Eastern Michigan Athletics
Football Runs Through Spring Drills
3/23/2006 4:45:57 PM | Football
2006 Eagles Excited About the Spring
YPSILANTI—You might have to forgive Eastern Michigan University Head Football Coach Jeff Genyk for talking about what could have been, but the third-year coach has to put history behind him when the Eagles begin to prepare for the 2006 season.
Genyk saw his 2005 Eagles finish with a 4-7 overall record and a 3-4 Mid-American Conference mark.
However, that final mark could just as easily have been 6-5 or even 7-4, as the Eagles dropped two one-point games, lost another by two points, and dropped a third by seven.
What that second season proved to Genyk was that the finish is the most memorable part of a football game and that concept will be drilled into his Eagles as they work through 2006 spring drills.
The third-year head coach has developed a plan to accomplish that goal and it starts with an already potent offense combining with an improving defense to produce positive results.
"We need to continue to grow as a team and work on finishing," Genyk said. "We absolutely have got to continue to improve in finishing plays, finishing halves, and finishing games.
"We want to make sure that we stay in an attack mode and not ease up until the final gun sounds," Genyk added.
Genyk and his coaching staff return 31 lettermen from last year’s team, including six defensive starters and six on offense.
Leading the charge on offense is all-everything kicker Andrew Wellock (5-11, 182, Sr.-Sr.) who has been one of the top placekickers in the NCAA Division I ranks for the past three seasons.
Wellock, a runner-up for the 2004 Lou Groza Award as the top kicker in the nation, enters his senior season chasing that elusive trophy. He already holds the EMU career record with 52 field goals and tied the school record for career long with a 52-yard field goal in the 2005 season finale at Buffalo.
Another player on the national watch list is senior wide receiver Eric Deslauriers (6-4 1/2, 205, Sr.-Sr.) who enters his final year as a top five active receiver in four categories. The Gatineau, Quebec, Canada product is the second ranked active receiver in career receptions (174), is fourth in receiving touchdowns (22), is ranked fifth in career receiving yards (2,352), and is tied for eighth with catches in 23 straight games. He was named to the 2005 preseason Fred Biletnikoff Watch list for the nation’s top receiver.
The offensive trenches remain full with four of the front five back in action in 2006.
Tackles Courtney Ford (6-5, 302, Sr.-Sr.) and Kevin Minor (6-2, 289, Sr.-Sr.) join guards Khalid Walton (6-3 1/2, 320), Sr.-Jr.) and Chris Thomas (6-4, 315, Sr.-Jr.) started virtually every game last year and all four bring size and experience into the spring.
The lone hole to fill on the front line will be Mike Romeli’s center position. He was a mainstay of the EMU offense for four years, starting 37 consecutive games before graduating last year.
The receiving corps has plenty of firepower returning led by Deslauriers. Wide receiver Travis Lewis (6-2, 197, Sr.-Jr.) returns as a starting wideout after posting 33 catches for 331 yards and one touchdown last year. Lewis spent the second half of the 2005-06 basketball season playing for the Eagles roundball squad and averaged 1.9 points and 2.5 rebounds as a reserve guard.
Trumaine Riley (5-7 1/2, 164, Sr.-Sr.) returns as one of the top return men in the MAC. The speedy Riley finished sixth in the league in kickoff returns with a 22.4 average and also return 12 punts for 73 yards. In addition, he caught 21 passes for 200 yards as a wide receiver.
The tight end position should be controlled by returning veterans Ken Bohnet (6-4 1/2, 245, Sr.-Jr.) and R.J. Montemayor (6-4 1/2, 230, Sr.-Sr.).
Bohnet began his EMU career as the starting quarterback during his freshman season, redshirted as a sophomore, and reemerged last year as a tight end. He was hampered by a broken hand through most of last season but still managed to grab 11 catches for 64 yards while playing six games.
Montemayor, a junior college transfer, played in 10 games last year and had one touchdown grab.
Two of the key offensive areas for Genyk to find consistency in are quarterback and tailback.
Quarterback Matt Bohnet graduated in 2005 after giving the Eagles solid leadership for two straight seasons. He started all 10 games in which he played last year and was ranked 36th in the nation in total offense (243.10) while completing 220-of-351 passes for 2,181 yards and 14 touchdowns.
The heir apparent at signal caller is Tyler Jones (6-0 1/2, 218, Jr.-So.) who backed up Bohnet during 2005. While seeing limited action, Jones completed 41-of-65 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns.
Pressing Jones for playing time at quarterback during the spring will be a host of redshirted freshman, led by Andy Schmitt (6-3 1/2, 221, So.-Fr.) and Dontayo Gage (5-9, 183, So.-Fr.). Veteran Korey Cranor (6-0, 190, Sr.-Jr.) returns to provide added depth at quarterback.
