College Coaches Talk about Programs
What could be better than football and barbecue? That’s what was being served up at the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in Macon last Wednesday, June 28, when the sixth annual Peach State Pigskin Preview took place.
The barbecue was for lunch, but the coaches from college football programs throughout the state, along with some players, served up all the football anyone wanted to talk about when they made themselves available to the media. The barbecue smelled mighty fine, but there was definitely a whiff of football in the air carrying gridiron news from Rome to Valdosta.
Three existing institutions, Fort Valley State University, Savannah State University, and Georgia Southern University, have new head football coaches, all looking for a break out season this fall.
There are even two new football programs in the state. Shorter College in Rome played its first full season last fall, and LaGrange College in LaGrange will do the same this fall.
But everybody knows the big dog eats first, so let’s begin.
Mark Richt, Head Football Coach, University of Georgia—Georgia is enjoying one of the finest runs in the program’s history, and the returning Bulldogs are accustomed to double-digit wins. Dating back to 2002, Georgia has posted 44 victories, won two Southeastern Conference championships and played for another, and has been a constant fixture in the national top 20.
So as the Bulldogs embark on the 2006 season, their goals remain the same.
“Every year is a new challenge,” Coach Richt said. “The league is very tough and there are so many close ball games. You can be a heck of a team and lose three or four games by one or two points and people don’t think highly of you. Our players and coaches believe we’ll be challenging for the title every year. That’s the goal.”
The dogs have a strong nucleus on which to build. They are retuning their top three rushers who teamed up for more that 1500 yards and eight touchdowns. There will be spirited competition at many positions, including quarterback. For the second time in as many years, the dogs must replace a starting quarterback. Right now that replacement is Joe Tereshinski, III.
Blake Barnes saw action as a reserve in three games last year, Joe Cox impressed coaches during his red shirt season, and Matthew Stafford is a highly regarded prospect who joined the team in January. That’s too many talented quarterbacks bunched up together.
The dogs begin the season in a warm up game on September 2 at home versus Division 1AA opponent Western Kentucky, but they’ll be tested on September 9 by Steve Spurrier and those pesky Game Cocks from South Carolina. The quarterback question still won’t be answered after that game.
Patrick Nix, Offensive Coordinator, Georgia Tech—Coach Nix is the new man in charge of the Yellow Jacket offense, and will be in the spotlight when the Jackets kick off their season versus Notre Dame. The game is scheduled for Saturday, September 2, and will be televised by ABC at 8 p.m. as the game of the week.
Coach Nix said he has no returning starters, meaning all positions are open for competition. “We’ve got a lot of guys coming back but all positions are open.”
When asked about any particular player to watch, Coach Nix was quick to mention Calvin Johnson. “We’ve got Calvin Johnson who’s probably the best player in college football. We’re expecting some great things from a lot of guys, but especially from him.”
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Calvin Johnson, out of Sandy Creek High School, is a junior wide receiver, but no one expects him to remain in the college ranks after this year. He’ll be gone to the NFL.
After Notre Dame the Jackets will try to heal and rest up in games versus Samford and Troy State before beginning conference play in the ACC.
Brian VanGorder, Head Football Coach, Georgia Southern University—Coach VanGorder was recently introduced as the fifth head coach in the school’s history. He has a most impressive football coaching history, most recently as linebacker for the NFL’s Jacksonville Jaguars.
Prior to that he was the defensive coordinator for four years at the University of Georgia.
Coach VanGorder will attempt to put the Eagles back on track to win the Southern Conference, which they had won seven out of the last eight years until last year. The NCAA Division 1AA school also won the national championship in 1985, 86, 89, 90, 99, and 2000, but that illustrious title has eluded them for the last five years.
According to Russell Orr, a red shirt junior right offensive tackle out of Thomas County Central High School, the Eagles would like to beat every team in the Southern Conference, but Appalachian State is the team they have to beat. Mr. Orr, at six foot four and weighing in at 272 pounds certainly looked capable of doing his share of that task.
“Appalachian State won the national championship last year after beating us pretty good, but we’ll be gunning for them this year.”
