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August 28, 2002
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>>>Full Game Release (PDF) >>>2002 LHU Roster >>>Northeastern University Athletics Website
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THE GAME The Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania Bald Eagle football team sets the 2002 season in motion with a trip to New England to play Division I-AA Northeastern University on Saturday, August 31. Kickoff is slated for 12:30 p.m. at NU’s Parsons Field in Boston, MA. The game can be heard locally on WBPZ-1230 AM and online at http://www.gonu.com/football/. THE SERIES The Bald Eagles and the Huskies meet on the gridiron for the third time in both squads’ histories. Northeastern won both previous contests played at Parsons Field, winning 52-6 in 1990 and 34-0 in 1991. THE LAST TIME VERSUS VERSUS NORTHEASTERN In 1991, a young Lock Haven team entered the half down only 15-0 to Northeastern, but the Huskies bettered their first half output by one in the third quarter with a 16-point explosion to take over for good. An NU field goal in the fourth period finalized the score at 34-0 in favor of the Huskies. Northeastern’s Kevin Williams rushed for two scores and quarterback Ralph Barrone threw two touchdowns to aid in the win. For Lock Haven, freshman Heath Stover led Bald Eagle rushers with 28 yards on 14 carries. Red-shirt freshman quarterback Carmen Felus stood in for senior Jimmy Broadway and threw for 108 yards on 14 completions while rookie Eric Muldowney reeled in seven catches for 48 yards. Defensively, LHU freshman defensive back Julius Scott led the way with nine stops, one interception, and five pass break-ups. SCOUTING NORTHEASTERN The 2002 Northeastern Huskies enter with a returning class of 14 starters, including 9 on defense, and a collage of incoming talent from both transfer situations and collegiate newcomers. Picked 10th in the 11-team field of the Atlantic 10, Northeastern will look to continue the run it assembled in the latter half of 2001 when the squad won four of its last six games. An aggressive defense has been the one mainstay of recent Northeastern teams, and this season is predicted to be another chapter in the same book with nine returning starters on the defensive unit. A strong linebacker group will be led by senior Adam Walter (87 TT, 12 TFL, 4.5 sacks) and sophomore Liam Ezekiel (82 TT, 9 TFL, 3 sacks, 5 PBU), both pre-season All-Atlantic 10 picks. Senior Joe Gazzola joins Walter and Ezekiel as the projected starter at the remaining outside linebacker slot. Up front defensively, NU will have four options with significant experience in junior Scott Quimby (16 TT, 3.5 sacks) at right end, pre-season All-Atlantic 10 pick and left end Steve Anzalone (54 TT/39 solo, 19 TFL, 8.0 sacks), junior David Williams (25 TT, 3 TFL, 1.5 sacks) at left tackle, and sophomore James Abosi (11 TT) at right tackle. Anzalone earned Second Team All-Atlantic 10 honors last season, leading NU with 19 tackles for loss and eight sacks. The NU secondary is experienced, and will be highlighted by the play of senior cornerback Art Smith. A Second Team All-Atlantic 10 and a pre-season all-conference selection, Smith picked off a conference-high seven passes last season, including one for a touchdown, and had eight pass break-ups and returned three fumbles. Junior Charles Cameron (35 TT, 10 PBU) is a probable choice for the other cornerback position. Joining Smith and Cameron in the secondary will be senior strong safety Kurt Abrams (62 TT, 3 TFL, 5 PBU) and junior free safety Anthony Nolen (55 TT, 3 PBU, 1 INT). The Huskies expect to put points on the board due to strong support from its offensive line which includes three returning starters. A pair of pre-season All-Atlantic 10 linemen return in senior center John McDonald and senior guard Tom Olivo. Another guard, sophomore Adam Bourget, also returns to assume his spot on the line. Expected to push for the remaining starting roles at tackle are junior Tim Dwyer and red-shirt freshman Mike Roseborough. |
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Experience at quarterback will help the NU scoring chances as sophomore Shawn Brady returns after starting the final six games of the 2001 season. Brady threw for a total of 675 yards on 43 completions with four touchdowns and two interceptions. Brady is also NU’s returning rushing leader after putting up 179 yards and three touchdowns on foot. A pair of red-shirt freshmen are initially expected to handle the bulk of the ground duties, including tailback Anthony Riley and fullback Keith Kent. After losing the bulk of its receivers unit, NU quarterbacks will look to junior wide receivers Quintin Mitchell and freshman Cory Parks to pick up the slack. Tight end Kevin Lawlor will also fit into the offense after seeing spot duty last season. The Huskies special teams returns punter Tyler Grogan, who averaged 37.6 yards per punt and kicked an NCAA record 93-yarder last season. Quintin Mitchell and Art Smith are probables to handle punt retuns while Mitchell pairs up with red-shirt freshman Bismark Osei on kick returns. BALD EAGLE NOTES... THE OFFENSE The 2002 offense will break out with a similar look to last