The
2007 football season will be remembered for two things. One,
the 2007 squad became the first
Millsaps team to win back-to-back Southern Collegiate Athletic
Conference championships since they joined the league back in
1992, while posting their best record, 8-2, in 11 years. In doing
so, the Majors broke a combined 31 school records, had 13 players
gain all-conference recognition and swept the SCAC postseason
awards, landing the Offensive, Defensive and Special Teams Player
of the Year. The other, the infamous “Mississippi Miracle” against
rival Trinity University (Texas) on Oct. 27 that cost the Majors
their second consecutive playoff appearance and outright league
title when the Tigers completed an improbable 15 laterals on
the final play from scrimmage from 60-yards out.
That’s all said and done now and the only thing that’s
keeping third-year head coach Mike DuBose and a hungry Millsaps
bunch from a perfect regular season are themselves. DuBose, runner-up
in the Liberty Mutual D3 Coach of the Year fan voting a year
ago, will work with 15 of 22 returning starters in 2008 with
hopes of returning to the playoffs after a 1-year hiatus.
With the departure of offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson to
D-IAA Stephen F. Austin and offensive line coach Jack Wright
to Northwest Community College, replacements John David Caffey
(New Mexico State) at OC and Jon Long (Odessa HS) on the OL will
try and revamp an offensive onslaught that has worked so well
the previous two seasons. Also joining the staff in 2008 are
Davern Williams (Huntingdon College) and Drew Willis (Early County
HS). Williams spent three seasons in the NFL, playing with both
the Dolphins and New York Giants, and will handle the D-Line
while Willis will try and tune up a 1,300-yard rush attack at
the running backs spot. David Johnson (wide receivers) and Marcus
Woodson (defensive secondary) return for a fourth season, while
Aaron Pelch (special teams/OLB) and Lane Powell (ILB) will begin
their third with the Majors.
Ranked as
the 18th-most improved football program in Division III football
and 46th
in all of college football by Somis Sports,
the Majors will have to do without a combined 19 All-SCAC selections
that were lost from the 2007 graduating class. Lost in that crowd
were five, four-year starters on the defensive side in Casey
Younger, Ray Kline, Cedric Lawrence, Canaan Farris and Ronnie
Wheat who helped the Majors to the nation’s second-ranked
pass efficiency defense and fifth-best scoring defense.
In all, Millsaps ranked amongst the Top 25 in the country in
12 statistical categories in 2007, including ranking in the Top
10 in six of those. The back-to-back SCAC champs were 7th in
passing offense (318.7 ypg) and 8th in scoring offense (456.6
ypg), while ranking 2nd in pass efficiency defense (81.6 ypg),
5th in scoring defense (11.9 ppg) and 8th in punt return defense
(4.05 ypr) and turnovers gained (36).
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE—
Reigning SCAC Offensive Player of the Year for a second-straight
season and the school’s career record-holder in passing
yards, completions, attempts and TDs, senior quarterback Juan
Joseph will guide an offensive assault that has ranked No.
1 in the SCAC for two-straight years. As a unit, the offense
broke single-season school records in passing yards, completions,
attempts, total yards, yards-per-game, total plays, passing
TDs, first downs, total TDs and scoring average in 2007, while
ranking 7th in the country in passing offense, 8th in scoring
offense and 14th in total offense. In just nine games played
(one injured), Joseph broke nearly every single-season and
school record he set during his sophomore campaign in helping
the Majors average 41.4 ppg in 2007. The senior-to-be completed
254-of-394 passes for 2,860 yards and 31 TDs against just six
INTs, while leading the league and ranking 5th in the country
in passing yards/game (317.8) and total offense (321.4). A
six-time SCAC Offensive Player of the Week and three-time Football
Gazette National Team of the Week nod, Joseph hit a striking
21 different receivers on the year, including double-digit
receivers in 8 of 9 games played. Although senior Burt
Pereira has spent time at quarterback and wide receiver, a pure backup
quarterback has not been established the past couple of years.
Pereira will be the first man behind center should Joseph go
down and has plenty of experience, completing 55-of-81 (68
percent) career passes for 658 yards and seven TDs against
two INTs.
Joseph will once again have one of the deepest receiving corps
in the nation, with all-conference selections Eric
McCarty, Raymece
Savage, Donnie Epps and Pereira each returning for their senior
year. Incorporating a true tight end into the offense will help
the Majors keep a balanced attack, which has been absent under
DuBose. McCarty has been listed as the tight end the past two
years on the depth chart, but been more of a target receiver.
Sophomores J.R. Burnett and Michael
Pivnick are on the radar
to fill that empty space.
McCarty hauled in a team-best 50 catches for 748 yards and seven
TDs and caught multiple balls in 9 of 10 games played. His 15.0
yards-per-catch average ranked second in the SCAC, while his
74.8 yards-per-game average ranked sixth. After a one-year absence
from the program, Savage returned to Millsaps in 2007 and finished
second on the team in receiving yards (427) and receptions (36)
on his way to All-SCAC Second Team honors. Epps, an All-SCAC
Honorable Mention, proved himself to be an excellent target inside
the red zone. The Grand Prairie, Texas native totaled 298 receiving
yards and of his 28 catches, seven went for touchdowns. Another
All-SCAC Honorable Mention, Pereira caught 20 passes for 242
yards. In addition, the senior-to-be, who has also started two
games from behind center, will once again see action as the Majors’ second-string
quarterback. Coming off an outstanding freshman campaign in which
he ranked third on the team in receiving yards (360) and tied
for first in yards-per-catch (15.0), Michael
Galatas will also
be one of Joseph’s top targets.
