FB: Ohio Athletic Conference

[Raider 68]

Returning Players for Mount Union (2015 Year in Parenthesis):

2014 Starters in Bold.

QB: Scott (Sr.), Namdar (Possible Jr.), Peyakov (Jr.)
RB: Mitchell (Jr.), Nemeth (Sr.), Johnson (Soph.)
WR: Scott (Sr.), Namdar (Possible Jr.), Kennedy (Jr.), Gainer-was a starter in 2013 (Sr.), Hargrove (Jr.), Clark (Sr.) Ruth (So.)
OL: Frank (Sr.), Presutti (Sr.), Doraty (Jr.), Jenkins (Jr.), Padrick (Jr.), Baker (Sr.), Vasquez (Jr.), Miller (Jr.)

DL: Lally (Sr.), Alarms (Sr.), Hubble (Jr.), Brown (Jr.), Furda (Sr.)
LB: Gonnell (Sr.), Spencer (Sr.), Beech (So), Luke (Sr.), Deerr (Jr.)
DB: Kocheff (Sr.), Hiteshue (Sr.), Rodriguez (Sr.), Jones (Sr.), Kainrad (Jr.), Brown (So.), Sullins (Jr.)

The Defense should be as good or better than 2014.  The biggest missing link on D is Pogorelc.

The Offense has the task of finding the next great MTU QB (I would guess that Taurice Scott is the front runner).  They also have to replace two Offensive Lineman although Jenkins started a handful of games at LT and LG during the 2014 regular season.

K & J's Dad,

Thanks for your annnual post season outlook for the Raiders. Since Namdar has two years eligliblity, the question will be who
will be the QB next year. I could make a case for both T. Scott and Namdar, but what about Peyakov? With T. Kennedy,Hargrove,
Clark and Ruth, where is the best slot for Scott, Namdar. The coaches have the winter to think about it.
Hopefully there will be several new faces to back up what is a senior lead team for 2015. +K

[Dr. Acula]

I mentioned him before, but don't forget about that Burkes kid at QB.  He played some mop up time this year and I heard the coaches are very high on him too.  It wouldn't surprise me if they start some kid we barely saw.  I remember when Burke started at Franklin as a Soph and I thought "They're starting the kid that just ran it up the middle against Wabash?!"  That kinda worked out...

I think Ruth is going to be a stud WR.  Kennedy is the next Jack Nicholls.  I love the hands he showed.  The speed and punt return ability are huge bonuses.  They can afford to move Namdar or Scott back to QB because they have great depth at WR.

I also liked what I saw from Johnson at RB.  He has some burst.  If Williams comes back healthy they're going to have quite a stable of backs again.  It's going to take a great younger player to break into that group.

Defensively I'm excited to see Furda with another year in the weight room and practicing under his belt at DE.  If he works on his technique he could be scary because he made plays this year.  I also noticed that Stewart played quite a bit in the Stagg Bowl.  He seems to be a good run defender and is pretty big for a DB (6'2" 200+).  Maybe he slides into that Pogorelc position?

[SaintsFAN]

I mentioned him before, but don't forget about that Burkes kid at QB.  He played some mop up time this year and I heard the coaches are very high on him too.  It wouldn't surprise me if they start some kid we barely saw.  I remember when Burke started at Franklin as a Soph and I thought "They're starting the kid that just ran it up the middle against Wabash?!"  That kinda worked out...

I think Ruth is going to be a stud WR.  Kennedy is the next Jack Nicholls.  I love the hands he showed.  The speed and punt return ability are huge bonuses.  They can afford to move Namdar or Scott back to QB because they have great depth at WR.

I also liked what I saw from Johnson at RB.  He has some burst.  If Williams comes back healthy they're going to have quite a stable of backs again.  It's going to take a great younger player to break into that group.

Defensively I'm excited to see Furda with another year in the weight room and practicing under his belt at DE.  If he works on his technique he could be scary because he made plays this year.  I also noticed that Stewart played quite a bit in the Stagg Bowl.  He seems to be a good run defender and is pretty big for a DB (6'2" 200+).  Maybe he slides into that Pogorelc position?

My money is on Namdar to be the QB

[SaintsFAN]

I heard some shocking news this morning. There will be a lot to talk about when it eventually comes out.

So, when is this news coming out?

Maybe he was talking about ISIS or the President's new Immigration Policy??

[HScoach]

I'll be shocked beyond belief if the next QB isn't Roman Namdar.  T Scott, while a great athlete, isn't a great QB prospect.  Too inconsistent with his throws and reads.  Plus he's always been loose with the ball.  Not the kind of player I want making decisions 70+ times a game.

[bceagle80]

I mentioned him before, but don't forget about that Burkes kid at QB.  He played some mop up time this year and I heard the coaches are very high on him too.  It wouldn't surprise me if they start some kid we barely saw.  I remember when Burke started at Franklin as a Soph and I thought "They're starting the kid that just ran it up the middle against Wabash?!"  That kinda worked out...

I think Ruth is going to be a stud WR.  Kennedy is the next Jack Nicholls.  I love the hands he showed.  The speed and punt return ability are huge bonuses.  They can afford to move Namdar or Scott back to QB because they have great depth at WR.

I also liked what I saw from Johnson at RB.  He has some burst.  If Williams comes back healthy they're going to have quite a stable of backs again.  It's going to take a great younger player to break into that group.

