By Devon Robinson | Sports Editor and Anthony Shingler | Assistant Sports Editor
Terrence Holt carries the ball for a touchdown at the scrimmage on Saturday, Aug. 22. Photo by Lois Jones | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER
Sophomore Ryan White returns this season as the team’s starting running back. He finished last season with 600 yards with 118 carries and 5.1 yards per carry.
While the Govs’ running game was consistent, they still needed some work at the quarterback game. APSU saw the play of three different quarterbacks last season in T.C. Jennings, Gary Orr and Trent Caffee. All three will share time this season.
Caffee, junior, started the last four games of the season and remained consistent for the remainder of it. Throwing for seven touchdowns, he completed 51 of 89 passes for 644 yards. He will be returning this season as the starting quarterback.
The Govs also look to add depth to their receiver position as six players from last season gained more than 100 receiving yards. Leading the returning receivers is Darryl Miller, who last year garnered 296 receiving yards with a total of 3 touchdowns. Right behind him was junior Adrian Mines with 254 receiving yards and two touchdowns.
Senior Jeff Lyle who will be returning this season at fullback, gained 166 receiving yards and the team-high four total touchdowns.
For the defense, nine starters will be lead by leading tackler Daniel Becker and Kevin Buckley’s Ohio Valley Conference leading six interceptions, they lead an APSU defense filled with seniors. Head coach, Rick Christophel, wants his seniors to step up. “I expect leadership first of all. Most of [the seniors] have been here for four or five years,” Christophel said. “I expect more of a leadership role out of anything.”
With APSU having nine starters returning much will be expected out of a team who went 2-9, and losing three out of the 11 games by three or fewer points.
“Hopefully we will be able compete in every game, that is the biggest thing. We try to get into the fourth quarter as much as we can and get ourselves into position to win the game,” Christophel said.
As the defense looks to use these starters to full advantage, true freshman kicker Stephen Stansell will have arguably the most pressure as he sures up a kicking game, which saw its fair share of woes last season.
Stansell, who went perfect through training camp in extra points, will look to help improve the 12 fields made on 20 attempts, while finishing 63 percent on points after touchdowns, making 12 out of 19 attempts.
APSU will take full advantage of a preseason All-American candidate, Terrence Holt, as a kick returner. Holt, who finished 15th nationally last season in all-purpose yards, will look to help the offense gain good field position, and after breaking his own OVC mark for kick return yards of 1,285 yards last season, big things are expected from him as well.
With training camp ending, APSU is looking forward to the game against Newberry College, slated for Saturday, Sept. 5, with a 6 p.m. kickoff at home.
– Devon Robinson, Sports Editor and Anthony Shingler, Asst. Sports Editor
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