Lehigh University Athletics
Lehigh football to begin spring practice segment Friday
3/20/2014 6:12:00 PM | Football
Release: On eve of spring practice, Coen finalizes Lehigh coaching staff
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – There's a lot of newness surrounding the Lehigh football program as the Mountain Hawks return to the field Friday for the start of their spring practice segment. The Mountain Hawks will take to the field with six new coaches on staff including new coordinators on both sides of the ball. A senior class that posted a 39-9 career record has moved on leaving Lehigh with a program full of talented but unproven players hungry to return to the top of the Patriot League after coming up short the last two seasons.
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"The kids are very excited," explained Lehigh head coach Andy Coen. "We've had kind of a different offseason based on how the calendar fell with the early spring break. The work ethic and results we've seen from our weight training and conditioning program have been good so we're excited about that.
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"I'm excited about our coaching staff," Coen continued. "It's going to have a new look as we've lost some very good coaches both on the full time side and the younger guys. It will be good to see the new leadership emerge. Some of these new coaches with their different styles will be new, but beneficial for our players."
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Coen begins his ninth season with nine returning starters and just two of Lehigh's All-Patriot League selections returning. Lehigh will to the practice fields on Friday for the first of 15 practice sessions, with the second practice taking place Saturday morning. One of the keys for Lehigh in the spring will be the development of the young, unproven but talented players in the Lehigh program.
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"We have some very good players on our team," Coen said. "We're very young in some areas and this spring is going to be vitally important to see the development of these guys, but I'm excited to see this team grow."
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Some of the biggest holes Lehigh will have to fill in the spring are at the offensive skill positions where the Mountain Hawks lose All-American wide receiver Lee Kurfis and tailback Keith Sherman, who was the program's first 1,000 yard rusher in 11 years. Rising senior Josh Parris leads the returning receivers after catching 41 passes for 443 yards and two touchdowns in 2013. Seniors Derek Gaul and Alex Buford and juniors Derek Knott and Stefan Sansone will all be looked upon to play a bigger role and Coen has been impressed by the potential flashed by sophomores Mike Anderson, Trevor Socarras and Jarrod Howard.
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At running back, Lehigh will begin the spring with a three-pronged approach featuring senior Rich Sodeke, junior DJ Kee and sophomore transfer Brandon Yosha, with junior Dan Brown in the mix as well if he can work his way back from injury.
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Quarterback was a position of question for Lehigh last spring but Brandon Bialkowski grabbed the reins and went on to produce an All-Patriot League campaign before suffering an injury in Lehigh's eighth game. The Mountain Hawks have four signal-callers currently on their roster but only two will be healthy enough to contribute at the start of spring ball. Sophomore Nick Shafnisky played in four games as a quarterback with one start as a freshman and will receive plenty of reps this spring along with senior A.J. Visconti. Senior Matt McHale started two games last year and is in the mix as well but McHale will miss Lehigh's spring segment as he recovers from offseason surgery. Senior Gerard Poutier is also working his way back from an injury that sidelined him in 2013.
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"Our quarterback situation this spring will be interesting," Coen said. "Nick did some nice things a year ago but he isn't fully established yet. With McHale out, he and A.J. Visconti are our only two healthy quarterbacks. The good side is they will get a lot of repetitions and will have a lot of time to learn, but we certainly plan on having a quarterback competition in August."
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Lehigh does have strength in numbers at tight end with seniors Tyler Coyle and Dylan Colgate returning and Max Anderson rejoining the program after taking a leave of absence last fall. Junior Chris Ruhl and sophomore Zach Bucklin provide Lehigh a deep and talented unit. Sophomore Kenny Crawford will receive most of the reps at fullback in place of Zach Hayden.
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On the offensive line, Lehigh must replace three starters but the Mountain Hawks do possess one of the top linemen in the league in two-time All-Patriot League performer Ned Daryoush at left tackle. On the other side, Wenner Nunes did well in his first significant action last year and will be in the mix this spring if healthy. Coen is also excited about the prospects of sophomore tackles Micah Tennant and Zach Duffy. On the interior, juniors Terez Owens and Matt Ford are the top returnees, plus Shane Rugg is hoping to earn a fifth year of eligibility to provide depth at guard. Sophomore Brandon Short, Lehigh's offensive scout team MVP last season is in line to replace all-league performer Matt Lippincott at center.
