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Road to Detroit

UT hopes to use last season success to fuel a run to the MAC championship

Alex Campos

The University of Toledo football team takes the field against New Hampshire in the 2014 season opener. UT would go on to defeat the wildcats 54-20 to set the tone for the rest of the season. The Rockets finished their 2014 campaign with an 8-4 record and 7-1 in the Mid-American Conference

Marcus Dodson, Sports editor

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Coming off a 63-44 victory over Arkansas State in the GoDaddy Bowl on Jan. 4, the University of Toledo football team is entering the 2015 season on a high note and with high expectations. The Rockets are the preseason favorites to win the Mid-American Conference west division and to meet arch rivals Bowling Green for all the marbles in Detroit in the MAC championship game.

However, for Head Coach Matt Campbell it’s just another year for him and the Rockets.

“Our expectations are to win the MAC every year,” Campbell said. “So that doesn’t make any difference to what and who we are. We take the same approach day in and day out and the last nine months this program has really stood for that. And that’s what our growth is right now, how you come to work everyday and be the best you that you possibly can be.”

The Rockets finished last season with a 9-4 overall record and 7-1 in the Mid-American Conference, with their only conference defeat coming yet again at Northern Illinois 27-24 for the fifth consecutive year. It should be noted, however, that UT was down to their fourth string quarterback and now graduate Dwight Macon who came into his final season as a wideout.

The Rockets will be returning with 15 starters from last season including 47 letterwinners. One of UT’s biggest strengths in the past, their offensive line, is now one of their biggest question marks. Out of the 15 returning starters from last season, only five of them are from the offensive side of the ball and zero are from the offensive line.

“We were able to get a lot of playing time for our backups in 2014,” said Campbell. “We also got in a lot of extra practices since we played in such a late bowl game. That allowed the reserves to get in a lot more reps.

Junior lineman Storm Norton will be the veteran Rocket of the group as he had to step in for three games as left tackle when former senior Greg Mancz was sidelined with a lower leg injury. Storm will be joined by senior Ruben Carter, a transfer from Florida State who joined the Rockets after he graduated in the spring. The Rockets will be looking for him provide some experience and leadership from playing in a bigger program.

After Campbell decides who will be patrolling his front lines, he will have to decide who his field general will be.

Senior Philip Ely and junior Logan Woodside enter their second season competition against one another for the starting position. Last season Ely squeezed out the tough QB competition and did well in the season opener throwing for four touchdowns and 337 yards. In week two against Missouri he would suffered a torn ACL which kept him out for the remainder of the season.

Woodside used the rest of the season to make a solid case to why he should be the starter.

“Both guys did a great job getting healthy,” Campbell says. “It’s nice having them back because their leadership is impeccable and they set the beat and culture for the program by the way they help each other out.”

Whoever is named the starter will have a lot of pressure taken off of them thanks to a plethora of skilled players. UT’s senior Alonzo Russell and junior Corey Jones have both be listed to the Biletnikoff award watch list which goes to the most outstanding wide receiver in the nation. Russell also has a chance to become Toledo’s first-ever four-time All-MAC winner. The 6-foot-4 wideout grabbed 51 passes and a career-high eight touchdowns in 2014.

Jones also had a career year last season being Toledo’s top receiver from the slot position. CJ hauled in 68 passes for 842 yards. He also enters the season as a lethal punt and kick returner as he is also listed on the Hornung Award watch list for most versatile player in the country.

The deepest position for the Rockets is the backfield with the most notable Rocket being junior standout Kareem Hunt. Hunt rushed for 1,631 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2014 despite missing three games and the second half of three others due to a lower leg injury.

His display of dominance was noticed on the national stage and he has found his name to not only the Doak Walker Award watch list for best running back in the nation but also the Maxwell Award watch list for player of the year.

Hunt is just one of four proven backs in the UT stable and Campbell plans on using all his horses this season. Sophomore Terry Swanson stepped up big for the Rockets last year rushing for 732 yards in his freshmen campaign while junior Damion Jones-Moore was named the GoDaddy Bowl offensive MVP.

“It lets you sleep at night having that trio,” Campbell said. “Then throw in [Marc Remy] into the mix and then you’re talking about four guys that had really great success for us. I think one thing we know here is the running back position and how hard it is to keep them healthy because of the shots those guys take.

There is an old adage in football that defense wins championships.

UT will be coming into the 2015 season with one of the deepest defensive rosters in the Matt Campbell era.

The Rockets will be returning with eight starters on defense, most notably senior defensive end Trent Voss. He finished last season leading the MAC d-lineman in tackles with 77 and finished second in the league with 15 tackles for loss. Voss has also been announced to the Lombardi Award watch list for the Nation’s top linebackers.

The defensive line also includes two second-team All-MAC winners, senior Orion Jones and junior Treyvon Hester. The two tanks anchored down the middle to help lead the Rockets to the number one rush defense in the MAC allowing 116 yards per game.

“We’ve got some great guys who haven’t played yet that we are also excited about,” said Head Coach Matt Campbell. “Great competition on the defensive line can only make us better.”

At the linebacker position, UT will have to replace Junior Sylvester and Ray Bush who combined for 182 tackles in 2014. Senior Chase Murdock will be the leading candidate for the starting middle linebacker position. Murdock was a former starter in 2013 and has racked up 136 tackles in the past two seasons.

The biggest position battle this offseason comes from the secondary. Last season the Rockets had a tough time stopping the pass finishing dead last in pass defense in the MAC, allowing 291.7 passing yards per game.

“We get guys that started for us a couple years ago back with guys that had to step in and play for us last year,” Campbell says. “What you see in this off-season is competition at its highest. I thought those young guys really took advantage of the reps they got and by the end of the season they were playing at a really high rate for us.”

Much of the secondary struggle last year was due to season-ending injuries from seniors Cheatham Norrils and Cameron Cole both who started in 2013.

Last season senior Christian Dukes led all corners with 62 tackles and two interceptions.

“When you got all these guys that can play, competition makes you come to work every day,” Campbell says. “The great teams and elite teams come to work every day and understand how to get better one day at a time.”

Joining in the cornerback competition is senior Juwan Hayes, junior Jordan Martin and sophomore Trevon Martin.

The strongest position in the secondary may be the safety position.

Senior Chaz Whittaker will be the leading candidate for the starting strong safety position. The 6-foot-2 senior started all 13 games last season and racked up 56 tackles and two interceptions.

UT was also able to acquire UAB transfer Rolan Milligan to join in the strong safety battle. He was second on the team in tackles at UAB last year with 54.

Juniors Dejuan Rogers and Delando Johnson have been competing for the starting free safety position. Rogers collected 67 tackles in the 2014 campaign. With all the position battles going on, look for a much improved pass defense in 2015.

“We have veteran guys, and we have young guys who could develop into elite players,” Campbell says. “We need to improve in this area, and I believe we will. We have as much talent as we’ve ever had back there.

“Those are four guys that we feel comfortable that could really be starters for our football program at the safety position.”

If Toledo figures out how to put the pieces together, look for one of the most explosive seasons in school history. UT kicks off their 2015 campaign on Sep. 3 in the Glass Bowl against Stony Brook.

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