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May 9, 2008
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Allegheny Football Looks for Improvement in 2006 Jul 14, 2006 Last season the Allegheny College Gators out-scored and out-gained their opponents en route to a 3-7 record. Back-to-back overtime losses sent the team to 0-2 and four more of the losses had the Gators in a position to win late in the contest. This year looks to be different, as 47 letterwinners and 12 starters return to help pull the Gators back into the top half of the league standings for 2006. “After reflecting, and coming off a good season of spring football, I think our big task this season is to learn how to play winning football consistently,” said head football coach Mark Matlak. “I think if we learn how to not beat ourselves we will be going in the right direction.” Offense Five starters, including three on the offensive line, return for a team that averaged 165.7 yards on the ground and 193.2 yards through the air. Gone, however, are a pair of all-NCAC offensive linemen, both of the team’s tight ends, and the team’s two starting wide receivers, including honorable mention All-NCAC selection Kyle Geiser. Quarterback Returning at the signal caller position for the Blue and Gold is senior Jimmy Savage (North Canton, Ohio/Hoover). A season ago he was 149-for-249 passing for 1,507 yards and nine touchdowns while splitting time with now wide receiver James Jones. For his career, Savage, who started every game of his sophomore and junior year, has totaled 2,709 yards, a mere 1,404 yards shy of fifth on the school’s all-time list. Fighting for the backup quarterback position is sophomore Pat Kahle (Franklin, Pa./Franklin), transfers Bobby Ovesny (Girard, Ohio/Girard) and Bobby Herron (Wheeling, W.Va./Wheeling Central Catholic), and incoming freshman Jordan Cleary (North Versailles, Pa./Serra Catholic). “I think right now, having the benefit of spring practice, Jimmy is pretty entrenched in our quarterback position,” said head coach Mark Matlak. “I feel good about Jim. He is a guy that you can play winning football consistently with – he’s not someone who is going to beat himself.” Running Backs The Gators return their top four tailbacks from last season, including 2005 second team All-NCAC performer senior Mario Tarquinio (Charleroi, Pa./Charleroi) who rushed for 843 yards and nine touchdowns in eight games a year ago. Tarquinio, who averaged 105.4 yards per game as a junior, missed the second and third game of the season with an injury, one that potentially kept him from his second consecutive 1,000-yard rushing season after grounding out 1,145 yards as a sophomore. Also back for the Blue and Gold are seniors Sean Locklin (Export, Pa./Franklin Regional) and Patsy Malie (Youngstown, Ohio/Cardinal Mooney), who rushed for 150 and 129 yards, respectively, last season, including a 101-yard game for the latter against Westminster. “I’m excited about Mario coming back,” said the head coach. “Mario is a hard-nosed football player. He is more of a power back. I think he is a lot like a Jerome Bettis or Deuce Staley-type of running back. They are going to churn it – not break any big runs, but get the team consistent yards. I think you need to have at least one back like that. Our trick is to find somebody with some shiftiness – a Willie Parker-type – to step up. If we can find one of those guys we will have a really good compliment. Patsy has certainly been productive when he has been put in there. He is shifty, has quick feet, and gives you a different flavor than Mario. He certainly is in the mix to be a good change-up guy. Sean Locklin will see some time at fullback.” Wide Receivers The 2005 squad graduated both of its starting wide receivers, but return both of the backups. Junior Jim Lieb (Carrolltown, Pa./Northern Cambria) finished the season with 35 catches for 423 yards, both second best on the team, while hauling in a pair of scores. Logan Kaleta (Kirtland, Ohio/Kirtland), a sophomore, was fourth on the team with 19 receptions, gaining 159 yards and a team-high three touchdowns. Senior Dallas Robinson (Wooster, Ohio/Northwestern) played in five games last season, catching seven passes for 112 yards and a score. Shane Sullivan, a junior, also saw action in five games a season ago, hauling in five passes for 33 yards.. “I am really excited about watching our receivers this spring,” commented Matlak. “We have a really good group back. We just have to catch the ball more consistently. Last year we