WESTERN CONNECTICUT STATE UNIVERSITY 
2003 FOOTBALL SEASON PREVIEW

The Western Connecticut State University football team will set out to win its third Freedom Football Conference title in the past five years.  It would like to leave the FFC as the 12-year league’s final champion as Western moves on to the New Jersey Athletic Conference at season’s end.
     It will also look to progress further in the NCAA Division III National Tournament after advancing to the second round in 2001.
     A year ago, the first under John Burrell, the Colonials went 7-3 overall and 4-2 in the highly competitive Freedom Football Conference.  They will attempt to build on the successes they have enjoyed over the past four years when they have won 35 of 42 games, appeared in two NCAA Tournaments and won the ECAC Northeast Championship (in 2000).
     Since 1999, Western Connecticut’s .833 winning percentage is ranked 11th in the nation and third, behind Rowan (.851) and Williams (.844), in the East among Division III institutions.
     In 2001, the Colonials captured their second FFC crown, advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament after an 8-7 victory over Westfield State College in the first round and finished with a shortened-season 8-2 record. 
     Burrell, the Colonials' 11th Head Football Coach, did not make drastic changes to his defensive philosophy that he employed over four seasons as Western Connecticut's defensive coordinator from 1998 through 2001.  After six years as an assistant, Burrell was appointed Head Coach in the spring of 2002 after Bob Surace, the 2001 FFC Coach of the Year, moved on to the NFL and the Cincinnati Bengals.
     Western's offense and defense each returns eight starters while punter Chris Rogers heads the returnees on special teams.
     Mike Scipione, a 6'6" senior quarterback, set several passing records in his second season for the Colonials' in 2002.  Last fall, he completed 142 of 268 passes for 2,326 yards and 26 touchdowns.  In  2001, after transferring from Villanova and University of Kentucky, he completed 68 of 138 passes for 927 yards and seven touchdowns.  Scipione could virtually rewrite the Colonials’ passing record books, surpassing 2000 graduate Matt LeFever, with an outstanding 2003 campaign.
     Scipione's air attack will be aimed at 2002 FFC Offensive Rookie of the Year Vincent Sheperis and senior Andre Lee.  In ‘02, Sheperis caught 32 passes for 522 yards and eight TDs.  Lee led the Colonials with 38 catches and had 547 yards and four touchdowns last fall.  Kerry Perrotta and John Kiphorn will give the Colonials more options this season.  Both of their seasons were cut short in ‘02 by injuries.
     2001 FFC's Offensive Rookie of the Year Jeff Ward (54.9 yards per game and a team-high six TDs) will battle Jason Adamson (29.8 ypg and one TD in 2002) for the starting tailback role while 2002 starting center Larry Badaracco moves to fullback where Burrell will be able to take advantage of his size and speed.  Burrell would like to use Ward as an all-purpose back this fall, believing he could average 10-12 carries, 3-5 catches and also return kicks in his third season.
     The offensive tackles Nerijus Gelazauskas and Nick D'Angelo will have to be replaced after ending their stellar careers in 2002. 
     Otherwise, much of the offensive line remains intact.  Gary Parise, Steve Beecher and Martin Jordan head the list of returning starters while Mark Carter will man the tight end position for the Colonials for the second straight season.  Carter, a former starting guard for the Colonials basketball team, had five catches for 66 yards and two touchdowns in his first gridiron season in 2002.
     Anthony Fontaine (5-11, 255 lbs.), Josh Walsh (6-0, 284) and Miguel Rodriguez (6-4, 267) will all be in the mix.  Newcomers Ryan Lacey (6-1, 275), Abhishek Herekar (6-5, 268) and David Cordts (6-4, 310) should make an immediate impact this fall.
      The Colonials’ short experiment with the 3-4 defensive set has changed back to the familiar 4-3 scheme.  Burrell will again make necessary changes to his defense to best fit their opponent from week to week.  The Colonials defensive line, which can best be described as "multiple" this season, will again be their strength. 
      2001 FFC Defensive Rookie of the Year Nick Frayler, Mike Walker, Damian Robinson and Andrew Delva are projected to man the front line.  The foursome combined for 117 tackles and 13.5 quarterback sacks a year ago.
     At linebacker, Sam Nyatome will be the top returner and will be used as a pass-rushing specialist.  After last season’s 53.5 tackles and five sacks, Nyatome will virtually have permission to roam to the entire defensive side of the field in his final season.
      Antonio Thompson, Tarrance Glover, Mike Mancini and Oral Ingram are slated to fill the other linebacker spots. 
      WCSU looks to continue its excellent play in the secondary.  Returning strong safety Rocco Antoniello  joins corner Bill McCord  in the Colonials' defensive backfield.  Antoniello led the Colonials with 60 tackles a year ago.  McCord, who played in the nickel package, is expected to fill the void left by his new position coach Daron Reid.  Chris Venice and Tarrance Sanders will compete for the starting free safety spot while Ryan Ellis and red-shirt freshman Tyrell Williams will dual for the other corner position.
     Three-year starting punter Chris Rogers (35.8 yards per punt average in his first three seasons) is slated as the Colonials' punter for the fourth straight season.  He will also compete for the place kicking duties left vacant by the graduation of Andy Benicewicz.  Newcomer and former high school teammate of Benicewicz at nearby Danbury High Chris Taylor will attempt to secure the place kicking job during pre-season camp.

The WCSU fans will have to venture over the school's Westside Campus this fall see their Colonials.  The new 2,500-seat stadium and the state-of-the-art Sprint Turf playing surface is scheduled to be installed as soon as the snow melts.  The construction of the press box and offices will be shortly behind.  Western Connecticut opens its home schedule on Saturday, September 13th against Salve Regina University.  
 




To the right is a computer rendering of the new Westside Stadium which is situated between The O'Neill Center and The Ancell building.  Football, women's and men's soccer and women's lacrosse will play all its home games at the new field beginning this fall.






MARC BOURQUE NAMED 
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR

    The Western Connecticut State University football team and second-year Head Coach John Burrell named Marc Bourque their Offensive Coordinator. 
     Bourque returns to the Colonials’ staff where he coached the running backs and was Special Teams Coordinator for two years (1995-96) before taking over the quarterbacks and wide receivers for the 1997 and 1998 campaigns.
     Bourque, a native of Hooksett, NH spent the past third season with Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, NY. 
     Last season his quarterback finished ranked eighth in the nation in Division III with a 158.3 quarterback efficiency rating.  Cole completed 204 of 33 passes for 2,861 yards and 29 TDs.
     The Colonials will have senior quarterback Michael Scipione at the reigns for the upcoming 2003 season.  A year ago, Scipione completed 142 of 268 passes for 2,326 yards and 26 touchdowns and was ranked 15^th in Division III with a 149.7 QB rating.
     Prior to his move to RPI, Bourque spent two years at Columbia University, where he coached the tight ends and the halfbacks.
     He began his coaching career as a volunteer assistant at University of New Hampshire in 1994 prior to joining the Colonials staff in 1995. 
     A 1993 graduate of arch-rival Plymouth State University, Bourque was a four-year varsity performer and a two-year starter at wide receiver for the Panthers.