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Defensively, Lehigh returns two starters on the defensive line and three at linebacker. An area of question heading into last season, the linebacker position is now viewed as an area of strength for the Mountain Hawks heading into 2014. Junior Noah Robb successfully transitioned from outside to inside and will work with sophomore Colton Caslow and junior Cody Kondas among others. As a whole Lehigh's linebacking corps was bolstered by strong rookie performances from Caslow and Pierce Ripanti, who played well behind rising senior Isaiah Campbell at the weakside position. On the strong side, Matt Laub came on late in the season but will miss Lehigh's spring segment due to injury. His absence creates opportunity for senior Tashan Mitchell and junior Mat Verdon to emerge into bigger roles on the outside.
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"There was some growth last year," Coen said of his linebackers. "Guys had opportunities to play and will benefit from that. The two freshmen who played could be real dynamic for us and we will have to find ways to get Pierce on the field with Isaiah at the same time. Last year it was a question mark but now it's a position of strength. We're fast and physical at that position and I'm excited about that group."
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Rising senior Tim Newton is Lehigh's other returning All-League performer with 58 tackles and 5.5 sacks in 2013. He leads the returning defensive line group that includes seniors Arturo Gyles and Reed Remington. Juniors Greg Palma, D.J. Bourgeois and Josh Chaisson will also battle for time. Sophomore T.J. Stubbs will also be a factor but he will miss Lehigh's spring segment along with the Mountain Hawks' other two rising sophomore linemen.
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In the secondary, Lehigh will have to replace all four starters but the Mountain Hawks do have players who have seen significant action gunning for a larger role. At cornerback, junior Olivier Rigaud has impressed in offseason workouts and could emerge as a top performer. Sophomore Brandon Leaks showcased his talents in the return game last year but also proved to be a strong cover guy on the scout team. Senior Jason Suggs appears healthy and will be in the mix as well along with junior Randall Lawson.
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At safety, senior Stephen Wilmington and junior LaQuan Lambert have played well on special teams and will see an expanded role along with senior Jamil Robinson and rising sophomores Joe Barrett and Brian Githens.
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Lehigh's special teams will feature a new face at punter in junior Austin Devine, a strong-legged lefty who replaces all-league performer Tim Divers. Ryan Pandy returns as Lehigh's placekicker.
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Turnovers will once again be an area of focus for the Mountain Hawks in the spring. Lehigh did a fairly strong job last season in terms of ball security, but Coen knows that the defense must to a better job creating turnovers if the Mountain Hawks are to be successful in 2014.
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"We were not a bad team turnover-wise from an offensive standpoint especially as much as we threw the ball," Coen said. "What we didn't do well was create turnovers. We had a string of four games where our defense didn't creat a turnover. That's hard to do."
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Coen concluded with his thoughts on some of the goals for Lehigh during its spring segment.
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 "We'll put more of an emphasis on the defense getting turnovers," he said. "We need to find out what our identity is at the quarterback position. We have so many young players who are talented but haven't done it yet. We're going to create as many opportunities as we can for guys to get out there and perform. Hopefully we have a lot of tough decisions to make on who our guys are."
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Lehigh will conclude its 2014 spring season on Saturday, April 19 with the annual Brown and White game inside Goodman Stadium. The event, which will begin at 10 a.m., is free of charge and open to all. This year's Brown and White spring game will be the 14th of 15 allowable practice sessions. The Mountain Hawks will conduct their final workout before August on Monday April 21.
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2014 Lehigh Football Spring Practice Schedule
Friday, March 21 – 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 22 – 10:30 a.m.
Wednesday, March 26 – 4:30 p.m.
Friday, March 28 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 29 – 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 1 – 4:30 p.m.
Friday, April 4 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 5 – 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 8 – 4:30 p.m.
Thursday, April 10 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 12 – 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 15 – 4:30 p.m.
Friday, April 18 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 19 – Brown and White Spring Game, 10 a.m.^
Monday, April 21 – 4:30 p.m.
