Speed, depth bolster Black Bears’ hopes

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ORONO – The University of Maine football team has worked hard to establish an identity as one of the premier programs in the Atlantic 10 Conference and in the nation.

The Black Bears’ “Pound the Rock” offensive philosophy and its swarming “Black Hole” defense have helped UMaine compile a 27-11 record and earn two trips to the NCAA Division I-AA national quarterfinals in the last three years.

Coming off a 7-5 campaign in 2003, 12th-year coach Jack Cosgrove hopes his Bears can maintain those trademarks while giving opponents more to think about this season, which begins Saturday at Montana.

“I think this is the fastest team that we’ve ever put on the football field at receiver, the backfield and the defensive backfield, and even at the linebacker spot,” Cosgrove said.

The Bears don’t lack for experience and boast at least two quality players at virtually every starting position.

The offense is headlined by two-time 1,000-yard rusher and All-Atlantic 10 first-team selection Marcus Williams. The senior is complemented by standout wide receivers in senior Christian Pereira and juniors Ryan Waller and Kevin McMahan, all-conference senior lineman Mike Leconte of South Portland, and sophomore quarterback Ron Whitcomb, the A-10 Rookie of the Year.

All-league senior strong safety Brandon McGowan, junior linebacker Jermaine Walker, all-conference senior tackle Pat Pa’u and senior end Marcus Walton spearhead the defensive unit.

UMaine has always strived for a tantalizing balance of run and pass, with the emphasis on a physical ground game. Williams has been the workhorse, running for 2,863 yards in the last three seasons.

The 5-foot-10, 236-pounder needs 965 yards to become the Bears’ all-time rushing leader.

“We’re really going to spread things out,” Williams said. “I’m sure we’ll have a nice balance between the run and the pass, but I think you’re going to see a lot more points, a lot more explosive plays.”

Williams runs behind a veteran offensive line led by Leconte, who has moved back to guard with the return of talented junior center Ben Lazarski from a 2003 shoulder injury. Evign Dodge of Berwick, a junior, is back at the other guard spot.

The tackles, junior Ryan Bird and senior Mark Lehner, both have considerable starting experience.

“We feel we’re as athletic as we’ve ever been up front, although maybe not as big,” Cosgrove said. “We think we can be very good with that group.”

Sophomore Ken Henry looks to fill the void at fullback. The other untested position is tight end, where junior Josh Radulski has earned the starting nod.

While UMaine prides itself on using two running backs, the it will implement more single-back sets with four wide receivers this fall.

“We want to become more diverse in the things we’re presenting to the defense,” said associate head coach and offensive coordinator Bobby Wilder. “We’ve expanded our two-back package and we’re more multiple out of our one-back package.”

A more mature and improved Whitcomb (186-for-329, 2,428 yards, 21 TDs) will have the luxury of throwing not only to Waller (53 receptions, 528 yards, 5 TDs last season), Pereira (52-820-10) and McMahan (36-598-5), but the likes of senior Ivi Nwosu, soph Arel Gordon and junior Ron Waller.

“You can say we did a little bit of an overhaul in the spring and I think the objective was not to be so much one-dimensional,” Whitcomb said.

Defensive coordinator Rich Nagy wants the Bears to turn up the heat with a more aggressive, blitzing style of defense than it played last fall while breaking in two inexperienced cornerbacks.

McGowan, who led the team in tackles with 89 as the free safety in 2003, moves back to “Rover,” where he played two years ago. Walker (83 tackles) patrols the middle, flanked by four seasoned cornerbacks.

Seniors Devon Goree and Jarrod Gomes, both of whom missed last season with injuries, are back. They are joined by versatile junior Clinton Brown (44 tackles), sophomore Manauris Arias (40) and senior John Baumgartner (24).

“With the depth that we now have in our secondary, it’s going to allow us to pressure people and really try to dictate the tempo to an offense about how we want to play the game,” Nagy said.

Senior Agean Robinson, who was plagued by an ankle injury a year ago, is the other starter at inside linebacker. The “Whip” strong safety is third-year starter Joan Quezada (42 tackles). Sophomore Daren Stone will start at free safety.

“We certainly have as deep and talented a secondary as I’ve ever seen us have here,” Cosgrove said.

Sophomore Mike DeVito fills one of two holes on the defensive line, where converted linebacker Matt King will man one end. They join mainstays in Pa’u and Walton, along with backup junior end Kurt Bulwith.

“Mike DeVito’s had probably as good a camp as anybody in the program on a consistent basis. We’re excited about him,” Cosgrove said.

The special teams also should be more productive. Senior Mike Mellow is back for his third season as UMaine’s place-kicker and punter, but is being pushed by sophomore transfer Rocco Navarro of Portland.

Kick returners include speedster Gordon, Goree, McMahan and Gomes.