Yahoo! Sports Inside Slant
The biggest surprise coming out of the spring at
ULM was at quarterback, where redshirt freshman
Advertisement
Kolton Browning wound up No. 1 on the depth
chart ahead of returning starter Trey Revell.
"This is pretty much a quarterback-driven
offense, and it puts a tremendous amount of
pressure on those guys intellectually in what we
are asking the quarterback to do in relation to
what they have done in the past," said coach
Todd Berry, who brought his spread philosophy
from UNLV when was named in December to replace
Charlie Weatherbie.
"I have coached quarterbacks in the past, and
I know this group will come around. They have
made huge strides mentally, and we have to
continue to close that gap mentally, because
most of our mistakes are not physical. They are
mental."
Revell completing 57.6 percent of his passes in
throwing for 1,739 yards despite missing two
games with injuries. He also netted 354 rushing
yards, second-most on the team.
He is one of six returning starters on
offense for the Warhawks, who are coming off a
6-6 season (5-3 Sun Belt).
Among them are running back Frank Goodin, who
rushed for 1,126 yards last season. The top
receiver returning is junior Luther Ambrose, who
had 34 catches for 455 yards in 2009.
While
the situation on offense is promising, the
Warhawks have some rebuilding to do on a defense
that ranked second in the Sun Belt, holding foes
to 347 yards a game. They welcome back only four defensive
starters, but Berry has confidence in the unit.
"When everybody is out there, I think this
defense will be very good," he said. "It is a
fast defense, and they are comfortable within
the scheme."
NOTES, QUOTES
• The Warhawks are hoping for a
repeat season from senior RB
Frank Goodin. He became the 10th player to
top the 1,000-yard rushing mark for ULM when he
totaled 1,126 yards last season. His 93.8
average per game ranked third in the Sun Belt,
and his 13 rushing touchdowns were one shy of
the school record.
• The Warhawks may return only four
defensive starters, but two of them could
contend for all-conference honors. Senior LB
Theo Smith finished sixth on the team in
tackles (57) and had an interception in his
first year as a starter in 2009. Junior DE
Troy Evans was fifth in the conference in
sacks with 6.5.
Spring Movers
QB
Kolton Browning-Browning figured to be
competing for a backup role behind returning
starter
Trey Revell when the spring began, but the
redshirt freshman emerged as the No. 1 guy
heading into fall camp.
C
Ryan McCaul-The junior college prospect who
transferred at midterm established himself as
the starter in the middle of the offensive line.
His play eases coaches' concerns about the
position heading into the season.
RG
Andrew Stout-Stout is the only senior among
the interior linemen and can play center as well
as guard. He is listed No. 1 on the depth chart
after playing a reserve role the last three
years.
DE
Ken Dorsey-After playing a backup role the
last two years, Dorsey moved into the spot
occupied by all-Sun Belt performer Aaron Morgan,
who had nine sacks last year.
Quote To Note:
"You could throw them
in a sack and pick one out and
you would be OK."
-Coach Todd Berry, on the situation at
quarterback with senior Trey Revell, redshirt
freshman Kolton Browning, and sophomore Cody
Wells.
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
2010 Outlook: The Warhawks look to
press the issue offensively, but improving on
last year's 5-3 conference finish could be
settled by the defense. They face two SEC
opponents in their first four games against
Arkansas and Auburn and later play a third when
they travel to LSU in November.
Scouting The Offense: First-year
coach Todd Berry has had success putting out
productive offenses, including a stint as
offensive coordinator at ULM back in 2004-05. He
already has shaken things up by naming redshirt
freshman QB Kolton Browning No. 1 ahead of
incumbent starter Trey Revell. The Warhawks
return a 1,000-yard rusher in RB Frank Goodin,
but will be looking for receiving help. ULM is
hoping newcomers provide depth up front.
Scouting The Defense: Personnel
losses on defense include first-team all-Sun
Belt performers DE Aaron Morgan, LB Cardia
Jackson, and FS Greg James and second-teamer
James Truxillo. Junior DE Troy Evans had six
sacks among his 32 stops in returning at the end
on the other side of Morgan. The other returning
starters are LB Theo Smith, CB
Nate Brown (two interceptions), and SS
Darius Prelow. Prelow had 62 tackles and
broke up a dozen passes.
Scouting The Special Teams: Junior
PK
Radi Jabour was only 12-of-20 on field goals
last season but had an encouraging spring.
Redshirt freshman
Thomas Giddens will take over punting
duties.
Luther Ambrose averaged nearly 22 yards on
38 kickoff returns last year, but the Warhawks
are looking to a redshirt freshman,
Tavarese Maye, to run back punts.
Roster Report:
• LG
Jonathan Gill had offseason shoulder surgery
that cost him time in the spring, but the
sophomore still is listed No. 1 on the depth
chart ahead of junior college transfer
• LT
Justin Roberts has moved from the right
side, where he was a starter as a sophomore last
season.