Defensively I'm excited to see Furda with another year in the weight room and practicing under his belt at DE.  If he works on his technique he could be scary because he made plays this year.  I also noticed that Stewart played quite a bit in the Stagg Bowl.  He seems to be a good run defender and is pretty big for a DB (6'2" 200+).  Maybe he slides into that Pogorelc position?

My money is on Namdar to be the QB

I agree with what you are saying, good doctor. There are a lot of positives to build on. I will make some comments regarding the upcoming seasons in another post.

Regarding the Stagg Bowl, l also agree with a lot of the assessments already made but I have a few observations. First, I thought the defensive line playef better as the game went on until both Lally and Butler were injured. It then became more challenging. Secondly, Kevin Burke is a talented young man who made some errors in a championship game. It appeared he needs to learn to have a little more "touch" on some his passes. There are professional football QBs who ate still learning this. Do his errors take him out of the discussion about who the best QB's who have played for Mount Union. The answer is no. Congratulations to Kevin the rest of the team on an outstanding season!

[Dr. Acula]

My money is on Namdar to be the QB

I'll be shocked beyond belief if the next QB isn't Roman Namdar.  T Scott, while a great athlete, isn't a great QB prospect.  Too inconsistent with his throws and reads.  Plus he's always been loose with the ball.  Not the kind of player I want making decisions 70+ times a game.

Based only on mop up duty Namdar certainly looked more polished throwing the ball.  He was very accurate.  I don't recall Scott throwing nearly as much as Namdar did during their respective back up action.  I dont know enough about Scott as a passer to agree or disagree with HScoach.  I think the other thing too is that Namdar could move back and start at QB for 2 years.  I like that plan.

[skunks_sidekick]

Namdar will not be the QB (unless very quirky things happen in the Spring/Summer).

Crafty McBeersty does have some insight/connection, but methinks he was dipping into a few two many craft beers when making his wild/Nostrodamas predictions.   

HSC - happy trails my friend.  Great listening to you over the years, and shooting the breeze when we had a chance to talk.

Kevin Burke is the best QB that ever played at Mount.  If he would have been playing against the competition that any/all other QB's at Mount played against, he would be 3-0 as a starter.  Unfortunately, he was playing against the most dominating team in D-3 since 2007.  That has been a complete different deal.

[SaintsFAN]

HSC - happy trails my friend.  Great listening to you over the years, and shooting the breeze when we had a chance to talk.

This.  HScoach took me under his wing, so to speak.  Prior to my first broadcast he made sure I had the player info sheets that him and Ric use in the booth and met with me the night before the game at Wings Warehouse.  Great guy and a great representative of Mount Union -- both he and Ric were excellent ambassadors.  I'm hoping to see a game with these guys -- and it doesn't necessarily need to be a D3 or a Mount game. 


Merry Christmas everyone. 

[pradierguy]

Namdar will not be the QB (unless very quirky things happen in the Spring/Summer).

I agree with this. I've heard he is making a strong push to get on the NFL radar as a WR. He has the speed, but needs to work on his routes and put on some weight. His blocking is decent, as is his hands, but his speed is what sets him apart.

[raiderpa]

I must have missed something...Where is HS Coach going and is Ric going too? 

[02 Warhawk]

I must have missed something...Where is HS Coach going and is Ric going too?

Interview for the UWW job 

[mr_mom]

Mark & Ric, you already know how much I will personally miss you, but much luck in your next pursuits.

All my D3 friends, my best wishes for a Happy Holidays and a safe and prosperous 2015!

[reality check]

So in all seriousness, is this the rumor that desertraider was teasing?  Because that's about the only item of interest to come from that point til now. 

[Desertraider]

Roman will not be the QB. My money is on Scott or Burkes. My reason is that I have not seen another deep threat on the roster aside from Roman. Scott can be replaced by Tim Kennedy. Scott handled more of the underneath stuff and could break one - but Roman was the main deep threat. Unless Mount has another Roman that I can not recall right now - Kennedy will take Scott's spot and Scott will move to QB.

On Kevin Burke - he is the most talented QB Mount has ever had, but I can't put him at the best ever. Sorry - but the 2 Stagg losses hurt him there. The 2 Gagliardi's make him the most talented. I know it was against UWW - the most dominant etc.. - but Mount has had other QBs play against some of the most dominant of that era (Rowan went to how many Staggs and Semis? UWLAX, The Johnnies). None of them measure what UWW has done since 2007 - but those programs were the ones Mount was trying to unseat. So I give the edge to Borchert and even Smeck based on the one thing that Mount fans have said matters more (read the old posts my friends, all Mount fans seem to agree): Championships. If Championships are how we measure the success of a team and a program, and by all the references to "Championships are expected" we do, then the QBs that have delivered the Championships have to be ranked higher. None of the Mount QBs have been as talented as KB - but others have delivered the Walnut and Bronze when put in the position. KB had a stellar career but in 3 Stagg Bowls had 4 TDs and 6 INTs. In the last 2 Staggs: 3 TDs and 6 INTs with 2 pick 6's. You can't be best ever with those numbers, especially when compared to what other Mount QBs did in the Stagg Bowl. Just my take on it.

Happy Holidays to all. Have safe travels and remember to ask Santa for #12.