By: By Jake Dorow
POSITION BREAKDOWN (pdf)
KENNESAW, Ga. -- It may be hard to believe, but the Kennesaw State football squad returns to the gridiron
Saturday to kick off the program's second season.
Saturday's game is a rematch of the 2015 season opener against East Tennessee State at Fifth Third Bank Stadium, this time under the lights in the Owls' first-ever night game. The game can be seen live on Peachtree TV and on ESPN Radio 1230 The Fan 2.
Head Coach
Brian Bohannon looks to build on momentum from a dazzling debut in 2015 that saw the Owls finish with a 6-5 campaign in their inaugural season. Rolling up eye-popping numbers out of the spread option offense while posting an impressive 5-1 mark at Fifth Third Bank Stadium, the Owl faithful witnessed a historic season.
The Owls rushed for 293.0 yards per game in 2015, which led the Big South Conference and ranked sixth nationally. It was the second-best single-season rushing effort by a Big South team since VMI's 357.5 yards in 2008.
Today's first of a two-part season preview breaks down the Owls' offense and what KSU fans can expect come
Saturday.
QUARTERBACKS
Trey White returns for his senior season after making 10 starts under center during the 2015 campaign. White passed for 1,059 yards and rushed for 964
yards, falling 36 yards shy of becoming the Big South's first 1,000-yard passer and 1,000 rusher in a single season. The Atlanta native led the Owls in total touchdowns, rushing for nine TDs and passing for eight more. He is just the second quarterback in Big South history to record games in which he rushed for three touchdowns and passed for three TDs in the same season. A total of five QBs will be on the depth chart before kickoff on Sept. 3 with
Chandler Burks –KSU's first verbal commit—as White's back-up. Burks played in four games in 2015, completing 3-of-6 passes for 38 yards and one touchdown. Redshirt-freshman
Daniel David, a mid-year transfer from Appalachian State, will also get looked at under center. David finished 6-of-14 passing for 128 yards and a TD during the annual Black and Gold spring game.
RUNNING BACKS
The Owls' spread option offense provided eye-popping numbers on the scoreboards for those in attendance throughout the 2015 inaugural campaign, racking up 3,398 yards which proved to be the fifth-highest single-season total in Big South history. The spread
option attack is led by top backs
Chaston Bennett and
Darnell Holland. Bennett, a senior out of Crockett, Texas, led KSU in 2015 with 646 yards on the ground and three touchdowns, averaging a team-high 9.3 yards per carry. While Holland, a sophomore out of Bowdon, Georgia, scored four touchdowns and rushed for 343 yards on 38 touches. Both backs have the ability to hit the home run, as Bennett's 80-yard TD rush from the first play of scrimmage at Dayton and Holland's 63-yard TD run at ETSU proved worthy of breakout ability. The Owls will have plenty more options out of the backfield this season, as sophomore
Jake McKenzie –who saw time at quarterback in 2015 –makes the full-time adjustment to running back. Senior
Micah Reed returns from a shortened season due to an injury and sophomore
Trey Chivers will also contribute out of the backfield. RB
Myles White, a junior out of Warner Robins, Ga., had an impressive camp and will also make contributions to the offense.
WIDE RECEIVERS
The spread option offense led to many dominant statistics on the ground in 2015, but it was the wide receiving core that
took advantage of their opportunities the most. Led by Big South Preseason All-Conference member
Justin Sumpter, the Owls will have a deep WR unit across the board. Sumpter, a sophomore from Tyrone, Georgia, averaged 20.2 yards a receptions in 2015, which ranked sixth in the nation. Headlining a group of WR that totaled 79 catches, 1,505 yards and 10 touchdowns a year ago, Sumpter led the core with 26 catches, 525 yards and four TDs. Across Sumpter will be redshirt-sophomore
Xavier Harper and junior
Tremayne Trawick. The two combined to haul in 12 catches, 154 yards and one TD.
OFFENSIVE LINE
The Owls will field a young, but experienced offensive line in year two as
Ryan Warrior (LT),
Tripp Pearson (LG),
Malik Letatau (C),
Matt Frank (RG) and
Zach Mitchler (RT) all return to the trenches. Letatau, who was named to the Preseason All-Conference
Team at the Big South Media Day in Charlotte, will be back to anchor the line at center. Letatau made nine starts and was named second-team All-Big South Conference in 2015. The offensive line paved way for 3,398 rushing yards –fifth-highest single-season total in Big South history—, guided five games of 300 or more rushing yards and anchored a rushing attack that averaged 293.0 yards per game on the ground. Behind the O-line, the Owls racked up 28.9 points per game. Among others that could be moving blocks down low include:
Leigh Comfort,
CJ Collins,
Chiaza Nwadike and
Lorenzo Adger. Newcomers
Forrest Evans,
Austin Gibbs and
Nick Eldridge have all put together respectable training camps in their first season wearing the Black and Gold.
GAMEDAY HASHTAGS/ SOCIAL MEDIA HUBS
Hashtag: #GoKSUOwls
Twitter: @KSUOwlNation; @KennesawStFB; @mikedegeorge; @jdorow19
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Fifth Third Bank is the Official Bank of Kennesaw State Athletics. Fifth Third Bank Stadium, the signature athletics landmark on the Kennesaw State University campus, is a world-class facility that has been recognized as one of the premier multi-use outdoor athletics venues in the country. In the fall of 2015, it became the official home of Owls football team and is also home to Owls soccer and lacrosse.
