DES MOINES, IOWA ? One hundred and ten players are expected to greet new Drake head coach Steve Loney when the Bulldog football team reports to preseason camp this Tuesday (Aug. 7) for physicals.
The team will conduct its first practice Aug. 8. Drake will alternate single and double sessions of practice Aug. 14-22.
The Bulldogs will kick off their 114th season of intercollegiate football Aug. 30 traveling to Illinois State.
Loney was named interim head football coach at Drake June 18 and has been busy assembling a coaching staff while having less than two months to prepare for the season.
"It has been hectic with the staff not being fully in place, while a lot of administrative things have presented challenges but the enthusiasm and support here has been greet," said Loney. "I will be glad when we finally hit the field."
"Fundamentals are always important in preseason camp because you win with fundamentals. The installation of our offense and defense will be less aggressive only because of the new terminology," added Loney.
"We have a short learning curve, so we will work on getting a lot of reps (repetitions) in. We will speed up the installation of our package once we feel the players have a good grasp of the basics."
Junior Derek Retherford (Johnston, Iowa), junior Cole Ingle (Runnels,Iowa/Southeast Polk) and sophomore Ben Ostermann (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) all started at quarterback last year. Retherford started the first five games last season before suffering a torn ligament in his right elbow against Morehead State. Retherford did not participate in spring practice.
Ostermann started at signal caller against Waldorf and Butler before Ingle started the final four games of the season.
The Bulldogs have 13 starters back from last year's squad which posted a 9-2 record, including a 6-1 second-place finish in the Pioneer Football League.
Senior Scott Phaydavong (Des Moines East), a three-time Sports Network I-A Mid-Major first-team All-American who is the school's career rushing leader with 4,702 yards, headlines Drake's offense.
Phaydavong ranked third in the NCAA I-AA in rushing with a school single-season record 1,613 yards for a 146.6 yard per game average. He led the Pioneer Football League in rushing for a third straight year.
Senior tackle Dave Pammer (Frankfort, Ill.), a three-year starter, and two-year starting senior guard Anthony Swope (Chicago, Ill.), are the lone holdovers on the offensive line which must look for three new starters.
The running game will be buoyed by three-year letterwinner Willie Cashmore (Kansas City, Mo.), who earned first-team all-PFL honors at fullback last year along with the return of Michael Bialas (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) who was redshirted last year, after rushing for 413 yards with 11 touchdowns as a sophomore in 2005.
Cashmore earned first-team all-league honors after rushing for a career-high 645 yards while leading the PFL in scoring with a school single-season record 18 touchdowns.
Senior tight end Daniel Marx (Maple Grove, Minn.), who was a 2005 PFL honorable mention selection, and fifth-year senior Travis Hardgraves (Sioux
City, Iowa) will lead a young receiving corps trying to replace four-year starters Shea Moroni and Tyler Putnam.
Key priorities on defense are to fill holes at all three linebacking positions where graduation claimed three-year starters James Adams, Brian
Conway and Nick Ross.
Replacements must be found on the defensive line with the departure of starters Jake Ramos at defensive tackle and Kevin Jennings, a first-team
All-PFL choice at defensive end.
Junior safety Andy Green (Atlantic, Iowa), another 2006 Sports Network NCAA I-AA Mid-Major All-America first-team choice, will lead a secondary which
returns all four starters. Junior safety Jacob Craig (Mount Vernon, Iowa) was named the team's co-defensive player of the year last fall.
Green ranked ninth in the nation in interceptions with five. He also had 52 tackles, including 41 solo hits.
