three first-place votes to finish second in the preseason poll, the results of 9. Saint Francis (PA) which were announced by the NEC during a media teleconference on Wednesday morning. First place votes in parentheses ( ). Albany, which pulled in one first-place nod, took third. Claiming the lone remaining first- place vote, Wagner was fourth ahead of fifth-place Monmouth. Bryant earned the sixth spot followed by Duquesne in seventh. Sacred Heart (eighth) and Saint Francis (PA) (ninth) rounded out the predicted order-of-finish. As a prelude to its 15th season on the gridiron, which kicks off on Sept. 3, the Northeast Conference also announced a 25-member Preseason All-NEC Team during Wednesday’s media call. Team Capsules Central Connecticut State (9-3, 7-1 NEC) – The Blue Devils lost NEC Offensive Player of the Year James Mallory to graduation, but retained the respect of the league’s coaches as evidenced by their preseason standing. Regardless of who carries the football, CCSU has featured the conference’s top rushing offense every season since head coach Jeff McInerney joined the program in 2006. The ability to pile up more than 200 yards per game on the ground has translated into wins for the Blue Devils. The team owns a 19-9 NEC record in four years under McInerney, who was a finalist for the Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year award in 2009. Senior running back Brian Fowler (Geneva, NY/Erie CC), the team’s top returning rusher, will likely get his share of carries. Complimenting Mallory, Fowler totaled 526 rush yards last season and averaged 6.9 yards per clip. Senior lineman Mike Allison (Marlboro, CT/RHAM) gives the Blue Devils a preseason all-NEC talent in the trenches. Central Connecticut returns a valuable weapon and preseason all-NEC selection in the form of senior wide receiver Josue Paul (Delray Beach, FL/Pope John Paul II) who doubles as the team’s kick (2010 NEC Football Preseason Poll Release; 1-of-5) Bryant University (2012-13) • Central Connecticut State University • Fairleigh Dickinson University Long Island University • Monmouth University • Mount St. Mary’s University Quinnipiac University • Robert Morris Unviersity • Sacred Heart University St. Francis (NY) College • Saint Francis (PA) University • Wagner College returner. Paul has return at least one kick for a touchdown in each of his three seasons at the collegiate level and broke out as a top-tier receiving threat last year. He logged 56 receptions for 839 yards and five touchdowns as a junior, including a 69-yard score that capped a 20- point fourth quarter and lifted CCSU to a one-point victory over Monmouth in the next-to-last week of the regular season. With quarterback Aubrey Norris having graduated, Paul will have a new person throwing passes to him. CCSU has brought in four capable young arms who McInerney expects to compete for the starting job in training camp. The defending NEC champion Blue Devils also have a pair of preseason all-NEC performers on defense, both of whom reside in the secondary. Senior safety Alondre Rush (Middletown, CT/Xavier) made 78 tackles and two interceptions one year ago, while senior cornerback Dominique Rose (Hartford, CT/Sports Sciences) broke up six passes, intercepted one, and was an effective blitzer who registered a trio of sacks. Although he didn’t claim preseason accolades, senior Jeff Marino (New Britain, CT/New Britain), whose 93 tackles were tops on the team, was a second team all-league pick in 2009 and returns to lead a linebacking corps that features exciting sophomore Lawton Arnold (Simsbury, CT/Simsbury). As a rookie, Arnold made 50 tackles, including 6.5 for a loss, in nine games of action. Robert Morris (5-6, 5-3 NEC) – Robert Morris won at least a share of every NEC title from 1996 until the turn of the century, but has not last found itself atop the NEC since 2000. The Colonials dropped their first six games of the 2009 campaign, but rebounded to win their final five. RMU’s second-half surge and the return of 19 starting players have given the Moon Township faithful a reason to believe the Colonials can reclaim NEC supremacy. Not only did the Colonials win their last five games of the season, but they never trailed during that stretch. Robert Morris out-scored opponents by a 110-36 margin in those contests, while posting a plus-10 turnover margin. RMU’s defense, which became stingier as the season progressed, held their last five opponents to an average of 7.2 points per contest. The Colonials bring back seven starters from that unit, two of whom are preseason all-NEC selections — senior linebacker Alex DiMichele (Pittsburgh, PA/Sto-Rox) and senior defen- sive back Rolf Bathold (Naples, FL/Lely). DiMichele, who ranks 10th amongst all-time leading tackles in RMU history, was one of three NEC players to record more than 100 tackles in 2009. He made 8.0 of his 109 stops for a loss, while logging six passes defended and four fumble recoveries. Bathold broke up 12 passes and intercepted another three during his junior season. He’ll roam the secondary along with senior safety Michael Landers (Springdale, PA/Springdale), who made 80 tackles in 2009 after being named to the All-NEC First Team in 2008. The legendary offensive mind of Joe Walton, the only coach the program has known, has a preseason all-NEC weapon to use at halfback. With what could be a third consecutive 1,000-yard season, senior Myles Russ (Boca Raton, FL/West Boca) would surpass Sam Dorsett as Robert Morris’ all-time leading rusher. Russ ran for 1,255 yards as a sophomore and added another 1059 last season despite battling through minor injuries. He’ll be taking hand-offs from sophomore signal caller Jeff Sinclair (Natrona Heights, PA/Highlands) who was a pleasant surprise in 2009. After winning the starting job, he threw for 828 yards and nine touchdowns over seven games. The shifty Sinclair also logged 128 yards and three TDs on the ground. Senior placekicker Garrett Clawson (Duncansville, PA/Hollidaysburg) earned preseason all-NEC status after claiming first team honors as a junior when he made a league-high 14 field goals. Converting 78 percent of his attempts, Clawson thrice earned the NEC Special Teams Player of the Week award. It was his field goal that dealt Albany a 13-10 loss as time expired. Senior punter Nick Schirtzinger (Hurricane, WV/Hurricane), who placed 21 punts inside the opponents’ 20-yard line in 2009, has made two appearances in three years on the All-NEC Second Team. Clawson and Schirtzinger form what is arguably the most potent one-two punch in the NEC since former All- American Piotr Czech held both the placekicking and punting duties at Wagner. Albany (7-4, 6-2 NEC) – The Great Danes stretched their NEC win streak to 18 games last year until a two-point loss at CCSU. Albany lost eight all-NEC players from last year’s team to graduation, none more impactful than the third leading rusher in NEC history - David McCarty. In addition to the departure of the Walter Payton Award candidate, Albany will have a new man under center and will also miss the services of leading receiver Tim Bush. The good news is UA returns nine starters and its legendary head coach Bob Ford, who is first in victories amongst active Division I FCS coaches. The Great Danes also boast a great NEC track record, remaining within the top half of the standings every season since joining the league in 1999. (2010 NEC Football Preseason Poll Release; 2-of-5) Sophomore Andrew Smith (Schenectady, NY/Guilderland) can play all three offensive skill positions as proven during his freshman campaign when he lined up at quarterback, tailback, and wide receiver. He rushed for five TDs, caught 10 passes, and threw a 31-yard TD pass. Senior tight end Jason Poore (North Hoosick, NY/Hoosick Falls Central), a huge target at 6’6", is first amongst the Danes’ returning pass-catchers after making 26 receptions for 243 yards and two scores. Senior Andy Sparano (Colleyville, TX/Grapevine), who has played both guard and center during his career, is one of Albany’s two preseason all-NEC selections.