Aug. 1, 1999

TOLEDO - An explosive offense drove the University of Toledo to its West Division title of the Mid-American Conference in 1997.

A dominating defense led the Rockets to a MAC West crown last year.

For the Rockets to go all the way and win the MAC Championship in 1999, UT coach Gary Pinkel's formula is simple: put both sides of the equation together in the same year.

"I'm tired of us being strong in one area and just okay in another," said Pinkel. "We've got to be good on offense and good on defense."

The Rockets were very good on the defensive side of the ball last year, allowing just 18.0 points per game, third in the MAC. In regular-season conference games, Toledo held its opponents to 12.6 points per contest, best in the league. In six out of 12 games, the Rockets held their opponents to 14 points or less.

These statistics matter because most of the key defenders are back this season, including first-team All-MAC linebacker Jason Lamar (119 tackles, 12 tackles for loss) and second-team All-MAC defensive end DeJuan Goulde (43 tackles, six sacks).

The real key to Toledo's defense, however, is its depth. Of the 24 players who were listed on the defensive two-deeps for at least two games in 1998, 18 are back with the team this season. Nine of the 13 Rockets with at least 28 tackles are expected to be in uniform this fall.

"It's exciting," said Pinkel. "We improved on defense last year, and we have a chance to get significantly better. We just need our best players to have their best years."

Unlike the defense, the offense has suffered significant losses to its ranks, mainly at the skill positions. However, considerable talent returns, and still more untested players are eager for their chance to prove they belong on a championship team.

If the Rockets have an advantage over their opponents in the hunt for another MAC West title, it could be the experience of playing for a championship the past two seasons.

"These guys have won a lot of games," said Pinkel. "They understand that there is a process to winning. If you don't focus on the process, you never get a chance to win."

With the Rockets losing in the MAC Championship Game in each of the past two seasons, the next step for UT is obviously a victory in that game and a trip to the Motor City Bowl. However, Pinkel is determined to keep his team focused on the immediate task at hand.

"Our focus has to continue to remain on winning the West Division championship," Pinkel said. "The teams in our division are getting better. So our first goal, as always, is to win the division. We just want to be in the hunt at the end and get back into that championship game."

The following is an overview of the 1999 Rockets by position.

Quarterbacks

The most important position for Pinkel to fill is the quarterback. Going into spring practice, Pinkel had three candidates vying for the position: junior Dan Cole, sophomore Tavares Bolden and redshirt freshman Justin Larrick.

All three played well in the spring, so the battle for the No. 1 spot will have to be resumed during the sweltering heat of August two-a-days.

"There's good competition there," said Pinkel. "Dan Cole was the better quarterback throughout the spring. He has the most experience in practice and preparation. I expect Tavares Bolden to keep getting better. Justin Larrick had a good spring as a freshman, his first spring. We'll see what happens. I don't think I have to proclaim a starter there. We like to encourage competition."

Cole is the only one of the three to have played in a college game, having handled mop-up work in four games behind Chris Wallace the past two seasons. He also has benefitted from taking a lot of snaps in practice as the No. 2 QB the past two seasons.

Cole was impressive in the 1999 spring game, hitting on 9-11 passes for 119 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. Bolden was 5-9 for 56 yards, while Larrick was 6-18 for 32 yards.

Tailbacks

A year ago the Rocket offense returned two All-MAC, 1,000-yard rushers-Wasean Tait and Dwayne Harris. So which of the two turned out to be Toledo's best running back? By many accounts, it was neither one. Instead, unheralded Chester Taylor hit the scene with a splash.

Taylor, a junior, was the Rockets' most effective rusher last year. Taylor averaged team bests in yards per carry (5.5) and rushing touchdowns (five), and was second behind Tait with 570 yards on the ground.

Taylor may have some competition in the backfield from junior William Bratton. Bratton looked tough in the '99 spring game, gaining 113 yards on 16 carries.

"Chester Taylor clearly is our starter, but William Bratton is a good young player," said Pinkel. "We'll have to see how he matures. He'll get as much playing time as he earns."

Behind Bratton on the depth chart are talented sophomores Antwon McCray and Michael Sickles.