year’s, but expectations to put more points on the board are stronger than ever and hold the key to becoming more competitive and winning more games. In 2001, the Bald Eagle offense generated just 140 points (12.7/game) and was ranked last among all PSAC squads. This year Lock Haven boasts a much deeper roster of skill players and has more strength and size up front with which to work. Leading the way will be two-time all-conference wide receiver Marcus Burkley (Pittsburgh/Woodland Hills). Burkley, along with senior and returning second team all-conference receiver John Caldwell (Va. Beach, Va./Fork Union Military Academy), accounted for seven of eight touchdown receptions last season and will both be expected to carry the load again this weekend. Other familiar faces working in the LHU receiving game are senior Scott Anderson (Cortland, Ohio/Lakeview), who was a significant player in the offense in 2000 but sat out last season due to injury, and junior Adam Angelici (Bethel Park/Bethel Park). Sophomore Bill Witmer (Bellefonte/Bellefonte) hopes to answer any of the questions about the quarterback situation with a solid outing this Saturday. Witmer held his own as a freshman last season, throwing for 799 yards and four touchdowns in 10 games played. He is slated as the probable starter, with Fairmont State transfer Tim Storino (Pittsburgh/Bethel Park), a junior, serving as his back-up. The sophomore tailback tandem of Maurice Walker (North Braddock/Woodland Hills) and Melvin Kirby (Pittsburgh/Penn Hills) will again be set into motion this season. With the assistance of an improved offensive line, Walker, the 2001 PSAC West Rookie of the Year, and Kirby have vowed to better last year’s production (103.9ypg) which was lowest among conference teams. Still, both gained valuable playing experience as freshmen last season as they accounted for nearly all the yardage and points in LHU’s ground game. With the predicted offensive advantage lying in the depth of the skill positions, this year’s offensive line is still going to have to work harder in order to get the Bald Eagles where they want to be in terms of pushing the ball up the field and gaining scoring opportunities. Two starters return to provide the leadership in center Jason Popp (Hummelstown/Lower Dauphin), and at left guard, Bill Cook (York/Central York). On the right side, sophomores Kris and Vinnie Kisbaugh (Berwick/Berwick) will handle duties, while left tackle will be manned by senior Josh Clair (Manheim/Manheim Central), who assumed the starting role just this week after predicted starter Keith Boyer (Elizabethtown/Elizabethtown Area) sustained a knee injury in the final pre-season scrimmage. THE DEFENSE The Bald Eagles have considerable experience among the linebacker and secondary lineups, but Saturday’s game will be the test they need in order to see how the new personnel up front gels with the rest of the defense. At linebacker, the leading tacklers from the past two seasons return in juniors Derrik Metz (Roaring Spring/Central) and Dan Wissinger (Johnstown/Ferndale Area). Metz led the 2001 Bald Eagles with 91 stops, while Wissinger sat out 2001 due to injury after leading the 2000 squad with 76 tackles. Earning the nod at the remaining outside linebacker slot is sophomore Jon Nalewak (Shamokin/Shamokin Area). All-conference junior Rob Carey (North Braddock/Woodland Hills) is joined by red-shirt frosh Ngoyi Mukusa (Jim Thorpe/Jim Thorpe) at cornerback. Carey posted team-highs of five interceptions and seven pass break-ups last season, and was third on the squad with 89 total tackles. Senior and returning starter Jim Hanzely (DuBois/DuBois Area) will retain his role at strong safety, while LHU will utilize sophomore Kellen Bush (Pittsburgh/Penn Hills) at free safety. Lock Haven will replace last year’s defensive line, whose four members all graduated, with a starting staff made up of two juniors and two sophomores. There is little need for worry about any drop-off of talent, as junior tackle Warren Whitaker (Wilkes-Barre/GAR Memorial) and junior end Nathan Eck (Jersey Shore/Jersey Shore) have both been mainstays on the line after serving as key backups and spot starters the past two seasons. Sophomores Jason Kasheta (Carbondale/Carbondale Area) and Dustin Shaffer (Mayport/Redbank Valley) also have playing experience under their belts and have earned the starting nod for Saturday’s game. SPECIAL TEAMS The LHU return game centers around two-time All-PSAC return specialist Rob Carey. Carey led the conference in punt returns (213yds/11.8 ypr) and finishedthird in kick returns (578yds/26.3 ypr) during his sophomore season. Expect to see red-shirt freshman Ngoyi Mukusa joining Carey deep on kickoffs. Lock Haven’s kicking game will be brand new , with two true freshmen and a sophomore occupying the starting and back-up roles entering into Saturday’s contest. Rookie Greg Knauss (Laurys Station/Parkland), a two-time all-state kicker, is slated for action on kickoffs, punts, and field goals/extra points. Fellow rookie Austin Kerstetter (Milton/Milton) could assist on field goals, extra point attempts, and kickoffs, while sophomore Chris Keefer (Reedsville/Indian Valley) is LHU’s backup punter. |
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