The tailback position in 2005 was definitely an "assignment by committee" with several players all getting shots at extended playing time.
Two true freshmen tailbacks, Dwayne Harrison (5-7 1/2, 206, So.-So.) and Tim Conner (5-8 1/2, 191, So.-So.), saw a lot of playing time in 2005 with Harrison gaining 236 yards on 58 rushes and Conner adding 137 yards on 45 rushes.
Junior tailback Pierre Walker (5-7, 206, Sr.-Jr.) was injured in the opener and awarded a medical hardship season and will return to the tailback parade along with newcomer Corey Everson (5-11, 195, So.-Fr.), and redshirt freshman Olufemi Ogundari (5-7, 194, So.-Fr.).
The defensive side of the ball could be one of the strongest on the horizon with seven returning starters holding down the fort.
The defensive line returns three players who proved to be standouts at their positions: end Kevin Howe (6-2 1/2, 240, Sr.-Sr.) along with defensive tackles Jason Jones (6-5, 252, Jr.-Jr.) and Josh Hunt (6-4 1/2, 264, Jr.-Jr.).
Howe earned second-team All-MAC honors in 2005 after finishing second in the league in sacks (10.5-for-69 yards) while adding 16 tackles-for-loss of 85 yards.
Jones, who was a third-team All-State basketball player as a prep at Southfield Lathrup, was a tough man to block last year and completed a solid season with 47 tackles and 6.5 sacks-for-45 yards.
Hunt, a transfer from the University of Colorado, made his first year in an EMU uniform a memorable one, starting in 10 of 11 games and recording 37 tackles.
The entire linebacking crew returns, including freshman All-American Daniel Holtzclaw (6-1, 222, So.-So.), junior-college transfer Michael Richardson (6-0, 214, Sr.-Sr.), and sophomore Darran Matthews (5-11 1/2, 211, Jr.-Jr.).
Holtzclaw turned in one of the top freshman years in school history, finishing ninth in the nation in interceptions with five and also recording 91 tackles, third best on the team. He was a first-team freshman All-American selection by The Football Writers Association and Scripps, and a third-team pick by CollegeFootballNews.com and The Football News.
The defensive secondary will need the most work this spring as three of four starters are lost through graduation.
Gone are safeties Rontrell Woodruff and Corey Parker along with corner Steven Lewis. Woodruff was a second-team All-MAC selection last year and accounted for 110 tackles while Parker had 83 stops and Lewis turned in four pass deflections.
The lone returnee in the secondary is corner Duan Bracey (5-9, 189, Jr.-Jr.) who started the first 10 games last year before missing the final contest with an injury. Bracey still managed 51 tackles in 2005 and can play any of the four secondary spots as well as fill in as a kick return man.
Other candidates for playing time in the secondary include Lyle Garrison (5-6, 160, So.-So.), Blake Smith (6-0 1/2, 178, Jr.-Jr.), Jacob Wyatt (5-11, 190, So.-So.), Corey Reid (5-9 1/2, 189, Jr.-So.), Chris Campa (6-1, 188, So.-Fr.), and Chris May (5-9 1/2, 191, So.-Fr.).
"We have consistent team goals and they are the same for every season," Genyk explained. "We want to be Michigan MAC champions, have a winning season, and win the West Division championship. The goals we set are program goals and we feel that we can reach all of them."
The Eagles are still waiting on a full league schedule from the MAC office. EMU will play all five West Division foes, Ball State, Central Michigan, Northern Illinois, Toledo and Western Michigan along with cross-divisional rivals Bowling Green, Ohio, and Kent State.
The Eagles has non-conference dates with Michigan State, Louisiana-Lafayette, Northwestern and Navy.
A complete schedule is expected to be released in the next several weeks.
EMU 2006 Spring Practice Dates
Tues., March 21 Practice 2 p.m.
Thurs., March 23 Practice 2 p.m.
Fri., March 24 Practice 2 p.m.
Sat., March 25 Scrimmage 9 a.m.
Tues., March 28 Practice 2 p.m.
Thurs., March 30 Practice 2 p.m.
Sat., April 1 Scrim./Clinic 9 a.m.
Tues., April 4 Practice 2 p.m.
Thurs., April 6 Practice 2 p.m.
Fri., April 7 Practice 2 p.m.
Sat., April 8 Scrimmage 9 a.m.
Tues., April 11 Practice 2 p.m.
Thurs., April 13 Practice 2 p.m.
Sat., April 15 SPRING GAME 1 p.m.