The Eagles play their first two games under new Coach VanGorder at home versus Central Connecticut State on September 9, and Coastal Carolina on September 16.
Theo Lemon, Head Football Coach, Savannah State University—Newly hired Coach Lemon has over 20 years of coaching experience on the collegiate level, most recently as head coach at Central State University in Ohio.
Coach Lemon acknowledged that his new job would be a challenge, but added that the opportunity to coach on the NCAA Division 1AA level was something he had been looking forward to his whole career.
When asked if he planned any immediate changes to the football program at SSU, Coach Lemon said, “Yes, one big thing we’re definitely going to establish immediately is a winning tradition. That’s the biggest thing we’re going to change.”
SSU plays football as an independent, with no affiliation with a conference. Coach Lemon said, “We would like to get into a conference and some things are happening right now where we may have an opportunity to join a conference, but we’ll just have to wait and see how things transpire.”
One player who could help start that winning tradition is returning sophomore quarterback Garrett Williams from Cedar Grove High School, who saw his first action against Elon University last year during the second game of the season. Mr. Williams went on to play in 10 games and pass for 2,203 yards and 15 touchdowns.
The Tigers play their first game on the road versus Benedict College in Columbia, S.C., on September 2, and then journey to Daytona Beach to play Bethune-Cookman.
Chris Hatcher, Head Football Coach, Valdosta State University—As usual, Coach Hatcher had a lot to say about his team. “I’m optimistic going into the season, however, that doesn’t mean we don’t have questions about the team.
In fact, I think we have more unknowns about our team right now than we have had for any of my previous six teams. I think this year’s team has something to prove. Last year was the first time we didn’t reach the 10-win plateau since I’ve been here. And we also fell short of winning our fifth conference championship. Add to that dropping the last two games of the season and we feel we are going to have to prove that we are still one of the top Division II teams.”
When asked about his strengths and weaknesses, Coach Hatcher said, “I would say right off the bat that we have a very solid core of linebackers. On the other hand we have some questions at the defensive tackle position, as well as the safety position. On offense, our receivers will be a strong point.
Our quarterback position will also be very strong, it’s just a matter of who is going to step up and claim the position. Clay Calloway came out of the spring as the leader, but Brett Wilkes, who started in the past for us, is returning from surgery. Also, Allan Tillman is very talented and could claim the spot.”
As far as who to be concerned about in the Southern Conference, Coach Hatcher said, “North Alabama and Delta State will be the front runners in the conference this year, but it’s difficult to say exactly where you stand at this time of the year.”
The Blazers begin their season with an away game versus Albany State on September 2.
Deondri Clark, Head Football Coach, Fort Valley State University—Coach Clark will begin his first year at FVSU, and comes from Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C., where he served as head coach for three years. He also held coaching positions at Benedict College, Michigan State, and Central Michigan.
The Wildcats compete in the NCAA Division II level as a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
According to Coach Clark competition for the quarterback position will be wide open. The two top competitors returning are reserve Zedrick West and Marcus Brooks, who was red shirted last season. Play at the running back position will fall on the shoulders of Brian Knighton. Wide receiver and tight end positions should be solid with the return of Marcus Bentley and Nathaniel Randall.
Offensive line play will be spearheaded by the return of tackle Joe Kegler. On defense, Jeff Nweke, a second team All-SIAC pick last year will be the leader. He finished last season with 28 tackles and tied for the lead in sacks.
Playing a tough schedule has always been a trademark of Wildcat Football, and that will not change. The Wildcats will open the season on the road with a conference game against Clark Atlanta University. The third game of the season they will face Division II powerhouse Valdosta State. Later in the year they will host Benedict College for homecoming and face long standing rival Albany State in the annual “Showdown Before Sundown” in Columbus. A game that could loom big will be the regular season finale against Kentucky State in Frankfort, Ky.
Mike White, Head Football Coach, Albany State University—The goals of the 2006 edition of the ASU Golden Rams remain the same, to win a fourth consecutive SIAC championship and bring the NCAA Division II championship title to Albany. With a great combination of returning players and newcomers, the Rams hope to accomplish both this season. Last year the team finished the regular season with an 8-1 record and made an impressive appearance in the 2005 NCAA Division championship.
