Aug. 7, 2006

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - It's the start of a new era for the Western Washington University football team.

The Vikings, who were 4-6 last year, enter the 2006 season with a new coach - Robin Ross - and in a new league - the North Central Conference, long considered one of the power conferences of NCAA Division II.

Neither are completely unfamiliar. Western has faced at least one NCC opponent in each of the last four seasons. And Ross, who has spent much of the last 30 years as an NCAA Division I-A assistant, most recently at Oregon State, was the Western defensive coordinator in 1994 and 1995, helping the Vikings be one of the top defensive teams in the NAIA.

There's a solid core of returnees - 13 starters are back among 36 letter winners, led on offense by senior quarterback James Monrean (Bellingham/Sehome), who ranked 28th in total offense in NCAA II at 252.7 yards a game, and on defense by junior linebacker Shane Simmons (Kent/Kentlake), who had 66 tackles, with team-highs of 8.5 for loss and five sacks, and also added four forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries, and an interception.

"The first thing I told the team when I took the job was that we are going to be the best team we can be," said Ross. "We'll find out how good that is as the season goes on. We want to continue to improve as the season progresses."

Ross said there were three specific areas the Vikings need to show improvement.

"The first is that we can't turn the ball over - and we need to get more turnovers forced, too, that was a glaring weakness last year. Second, we need to make great improvements on special teams. Third, we need to improve defensively, in particular, we have to stop the run."

Those improvements will have to come while facing a tough schedule that includes four 2005 NCAA II national playoff teams in a four-game stretch of September. The positive side is three of those games are at home.

"It's one of the toughest schedules in the country, and we're doing it with a young team," Ross said. "But having six games at home will help (as well as playing host to fourth annual Battle in Seattle for the Cascade Cup). The team wore out last year from being on the road so much."

Here's a position-by-position look at the Vikings:

OFFENSE

Western ranked 36th nationally in total offense at 401.7 yards a game and 25th in passing offense at 251.7 yards a contest. Many elements of the offense will remain similar.

"We want to be multiple in personnel and formations, and we want to be balanced run and pass," Ross said. "We have to run the ball, but we don't want to be one-dimensional, that's a lot easier to defend."

LINE: Two starters return on the offensive line, led by senior tackle Brandon Torrey (Graham/Bethel), a unanimous first-team all-Great Northwest Athletic Conference pick last season. The other returning starter is senior guard Peter Van Datta (Bremerton/Central Kitsap).

The only other returning letter winners on the line are sophomore tackle Dale Moore (Vancouver/Evergreen) and sophomore guard Phil Hayes (Renton/O'Dea). Moore will battle with sophomore Chris Corey (Federal Way/Decatur) for a starting tackle spot. Sophomore Dan Trask (Aberdeen) enters the fall as the starting center, and redshirt freshman Chris Miller (Everett/Mariner) has the inside track for the other guard slot.

Additional depth comes from redshirt freshman Scott Allanson (Everett/Jackson), and Shea Thorstad (Stanwood), a transfer from Adams State.

QUARTERBACK: Monrean, earned second-team all-GNAC honors last year, throwing for 2,322 yards, the sixth highest total in school history, and 19 touchdowns, while completing 195-of-317 attempts.

"James has a good feel for what we're doing," said Ross. "He knows he doesn't have to make every play, he just needs to make good decisions and put the ball where it needs to be. In the spring, he only threw one interception."

Three players are battling for the backup spot - junior A.J. Porter (SeaTac/Kennedy), sophomore Adam Perry (Longview/R.A. Long), and sophomore Tony Gardiner (Bothell). Porter, who injured his shoulder during the off season, threw for 187 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions in a backup role last season.

RUNNING BACK: None of the backs on the Western roster had a carry last season, but there is one experienced back in junior Jon Williams (Redmond), who rushed for 202 yards and two scores in 2004, including a 142-yard performance in one game.

Junior Calvin McCarty (Surrey, BC/St. Thomas More) lettered at Boise State in 2004, then rushed for 620 yards and had 500 more receiving last year for Reedley JC in California.

True freshman Craig Garner (Tacoma/Lakes) ran for 1,719 yards and 24 touchdowns as a high school senior, and is probably the fastest runner of the group. Redshirt freshman Tyler Roberts (Friday Harbor) could also see time.

Western is likely to make far greater use of a fullback this season. Redshirt freshman Matt Clark (College Station, TX/Texas A&M Consolidated), who transferred from the Air Force Academy last fall, is No.1 at that spot.

TIGHT END: Sophomore Logan Cullen (Anacortes) emerged out of spring ball as the No.1 tight end. Solid as both a blocker and receiver, he had two catches in 2005. Junior Ben Shelton (Tacoma/Lincoln) also lettered last year.

A newcomer is senior Tyler Birkley (Modesto, CA/Highland KY), a transfer from UC Davis.