Receivers

Toledo has always featured tremendous depth in its passing attack, and with a slight change in the offense this season the Rockets may have more aerial targets than ever before.

Pinkel is forgoing a traditional fullback in his offense in favor of an R-Back. The R-Back will occasionally be positioned in front of the tailback, but will more often line up as a inside receiver. So for the majority of plays, Rocket quarterbacks will have four receivers to choose from.

Among the returning receivers are two accomplished players, senior tight end Mike Bilik and junior wide receiver Mel Long. Bilik, a two-time All-MAC pick, was second on the team with 39 receptions last year, while Long had 31 catches and a team-high five touchdowns.

"Mel has caught a lot of balls here as part of a four-man system," said Pinkel. "Now all of a sudden the spotlight is on him. Quite frankly, we have very high expectations for him, and for Mike Bilik and (R-back) Lyle Green. We lost a lot of skilled receivers, but we also have a lot of experienced receivers coming back."

Pinkel is counting on two or more wide receivers to step forward from a corps of talented young players.

"We're going to need young players to play well," Pinkel said. "We'll need the kind of uplifting performance that we got from our defensive line a year ago from our receiving corps this year. Manny Johnson, Jason Freeman and Dontà Greene are three freshmen that had good springs. Jason Turner has been with the program a while and we're expecting him to do well. We also signed our biggest group of receivers ever, so it's possible someone could step forward from that group."

Starting at R-Back will be Green, a junior who caught 10 passes as a fullback in 1998. Backing up Green will be sophomore Jason Spiece, a converted tight end. Backing up Bilik at tight end is 6-7 freshman Greg Grothous.

Offensive Line

Whoever calls the signals for UT this season will have some factors in his favor. Make that nine factors in his favor.

Nine of the 10 players from the 1998 offensive line two-deeps are back this fall, including two-time All-MAC offensive tackle Colin Westrich.

"We have the potential to have a very good offensive line-and we're going to have to be," said Pinkel. "We need a good offensive line because they'll make everything else better. That's a group you tend to look at when things aren't going well. When things are going well you say you've got a good quarterback or running back or receiver. And that doesn't happen without the guys up front. How good they are determines how good a football team you are."

A rash of injuries during spring drills gave Pinkel a chance to take a closer look at the depth on his offensive line. Five of the nine returning offensive linemen missed all or part of spring drills.

Westrich, a sixth-year senior, received an extra year of eligibility due to an injury-redshirt season in 1996. The 6-6, 295-pound Westrich was named first-team All-MAC in 1998 after making second-team All-MAC in 1997.

Joining Westrich at the other tackle position is 6-7, 305-pound junior Jim Harding. Harding has started 24 consecutive games in the past two seasons. Backing up Westrich and Harding at tackle are freshman Noah Swartz and redshirt freshman Archey Godfrey.

The returning guards are Greg Peters, Michael Schaefer and Mike Lenix. Schaefer, a junior, started nine games last year and has played in 24 games overall his Rocket career. Peters started all 12 games at guard last year. Lenix has received two extra redshirt years due to injuries, and is back for his seventh season in a Rocket uniform. Sophomores Matt Comer and Brett Sessions, as well as junior Jeff Ling, could be factors at the guard positions.

The center position is anchored by sophomore Nick Otterbacher, who started nine games in the middle as a freshman. Freshman Chris Tuminello will also be battling for playing time.

Defensive Backfield

The Rocket defensive backfield includes two returning starters, free safety Andy Boyd and cornerback Jameel Turner.

Boyd, a sophomore, has made big strides since joining the program as a walk-on in 1997. Boyd fought his way into the starting lineup as a redshirt freshman in 1998, leading all UT defensive backs with 76 tackles and adding three interceptions. He was named third-team Freshman All-America by the Football News for his efforts. The only thing that stopped Boyd was a bout of mononucleosis, which sidelined him for the MAC Championship Game.

"Andy got better at the free safety position because he became more confident," said Pinkel. "It's kind of like quarterback in that way. The more confidence you have, the more things you can do. He's a very bright guy so we expect a lot from him."

Turner, a senior co-captain, anchored one of the cornerback spots in 1998. He started all 12 games, intercepting one pass and making 66 tackles.