In addition to an All-American quarterback and a slew of talented
receivers, Caffey will also inherit a backfield that rushed for
1,379 yards a season ago. Of that total, more than 300 yards
apiece came from the returning trio of Nick
Namias, Kenny Metzger and Schuyler
Huff. Namias, one of two seniors in the group, averaged
4.8 yards-per-carry, leading the team in total rushing yards
(370) and rushes (77). Metzger, a junior, rushed for 364 yards
on 56 carries, ran for a team-high six touchdowns and averaged
6.5 yards-per-carry. In his first season with Millsaps after
transferring in from MS Gulf Coast CC, Huff stepped up late in
the season, rushing for just under 200 yards in the final three
games to finish the season with 332 total rushing yards on 72
carries.
The O-Line, led by new coach Jon Long, will return just two starters
for the upcoming season on a unit that paved the way for the
league’s top-ranked scoring offense and fourth-best rushing
offense a year ago. Several guys have been moved around from
defense to offense and they must get comfortable playing together,
as championships are won at the line of scrimmage.
The front five allowed just 15 sacks (4th in the SCAC) in 10
games on 765 total plays in 2007, while surrendering a SCAC-best
seven in 2006. Junior RG John
Shivers, a First Team All-SCAC
and D3football.com Third Team All-South Region selection, and
senior LG Andres Wallace are the two upperclassmen who will be
looked upon to provide leadership, whereas an avid group of younger
players, sophomores Adam Williams and Charlie
Sagan and junior
Jordan Granville would likely join their side if the season kicked
off today due to their spring outings. Williams and Sagan received
ample playing time as freshmen whereas Granville played in a
pair of games as a backup defensive lineman. Shivers boasts the
most experience of the group, starting in all 21 games of his
Millsaps career thus far, while Wallace started in all 10 last
year at center in his first stint on the O-Line after moving
from the D-Line. “As a unit I feel we improved a great
deal mentally during spring drills,” Long said. “Stepping
in for my first season here, I relied on the leadership of (Andres)
Wallace and (John) Shivers to help ease the transition of a new
coach and terminology.”
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE—
Behind the defensive mastermind of DuBose and the implementation
of the system from Woodson, Pelch and Powell, the Millsaps defense
has gone from worst to first in two, short years. The Majors
surrendered a league-worst 35.0 ppg in 2005 en route to a 2-7
year, improved to fifth at 20.5 ppg in 2006 and then made a statement
last season by boasting the SCAC’s top-ranked defense and
nation’s 12th-ranked by allowing only 11.9 ppg and 251.1
ypg. Behind graduating seniors Lawrence, Younger, Farris, Wheat
and Shawn Gillenwater, the “Fab Five” gave up just
seven rushing TDs and a combined 933 yards on 352 carries – best
in the league.
The primary concerns for the defense are: can they win the line
of scrimmage after losing key defensive lineman and will they
be able to fill the void left by a handful of playmakers. Keeping
away from injuries will also be important, with the depth chart
slim amid young Majors. The top priority is stopping the run,
which will force teams to throw the ball into a dangerous backfield.
The defensive line will have new names in the starting rotation
like Denarold Anderson, David
Dale, Mason Burrell and Marcus
Stokes but the position will not be unfamiliar. All four guys,
two of them seniors and two of them juniors, have been contributors
for the Majors since their freshman seasons and have plenty of
playing experience. Kyle Hughes and Jerel
Mair will be in a battle
for the starting noseguard spot, while key young guys like Nick
Presti and Ward Coker showed promise in the spring. Anderson,
a first team All-SCAC selection in 2007, returns with the most
experience. The Edgard, La., native has only missed three games
in three seasons thus far while tallying 94 career tackles, ranking
eighth on the team last year with 34 (18 solo).
Junior OLB Lee
Klein will lead a linebacker core that has had
continued success the previous three seasons. Klein, a 5-foot-11,
219-pounder from Lakeshore, Miss., has been a beast his first
two seasons with 100 tackles, 10 tackles-for-loss and five forced
fumbles. Fellow junior Jaren
Bowser is very capable of finding
that starting spot alongside Klein, solidifying himself in the
spring, whereas senior Fred Wiley and juniors Sam
Herman and
Miles Sager will also be in the mix in the fall.
The strength of the defensive secondary and five returning
seniors will be a valuable asset to an up-and-coming, solid
defense. Entering his fourth year on the staff, Marcus Woodson
has taken a vulnerable secondary and turned it into a ball-hogging
unit. In Woodson’s first season in 2005, the Majors picked
off only eight passes and broke up 28 more. That number improved
to 18 INTs and 59 pass breakups in 2006 and 20 INTs and 56
breakups last year.