RECEIVER: This is perhaps the deepest position anywhere on the team, with a load of experienced players returning. Junior Brett Upchurch (Sammamish/Eastlake) led Western in receiving last season, making 45 catches for 620 yards and four touchdowns. Senior Matt Wilson (Auburn) started nine games last season, having 24 receptions for 306 yards and three scores.

Junior slot receiver Chris Robinson (Lakewood/Clover Park) was limited to four games last year because of hamstring problems, but still managed 16 receptions. He was brilliant as a freshman in 2004, making 40 grabs for 432 yards and three touchdowns and earning GNAC Offensive Freshman of the Year honors.

Junior Casey Dell (Moxee/East Valley) had 16 catches for 190 yards and three scores last season, and there's also high hopes for 6-foot-5 sophomore Travis McKee (Bothell), the leading receiver in the spring game.

DEFENSE

Western ranked 122 of 144 teams in NCAA II in total defense last year, allowing 417.1 yards a game. Ross has made stopping the run a priority.

"You make it tough for the offense to control the game when they can't run," said Ross. "If people can't run on you, you'll always have a chance to get the ball back."

Ross is also looking to get more speed on the field in his 4-3 system, so some former linebackers are now at defensive end, and former safeties have moved to outside linebacker.

LINE: Sophomore tackle Junior Aumavae (Palmer, AK) was a first-team all-GNAC pick last season. He started eight of 10 games, making 24 tackles, including two for loss. There is good depth at tackle, with senior Ryan Lucas (Vancouver, BC/North Delta), who had seven stops and made three starts, and 25-year old sophomore Joe Samuels (Palmer, AK), who saw action in seven games.

At end, junior Ryan Conwell (Kent/Kentwood) missed much of last year with injuries, but still had three tackles for loss in four games. In 2004, he had 14 stops, four of them for loss.

Senior Matt Overton (Tracy, CA), who started four of the last five games last year, and had 14 tackles, including three for loss, on the season, is the leading candidate at the other end.

A number of former linebackers could also figure at end. Junior Brandon Elliott (Auburn/Fife) has made six starts over the last two seasons and had 25 tackles in 2005; and redshirt freshman William Jackson (Seattle/O'Dea) was the Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year.

LINEBACKER: In Simmons, the Vikings have a true impact player who ranked ninth nationally in fumbles forced. He played outside last year, but has been moved to middle linebacker for this season.

"He has good size, and he runs well," Ross said of Simmons. "He gives us a guy who can run sideline-to-sideline, and by playing in the middle, he can be involved in more plays."

Returning at strong-side linebacker are junior Taylor Wade (Mukilteo/Kamiak), who has worked his way up from being a walk-on to contending for a starting spot, and junior Tieba Bropleh (Bremerton), a two-year letter winner who had 26 stops in 2004.

At the other outside spot, junior James Day (Vancouver/Mountain View), who lettered at safety the last two years, and sophomore Nick Warren (Bellevue) are the leading candidates.

SECONDARY: This is one of the most experienced areas of the squad. Sophomore strong safety Steve Davis (Kennewick/Kamiakin) had a team-high 73 tackles while making nine starts as a redshirt freshman, and added an interception and a forced fumble. Back at free safety is senior Todd McClellan (Lacey/Timberline), who has started the last 19 games over two seasons, and last year had 60 tackles, including four for loss, four pass breakups, an interception and a forced fumble. They'll be pushed for time by junior Mike Schmit (Vancouver/Columbia River) and redshirt freshman C.J. Green (Federal Way), who moves over from cornerback.

On the corner, senior Kevin Jones (Seattle/Kentwood) started eight games last year despite playing the entire season with a broken thumb, and had a team-best seven pass breakups, plus one interception.

Sophomore Maurice Jones (Tacoma/Spanaway Lake) enters camp with the inside track on the other starting corner spot, but there's also experience in junior Ocie Moore (Seattle/Kent-Meridian) and sophomore Anthony Rosso (Walla Walla), both of whom have started in the past. Another possibility is true freshman Anthony Zackery (Spokane/Ferris), a Seattle Times White Chip pick who has run a 10.7 100 meters.

SPECIAL TEAMS

The kicking units figure to get a big boost from the addition of sophomore Robby Smith (Bellingham), who hit 17-of-22 field goals and 36-of-37 extra points, and had 85 percent of his kickoffs go for touchbacks while at Ventura JC (Calif.) last year.

Sophomore Ace Younggren (Snohomish), who connected on 1-of-4 field goals and 29-of-33 extra points last season, also returns.

At punter, junior Corbin Anderson (Veradale/University) and redshirt freshman Josh Lider (Bellevue/Sammamish) will battle for the job. Anderson averaged 34.8 yards a punt last year, putting 16 kicks inside the 20.

Overton returns as the long-snapper, and Porter is back as the placement holder. The return game could be bolstered by the influx of speed from newcomers like Garner, McCarty and freshman wide receiver Cody Oakes (Bremerton/Central Kitsap).