2009 ACFC MEDIA CONFERENCE CALL

August 10, 2009

Apprentice School Head Coach Michael Vite

On offseason workouts

The kids have worked hard this off-season and have shown a strong commitment to what we are doing.  They have it in their minds to make it a better season than last year.

On the schedule opening with pair of nationally-ranked opponents

 That's the way the schedule rolled out for us.  Our young guys are up for the challenge.  I have no complaints as I want to play the best - if it is on the road then so be it.

Opening the season at Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio

 I watched a little bit of the Hall of Fame game last night and some of the Hall of Fame ceremonies on Saturday - it's a special occasion to play on that field, one of which I am sure our guys will be more than ready for.

Conference Views

It's a very tough conference.  You have two giants in Wesley and Salisbury always neck-and-neck, while you have a Frostburg State program that I know will make strides and improve this year.

Frostburg State University Head Coach Tom Rogish

Q: Now that you have your first season as head coach under your belt, what are your thoughts and expectations for 2009?

TR: We talked about the fact that we are going to be a young team again this year with eight seniors back. Coaching leadership will have to be big for us. Kids have done well taking over a new weight program, building strength of the team.

Q: What does your tough schedule against a number of ranked opponents mean to your team?

TR: Our kids believe in our philosophy. We must play the best teams you can play and we must take this schedule one game at a time. Start with Geneva, then W&J with the tough conference schedule. Every place I have ever been the philosophy has been you only get better by playing tough (good) teams.

Q: With the addition of several new members to your staff for the 2009 season, what do you expect from them and your staff as a whole?

TR: We were able to pick up three new coaches heading into this season.

Jim Crawley, one of our legendary coaches, will work with the kicker and punters. He will help with special teams and will have a great influence with kids

We were lucky enough to get an intern from the NFL in Javin Hunter. He was a wide receiver for Norte Dame and played three years for the Baltimore Ravens and a year for the 49ers. He will bring excellent credentials to the wide receivers.

Jeff Rogish, my son, will be on our staff this year. He was a naval intelligence officer and will work with tight ends and be the video coordinator.

These new coaches combined with the previous staff members will bring good continuity to the team.

Q:  What are the strengths of this year's team?

TR: Special teams is a strength heading into this season. We return our perimeter. Offensively, three good receivers and couple of good running backs are also back.

Q:  What are your expectations for 2009 and more specifically the Bobcat defense?

Terryl Monroe: Well for 2009, our expectations are to be successful, the team chemistry came together this spring. During the spring, we spent a lot of time together, we ate meals together, studied together and we trust each other a lot more than last year on the field.

Experience on the defensive side of the ball will be good for the team. The linebacker core really came together as a team as well and adds to the defensive chemistry. We were really young last year, but experience this year will come into play for the team.

Q: Thoughts on joining Empire 8?

TR: Something that everyone in our conference has a problem with and that's scheduling. Nine teams in the conference and there are eight games, so solves a lot of our problems with scheduling. It's something that makes my job a lot easier, and those in the conference a lot easier.

Salisbury University Head Coach Sherman Wood

Coach Wood, can you talk about the schedule this year, you open up at home with Division II Pace University and then hit the road for two games with including #20 Christopher Newport University, what will this early season experience provide for you team?

We definitely have to make sure that our kids are on track and work extremely hard during the summer, to put ourselves in a position to play. Because we do have a very demanding schedule and its gets off to a challenging start against as Division II program. I am sure with what we have we will be up for the challenge. Sometimes if you want to be the best, you have to play the best and we feel this is a great opportunity. Playing North Carolina Wesleyan and Christopher Newport back to back and the having our fourth game against St. John Fisher, is going to be another challenge for us. Those first four games are going to be fairly tough before we get into conference play.

Coach Wood, last season's offense was the top rushing team in the nation and finished 6^th in scoring at 40.73 points per game, with the loss of two running backs gone from last year's team, do you think you can establish the same type of results on offense?

That is definitely one of our main goals. We do the best we can to play as many kids as possible. You always want to think ahead and have even freshman and sophomores get a chance to play in football games and get the game experience. So I am confident that the kids we have in place right now. Offensively, regardless of the position, they all have game experience.

Obviously the running game is a major strength, what other areas on the field do you consider as your strongest areas entering this season?

Well overall, I believe our defensive line is strength. You have to start with Paul Cynewski. Paul led the conference in sacks last season and he is excited for this season. He has been working hard all year and was voted a captain by his teammates.

What are the feelings like surrounding this year's team?

