Football: A Look At The Rockets' First Opponent - Cal Poly
8/7/2002 12:00:00 PM | Football
Written by Cal Poly Sports Information Office.
Aug. 7, 2002
San Luis Obispo, CA - After three consecutive years of three-win seasons, first-year coach Rich Ellerson and his staff brought new life to the Cal Poly football program and quickly turned things around with a 6-5 record in just his first season. Hoping to build on the success and good feeling of last year's winning season, Ellerson sees plenty of room for growth but a light at the end of the tunnel.
Facing one of the most ambitious schedules since the team moved to Division I-AA back in 1994, Cal Poly will have several new faces in camp this fall looking to earn a spot in the starting lineup.
"There is genuine enthusiasm from last year and we as a coaching staff feel like the team has really bonded together," said Ellerson. "This will be a big year to see how far we have come."
The team will welcome back 36 total letterwinners from last year, including 14 starters who have gained valuable experience with a year under their belt playing Ellerson's new style of offense and flex defense. While there will be several veterans back again, the team will certainly be young with another strong group of freshmen in camp this fall for the first time.
DEFENSE
The defense, Ellerson's specialty while coaching at Arizona prior to being named coach at Cal Poly in December 2000, improved greatly last season. Ranked sixth in Division I-AA with a 1.60 turnover margin last season, the Mustangs displayed an aggressive defense that was both hard to run against and caused problems for quarterbacks in the pocket.
In 2001, Cal Poly surpassed the previous season total of 17 sacks with 34 for a loss of 207 yards. In one of the team's best performances of the season, the Mustangs sacked Alcorn State's mobile quarterback Donald Carrie seven times in the road victory. When teams tried to run the ball, they ran into a much quicker defensive unit than from years past. Last fall, Cal Poly allowed just 122.6 yards rushing per game.
The team will lose veterans Kurt Rubin and Brett Baker on defense, but saw a glimpse of the future with the play of freshman linebacker Jordan Beck who moved over from wide receiver during fall preseason practice and proceeded to lead the team with 73 tackles and 2 1/2 sacks. Defensive ends Mike Hayes and Gabe Dal Porto are coming off strong seasons last year and head into spring as the team's top pass rushers along with senior Isaac Dixon, who led the team with 5.5 sacks and intercepted three passes.
"Defensively, we are further along than we had hoped for," added Ellerson. "We lost some guys up front from last year's squad, but we also have a lot of key people back who are familiar with the program and physically ready to contribute."
In the secondary, the loss of Baker will hurt but at the same time, the vacancy will allow several talented redshirt freshmen a chance to battle for playing time. Veterans Vaughn Jarrett and David Richardson will anchor the corners with junior Karl Ivory capable of stepping in and making a big stop. Safety Darik Stollmeyer is one of the hardest hitters of the group and has a great nose for the ball (three interceptions). Richardson, a junior in 2002, will likely match up against opponents' top receivers as a junior this fall.
OFFENSE
While the defense looks to be strong once again this season, the offense will be the area that everyone will eye this fall. Gone are quarterback Seth Burford (drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the seventh round), leading wide receiver Adam Herzing (who signed with the Indianapolis Colts), and leading rusher Ryan Bianchi.
In 2001, the running game struggled to find its feet. With Burford carrying the bulk of the load out of the backfield, the Mustangs will look to establish a more lethal ground attack thanks to the return of speedster Darrell Jones, sophomore Joey Warren, tailback Brandon Shepard, and fullbacks Adam George and Aaron Schafer. Jones had a strong first year in '01 with 388 receiving yards and is the team's most dangerous threat returning punts and kickoffs. He averaged 23.8 yards per kick return, including one for a touchdown against Weber State.
The quarterback position will likely be a battle between redshirt senior Kevin Cooper, who possesses a strong arm and good mobility outside of the pocket, and junior Chris Peterson, who saw action in 10 games last season after transferring from Tulane University. Peterson showed good skill running the option with 247 yards gained but at times proved he could be effective passing the ball with 675 yards passing and seven touchdowns in backing up Burford.
While Ellerson wants to establish a running game, the passing game will be a strong option with Jones and senior Ryan McCarty back. McCarty was second on the team with 37 catches in '01 for 388 yards while Jones averaged 15.4 yards per catch to go with his five touchdowns receiving. Sophomore Jason Holmes has good size (6-2) and perhaps the best hands of the receiving corps. He played in four games last year, catching 12 passes before suffering an injury that sidelined him for the remainder of the year.
"Last year, we revolved the offense around Seth (Burford) and his passing ability," added Ellerson. "At the same time, we were able to identify some things with the offense we feel could be a strength this season. We want to run the football this season and at the same time, take advantage of some of the speed we have with our slot backs and receivers."
SCHEDULE
This year's schedule will feature a pair of Division I-A opponents. It will be the first time in school history Cal Poly has played two Division I-A teams in the same season and the first I-A opponent since 1998 at Nevada. The team will open at Toledo on Thursday, August 29 before returning home to host Northern Arizona at Mustang Stadium on Sept. 7. Following the NAU game, it will be back to the state of Ohio for a game at I-A opponent Kent State University on Sept. 14.
Following the Kent State game, the team will return to the West Coast to face Sacramento State in Sacramento before returning to the friendly confines of Mustang Stadium to host I-AA semifinalist Northern Iowa on Sept. 28.
The Mustangs will face a total of four teams from the Big Sky Conference in 2002. In addition to Northern Arizona and Sacramento State, the Mustangs will travel to Idaho State on Nov. 16 and host Weber State on Nov. 23.
The Mustangs were originally scheduled to host Alcorn State at Mustang Stadium on Nov. 2, but ASU pulled out of its contract with Cal Poly, citing financial reasons. With the loss of Alcorn State, Cal Poly still has five home dates with rival UC Davis on Oct. 26 (Homecoming) and Humboldt State, on Nov. 9.