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^inside Goodman Stadium
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Please note that all practice dates, times and locations are subject to change due to adverse weather conditions and other factors.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. – There's a lot of newness surrounding the Lehigh football program as the Mountain Hawks return to the field Friday for the start of their spring practice segment. The Mountain Hawks will take to the field with six new coaches on staff including new coordinators on both sides of the ball. A senior class that posted a 39-9 career record has moved on leaving Lehigh with a program full of talented but unproven players hungry to return to the top of the Patriot League after coming up short the last two seasons.
Â
"The kids are very excited," explained Lehigh head coach Andy Coen. "We've had kind of a different offseason based on how the calendar fell with the early spring break. The work ethic and results we've seen from our weight training and conditioning program have been good so we're excited about that.
Â
"I'm excited about our coaching staff," Coen continued. "It's going to have a new look as we've lost some very good coaches both on the full time side and the younger guys. It will be good to see the new leadership emerge. Some of these new coaches with their different styles will be new, but beneficial for our players."
Â
Coen begins his ninth season with nine returning starters and just two of Lehigh's All-Patriot League selections returning. Lehigh will to the practice fields on Friday for the first of 15 practice sessions, with the second practice taking place Saturday morning. One of the keys for Lehigh in the spring will be the development of the young, unproven but talented players in the Lehigh program.
Â
"We have some very good players on our team," Coen said. "We're very young in some areas and this spring is going to be vitally important to see the development of these guys, but I'm excited to see this team grow."
Â
Some of the biggest holes Lehigh will have to fill in the spring are at the offensive skill positions where the Mountain Hawks lose All-American wide receiver Lee Kurfis and tailback Keith Sherman, who was the program's first 1,000 yard rusher in 11 years. Rising senior Josh Parris leads the returning receivers after catching 41 passes for 443 yards and two touchdowns in 2013. Seniors Derek Gaul and Alex Buford and juniors Derek Knott and Stefan Sansone will all be looked upon to play a bigger role and Coen has been impressed by the potential flashed by sophomores Mike Anderson, Trevor Socarras and Jarrod Howard.
Â
At running back, Lehigh will begin the spring with a three-pronged approach featuring senior Rich Sodeke, junior DJ Kee and sophomore transfer Brandon Yosha, with junior Dan Brown in the mix as well if he can work his way back from injury.
Â
Quarterback was a position of question for Lehigh last spring but Brandon Bialkowski grabbed the reins and went on to produce an All-Patriot League campaign before suffering an injury in Lehigh's eighth game. The Mountain Hawks have four signal-callers currently on their roster but only two will be healthy enough to contribute at the start of spring ball. Sophomore Nick Shafnisky played in four games as a quarterback with one start as a freshman and will receive plenty of reps this spring along with senior A.J. Visconti. Senior Matt McHale started two games last year and is in the mix as well but McHale will miss Lehigh's spring segment as he recovers from offseason surgery. Senior Gerard Poutier is also working his way back from an injury that sidelined him in 2013.
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"Our quarterback situation this spring will be interesting," Coen said. "Nick did some nice things a year ago but he isn't fully established yet. With McHale out, he and A.J. Visconti are our only two healthy quarterbacks. The good side is they will get a lot of repetitions and will have a lot of time to learn, but we certainly plan on having a quarterback competition in August."
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Lehigh does have strength in numbers at tight end with seniors Tyler Coyle and Dylan Colgate returning and Max Anderson rejoining the program after taking a leave of absence last fall. Junior Chris Ruhl and sophomore Zach Bucklin provide Lehigh a deep and talented unit. Sophomore Kenny Crawford will receive most of the reps at fullback in place of Zach Hayden.
Â
On the offensive line, Lehigh must replace three starters but the Mountain Hawks do possess one of the top linemen in the league in two-time All-Patriot League performer Ned Daryoush at left tackle. On the other side, Wenner Nunes did well in his first significant action last year and will be in the mix this spring if healthy. Coen is also excited about the prospects of sophomore tackles Micah Tennant and Zach Duffy. On the interior, juniors Terez Owens and Matt Ford are the top returnees, plus Shane Rugg is hoping to earn a fifth year of eligibility to provide depth at guard. Sophomore Brandon Short, Lehigh's offensive scout team MVP last season is in line to replace all-league performer Matt Lippincott at center.
