Leopard report from league media teleconference

Well, the 2018 college football season kicked off officially today with a teleconference featuring the seven coaches of the Patriot League.

The league used to have a nice luncheon and interview time, followed by a round of golf for the media who chose to play, at the Green Pond Country but apparently because the schedule has a different look this year, the league decided on the teleconference.

I liked being able to talk to the coaches and face-to-face and to pick up lots of good media-guide type information to get me through the year. I think the league got a pretty good bang for its buck, too, with newspaper writers and bloggers coming in and television and radio people also showing up. It was a great convenience for all.

But, there I sat, in front of my computer and with telephone and recorder at the ready anyway. Ryan Sakamoto from the league office did a great job of coordinating the thing, but it did lack the personal touch of other years.

A bunch of coaches and players who had to drive long distances to the Lehigh Valley to attend in other years probably didn’t mind the switch. They could do it from their offices and didn’t have to put up with us.  

So, what does this mean?  Bottom line?  Well, it means I will have some involvment in the coverage of Lafayette football again. I won’t be traveling and I will probably cut back on my Tuesday lunches. Newspaper deadlines get worse all the time, and they’re not fun for this old-timer.

Today marked the first time I spoke to Lafayette coach John Garrett since the closing day of spring camp. I tried to keep up on things by following the Lafayette Sports Fan Forum guys, but even they were pretty quiet most of the summer. This might stir the pot a bit.

The best thing I got out of the day was a preseason projected depth chart. I asked Coach Garrett about it on the call and he said, “Those depth charts have been out there for a while so if you need a copy we can certainly get you one. But I can answer any questions you like about any of the positions now.”  That was an open door I was not accustomed to, but without the chart in front of me, it would have been hard for me to question. But as I type this, I have to admit that I blew it. I have complained about Garrett’s willingness to talk  personnel; now, he gives me a chance and I screw it up.

Well, Phil LaBella, who has always been Johnny-on-the-spot for me, was listening to the call, too, and he sent me the chart.

Here’s the way the staff sees the offense going into camp: QB – Sean O’Malley; RB – C.J. Amill; FB – Will Eisler; WR – Nick Pearson, Joey Chenoweth; TE – Jake Taggert; OL – Jake Marotti, Logan Grieser, Kevin Zataveski, John Burk and Gavin Barclay. Second offense: QB – Cole Northrup, Reed Aichholz; RB – Selwyn Simpson; FB – Ryan Monteyne; WR – Quinn Revere, Julian Spigner, Jake Liedtka, Chris Granjean; TE – Angus Evans; OL – Casey McCollum (Fr), Joe Grundhoffer (Fr), Taron Hampton, Austin Pyne, Colin Bradley, Josh Roberts (Fr).

Here’s the defense: DE – Keith Earle and Andrew Chuma; Nose – Lavel Ramsey; DT – Tony Giudice (see below); LBs – Jerry Powe, Michael Root, Major Jordan; DB – Tre Jordan, Yasir Thomas, Trent Crossan, Eric Mitchell. Second defense: DE – Harrison Greenhill, Ryan Barnett; Nose: Ian Grayson (Fr); DT – Demetrius Breedlove; LBs -- Troy Dixon, Ryan Dickens, Jack Lamb; DB – Kevin Hutchinson, Colin Thorne; Izaiah Avent; Otis Thrasher.

Here are special teams: PK-P-KO – Jacob Bissell; KR – Amill; PR – Chenoweth; LS – Ryan Dickens. Second special teams: PK-P-KO – Jeffrey Kordenbrock; KR – Chenoweth; PR – Amill; LS – Stewart Hackleman.

I’m not sure why Giudice is listed at all, unless it’s to keep him interested for the first few months. It was confirmed to me that he may practice, but not play until his suspension has been fulfilled, which will be in the final month of the season.  

One thing I think will bear watching this season is how strength-and-conditioning guru Brad Potts helped a number of players re-sculpt their bodies. Consider this: Grieser was listed at 310 last year and is 275 this year; Zataveski was 300 in 2016 and is 280 now; Earle was 225 as a frosh and is 250 now; Ramsey was 235 and is now 270; Breedlove was 275 and is now 260. I’m sure there have been other changes, but these really stuck out. What might this mean to the way they play the game this year? Time will tell.

The Leopards will report for camp on Aug. 2, with the first practice the next day. The team’s Media Day is Aug. 14, the Football Forum is Aug. 18 and classes for the student-athletes begin on Aug. 27.  Garrett will have 86 players in uniform on the first day of camp. I questioned coaches about the roster number. Holy Cross is the only team at 90 with its first-year coach. The Crusaders have 31 freshmen. The blowest number is Lehigh’s 80, which includes walk-ons. Coach Andy Coen said he finished spring camp with only 43.

“It’s hard to earn the ‘L’ on your helmet,” Garrett said about the roster number. “It’s something that’s a privilege, not a right; you have to earn that. These 86 guys are the guys we want to start the season with.”

In talking about the maturation of quarterback O’Malley, Garrett said, “He has continued to work and improve. He has great respect from his teammates, He’s bigger, stronger and faster than he was in the fall. He improved physically. Has total grasp of the offense, has continued to improve at a high rate over the spring. He’s gonna be hard to beat out, but we have competition at the position. We have guys on the roster from last year and a couple quarterbacks coming in as freshmen. What we do is go by what we see. Watch them play and determine who is the best.” The name Troy Fisher was never mentioned, but the Pittsburgh Central Catholic phenom figures to be very strong candidate.  Let the games begin.