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GAME NOTES

Staten Island, NY - Wagner opens its 81st season of intercollegiate football with a 1:00 pm Saturday affair at home vs. Northeast Conference (NEC) foe Saint Francis (PA).

The Seahawks are 40-38-2 in lidlifters and are looking to snap a three-game losing streak in season openers after winning their previous six openers. Head coach Walt Hameline, who enters the season with 200 career victories, is 19-9-2 (.600) in season-opening contests.

Wagner is looking for big things in 2011 and will enter the season with a chip on its shoulders after being picked seventh in the NEC preseason poll. Wagner pulled out a 22-14 win in Loretto, PA over the Red Flash last season. The last time these teams met on Grymes Hill, in 2009, the teams engaged in an epic battle with the Seahawks outlasting Saint Francis (PA)  in a 56-48 triple-overtime contest, the first triple-overtime game in school history,

The Green & White, which suffered several close defeats while compiling a 5-6 record, 3-5 in the NEC last year, landed three players on the 2011 NEC Preseason Team in senior wide receiver David Crawford (Carrollton, TX/ Hebron), senior outside linebacker Julian Stanford (Bloomfield, CT/ Bloomfield) and junior placekicker David Lopez (Plantation, FL/ Heritage).

SEASON OUTLOOK

OFFENSE
The Seahawk offense will be under the direction of first-year offensive coordinator Jason Houghtaling, the former longtime Wagner offensive line coach who returns to Grymes Hill after serving one season as the head coach at Hudson Valley Community College.

Houghtaling will have plenty of weapons at his disposal headlined by junior quarterback Nick Doscher (Staten Island, NY/ Moore Catholic) who was an All-NEC First-Team selection as a true freshman in 2009. The former professional baseball player in the Kansas City Royals farm system followed up that season with another good one as a sophomore in 2010 starting all 11 games while completing 149-of-297 passes for 2,074 yards, 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. The 2,074 yards passing ranked second in the NEC as did his 188.5 yards passing per game.

He was also tops on the team and eighth in the NEC in rushing at 61.1 yards per game as he carried the ball 188 times for 672 yards. Doscher accumulated 2,746 yrds of total offense (rushing, passing combined) which computes to 249.6 yards per game ranking second in the NEC and earned NEC Offensive Player of the Week honors for the week of October 4 after accumulating 323 yards of total offense, lifting the Seahawks to a win over Bryant

A preseason knee injury to electric junior running back Dominique Williams (Bridgeton, NJ/ Bridgeton) hampered the Seahawk rushing attack last season and put undue pressure on Doscher to make plays on the ground as well as through the air. Doscher himself played much of last season with a nagging ankle injury. Following off-season surgery, he is looking forward to a healthy 2011.

“I think obviously being an older player and playing at the professional level helps you from a maturity standpoint,” saidHameline. “He's obviously played two years now and is acclimated to what we're expecting of him. I think last year he was put in a situation where he was it. He was a guy who carried the ball a lot for us.

“This year we have Dominique Williams back and we have some other kids we really think can go back there to take the pressure off of Nick and not ask him to do everything,” he added.

One of the top returning running backs in the NEC, Williams was a three-time NEC Rookie of the Week as a freshman in 2009 when he appeared as a starter in eight games. He streaked his way for 642 yards and nine touchdowns on 113 attempts (average of 5.7 yards per carry). Williams rushed for two touchdowns at SUNY-Maritime(9/10), including a 63 yard, season-long scamper and also had a 102 yard, four touchdown performance vs. Saint Francis (PA)(9/26), finishing the season with 919 all purpose yards.

At wide receiver, the tall, rangy Crawford is a big play waiting to happen as his Preseason All-NEC honor would suggest. As a junior in 2010, Crawford, who earned Second-Team All-NEC honors, creates mismatches in the open field with his size, strength, agility and is adept at hauling in passes in jump-ball situations.

Crawford enjoyed a breakout season in 2010, earning team-high honors in receptions (35) and receiving yards (629) while posted an NEC-leading average of 18.0 yards per catch. He snared five passes for a career-high 117 yards at Albany (11/13) and also eclipsed the century mark vs. Bryant with 107 receiving yards on three catches, highlighted by a 57-yard grab. Against Georgetown, Crawford hauled in a career-high nine receptions (for 75 yards) at Georgetown (10/9). For the season, he ranked third in the NEC in receiving yards per game (57.2) and ninth in the conference in receptions per game (3.18).