had way too many drops. Out of our returning crew, we need to find guys who can catch it.” Senior James Jones (Ellington, N.Y./Falconer Central) is switching to wide receiver for the 2006 season after playing quarterback the last two years, throwing for a combined 430 yards on 66 attempts as a sophomore and junior. “James’ transition has been outstanding” said Matlak. “He is one of our real bright spots. We want to get his hands on the ball as much as we can this next year.” Tight Ends Justin McNeill (Bridgeville, Pa./Chartiers Valley) returns for his senior year after playing in seven games at tight end last season, catching one pass for four yards. Juniors Devin Fackenthal (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) and Greg Start (Pittsford, Pa./Pittsford Mendon) and sophomore Bob Somplatsky (Burgettstown, Pa./Avella) also adds depth to the position. “The tight end position will be a good battle,” said Matlak. “We have a group of guys who we don’t know much about. Marko Fonzi and Jason Plowman got a lot of the playing time last year, and they both graduated. Tight end is probably the question mark on our football team. Between Justin McNeill, Devin Fackenthal, Greg Start and Bobby Somplansky, who we moved from quarterback to tight end, we will have a good crew.” Offensive Line Three starters return on the offensive line, along with four other backups, to give the Gators one of the most experienced lines in the conference heading into 2006. Senior J.J. Voithofer (Morgantown, W.Va./Morgantown) returns as the team’s starting center, while Andy Fleming (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional), a junior, and Justin Victor (Pittsburgh, Pa./Perry Traditional Academy), a senior, return at guard and tackle, respectively. Backups in 2005 that are looking to make a mark on the team include tackles Dan Cephas (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side Academy) and Rob Flick (Butler, Pa./Moniteau), both juniors, center Michael Van Heyst (Penfield, N.Y./McQuaid Jesuit), a sophomore, and guard Matt Hogya (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair), also a junior. “I am extremely excited about the first three strings of our line,” said Matlak. “I think that depth is one of the line’s strong suits. The offensive line is the foundation of a football team and I think we have a solid core of guys.” Defense Defensively, the team returns four starters and a bevy of backups to a defense that is switching from the 4-3 system to the 3-4 for this coming season. “I think the 3-4 best fits the team and the type of guys that we have,” said the head coach. “We return two solid defensive linemen and three strong linebackers, which should help make the transition as seamless as possible.” Defensive Line Tom Glamuzina (Williamsville, N.Y./St. Joseph’s) and Greg Sye (Titusville, Pa./Titusville) are returning seniors on the defensive line. Last season, Glamuzina ended the year with 45 stops, including 5.5 tackles for loss and three sacks, while Sye had 32 tackles, five tackles for loss, and two quarterback sacks. Andy Mihalcin (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk), a sophomore, will also see a significant amount of time at the defensive line position. “We have changed some things on defense,” said Matlak. “We will have a different look. Coming off of this spring, what we ended up doing was putting Greg Sye and Tom Glamuzina and Andrew Mihalcin as the three defensive line guys, and that worked out well for us.” Linebackers Linebacker is a position that saw a lot of loss to graduation last year, as three of the team’s top six tacklers (Adam Duncan, Eric Rupp, and Elliott George) graduated. Back however, are two players that saw significant action, senior Devin Cruea (Geneva, Ohio/Geneva) and junior Mateo Villa (Windsor, Ohio/Middlefield Cardinal). Last season, Cruea was in the rotation at defensive end, recording 34 tackles and 3.5 sacks, while Villa was eighth on the team with 42 tackles from his middle linebacker position. Juniors Ross Simcoe (Coudersport, Pa./Coudersport) and Michael Cox (Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg) saw action in six and five games, respectively, last season, with the pair combining for 15 stops. Jake Gaul (Beaver Falls, Pa./Beaver Falls) and Brandon Momeyer (McKeesport, Pa./Elizabeth Forward) look to be in the mix for playing time after seeing action last season. “We don’t have a lot of experience at linebacker,” said Matlak. “With Michael Cox as one of our outside backers and Mateo