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2009 Toledo Rockets Preview

Offense
Senior Aaron Opelt, who has been the Rockets' starting quarterback for the last three seasons, can be as explosive as any quarterback in the MAC. Last year, for example, he completed 33-of-50 passes in a 13-10 win over Michigan. Opelt completed a career-best 59.8 percent of his passes in 2008. But he will need to improve his average of 181 yards passing per game, and may be asked to run more often, as well. Senior DaJuane Collins and sophomore Morgan Williams give Toledo a great one-two punch at running back. Despite missing games to injury, Collins gained 700 yards on 5.5 yards per attempt, earning third-team All-MAC honors. Williams cranked out 1,010 yards and six touchdowns in just 169 carries. Williams went wild in a 42-14 win against Miami, setting a school record with 330 yards to go with three TDs. Senior Stephen Williams is a two-time All-MAC honoree who caught 71 passes and eight touchdowns in 2008 after snagging 73 balls and seven TDs in 2007, earning second-team All-MAC honors both seasons. He has sub-4.4 speed and 38-inch vertical jump, making him a certifiably lethal weapon. Senior WR Robin Bailey and senior TE Tom Burzine, are also expected to play key roles. Up front, Toledo returns all five starters on the offensive line, including senior tackle Jared DeWalt and junior Kevin Kowalski, who is expected to switch from guard to center.

Defense
Senior safety Barry Church has a chance to be just the second Rocket ever to earn first-team All-MAC honors in four consecutive seasons. To make better use of his game-changing impact, Coach Tim Beckman is moving Church from strong safety to "star," a hybrid safety/linebacker position. Toledo's other big playmaker in the secondary is senior strong safety Lester Richmond. Richmond had 60 tackles in 2008 after leading the team with 97 tackles as a sophomore in 2007. The cornerback position is more up for grabs. Senior Walter Atkins and sophomore Kenny Veal are penciled in as starters, though there will be fierce competition for playing time this fall. The Rockets also look strong at linebacker. Junior Archie Donald (119 tackles in 2008) is the unquestioned leader of the defense, while senior Beau Brudzinski has earned Beckman's praise as perhaps the toughest player on the squad. Add in senior Daris Quinn (77 tackles in 2008) and some up-and-coming young talent, and it is easy to see why linebacker could be Toledo's greatest defensive strength this fall. Toledo has seven players with significant experience returning to the defensive line. Beckman's challenge will be to find the right combination of linemen to put more pressure on opposing quarterbacks. The Rockets had a league-worst 10 sacks in 2008, a number Beckman hopes to improve upon significantly this year. At defensive end, juniors Alex Johnson (51 tackles in 2007) and Douglas Westbrook (20 tackles in 2008) are listed as starters. Senior Derrick Summers (32 tackles) and sophomore Malcom Riley (15 tackles) are listed as starters at tackle, though seniors Skylaar Constant (56 tackles) and Maurice Hill (15 tackles) have the most experience of the group.

Special Teams
Beckman has identified the special teams as the area in need of greatest improvement for the Rockets in 2009. For the place-kicking position, the Rockets have split duties between senior Alex Steigerwald and junior Brett Brodbeck for the past two seasons, with Steigerwald handling the field goals and extra points and Brodbeck doing most of the kickoffs. Steigerwald has an excellent career field goal percentage of 85.7 (36-42), including 23 straight makes over two seasons. He made a career-best 48-yarder in the 13-10 win over Michigan but will be challenged to improve his range in 2009. At punter, sophomore Bill Claus (38.8 yards per boot in 2008) has the job thus far, though he could face competition from walk-on challengers this fall. Sophomore Colin McHugh arrived on campus last August, showed up to try out as a long snapper and ended up getting the job when the starter went down with an injury. McHugh has a year under his belt and made great strides in the spring, according to Beckman. The return positions are up for grabs. Sophomores Adonis Thomas (kick return) and Kenny Veal (punt returns) are leading candidates, though Beckman may look at the incoming freshman class to fill in those positions.

Preview Courtesy of Toledo Sports Information