Wagner also returns another top senior wide receiver in Justin Matthews (Hillside, NJ/ Hillside) who finished third on the team in receptions (30) and receiving yards (450) in 2010 while leading the team with five touchdown receptions. He caught a career-long 88-yard touchdown pass vs. Cornell (9/18) and corralled a career-high seven receptions for 68 yards at Assumption (9/11). Among a host of others in the mix at wide receiver are a pair of reliable, sure-handed receivers in fifth-year senior Sean O'Reilly (Howell, NJ/ Howell) and junior Dan Ford (Staten Island, NY/ St. Peter's).

The battle for the starting spot at tight end was wide open entering preseason camp and sophomore Joe Sidaras (Mastic Beach, NY/ William Floyd), a transfer from Hofstra, emerged as the No. 1 man on the depth chart.

While the Seahawks boast plenty of firepower at the offensive skill positions, it all starts up front where Wagner returns just one starter in junior Steve Ciocci (Royersford, PA/ Spring-Ford), a transfer from Temple, who has two seasons under his belt with Wagner and who will get the nod at right tackle.

Fellow junior Anthony Harper (Syracuse, NY/ Nottingham) has tremendous upside and will start at right guard. Harper saw action in seven games last season, with three starts, including starting assignments in the final two games of the season. Junior Omar Fahnbulleh, (Burtonsville, MD/ Paint Branch), who saw action in eight games last season, has earned the starting assignment at left guard while junior Sean Pearson (Scotch Plains, NJ/ St. Peter's Prep) will start at the all-important left tackle position. Sophomore David Fredrickson (Staten Island, NY/ Poly Prep) is number one on the depth chart at center.

DEFENSE
Defensively, the Seahawks have plenty of talent and first-year defensive coordinator Tony Brinson is the man charged with melding this unit. Brinson arrives at Wagner after three seasons as an assistant at Columbia and will need to replace the top three tacklers from a year ago in safeties Stefen Gage (75 tackles), T.J. Czeski (74 tackles) and linebacker Keith Davis (74 tackles), all of whom graduated. Gage, who earned First-Team All-NEC honors in 2010, is still with the Green & White as he was installed as an assistant coach in charge of cornerbacks in August.

“Defensively, I think we can be as good as anybody in the conference,” Hameline says. “We have size, skill and experience. I really like where we are as a team defensively.”

The headliner at linebacker is quick, athletic Julian Stanford (Bloomfield, CT/ Bloomfield) who earned Second-Team All-NEC honors last season when he was the team's second-leading returning tackler with 64, including 23 solo stops from his outside linebacker post. He wreaked havoc all over the field, leading the team with 12.5 tackles for loss for minus 49 yards and recorded a team-high seven sacks for minus 39 yards. The seven sacks tied for the No. 1 spot in the NEC and his 12.5 tackles for loss ranked fourth in the NEC. He was also credited with a team-high six quarterback hurries.

The leading returning tackler on the team is hard-hitting linebacker Carl-Olivier Prime (Quebec, CA/ Kent School) who is poised for a big junior season following two productive campaigns that saw him combine for 119 tackles. Last year, Prime saw action in all 11 games with 10 starts and, was fourth on the team in tackles with 71 and fifth on the team in tackles for loss with 5.0 for minus 28 yards.

Wagner has another proven veteran at linebacker in senior Dom Gaston (Phillipsburg, NJ/ Bergen Catholic). The speedy Gaston was ninth on the team in tackles last season and is the third-leading returning tackler on the team after coming up with 35 tackles. Others who figure to be in the mix at linebacker include heralded junior college transfers Sidiq Soulemana (Bronx, NY/DeWitt Clinton), Mike Lombardo (Jupiter, FL/ Jupiter), junior Greg Burton (South Plainfield, NJ/ South Plainfield), senior Nick Suppes (Dumont, NJ/ Dumont) and sophomore Jamiel Sims (Matawan, NJ/ Matawan) among others. Both Burton and Sims were slowed by injury during preseason camp.

Leading the defensive line is senior Quintin Anderson (Rochester, NY/ Penfield), an All-NEC candidate at defensive end who totaled 26 tackles last season, including seven solo stops. He also added three quarterback hurries, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and had an interception at Saint Francis (PA) which he returned 30 yards.

