Football Season Outlook: Southeastern Louisiana
Some household names among fans of Southeastern Louisiana
are gone, but there are still some big-name players on board along with a
promising group of newcomers on the Lions' 2011 roster.
Southeastern, which was able to redshirt a majority of a
2010 recruiting class that was tabbed No. 1 nationally among schools in the FCS
by Rivals.com, will return 38 letterwinners in 2011 for fifth-year coach Mike
Lucas. Highlighting the returning group of players is senior All-America
candidate Simmie Yarborough - the school's all-time leader in receptions and
touchdown receptions.
Lucas welcomes back 14 starters trying to reverse course
from a season that saw the Lions finish 2-9 with six losses by a touchdown or
less, including three games by a combined four points.
On offense, the Lions return a solid nucleus of skill
players highlighted by one of the top receiving trios in college football with
Yarborough (60 receptions, 709 yards), and deep threats Brandon Collins (56
catches, 875 yards) and Kory Theodore (34 catches, 622 yards) combining for 150
receptions and more than 2,200 yards. Add in fleet-footed Sam Fairley (579
yards rushing) and bruising runner Zeke Jones (380 yards, eight touchdowns),
and Southeastern is equipped to put a flourish of points on the scoreboard.
Getting the ball in their hands will rely on the arm of
junior quarterback Brian Young, who threw for more than 1,000 yards in six
games with a pair of starts last season. Young, who served as the backup to
Tyler Beatty in 2010, held off a pair of redshirt freshmen in claiming the
starting job.
Protecting Young will rely on an offensive line that looks
to replace four members who started a combined 34 games in 2010. Full-time
starter Josh Penton along with part-time starters Paul Roppolo and Marshall
Paris return to anchor the offensive line, which lost four-year starter Kevin
Hughes and two-year starter Michael Stallworth. Returning letterwinner Gasten
Gabriel, along with newcomer Prentiss Hood, will fill the two remaining spots
on the line with redshirt freshmen Jarrod Hale and Hunter Craven, along with
returning letterwinner Geremy Wilson expected to play a significant role in
2011.
On the defensive side, Southeastern must replace veterans
Tommy Connors, Mark Newbill, Ryan Godare and Re'Keem Wilson but an athletic
group of players, including three key members on the defensive line and
cornerback Robert Alford, who missed the entire 2010 season to injury. Finding
replacements for nine starters on the defensive side of the ball will be a big
priority, but Lucas and his staff have plenty of options to evaluate.
Boutwell and Lucas, who both missed significant time to
injury, form one of the top inside duos in the Southland Conference. On the
outside, Walker and Leavoy are key veterans and bring strong pass rush skills
to the team and with the addition of junior college transfers Frank Bryant and
Mairo Stovall, the Lions could possess one of the top pass rushing units in the
country.
Finding replacements on the back end will be most
important as the quartet of Connors, Wilson, Curtis Strong and Clint Coleman
started a combined 43 games in 2010. The return of Alford, who started nine
games at left cornerback in 2009, and the addition of Louisiana native and
University of Memphis transfer Todd Washington give the Lions a pair of
shutdown corners the team has lacked in recent years.
Junior college transfer Kevin Roberts and freshman Marice
Sutton came out of spring practice as the starters at safety, but will be
challenged by returning letterwinner Jerome Wright along with a slew of
newcomers.
The
Lions special teams got solid play down the stretch from kicker Seth Sebastian
and punter Beau Mothe. Both will be looked upon to each elevate their game in
2011 as both possess all-conference ability. Giving each of them a push once
fall camp begins will be freshman Ryan Adams, a strong-legged freshman from
Ohio.
Outlook provided by Southeastern Louisiana sports information.