Coach White said, “We have some new personnel on the field from a good recruiting class and we have good returning players.”
On offense, the Rams have the task of replacing All-SIAC quarterback Hosea Harris, who threw for 1,451 yards, completing 100 of 165 passes for 13 touchdowns.
Defensively, the team returns nine starters including All-SIAC and SIAC Defensive Player of the Year linebacker Alton Pettway and All-SIAC corner back Marcus Jefferson.
The Golden Rams open the season on August 26 at North Carolina Central in Durham, N.C., a team they defeated during the 1997 and 1998 seasons. Their home opener will be September 2, against Valdosta State.
Mike Ledford, Head Football Coach, University of West Georgia—The former Braves are now officially the Wolves, after the NCAA asked them, and other college teams, to remove and connotation relating to Native Americans.
According to Coach Ledford, this transition did impose a financial burden, however on the positive side, he said, “The process has been on going and is now finalized. We have a logo. We are now the Wolves and have managed to create some excitement about our new mascot.”
The newly anointed Wolves have competed in the NCAA Division II Gulf South Conference since 1983.
When asked about players to watch, Coach Ledford said, “We’ve got John Perkins, an inside linebacker from Rome High School. He’s a two-time second team all conference and we think right now he is our best football player. We also have Odell Willis, a returning all conference defensive end.”
Before beginning conference play, the Wolves take on Presbyterian on August 26, and then play Division 1AA Furman University in Greenville, S.C., on September 9.
Todd Mooney, Head Football Coach, LaGrange College—The Panthers will begin to prowl on September 2, when they play their first ever football game in Maryville, Tenn., against Maryville College. Their first home game is versus Rhodes College on September 9.
The Panthers begin play as a member of the NCAA Division III level. In this level all players are student-athletics and no athletic scholarships are awarded.
According to Coach Mooney they will begin play as an independent, but hope to start, or be affiliated with a conference in the near future. They also begin play with a roster of 100 to 110 players, of which 85 percent are from Georgia.
To sum up his expectations for the first year, Coach Mooney said, “We’re obviously going to be very talented, but the thing we have going against us this first year is that we’re going to be lining up freshmen and a few sophomores against juniors and seniors. But we’ll still be preparing to win a football game every week and carry those expectations forward as we continue to build our program.”
Phil Jones, Head Football Coach, Shorter College—On August 9, 2005, Coach Jones assembled the first ever edition of the Shorter Hawks football team.
Because of requirement set by their Conference, the Hawks were asked to play a full conference and varsity slate during their first year. Without benefit of even spring practice, Coach Jones gathered the inaugural team of 125 players, coaches and managers and began preparations for the school’s first football game ever just 29 practice days away.
Coach Jones said, “I’m not sure that any college team in America has ever been asked to play with just one month of practice. We had no year of club ball, no year of a JV team, just a full varsity schedule with a team comprised of freshmen.”
The Hawks surprised everyone by finishing the season with a record of 3-7 and two conference wins, and played all opponents deep into the fourth quarter in all but one game.
The new team competes in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) in the Mid-South Conference, and are allowed 25 scholarships, which can be split between players.
With all but one starter from its two-deep chart returning, the Hawks look forward to building on a successful 2006.
Bert Williams, Head Football Coach, Georgia Military College—GMC begins its sixteenth year of competition this fall in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), where it has established a tradition of excellence by winning the national championship of the NJCAA in 2001, and was the national runner up in 2002 and 2005.
In the last 15 years GMC has had 177 student-athletics earn a scholarship to play in NCAA Division 1 or Division 1AA schools, and another 106 in Division II, and six more to NAIA schools. Of these, 20 players have gone on to play in the NFL or Canada.
Coach Williams hopes to continue the school’s quest for another national championship this year. “We begin every year with the goal of winning a national championship. And coming off a year like we had last year, we feel like we’ve got enough people in place to make a run at it. We have a preseason ranking of number four and it’s always easier when you start out ranked high.
We have five guys who are preseason All American and several honorable mentions, so we feel like we are in a position to make a serious run for it.”
The season begins on September 2, when they travel to Ennis, Texas, and take on Navarro Junior College.