Senior S Jacob
Hanberry will be the quarterback on defense,
giving the group direction and making sure everyone is on the
same page. A Second Team All-SCAC selection, Hanberry started
in all 10 games a year ago, picking up 27 tackles (16 solo) and
a pair of interceptions. He will be joined by senior Michael
Sims and sophomore Kevin
Peters at the safety spot, as the pair
combined for 35 total tackles last season. Seniors Marcus
Harris,
Jonathan Brooks and Mike
Moore will be the top three speedsters
at cornerback, with two-time D3football.com National Team of
the Week and All-SCAC selection Harris returning with 129 career
tackles as a three-year starter. Brooks was an immediate impact
last season after transferring in from Copiah-Lincoln JC, tying
for first on the team in INTs with four and ranking eighth in
tackles (34). Moore has tallied 42 career tackles and played
in all but five games in his first three seasons, providing a
quick spark off the bench and not allowing the defense to skip
a beat.
“Our expectations are high,” Woodson said. “The
guys that are taking the field are a talented and well experienced
group. I expect that they will create problems for opposing
teams’ quarterbacks and our job as coaches is to make
sure we put them in position to make plays. We’ve improved
tremendously each year and I’m confident about this bunch
heading into the 2008 season.”
SCOUTING
SPECIAL TEAMS—
After grabbing the league’s Special Teams Player of the
Year for a second-straight season, Chris Jackson in 2006 and
John Milazzo in 2007, Millsaps returns three players with excellent
speed in addition to Milazzo (Brooks, Harris, Galatas) that could
provide a three-peat under the tutelage of coach Aaron
Pelch. Milazzo is back for his junior year following a breakout
season as a sophomore where he averaged 11.5 yards-per-punt return
in 26 chances (3rd in single-season school history) and 23.3
yards-per kick return in six chances.
In the kicking game, Herman will likely be the starter in the
fall with kickoffs, PATs and field goals after sophomore Taylor
Russolino was sidelined all of spring after a non-football injury.
Herman connected on 20-of-23 PATs and 3-of-7 field goals last
season before Russolino stepped in mid-season to hit 16-of-19
PATs and 4-of-8 field goals. Russolino became the first freshman
kicker at Millsaps to earn D3football.com National Team of the
Week (Week 6) honors after his outburst against Centre College,
connecting on all three of his attempts from 34, 35 and a career-best
38-yards out.
After knocking
down all 13 of his PAT attempts in a short stint at kicker,
junior
William Lawrimore will handle punting duties
for a third-straight season where he’s averaged better
than 34-yards per punt. An All-SCAC selection two years ago,
Lawrimore punted 42 times for an average of 35.4 yards-per-punt,
landed 12 punts inside the 20-yard line and booted a career-long
58-yard punt against Sewanee in 2007. Sophomore Taylor
Weaver,
who did not punt any last season but appeared in four games at
running back, will back up Lawrimore. Weaver was an all-district
selection in both soccer and football at Houston Christian HS,
playing three different positions on the gridiron (RB, K/P) where
he brings a wealth of talent both on offense and special teams.
A huge loss
for the Majors is at long snapper, where four-year starter
T.J. Loehn
has departed and sophomore Bryce
Haddad has
stepped in after a strong spring outing. Often overshadowed because
of his position, Loehn did not have a single botched snap in
his Millsaps career and was a shoe-in for all-conference honors
had the slot been available. “In my three years here, T.J.
was the most reliable player for us on special teams,” DuBose
commented. “We never had to worry about filling his position
and coincidentally there’s a talented freshman class that’s
coming in.”
THE
SCHEDULE—
From a travel standpoint, the schedule is almost identical to
last season with one less away game (five) and one more home
game (five). Millsaps opens the season on Saturday, Sept. 6
with the 10th annual “Backyard Brawl” against rival
MS College. The Majors let a season-opening win slip away last
year after surrendering a 26-6 lead in the fourth quarter.
The loss jumpstarted a 6-game winning streak but cost the team
a possible at-large bid into the playoffs after the way the
season played out. With Louisiana College off the schedule,
a date with NAIA-foe Belhaven College on Sept. 13 closes out
the non-conference slate, as the Majors and Blazers square
off for the first time since 2005. “Playing two good
teams early in MS College and Belhaven is important,” DuBose
stated. “It will allow us to be prepared for conference
play.”
The SCAC schedule opens Sept. 20 with Austin College traveling
to Harper Davis Field, followed by home games on Oct. 4 vs DePauw,
Oct. 18 vs Sewanee-U of the South and Colorado College on Nov.
8 (Homecoming). Millsaps faces long road trips to Danville, Ky.,
(Centre College) on Oct. 11 along with the much anticipated trip
to San Antonio on Nov. 1 to play Trinity. The Majors also travel
to Memphis and Birmingham to play Rhodes and SCAC-provisional
member Birmingham-Southern on Sept. 27 and Nov. 15, respectively.
“
We’ve had some success here lately that has shed new
light on the program,” DuBose said. “The question
is how our team will handle that success. We must stay disciplined
and continue to prepare and respect every opponent the same
way.”