Senior defensive tackle Sal Gigante (New Windsor, NY/ Cornwall Central Catholic) and senior defensive end Derrick Forrest (Fort Lauderdale, FL/ Calvery Christian Academy) are a pair of battle-tested veterans who bring size and experience to the Seahawk defensive front. Those expected to provide depth along the defensive line include junior Lawrence Williams (Philadelphia,, PA/ Milford), sophomore Josh Martinez (Cherry Hill, N/ Cherry Hill West) and senior Adams Issaka (Port Reading, NJ/ Woodbridge).

In the secondary, Wagner returns stalwart senior strong safety Jeremiah Brown (Brooklyn, NY/ Grand Street Campus) who had 26 tackles and two pass breakups in 2010. The Seahawk secondary also features a potential playmaker in junior cornerback Torian Phillips (Staten Island, NY/ Port Richmond), a transfer from Syracuse who was a mainstay on offense at running back last season, rushing for 250 yards. Juniors Patrick O'Connor (Leominster, MA/ Leominster) Matthew McGuinness (West Caldwell, NJ/ Caldwell) are in line for starting duties at free safety and cornerback, respectively.

Among the many others in the mix in the deep Wagner defensive backfield are highly-touted Purdue transfer Jarrett Dieudonne (Fort Lauderdale, FL/ Dillard along with sophomore D'Metrius Smith (Prince George, MD / Fork Union).

SPECIAL TEAMS
Wagner returns a dangerous weapon in junior placekicker David Lopez (Plantation, FL/ American Heritage) who was a Second-Team All-NEC choice last season and a Preseason All-NEC selection heading into 2011. Last season, he converted 11-of-17 field goals, highlighted by his connecting on 4-of-6 on field goal attempts of at least 40 yards, while recording six touchbacks.

Lopez was 22-of-26 on PATs en route to leading the team in scoring with 55 points . Lopez was named The Sports Network/Fathead.com FCS National Special Teams Player of the Week for the week ending Oct. 9 after kicking three field goals in the come-from-behind win over Georgetown, including a game-tying and career-long 54-yard boot that forced overtime.

Backing up Lopez will be pair of freshmen in Jarrod Molzon (Lanoka Harbor / Lacey Township) and Bryan Maley (Eagle River, AK / Chugiak). Maley is the first Alaskan native to ever suit up for the Seahawks.

In the punting department, sophomore #A.J. Firestone# (Mercersburg, PA/ Mercersburg Academy), a transfer from Penn St., has gained the starting spot while being backed up by senior Rory Cregan (Woodside, NY/ St. Francis Prep)

The top candidates to for returning kicks are junior Wandy Saintilien (Jr., 5-7, 150), who had a 71-yard touchdown return in the Green & White Game on Aug. 25, along with Phillips while Williams has the inside track on the punt return job.

NEW COACHES
The Wagner coaching staff will feature a new look. In addition to first-year offensive and defensive coordinators in Houghtaling and Brinson, Hameline added two recent college stars to his staff. The aforementioned Gage will coach the cornerbacks, while rounding out the Wagner coaching staff is Jesse Rack, a star tight end and 2009 graduate of Buffalo who will assist the running backs.

SCHEDULE
Wagner's three-game non-conference schedule is highlighted by a week two visit to perennial National Championship contender Richmond on Sept. 1. The Spiders are, year in and year out one of the finest FCS programs in the nation.

“Obviously there's going to be a lot of good football players on the field that night,” said Hameline “The message within our conference is that we want to play the best people we can. From a recruiting standpoint, kids want to play upper level teams. Obviously they're going to be really good and it'll be a great challenge for us. Hopefully being early in the season for both teams we can catch them.”

The Seahawks will also face Ivy League foe Cornell for the second straight season as well as Patriot League member Georgetown at home. A year ago, Wagner hammered Cornell 41-7 on Grymes Hill while the Seahawks outlasted the Hoyas in a memorable 22-16 double-overtime affair in Washington, DC.

Asked for his key to the season, Hameline feels the Seahawks need to cut down on their turnovers in order to find success.

“I think one area we really have to improve is not turning the ball over on the offensive side of the ball,” he said. “Again, I think that was a case where Doscher had the ball in his hands a lot and we asked him to do so many things and that was an area where we really had a downfall. I feel like we were young on the offensive line last year, those guys have grown up and matured in a year. Defensively, like I said, I think we can be as good as anybody in the conference.”