We are getting pretty excited, we start Sunday August 16^th. Our kids check in that day and you can already tell there is a lot of excitement in the air. We are anticipating more kids during camp, than I have ever had since I've been here. We are going to have some numbers and a lot to choose from. We are going to be extremely competitive during this year's camp.

The Sea Gulls have gone 9-2 the last couple of years, how important is it to build on that success of the last couple of seasons, and maybe take that next step this year?

We have obviously put our kids in a position to be successful; I think we do a great job as a staff in prepping our younger players to understand the tradition and foundation of Salisbury football. By the time they set foot on campus, they have a strong idea of our desire to win. Once they understand that and put forth a tremendous work ethic. We try to plan with high expectations. It can be a challenge but we definitely want to continue that type of success.

Is there any particular position battle that you are curious to see how things turn out during training camp this year?

I would say that everyone is going to compete at every position. I do like our size on the offensive line; we may be the biggest since I have been here. I am really curious to see how those guys get started out of the gate. We have a couple guys who have the ability to compete a bit more this season. We have Alex Smith, who is back; he is a 6'8 kid. Alex is one of those kids that didn't play last year to focus on academics. He had a great spring for us. I am obviously curious to see him get the job done. Nick Clemons is a big kid at 6'5 that can play center or any other position on the offensive line for us. It is going to be interesting to see what comes out of those positions and on the offensive line.

How about the quarterback spot, you have Bobby Sheahin back as a captain, what do you see of that quarterback position?

Bobby has just done an outstanding job of helping this football team gel together. I have a lot of respect for Bobby transferring from University of Maryland. Usually a player like that has high expectations coming to a Division III program. I just like the way he handled things and dealt with former quarterback Ronnie Curley, the two of them became close friends. Bobby is doing great things in front of our team members, as merit of him being named a 2009 team captain. On the field I expect big things as he enters camp 15 pounds stronger and put on some solid weight. He wants to lead this football team. A couple other guys like Sean Kelly and some younger players have some opportunities to see some time this season. Sean is going to be competing for playing time, I am confident that he will be playing in some football games for us this season. The new guys, I will get a chance to see them better in camp next week. For the most part, I think Bobby is going to be fine and he is excited and I am looking forward to seeing him at work.

Wesley College Head Coach Mike Drass

Coach Mike Drass on replacing the 2008 senior class:

"I don't think you replace them, especially with as many four year starters as we had.  The younger players learned from them.  They taught them the work ethic you need to succeed.  I don't think you replace them.  You just have to rely on who you have now, and I think the nucleus we have in place is tremendous."

Coach Drass on the 2009 schedule:

"We have all of our away games up front.  Christopher Newport is a top ranked team.  LaGrange was a playoff team last year.  Both Delaware Valley and Salisbury played in ECAC bowls.  There's a lot of talent we're going to face.  I think North Greenville is very talented.  Their record may not have indicated it, but they were playing a lot of I-AA (FCS) teams.  And that Delaware Valley game, we agreed to go back up there this year to provide balance for the 2010 schedule.  That's a game our guys want to play."

Aaron Benson on being one of the 2009 team captains:

"It's not a lot different.  You've always got to work hard and do your job.  You have to understand what you're supposed to do out there and lead the younger guys.  As a captain, you have to step up a little more, but that's something that comes with experience."

Marcus Wilson on playing two ways:

"I think one of the big challenges is that you have to come to camp in even better shape than last year.  But, you have to learn both playbooks too.  Instead of learning the defense and some special teams, I have to learn the offensive playbook too.  I think that'll be the biggest challenge, learning the offense, since I've got a good knowledge of the defense."

Coach Drass on how the team philosophy changes year to year:

"The philosophy remains the same, but the players change.  The players we have know we're trying to be the best we can be.  The philosophy we apply this year is the same as the last 20 years and the guys we have this year are excited to try and be the best they can be."

Coach Drass on quarterback Shane McSweeny:

"Shane had a great year last year.  He finished No. 2 in Division III in efficiency.  But one thing we haven't let him do is run the ball like we know he can.  That's one thing we want him to do this year.  We know he has weapons around him like Mike Pennewell, Aaron Jackson, Marcus (Wilson), C.J. Bacote and Sean McAndrew.  And, DeAndre Fowlkes moved to offense this year and is the fastest guy on the team.  Guys like he and Marcus will provide some of the speed that we had last year with Larry (Beavers)."

Aaron Benson on being ranked again in the preseason:

"I like the challenge.  I just look at it and games against teams like Christopher Newport (Wesley's ranked opponent in its season opener) as opportunities to prove ourselves."