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2010 Outlook
Offense
Defense
Special Teams
The Coach
For the fifth time in six tries, the Geneva College football team captured the NCCAA Victory Bowl title. The 2009 season culminated with a dramatic 29-28 win over Greenville for an NCCAA record fifth Victory Bowl championship. If you ask head coach Geno DeMarco what that has to do with the 2010 season he would quickly answer absolutely nothing. “It is nice to look back at what has been accomplished by our program over the last several years,” explained DeMarco.” But when it comes to success on the field for this season, we are not interested in looking back to last year. It is all about facing the challenges that are put in front of us right now.”
The challenges facing the Golden Tornadoes in 2010 begin with filling the shoes of some very talented players on both sides of the ball. Like any college team, the loss of a quality senior class can always pose challenges and the 2010 Geneva squad will be no different. “It’s part of the deal,” says DeMarco. “We will once again expect some of our younger guys to step up into key roles this year. When you lose the likes of an Aaron Tommelleo and a Brian Wilson on defense it can be a headache to fill that void.”
All the Geneva College offense did in 2009 was score the second most points in a single season in the 120 years of Geneva College football. The prolific offense attack will lose some key components in 2010, but senior quarterback David Girardi returns along with leading rusher Gerard Muschette. The combination of Girardi and Muschette accounted for much of the offensive success with the signal caller tossing ten touchdowns while completing a school record 62% of his passes. While Girardi was getting it done through the air, Muschette was busy making some history of his own. His 1183 yards was the fifth highest single season total in school history. Muschette also posted 92 points, which was the fourth highest number in the Geneva College single season record book.
“We have the potential to have an explosive offensive group,” says DeMarco. “The key is always to stay healthy, but we also have a very veteran group up front which will hopefully go a long way in helping us move the football.”
Leading the effort up front will be senior offensive lineman Lee Thieroff. The two-time NCCAA All-American will serve as one of the foundations up front that coach DeMarco will be relying upon to make space for Muschette and protect Girardi in the process. “Lee is one of the finest linemen in the conference,” says DeMarco. “He makes everyone around him better and those guys around him are already pretty good. Basically the entire starting offensive line from a year ago will be back including the likes of Dan Massaro, Ryan Oldham, Oliver Onufer and Claude Smith. Coming into camp with over 25 offensive linemen should serve as some impressive depth in the trenches.
Girardi will be looking for some familiar targets when he drops back to pass in 2010. Returning to the receiving core this year will be juniors AJ Delmonica and Tyler Joden, along with sophomore Corey O’Patchen. The trio combined to catch 59 passes for 769 yards a year ago. “We have some experience at wide out,” explained DeMarco. “It may take some time for everyone to get on the same page until we feel completely comfortable with the air attack.”
While many of the key components return on the offensive side of the ball, the defense will have to fill the shoes of some of Geneva’s all-time best. Most notably, all-americans Aaron Tommelleo, Brian Wilson and Rich Kolesar are gone and the question remains which underclassman will step in 2010? One spot that won't need adjusting will be at defensive end where senior Adam Rose will once again patrol the line of scrimmage. Rose had 42 tackles including ten tackles for loss and four sacks a year ago. Returning to the fold after a season ending injury will be Dan Dillman to help bolster the defensive line. Dillman started every game in 2008 but had his season cut short last year with a knee injury. Exploding onto the defensive scene last year was linebacker Solomon Hejirika. The junior linebacker returns in 2010 having led the team with 70 tackles a year ago. Looking to pick up the slack left from Tommelleo’s absence will also be Gary Walstrom and Chance Kelosky. Beginning their senior seasons, the duo combined for 100 tackles a year ago.
“Our defense will be a work in progress,” says DeMarco. “We lost some key guys but I am confident we will be able to overcome most of those losses. I love the speed of our defense. We have a bunch of guys that like to fly around the field and hopefully that will bring some excitement to the field in 2010.”
Senior Matt Curry will serve as the foundation in the secondary. The senior free safety will begin his third year as a defensive back after initially being recruited as a running back in his freshman season. Another veteran defensive back will be corner Marcus Costanza who will also be heading into his third season on the starting unit.
Another unknown feature to the 2010 Geneva College football team will be within the special teams units. Senior placekicker Nick DiPietro is back but will be looking to overcome an off-season knee injury. DiPietro handled the majority of the placekicking duties last year with six field goals and 14 extra points in 16 attempts.
While the kicking duties may be a question mark, one feature of the special teams unit has an exclamation mark at the end of it. AJ Delmonico has established himself as one of the top kickoff return men in the conference. Last year, he averaged nearly 23 yards per return while also taking one back for a touchdown. The punt return duties will also be an open competition early in the season with several candidates vying for the job. “We like the possibilities we have when it comes to returning kicks,” says DeMarco. “We have several impressive athletes that could be very effective in that role. We will just have to wait and see which kids take advantage of the opportunity.”
Like the placekicking situation, there is also nothing set when it comes to punting. The punt game for Geneva left much to be desired a year ago with starting quarterback David Girardi doing the best work with a 41 yard average on 25 attempts. While it can be an advantage for the starting quarterback to have punting abilities, it can also be a bit nerve racking for the head coach. “We will find a way to get things done in the punting game,” says DeMarco. “It is a huge part of the game when it comes to field position and we need to do a better job in the area if we are going to be successful.”
Geno DeMarco has been doing this thing for a long time. In fact, the 2010 season marks his record 18th year at the helm becoming the longest tenured head coach in Geneva football history. Despite all the successes he believes everything comes down to one single fact. “It’s all about how we handle adversity,” says DeMarco. “Every football team in America has adversity along the way, whether it be injuries or tough losses or simply the long grind of the season. Last year we overcame quite a bit of adversity and we had some success. If we handle things again this year we will be fine. If we can't get over some hurdles, it will be a struggle.”
Struggling is not something that DeMarco and his coaching staff are used to in the past 17 years. Posting close to a .650 winning percentage during his tenure, DeMarco is one of the most successful head coaches in Northeast United States at any level.
Geno DeMarco and the Geneva College football team have maintained a level of success for the past 17 years that has been a model of consistency. If the past tells us anything, the 2010 season will bring much of the same. But as DeMarco himself warns, no games can be won based on past success. This is a new year and a new challenge, but one that the Golden Tornadoes will be prepared to face.