Hunter looking for another overseas opportunity
August 14, 2014Nicholls, LSU and Saints prime for big-time success
August 21, 2014
Heading into the 2014 season, the Nicholls football team has a simple goal in mind: Finish.
For as pleasant as the Colonels’ 4-2 start to last season was, the team ended the year by losing its final six games to finish 4-8. Along the way, they lost players due to injury and were victimized by a defense that was statistically one of the worst units in the Southland Conference.
But with each new season comes new hope and what the Colonels are hoping for is to record their first winning season since 2007. Nicholls head coach Charlie Stubbs, now entering his fifth season as the head coach of the program, says the team simply must learn how to close out games.
“We were in games at the end, even sometimes when we were outmanned, but we didn’t make the plays,” Stubbs recalled of last season. “So the thing this year is, we want to finish everything we do.”
To that end, the Colonels have spent a good amount of time in practice working on two-minute offensive and defensive situations. Stubbs said he envisions this being a year of many tight games.
“I told them point blank we’re going to have a lot of close games this year, and it’s going to come down to those kinds of things,” he said. “It’s going to be, can our defense stop them? And for our offense, can we drive down there and score that last touchdown to win it or kick that field goal to win it?”
OFFENSE
On offense, the Colonels feel they have as much talent as anyone in the conference.
At quarterback, Nicholls has three signal-callers who all garnered playing time last year in Tuskani Figaro, Kalen Henderson and Beaux Hebert, plus a fourth quarterback in Dash Duncan. Each have their own strengths with Figaro being the most mobile of the three quarterbacks. Hebert is a traditional pocket passer, and Henderson has shown the ability to use both his feet and his arm. Duncan saw only limited playing time in one game last year – Nicholls’ Week 3 loss at Louisiana-Lafayette.
While all four saw work in the Colonels’ two scrimmages this month, Stubbs said last week that he hadn’t yet decided on a starter. He doesn’t picture two or more quarterbacks splitting playing time going forward (as was the case at times last season), he said.
Running back is another position that had been up for grabs in camp. The leader coming into the season appears to be junior Michael Henry, a Baton Rouge native who came on strong toward the end of last season (5.4 YPC average) even as injuries besieged the Colonels at tailback.
Other names to keep an eye on at tailback are juniors Reggie Wilson and Tobias Lofton. Wilson made three starts at tailback last season and rushed for 83 yards on 23 carries and also had 16 catches for 127 yards, while Lofton arrived at Nicholls over the off-season after spending the past two seasons at the JUCO level.
“All in all, I feel like we’ve got a very good group,” Stubbs said. “We’ve just got to develop complete backs. We don’t have a Jesse Turner or a Marcus Washington right now, but we have guys that are very capable. I feel like it will be a good group. They just need a lot more reps and experience.”
At receiver, the Colonels have plenty of returnees, notably senior Demon Bolt, a local product from Thibodaux High who has struggled with injuries in each of the past two seasons. Juniors Darryl Watson, Xavier Marcus, and Terry Lucas also return to the receiving corps after seeing playing time a year ago.
Senior Nick Scelfo returns to lead the Colonels at tight end, while up front on the offensive line, Rafe Plaisance, Brandon Holmes and Caleb Cline combine to form the interior three, with Chris Bordelon and most likely Ryan Zeller starting at the tackle positions.
DEFENSE
On the defensive side, Nicholls is looking for marked improvement this season after allowing 50 or more points in four of their seven conference games a year ago.
This season will mark the first under defensive coordinator Steve Adams, who was promoted after serving as safeties coach and special teams coordinator for the team last year.
According to Stubbs, the biggest thing he wants to see from his defense this year is better execution and all-around smart play.
“I want them to know their assignments so that they can play fast,” Stubbs said of his defense. “I don’t want any confusion or plays given up that should never happen. I want them to make offenses drive the football on them instead of scoring quickly. Me being an offensive coach, I know it’s very difficult to drive the ball 80 yards and go 12 plays because usually when that happens, you make mistakes. I tell them the more they make the offense snap the ball, the more the offense can (mess) it up.”
Anchoring the Colonels’ defensive line is senior Cole Frazier, who played in all 12 games a season ago and registered two sacks in Nicholls’ final scrimmage over the weekend.
A young sophomore, Ronnie Walker, has been leading the group at inside linebacker, where the Colonels also boast fellow sophomore Seth Keller and senior Tyler Harrington. Senior Davin Bovie and freshman Geoffrey Hebert combine to form the tandem at outside linebacker.
Starring in the secondary at cornerback is senior Byron Cobb, who started all 11 games he played in last season and was fifth on the team in tackles. He is joined at corner by senior Josh Dewey. Freshman Christian Boutte and sophomore Tyren Hills also had productive fall camps, Stubbs said.
And on the back end, sophomores B.T. Sanders and Josh Singleton and senior Torren Joseph are three players who will see the most playing time at safety.
“We do have some experience back and hopefully the new guys (develop) because I really feel like we’ll have a very solid team as long as we can develop other guys in case injuries happen,” Stubbs said of the team as a whole.
Nicholls is scheduled to begin the season a week from Saturday against Air Force at Falcon Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. with coverage provided by ESPN3.
Nicholls State University Tuskani Figaro rolls around the corner on a scramble play during a game last season. The Colonels kick off against Air Force in two weeks.
