Team News - 2017 Season Preview

The Golden Rams enter the 2017 season seeking an NCAA playoff berth for the first time since 2014 when they made their second consecutive appearance in the postseason. In 2013, the team was led by Harlon Hill finalist and all-time great all-purpose back Rondell White on offense and linebackers Ronell Williams and Mike Labor and cornerback Al-Hajj Shabazz on defense. The following season, consensus All-American defensive end Andrew Cohen complimented Williams, Labor and Shabazz on defense, while Harlon Hill finalist quarterback Sean McCartney connected with All-American tight end Tim Brown and used almost 1,300 yards on the ground from running back Brandon Monk to pace the offense.

Now is a bevy of marquee players required to make the postseason? Maybe not. If so, though, consider that the most decorated returner is offensive guard Tyler Drob who was an honorable mention All-American after last season, and from the looks of his knee brace during the spring game, it’s unlikely he’ll be available, at least for the start of this season. That being said, the 2017 Golden Rams return a ton of experience, specifically ten starters on offense, seven on defense and all four special teams players.

Offense

Senior Pat Moriarty would seem to have the edge at quarterback, although the spot is probably not assured. As a sophomore in 2015, Moriarty started every game for the Golden Rams throwing for 2,655 yards and 28 touchdowns in leading West Chester to a PSAC East division title. He was the starting quarterback at the beginning of last year as well, but after an ineffective first half in the season opener at Bentley, he was lifted for Andrew Derr. Derr started the next four games before suffering an injury, so Moriarty returned to the starting role for the next five games. West Chester won all six games in which Moriarty started, but he only threw for 810 yards and eight touchdowns. Sophomore Paul Dooley completed only one pass last season as he was primarily used in the wildcat and picked up 129 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. The real wild card is Syracuse transfer A.J. Long and his health. Long has incredible talent, and it will be interesting to see how he adjusts to the offense, or how the offense adjusts to him, as the season progresses. Redshirt freshman Mike Alley spent last season learning the offense and played a lot in the spring.

West Chester returns its top three receivers from a year ago: senior Tyler Karpinski (45 catches, 798 yards, 8 TD’s), junior Jordan Banks (38 catches, 593 yards, 8 TD’s) and senior Marcus Sydnor (20 catches, 365 yards, 3 TD’s). There’s not a lot of experience behind those three in sophomore Lex Rosario (11 catches, 146 yards) and redshirt freshmen Elijah Hall and Rasheem James who will be looking to make their collegiate debut.

Starting tight end Simon Williams (5 catches, 102 yards) returns, but Cody Boozel appears to be lost for the season after incurring an injury in the spring game. Backing up at tight end will be junior Connor McGrath who played in ten games in 2015 and sat out last year. Sophomore Tyler Higgins saw action in eight games last season at H-back and redshirt freshman Dan Neuhaus will back up that position. It will be interesting to see if true freshmen Gabe Schappell and Adam Schreck can make an immediate impact.

Senior captain Jarel Elder (1,012 yards, 11 TD’s) will see the bulk of the time at running back, but juniors Mike Class (351 yards, 3 TD’s) and Mark Dukes (128 yards, 1 TD) are very capable. With their redshirt seasons behind them, Nafeese Nasir and Isaiah Bruce will look to get on the field.

With senior captain Tyler Drob likely on the shelf for a little while, seniors Vince Lostracco at left guard, Devan LaBau at center, and Evyn Stadulis at one of the tackle spots will anchor the offensive line. All three started all eleven games a year ago. Senior Alex Host saw action in every game last season and will likely assume the right guard spot. Junior Jake Duncan played in nine games last season and will take the other tackle spot. Among the reserves, only junior Connor Walsh has more than four games of experience and will be alongside sophomores Frank Tranzilli, Jack Mummert, John DiPasquale and redshirt freshman Shane Kraynik.

Defense

The depth and experience on the defense is in the front seven. Senior George Shipp, who got injured in the season opener at Bentley last year and missed the next seven games before playing in the final three contests, returns at defensive end, as does junior Ch'aim Smith (57 tackles, 6 sacks). Behind them are senior John Dubyk (37 tackles), who was second on the team in tackles for loss last season with ten, and Valley Forge Military Academy transfer Diquan Gilbert who sat out last season at West Chester. At the tackle spots are senior captain Josh Ganzelli (44 tackles, 4.5 TFL’s) and Kavon Johnson (21 tackles 2 FF). Backing them up are sophomore Joe DeSanto (17 tackles) and Mark Webb who also transferred from Valley Forge Military Academy two years ago. Transfer Jamil Pollard and youngsters Omar Peterkin and David Simmons look to make their West Chester debut on the defensive line.

In the middle, senior captain Kevin Duggan (53 tackles, 5 TFL’s) will hold down one of the linebacker spots with senior Justice Smith (17 tackles) backing him up. The other linebacker spot will have Tyler Morrissey who saw limited action last season, but had 15 tackles in 8 games in 2015 battling sophomore Zack Hockman who redshirted last year after notching 20 tackles as a true freshman in 2015. Sophomore Quinten Cheyney (7 tackles) and Valley Forge transfer Geoffrey Phillippe will vie for time. Junior Nydair Rouse (15 tackles, 3 ints for 142 yards) will start at the shark position while junior Phil Mitten, who performed well on special teams last season, will move from wide receiver to shark as a backup.

The secondary lost five players from last season’s two-deep, and the three remaining players are expected to start. Senior captain Shaquille James (45 tackles, 8 PBU) will man the one corner position while junior Quintin Smith will handle the other side. Sophomore Deionte Wilson (13 tackles, 1 int) saw action in ten games last year at strong safety and classmate Jarey Elder (20 tackles, 2 int) will handle the free safety spot. After a year off, sophomore Corey Kelley (17 tackles, 4 PBU in 2015) returns to backup one corner while junior Jaishan Thornton (8 tackles) covers the other side. Moving from running back to free safety this season is senior Anthony Brown and backing up the strong safety spot is redshirt freshman Jordan Burney.

Special Teams

Kicker and punter Brendan Paulison was All-PSAC at both positions last season and returns for his junior year. Snapper Shane Griffin returns as does holder Tyler Karpinski. In the return game, expect Anthony Brown to handle punts again this season and he’ll be joined by Jarel Elder on kickoff returns. Redshirt freshman George Lambritsios has a big leg and might help on kickoffs.

Conclusion

This year's squad may not have big name superstars, but there is plenty of talent and depth at all positions to make a run at the postseason. After the first three weeks of last year, West Chester was 1-2 and the one victory was only as a result of a late-game interception. How the Golden Rams stand after facing the same first three opponents this year should be a decent indicator for the possibility of playoffs.