Villa and Ross Simcoe, I feel really good about the first group of guys. Our trick is to establish a little bit of depth. We are up in the air with the backups. Mateo is the only one who has a lot of experience. Devin Cruea and Craig Lawrence (Fairview, Pa./Fairview) will be our rush linebackers, and we look for big things from them. Secondary The Gators return two of their starters in the secondary, while also returning a number of others Also looking to receive increasing playing time is John Buggey (Homer City, Pa./Homer Center) and Michael Folk (Mentor, Ohio/Notre Dame Cathedral). Buggey played in nine games last season recording 10 tackles, while Folk picked up a dozen stops in nine games. J.J. Davis (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park),Andy Toner (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) and Steve Uziel (Glassport, Pa./South Allegheny) all saw action last season and look to contribute in 2006. “Nick Jones is a solid player, and Curt is a really bright guy,” commented Matlak. “We finally have put Curt at safety, after bouncing him around between corner and safety last season. Between him and Mike Folk at safety, I think they have a good understanding of what we are doing. We will be in a lot better shape with those two guys. Overall we had a much improved spring in the secondary. John Buggey and Michael Folk really did a good job this spring. I look for us to make some big improvements back there.” Special Teams Three of the four starters return at the special team positions, led by junior punter Jason Black (Warren, Ohio/Champion), who came within six yards of breaking the single season punt average record. Black averaged 40.2 yards on his 42 punts, including stopping 10 inside of the opponent’s 20-yard line. The second team All-NCAC performer had the second highest punting average in the NCAC and 15th highest in Division III in 2005. Both of the team’s kickers, juniors Josh Whiteside (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair) and Byran Davis (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin), also return. Whiteside connected on 5-of-8 field goals and 16-of-17 extra points while Davis hit one of his five field goal attempts and 13-of-15 point after attempts. Leading the punt returners is Nick Jones, one of the team’s starting cornerbacks, who averaged 14.3 yards per punt return last season, ranking him 16th in Division III. Jim Lieb, a wide receiver, is the only returning player with kickoff return experience, returning three last season for an average of 28.3 yards per return. “I think on the punt return front we caught the ball better,” said Matlak. “We have to make something happen after we catch it, but the most important thing is that we catch it, and we are doing that. Our kickers are back, but our kicking has been really inconsistent except for Jason Black. We are glad to have him for two more years. With an extra year of experience, our kickers, Bryan Davis and Josh Whiteside will get a little better at kicking field goals and extra points.” Schedule The Gators begin their 2006 schedule with back-to-back road games, before christening their newly renovated stadium, Frank B. Fuhrer Field, which include a new FieldTurf field, state-of-the-art scoreboard, a new track, and lights. In the season opener, the team travels south to New Wilmington, Pa., where they will face off against rival Westminster College in a series that has seen the most recent three games go to overtime. A week later the team again travels down I-79 to face off against perennial powerhouse Washington & Jefferson College. The team then hosts Hiram College at Frank B. Fuhrer Field, before jumping into conference play with games on the road against Denison and Wabash. October 14 brings Allegheny back home to face off against 2005 surprise team Kenyon. A road trip to Wooster preceeds Allegheny’s homecoming game against Ohio Wesleyan in the first night game in Allegheny football history. A trip to Wittenberg and a home game against Oberlin put an end to the 2006 regular season. “Our schedule over the past four years has been one of the toughest in Division III,” commented Matlak. “You have Westminster, a local rival where the last three games have went to overtime, and W&J who is a top 25 team. We have Hiram for our first home game, and they are improving. Right off the bat we have a strong schedule, and then we jump right into the good teams in the league. We have a big task ahead of us.”
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