ELMHURST, Ill. - After posting back-to-back years in the top half of the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) standings, the Elmhurst College football team is poised to climb even higher in 2012.

“Overall, we had a good year in 2011,” said Elmhurst head coach Tim Lester. “We had an experienced offense and seven new starters on defense last season. This year, we're bringing back a wealth of experience on both sides of the ball.”
Lester's 2012 squad features 20 returning seniors. The Bluejays also return eight starters on both offense and defense.

“We have a ton of players coming back who have game experience,” said Lester. “Having an experienced group of seniors on the field should provide us with a big boost. Having seniors on the field doesn't make your team perfect, but it certainly helps you in high-pressure and critical game situations.”
 
OFFENSE
After averaging 389 yards and 28.3 points per game in 2010, Lester's offense averaged a staggering 454.6 yards and 34.1 points per game last season.

Senior quarterback Joe Furco returns to his starting role after starting the last 26 consecutive games for the Bluejays. In the past two seasons, Furco has passed for over 4,500 yards and tossed 40 touchdowns for the Bluejays. Senior Jake Lincoln and sophomore Joe Camiliere will compete for the primary back-up position while four incoming freshmen give the Bluejays added depth as they learn Elmhurst's offense.

“Joe became our starter during his freshman year and hasn't really looked back,” said Lester. “He has a great knowledge of the game and his ability to read defenses and make adjustments at the line is a huge asset.”

After breaking his own single-season rushing record with 1,374 yards in 2011, senior running back Scottie Williams returns to lead the Bluejays in the backfield. An all-conference and all-region pick last season, Williams needs just 405 yards to become Elmhurst's all-time leading rusher.  Junior Andrew Tubek will spell Williams in the backfield after averaging 6.0 yards per carry and scoring six touchdowns in 2011.

“Scottie continues to be a workhorse for us on the ground,” said Lester. “He's continued to get stronger and faster and has been studying film non-stop. Despite the record-breaking year he had in 2011, I believe he can be even better this year. Andrew is a great complement to Scottie in the backfield. He has great speed and we don't miss a beat when he's on the field.”

If there's one area of the offense, that has a question mark, it's at wide receiver, where the Bluejays lost three of their top five targets from last season. Senior Corey Thonn, junior Chase Hamby and sophomore Nick Kutscher return the most experience to the squad. Thonn started for the Bluejays last season before missing the second half of the season with an injury. Lester expects transfer Jeff Diegel to also make a push for playing time.

“We may have had some losses at wide receiver, but I'm confident with the group of players we have,” said Lester. “Chase, Corey and Nick are three very reliable targets.”

Despite losing all-conference tight end Griffin Gibson to graduation, Lester believes the Bluejays' tight ends will continue to make significant contributions in the passing game. Junior Vince Gabrys finished third on the team with 22 receptions last year. Senior Ryan Maguire is moving from linebacker to tight end and sophomores Will Kaspers and Tom Lindal are expected to contribute after strong junior varsity performances in 2011.

“Vince had a great season for us last year and I believe he has the potential to be an all-conference player,” said Lester. “Ryan was a starting linebacker for us last season but we thought he may be able to have more of an impact as a tight end and he unselfishly agreed to make the switch. Will and Tom had great junior varsity seasons and are ready to contribute for us in 2012.”

Lester believes one of the strengths of the offense will be the offensive line. The Bluejays return four returning starters with a combined 89 starts among them. All-conference and all-region pick Peter Stamos returns at right guard while Adam Smith closes off the right side at tackle. Senior Chris Kirkpatrick is back for his third year at center while all-conference senior Charlie Homoky will anchor the Bluejays at left tackle. Lester expects junior Archer Winberg and sophomore Adam Connors to compete for the opening at left guard.

“I can't begin to explain how fortunate we are to have this much experience returning for us on the offensive line,” said Lester. “They have helped us put up monster numbers in the past, and we're looking for them to be even stronger this season. We also feel that we have a ton of depth with our young sophomore linemen who could step in and contribute if called upon.”
 
DEFENSE
After starting seven new faces in 2011, the Bluejays return eight starters in 2012 and believe they have the depth needed to be successful.

“The depth and versatility of our defense should be a key,” said defensive coordinator Joe Adam. “We have a lot of players who can help us on the field in different positions.”

The versatility of the Elmhurst defenders was on display last season when Charlie Roberts and Dan Vicari made the transition from linebacker to defensive ends. Both players return to anchor the Bluejays in the trenches. Sophomore Brandon Grant saw action in the middle of the line and transfer Adam Lalley could also contribute immediately for the Bluejays.

“Dan and Charlie showed real promise at defensive end last season,” said Adam. “They were basically moved into the position without a lot of time to prepare. Now that they've had a full season of playing with their hands on the ground, I expect them to be even stronger this year.”

The Bluejays have no shortage of depth at linebacker with upperclassmen battling for the majority of the playing time. Senior Wayne Tuckson is expected to lock up one of the starting spots at outside linebacker after leading the team in tackles (93) and earning all-conference recognition in 2011. Seniors Tyler DeMus and Brian Bonds along with junior George DeMaria and sophomore transfer Anthony Beltrano are expected to compete for the remaining starting roles.

The Bluejays said goodbye to four-time all-conference selection Jon Janus at safety, but Adam believes he has plenty of experience to choose from in Elmhurst's system that utilizes three safeties. Seniors Ryan Johnson and Ryan Szymonik along with juniors Alvin Chackungal and Alex Giles all have starting experience at safety. Sophomore Stephen Ritter also figures to factor in the battle for playing time.

“We have no shortage of options at safety,” said Adam. “It's certainly hard to replace a player like Jon Janus, but having four players with starting experience is certainly a good thing to have.”

The Bluejays return both starting cornerbacks from 2011 in senior Jamall Lane and junior Mark Evangelista. Lane finished with 53 tackles and a pair of interceptions while Evangelista recorded 31 stops and a pick. Sophomore Marvin Carr is also expected to push for playing time at cornerback after battling injuries in 2011.

“Jamall is a four-year starter and is coming off his best spring season,” said Adam. “He was an all-conference selection in 2010 and I believe he can play to that level again this season.”

Overall, Adam believes there will be a noticeable improvement in the Bluejays' defense in 2012. “We have to continue to play our best football and let the game come to us,” he said. “I believe that there will be an improvement in our defensive statistics as we work on our goal of moving from a middle of the pack defense to a top tier defense.”
 
SPECIAL TEAMS
One area that Lester expects to see an improvement in is the kicking game. The Bluejays will open camp with a wide open competition between senior Sean Sullivan and newcomers David Tomis, Mike Leiva, and Brett Bayer.

“We have some very talented kickers on our squad and I think we'll see some marked improvements in our kicking game,” said Lester. “I expect that we'll have a longer range in our field goal kicking and that our touchbacks should be going up on kickoffs.”

Overall, Lester believes that the Bluejays have the experience and the talent to compete in the upper tier of the CCIW.

“The key to moving up in this league is playing to your highest potential with sustained consistency. Having strong leadership and maturity will help bring out the consistency. In my four years here, we've moved from the lower half of the league standings to the top half of the league standings. I believe that we can continue to climb up in the standings. The question is how big of a step can we make?” 

Elmhurst opens the 2012 season by traveling to Loras College on Saturday, September 1.