Pinkel will need to fill the hole at the other cornerback spot vacated by Kelly Herndon, a two-year starter who signed with the San Francisco 49ers. Candidates include juniors Marcus Hill and Fabian Burke, and sophomore James Stanley.

Said Pinkel, "Marcus Hill had a great spring, but there's going to be a war there-a lot of competition."

Linebackers

Gone from last year's linebacking corps is the team's leading tackler (Darrick Beckwith) and its inspirational leader (Matt Vaillant). Despite these two losses, Pinkel still feels his linebackers could be the strongest he's ever had at Toledo.

Why the optimism? Start with senior Jason Lamar, a true warrior who established himself as one of the top linebackers in the MAC last season. Lamar was UT's big-play linebacker, finishing with 119 tackles and 12 tackles for loss in 11 games last year, earning first-team All-MAC honors. Pinkel is looking for an encore from his main man in the middle, as well as increased contributions from the entire linebacking corps

"Jason Lamar had a great year last year, but can he do it two years in a row?" said Pinkel. "Kevin Rollins, here's a guy with 4.4 speed playing inside linebacker, so we have a high expectation level for him. And overall we have better depth at linebacker. There will be a lot of competition."

Joining Lamar at the other inside linebacker spot will be Rollins, a junior. Rollins started four games in 1998 and was seventh on the team with 68 tackles. Backups at inside linebacker include junior Fred Schultz and redshirt freshmen David Gardner and Tom Ward.

Starting at the whip linebacker position is senior co-captain Keith Travis, a versatile and experienced veteran. Travis was third on the team with 81 tackles last season, and also tied for the team lead with three interceptions. Senior Antjuan Savage is listed as No. 2 behind Travis at the whip position.

Slated to start at the rover linebacker spot is junior Ira Singleton. Singleton played in 11 games at free safety last season, making 28 tackles.

"We moved Ira to the rover position so we could get him on the field and take advantage of his ability," said Pinkel. "Ira had an excellent spring and we are looking forward to a good season from him."

Listed behind Singleton at rover is sophomore Corey Morris, who was a standout on special teams last year.

Defensive Line

The most pleasant surprise for UT last year was the rapid development of a very young defensive line. Eight freshmen or sophomores played significant roles on a defensive front that helped keep opposing offenses out of the end zone. UT allowed less than four yards per carry on the ground and just 12.6 points per game in regular season MAC games, the best mark in the league.

Pinkel is hoping another year of seasoning will turn the defensive front line, which has no seniors among its ranks, into a dominating force.

"The defensive line improved with every game last year, and we're only losing one key guy, Gregg King," said Pinkel. "If we keep getting better and we'll have a chance to have a very good defensive front line."

Leading the way is junior DeJuan Goulde, a second-team All-MAC pick in 1998. Goulde counted a team-leading six sacks among his 12 tackles for loss last year. Goulde will be joined at the other defensive end spot by junior Rudy Lomberger (23 tackles in 1998) and sophomore Phil Gibson.

The two inside positions on the front line have a handful of capable returners, junior Jon Cunningham and sophomores Sameer Hamood, Jake McLean and Jim Barker. Hamood led all UT defensive linemen with 55 tackles last year, including six tackles for loss.

Special Teams

Pinkel put his faith in a freshman placekicker, Todd France, a year ago and did not regret it. This year he will try his luck with a freshman punter.

John Manly, who last year handled the punting for Shaker Heights (OH) High School, is being counted on to take over the punting chores for the Rockets this fall. Manly comes with an impressive pedigree, earning second-team All-State honors as a senior.

"We'll put him through the wars in practice," Pinkel said. "He's a very talented young man, just like Todd was very talented coming in a year ago."

France came in as a true freshman last year and gave the Rockets a deep kicking threat. France twice nailed 49-yard field goals, and was a perfect 28-28 on extra points. "Todd had an outstanding freshman season. He just needs to become more consistent," said Pinkel.

Pinkel said he will wait until two-a-days in August to determine the kickoff returners and punt returners. "Overall, we need to improve our special teams," he added. "We had a drop-off last year. I was very disappointed in that. We have to make special teams an edge for us again."