Wide receiver Devin Phelps (84) is on the receiving end of a passing-receiving drill as quarterback Devin Ray (15) and Mike Bimonte throw passes to him at a rapid-fire pace during the Aug. 20 practice held on Kessler Field in West Long Branch. Monmouth kicks the 2015 season off Sept. 5 against College of the Holy Cross at home. STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER ERIC SUCAR As Monmouth University’s football team embarks on its second season in the Big South Conference, the Hawks are more prepared for the challenges they face.
Kevin Callahan’s Hawks are coming off a 6-5 campaign in 2014 that included just a 1-4 record in the conference.
What Callahan and his coaches learned from that first season wasn’t that the Hawks lacked the talent to play with the likes of cochampions Coastal Carolina University and Liberty University, who both made the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs — what they lacked was the depth of those teams behind their starters.
“You’ve got to be tremendously deep,” Callahan said of playing in the Big South at a press conference on Media Day.
The coach pointed out that it showed when teams would substitute and there was no big drop off.
Along with being deep at every position to compete, teams have to be fast.
“You have to be very fast and have speed at every position,” Callahan said.
Callahan went about shoring up those holes on the recruiting trail, finding depth at positions it was needed and looking for speed everywhere.
If Callahan’s early evaluation of what he’s seen in training camp is any indication, the Hawks have taken care of their lack of depth
“There’s been some great competition on the field,” he said. “Probably as much competition for every spot on the field that we’ve had at Monmouth in a long, long time.”
Callahan added that competition is something a coach always likes to see.
So far, so good for the Hawks through early training camp as they point to their opener Sept. 5 at home on Kessler Field against College of the Holy Cross.
“This team has great personality,” said Callahan, who is in his 23rd year as the Hawks’ only head coach. “I like the way they come to work every day. I like the energy; it’s attitude, focus, attention to details they bring to the practice field. That has been consistent.”
Monmouth brought in Kevin Morris last year as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach, and he made an immediate impact with the spread formation. The team averaged 29.3 points per game.
With a full year under Morris, the offense is ahead of where it was at last year. Some of the great in-house competition Callahan was referring to is at quarterback, where there are six candidates for the starting spot, including redshirt freshman Cody Williams from Springfield, Massachusetts, and Rutgers University transfer Mike Bimonte.
“We have six guys coming to work every day, working hard,” Callahan said. “I’m very happy where it’s heading.” Callahan will name the starter soon. He pointed out that he doesn’t want a platoon situation there.
The Monmouth offense does have six starters back, including All-Conference running back Lavon Chaney (South River), who ran for 835 yards last year and scored eight touchdowns. He caught 49 passes for 359 yards and two touchdowns and picked up 292 more yards on kick returns. He had 1,486 all-purpose yards.
Monmouth graduated five of its top six receivers from 2014 with only tight end Hakeem Valles (Peddie School) returning. Callahan likes what he’s seen from the candidates this summer, including Darren Ambush (Dickenson, Maryland), Matt Choi (Gaithersburg, Maryland), Pat Gray (Westfield) and Reggie White Jr. (Millford Military Academy).
Good new for the offense is the return of four starters on the line: center Alex Thompson (Haddon Heights), guard Hunter McHugh (Claymont, Delaware) and tackles Keith Kluetz (Mount Airy, Maryland) and Sam Bell (Bridgeton/ASA College) are the veteran returnees. The line has size ranging from 6 feet 3 inches tall to 6 feet 7 inches tall.
Monmouth’s defense has nine returnees, led by All-Conference linebacker John Sieczkowski (Manalapan), who led the team in tackles, lineman Darnell Leslie (Gaithersburg) and back Mike Basile (Brick Memorial).
Sieczkowski, a two-way standout at Manalapan High School, said that with more players staying at the college over the summer and working out, the team is more together than ever.
The linebacker believes the defense will be much stronger this year because of all the returning experience. He noted that all three of the Hawks’ linebackers are back, including himself, Tyler Thompson (Union Bridge, Maryland) and Payton Minnich (Harrisburg, Pennsylvania).
Sieczkowski put more time than ever into offseason training to prepare for what he and the Hawks will see this fall.
“I’m putting up weight room numbers I’ve never seen before,” he said.
The front four has Dimitrius Smith (Jackson Memorial) back alongside Leslie.
With Monmouth’s back seven all returning, Smith said that it was good for the defensive linemen. It will give them more time to get to the quarterback because of the pass coverage of the linebackers and secondary.
Along with Basile, the Hawks’ secondary has Joe Johnson (Manchester Township), Marcus Leslie (Miami, Florida) and Kevin Butler (Piscataway). The group intercepted 14 passes last year, with Basile and Johnson each picking off four.
The Monmouth roster includes a number of locla players. They are defensive back Matt Castronuova (Jackson Memorial), defensive back Christian Wagar (Red Bank Catholic), offensive lineman Peter Righi (Rumson-Fair Haven), offensive lineman Russ Clayton (Monroe), defensive lineman Jack Eisenstadt (Rumson-Fair Haven), offensive lineman Ryan Wetzel (Colts Neck), defensive lineman Rob Usa (Middletown South), defensive lineman Kevin Locke (Allentown), defensive lineman Manny Maragoto (Freehold Township), receiver Mike Strange (South River) and Daivone Thomas (Allentown).
Monmouth’s 2015 schedule is challenging. Callahan pointed out that the Hawks are playing three FCS playoff teams, including Patriot League champion Fordham University, four teams that start the season nationally ranked plus their first Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponent in Central Michigan University, which Monmouth plays on the road on Sept. 12.
“I think looking back to 1993, probably this is one of the most difficult schedules we’ve ever put before our players, and we’re excited about that,” Callahan said.
The excitement begins in West Long Branch at 1 p.m. on Sept. 5.