Pitt State Football
2010 Season Outlook
By Dan Wilkes
Assistant AD/Media Relations
The Pittsburg State University football team will embark upon a new era during the 2010 season.
The Gorillas welcome in a new head coach - but an extremely familiar person to the position - Tim Beck. Beck, Pitt State's offensive coordinator for the previous 16 seasons, became the school's 13th head coach on Dec. 9, 2009, a week after 20-year veteran Chuck Broyles announced his retirement from the position.
Beck, the 2008 NCAA Division II Coordinator of the Year, quickly eased his way into the Gorillas' mentor position. He hired long-time Blue Valley High School coach Steve Rampy as Pitt State's offensive coordinator on Dec. 23. In February, Beck and his staff signed a dozen transfer players as well as two dozen high school prospects to compliment a relatively young cast of Pitt State underclassmen from a 2009 squad that battled through a 5-6 season.
Beck infused the transfer players with Pitt State's 33 returning lettermen (18 offense, 13 defense, 2 specialty) during spring drills. After a productive spring camp, Beck and the Gorillas are cautiously optimistic about their prospects heading into the 2010 season.
"Overall, we have a young team that doesn't have a lot of playing experience, but we do feel like we make up for that with a great deal of energy and athleticism," Beck said. "There's excitement among our players with some new things we are doing both offensively and defensively. Our players also have bought into our coaching staff's approach that there are no starters on this team right now. We have starting points for where we think the players are at, but there won't be any starters until we make those decisions in August."
The Pitt State Offense
The strength of the offensive unit may prove to be the Gorillas' depth of talent at the running back position, according to Beck.
"We feel like we have six or seven backs that can play for us this fall," Beck said. "We don't want to be in a one-back set all the time. We'll be in two and even three-back sets and the design will be to get our 11 best players on the field. We will still spread the field with three and four-wide looks, but the intent will be to get the ball into our skill players hands."
Senior Terrance Isaac leads the Gorillas' cast of running backs. Isaac (5-8, 196) carried the ball a team-leading 165 times for 893 yards (5.4 ypc) and nine touchdowns as a junior in 2009, earning second-team All-MIAA honors. The Luling, La., native also caught 11 passes for 98 yards out of the backfield.
"Terrance had a good junior season and a great spring camp," Beck said. "He has great vision, good balance and he's become a strong, physical back."
Junior Eric Love (5-9, 192), senior Cardell Clemons (5-10, 205) and sophomore Jason Spradling (5-11, 196) all saw significant action for the Gorillas in 2009. Love rushed for 416 yards and three TDs; Clemons had 296 yards and four scores; while Spradling gained 162 yards on the season.
Redshirt freshman Solomon Watkins (5-10, 186) enjoyed an impressive spring camp, while redshirt sophomore Briceton Wilson (6-1, 220) added a second dimension with his power running style, according to Beck.
"Jason Spradling had as impressive a spring camp as anyone," Beck noted. "Briceton brings more of a power running style, but he has more agility than he gets credit for; and Solomon is an up and coming player. He has the most speed of our backs and he has a bright future ahead of him."
Senior Nate Morris (5-11, 202), who had to miss the spring season, also returns to the backfield after serving as the Gorillas' primary fullback in 2009.
A trio of juniors is battling for the starting role at quarterback for the Gorillas: Zac Dickey, Tyler Lawrence and Jeff Smith.
Smith (6-0, 203) started three games in 2009. The Pittsburg native completed 61 of 95 passes (.642) for 937 yards and seven touchdowns with four interceptions in nine games played. He also carried the ball 61 times for 284 yards and four scores.
Dickey (6-1, 200) will look to move back to the quarterback position, after playing wide receiver for the Gorillas last year. The Pittsburg native passed for 937 yards and 10 touchdowns and rushed for 283 yards and four more TDs as a redshirt freshman at Fort Scott Community College in 2008.
Lawrence (6-2, 215), from Overland Park, Kan., comes to Pitt State after playing three seasons at the University of Kansas from 2006-08. He graduated early from KU and returned to collegiate football in January after a year coaching in the high school ranks.
"We have three very capable players competing for the quarterback position," Beck said. "We won't make a decision on who our starting quarterback will be until the third week of August. Jeff has the most playing experience, playing at Pitt State. Zac has the most experience overall with a season as a starter at Fort Scott. Tyler hasn't played in awhile, but he did a good job, especially in the passing game, during the spring."
Junior Jon Thomas will lead the Gorillas wide receiving corps into the 2010 season.
Thomas (5-6, 154) caught 27 passes for 360 yards (13.3 ypc) and one touchdown as a sophomore in 2009.
Senior Ryan Holt (6-0, 193) returns after grabbing 15 passes for 201 yards and one TD last year, while junior Aaron Sawyer (6-3, 206) caught 11 passes for 263 yards (23.9 ypc) and three scores.
Junior Derek Fisher (6-3, 185) is coming off a solid spring camp, along with redshirt freshman Gavin Lutman (6-4, 208). The Gorillas also added junior transfer Anthony Sanchez (6-0, 180) who caught 26 passes for 473 yards and two TDs at Coffeyville Community College last fall.
"We feel like we have a solid group of wide receivers," Beck said. "This was a group that had a lot to learn during the spring due to a lack of experience for many of them. How well they all come together will determine a lot about the type of success they can have as a group."