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Defensively, Lehigh returns two starters on the defensive line and three at linebacker. An area of question heading into last season, the linebacker position is now viewed as an area of strength for the Mountain Hawks heading into 2014. Junior Noah Robb successfully transitioned from outside to inside and will work with sophomore Colton Caslow and junior Cody Kondas among others. As a whole Lehigh's linebacking corps was bolstered by strong rookie performances from Caslow and Pierce Ripanti, who played well behind rising senior Isaiah Campbell at the weakside position. On the strong side, Matt Laub came on late in the season but will miss Lehigh's spring segment due to injury. His absence creates opportunity for senior Tashan Mitchell and junior Mat Verdon to emerge into bigger roles on the outside.
Â
"There was some growth last year," Coen said of his linebackers. "Guys had opportunities to play and will benefit from that. The two freshmen who played could be real dynamic for us and we will have to find ways to get Pierce on the field with Isaiah at the same time. Last year it was a question mark but now it's a position of strength. We're fast and physical at that position and I'm excited about that group."
Â
Rising senior Tim Newton is Lehigh's other returning All-League performer with 58 tackles and 5.5 sacks in 2013. He leads the returning defensive line group that includes seniors Arturo Gyles and Reed Remington. Juniors Greg Palma, D.J. Bourgeois and Josh Chaisson will also battle for time. Sophomore T.J. Stubbs will also be a factor but he will miss Lehigh's spring segment along with the Mountain Hawks' other two rising sophomore linemen.
Â
In the secondary, Lehigh will have to replace all four starters but the Mountain Hawks do have players who have seen significant action gunning for a larger role. At cornerback, junior Olivier Rigaud has impressed in offseason workouts and could emerge as a top performer. Sophomore Brandon Leaks showcased his talents in the return game last year but also proved to be a strong cover guy on the scout team. Senior Jason Suggs appears healthy and will be in the mix as well along with junior Randall Lawson.
Â
At safety, senior Stephen Wilmington and junior LaQuan Lambert have played well on special teams and will see an expanded role along with senior Jamil Robinson and rising sophomores Joe Barrett and Brian Githens.
Â
Lehigh's special teams will feature a new face at punter in junior Austin Devine, a strong-legged lefty who replaces all-league performer Tim Divers. Ryan Pandy returns as Lehigh's placekicker.
Â
Turnovers will once again be an area of focus for the Mountain Hawks in the spring. Lehigh did a fairly strong job last season in terms of ball security, but Coen knows that the defense must to a better job creating turnovers if the Mountain Hawks are to be successful in 2014.
Â
"We were not a bad team turnover-wise from an offensive standpoint especially as much as we threw the ball," Coen said. "What we didn't do well was create turnovers. We had a string of four games where our defense didn't creat a turnover. That's hard to do."
Â
Coen concluded with his thoughts on some of the goals for Lehigh during its spring segment.
Â
 "We'll put more of an emphasis on the defense getting turnovers," he said. "We need to find out what our identity is at the quarterback position. We have so many young players who are talented but haven't done it yet. We're going to create as many opportunities as we can for guys to get out there and perform. Hopefully we have a lot of tough decisions to make on who our guys are."
Â
Lehigh will conclude its 2014 spring season on Saturday, April 19 with the annual Brown and White game inside Goodman Stadium. The event, which will begin at 10 a.m., is free of charge and open to all. This year's Brown and White spring game will be the 14th of 15 allowable practice sessions. The Mountain Hawks will conduct their final workout before August on Monday April 21.
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2014 Lehigh Football Spring Practice Schedule
Friday, March 21 – 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 22 – 10:30 a.m.
Wednesday, March 26 – 4:30 p.m.
Friday, March 28 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 29 – 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 1 – 4:30 p.m.
Friday, April 4 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 5 – 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 8 – 4:30 p.m.
Thursday, April 10 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 12 – 10:30 a.m.
Tuesday, April 15 – 4:30 p.m.
Friday, April 18 – 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 19 – Brown and White Spring Game, 10 a.m.^
Monday, April 21 – 4:30 p.m.
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^inside Goodman Stadium
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Please note that all practice dates, times and locations are subject to change due to adverse weather conditions and other factors.
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