2004 Offseason
My first year as a head coach turned out surprisingly well. We enjoyed some success in the Puritan Conference, and ended the season on a roll.
I lost a long post about the season that I can't put myself in the mood to try to recreate. Here's the bullet-point version:
- T.J. Yonkers was as good as advertised. When he was on, so were we. He rushed for 213 yards on 31 carries in our season opener, and had big games in each of our seven wins.
- Quarterback Will Burroughs matured significantly over the course of the year. He became an accurate, dangerous passer during the four-game winning streak that ended the season, and engineered a nine-play, 80-yard game winning drive at Lawrence. However, he'll long be feeling the effects of each of the 38 sacks he suffered, as his line failed to keep even Puritan Conference pass rushers out of his grille.
- Juan Carter was a game-changer at DE, all season long. The emergence of Mickey Farr as a dangerous pass rusher gave our defense an additional edge, and helped compensate for a mid-season injury to DE Reuben Wingard.
- Strong safety Bryant Kudrow hit everything in sight, except the books. His highest grade was a C-.
- Another injury, this one to center Winston Foreman--our most dependable O-lineman--opened the door for Will Kenny, who proved to be a fine run blocker.
I'll be back with some stats, post-season honors, and information about my first recruiting class.