At tight end, the Gorillas will look to junior Bristan Kelley (6-6, 260) and seniors Tell Wyrick (6-6, 255) and Blake Byford (6-1, 232) to anchor the position.
Up front, Pitt State returns a pair of starters in senior Dustin Wiley and sophomore Josiah Cody. Wiley (6-4, 267) started all 11 games at tackle for the Gorillas in 2009, while Cody (6-4, 281) started 10 games at guard a year ago.
Senior Mark Chestnut (6-3, 305) will look to assume the starting role at center, after transferring to Pitt State in January from Oklahoma State University.
Junior Kell Smalley (6-1, 274) and junior transfer Ty Henry (6-3, 280) will battle for other starting guard position, while redshirt freshman Cody Holland (6-6, 324) and junior transfer Calin Archer (6-3, 290) will compete for the starting tackle spot opposite Wiley.
Sophomore Aaron Kolich (6-2, 256) also figures to see action at either center or guard.
"We return just two starters from a year ago, but we feel like we have a talented group of linemen," Beck said. "We brought in a pair of junior college players and a transfer who we think can help us. Dustin Wiley and Mark Chestnut both have shown great leadership with this group."
The Pitt State Defense
The Gorillas will look to a talented group of lineman to help anchor their defensive unit in 2010.
Junior Spencer Worthington will lead Pitt State's defensive ends after moving to the position from linebacker. Worthington (6-2, 219) recorded 43 tackles (19 solo) with 3.0 quarterback sacks in 2009.
Sophomore Gus Toca (6-3, 254) is back for his second season in the program. He recorded 11 tackles in seven games before battling injury during his freshman season. Redshirt freshman Joe Uzzel (6-4, 241) will look to see his first action for the Gorillas this fall.
Freshman transfer Will Grissom (6-4, 249) comes to Pitt State from Hutchinson Community College, while junior transfer Josh Nunu (6-3, 257) joined the Gorillas from Diablo Valley College.
Junior J.R. Jones (6-1, 322) will lead Pitt State's interior linemen, while junior transfers Xavier Jackson (6-3, 254) and Cody Moore (6-1, 277) will look to make an impact. Seniors Matt Jenkins (5-11, 265) also will vie for action for the Gorillas, along with true freshmen Matt Anderson (6-3, 305) and Tank Burns (6-2, 250), who both join the squad in August.
"One thing our coaching staff wanted to be able to do this year is play more four-man fronts in our base defense," Beck said. "We think we have the talent and the depth within our defensive line group to allow us to do that this fall. Our depth, especially at the end positions, has a chance to be one of our team strengths."
At linebacker, senior Johnny Row will lead the Gorillas returning cast. Row (6-1, 214) recorded 23 tackles, including 2.5 tackles-for-loss, as a junior in 2009.
Juniors Luke Stringer (6-4, 237) and Dustin Smith (6-2, 224) are expected to see significant action, while redshirt freshman Nate Dreiling (6-4, 218) also is coming off a great spring camp, according to Beck.
"We are excited about the potential of our linebackers," Beck said. "We feel like we have some talented players for those positions; and the competition among the group has been good."
In the secondary, senior free safety Alex Kuhlman will lead a relatively inexperienced group. Kuhlman (6-3, 205), a two-time All-MIAA performer and an All-America player as a sophomore in 2008, is the team's top returning tackler. The Ness City, Kan., native logged 71 stops with two interceptions and four pass breakups. For his career, he has 171 tackles with seven INTs and seven PBUs.
Senior David Vaughn (5-10, 196) enjoyed a solid spring camp at the "gorilla" safety position. Vaughn recorded 21 tackles for the Gorillas in 2009.
Sophomore Chas Smith (5-9, 178) and junior transfer Paul Robinson (5-11, 172) both enjoyed productive spring camps at the "bandit" safety spot. Both players also can play cornerback and Smith saw some action at free safety during the spring as well. Sophomore Jake Catloth (6-0, 183) also figures to compete for playing time at the position.
Junior Elijah Olabode (5-10, 185) is back for his third year at cornerback for Pitt State. Olabode played in eight games in 2009 despite battling injuries. The Gorillas added a pair of transfers in juniors Kendall Davis (5-9, 153) and Josh Heimermann (5-9, 165). Both players figure to see significant action.
"We are optimistic about our defensive secondary group," Beck said. "We have a pair of very experienced safeties in Alex Kuhlman and David Vaughn. We would like to think we will be better at the cornerback positions than we were last year with the additions of Kendall Davis and Josh Heimermann along with our returners."
Pitt State Special Teams
Senior Jared Witter (6-3, 200) returns for a fourth season to handle Pitt State's punting and place kicking.
The Lenexa, Kan., native punted 33 times for a 42.4 yard average last season. Witter would have ranked second nationally in punting average but he did not have enough attempts (3.6 pg) to qualify for a national ranking. He has a 41.5-yard career punting average.
Witter also six of 12 field goal attempts, including a career-best 53-yarder, last year. For his career, he has converted 23 of 43 (.534) field goal tries.
Junior Chase McCoy (6-1, 170), a transfer from Hastings College, also will compete with Witter for the place kicking duties.
Junior Billy Ewy (6-2, 197) figures to handle Pitt State's long snapping chores for a third season.