Ursinus Week
In preparation of this Saturday's game at Ursinus, let's start taking a look at this week's opponent.
First, congratulations go out to Josh Jerrold for being named to the Centennial Conference Player of the Week Honorable Mention List for his defensive performance against Muhlenberg!
You can read about this, and preview the upcoming action for then entire Conference by clicking here.
Now a preview of the Ursinus Bears courtesy of the D3Football.com Season Preview Kickoff edition:
Ursinus Bears
Last playoff appearance: 2006
Last year: 8-3, 4-2 CC
Last conference title: 1996
Wins increase from 05-06: Plus-4
Preseason ranking: 69 of 238
Head coach: Peter Gallagher, 6th year, 24-37
Starters returning: 12 (five offense, five defense, two special teams)
Position battle to watch: Quarterbacks. With Ted Wallingford graduated, junior Nicholas Dye seems to be the heir apparent; he's the only quarterback on the roster with game experience and has received the bulk of the reps with the first team. But Gallagher promises an open competition; Dye has the inside track, but the starter's job is not yet a given.
Pressure is on: Wide receivers. The Bears return three of their top five wideouts. But the two that graduated were the scoring threats: Josh Hannum (8 TDs) and Brandon Evans (4) accounted for all 12 touchdowns in the passing game in 2006; both also had yards per catch averages well over 20. Mike Weyrauch, Mark Greim and Jason Sproule all had YPC averages under 13. One of them will need to emerge to energize the passing game.
Where did he come from? Sophomore defensive end Mubarak Lawrence is not from Wayne, Pa., as the roster indicates. Gallagher said Lawrence is originally from New York City; he moved to Wayne, an affluent suburb on the Main Line, as part of A Better Chance. The program takes children of color who have excelled academically and in leadership roles and matches them with some of the top public and private schools in the country. Lawrence enrolled in, and graduated from, Radnor High School.
Their season will be defined by: Not letting a loss kill morale. Gallagher cited the fact that no team since McDaniel in 2000 had gone unbeaten in conference play. "If you lose, you still have a chance going into Week 8, 9 or 10. We hope we're in a position to compete for the title," Gallagher said.
Predicted record: 10-0, 8-0
Capsule: Even coach Peter Gallagher was a little surprised that his team was voted atop the Centennial Conference's preseason poll. But the development doesn't rise to the level of shocking, either. True, Ursinus endured a stretch of three seasons without winning a conference game and, as recently as 2005, they finished under .500. But last year, they won their first four games on the way to an 8-3 mark; they were the only team to beat Centennial champ Dickinson. "A year ago we were picked last, but we had a nice season and we earned a lot of respect," Gallagher said. But the Bears do have some work to do. They must replace their quarterback and two top receivers. The ground game figures to be better off with the return of running back Aaron Harper, who was second in the conference in rushing in '06, and all-conference lineman Jon Rinkus. Talent also returns on defense, with all-conference linebacker Brian Hrynczysyn and defensive back DeVohn Butler returning. Butler, who tied for the conference lead with five picks a year ago, is part of a formidable return tandem with Ryan Van Wright. The two ranked No. 3 and 4 in kick return average in the conference.
First, congratulations go out to Josh Jerrold for being named to the Centennial Conference Player of the Week Honorable Mention List for his defensive performance against Muhlenberg!
You can read about this, and preview the upcoming action for then entire Conference by clicking here.
Now a preview of the Ursinus Bears courtesy of the D3Football.com Season Preview Kickoff edition:
Ursinus Bears
Last playoff appearance: 2006
Last year: 8-3, 4-2 CC
Last conference title: 1996
Wins increase from 05-06: Plus-4
Preseason ranking: 69 of 238
Head coach: Peter Gallagher, 6th year, 24-37
Starters returning: 12 (five offense, five defense, two special teams)
Position battle to watch: Quarterbacks. With Ted Wallingford graduated, junior Nicholas Dye seems to be the heir apparent; he's the only quarterback on the roster with game experience and has received the bulk of the reps with the first team. But Gallagher promises an open competition; Dye has the inside track, but the starter's job is not yet a given.
Pressure is on: Wide receivers. The Bears return three of their top five wideouts. But the two that graduated were the scoring threats: Josh Hannum (8 TDs) and Brandon Evans (4) accounted for all 12 touchdowns in the passing game in 2006; both also had yards per catch averages well over 20. Mike Weyrauch, Mark Greim and Jason Sproule all had YPC averages under 13. One of them will need to emerge to energize the passing game.
Where did he come from? Sophomore defensive end Mubarak Lawrence is not from Wayne, Pa., as the roster indicates. Gallagher said Lawrence is originally from New York City; he moved to Wayne, an affluent suburb on the Main Line, as part of A Better Chance. The program takes children of color who have excelled academically and in leadership roles and matches them with some of the top public and private schools in the country. Lawrence enrolled in, and graduated from, Radnor High School.
Their season will be defined by: Not letting a loss kill morale. Gallagher cited the fact that no team since McDaniel in 2000 had gone unbeaten in conference play. "If you lose, you still have a chance going into Week 8, 9 or 10. We hope we're in a position to compete for the title," Gallagher said.
Predicted record: 10-0, 8-0
Capsule: Even coach Peter Gallagher was a little surprised that his team was voted atop the Centennial Conference's preseason poll. But the development doesn't rise to the level of shocking, either. True, Ursinus endured a stretch of three seasons without winning a conference game and, as recently as 2005, they finished under .500. But last year, they won their first four games on the way to an 8-3 mark; they were the only team to beat Centennial champ Dickinson. "A year ago we were picked last, but we had a nice season and we earned a lot of respect," Gallagher said. But the Bears do have some work to do. They must replace their quarterback and two top receivers. The ground game figures to be better off with the return of running back Aaron Harper, who was second in the conference in rushing in '06, and all-conference lineman Jon Rinkus. Talent also returns on defense, with all-conference linebacker Brian Hrynczysyn and defensive back DeVohn Butler returning. Butler, who tied for the conference lead with five picks a year ago, is part of a formidable return tandem with Ryan Van Wright. The two ranked No. 3 and 4 in kick return average in the conference.
posted by Pat McConnell | 6:40 AM
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