By Ryan Laverty
Like Jay Leno collecting sports cars, Dinos football Head Coach Tony Fasano is assembling a nice assortment of running backs.
In addition to starters Luke Mayer, Jeff Williams, Scott Wenz and Stephen Hughes, there were guys like Jacques-Ol Lumbala, Kyle Maclean and Evan Koebel who never even saw the field last year. Despite the abundance of choices for a high speed drive, last Friday Fasano and Co. announced Alex Andrews as the newest set of wheels in their high performance garage. This begs the ovious: Where’s the new guy going to play?
"You can never have too much depth," remarked Fasano. "We expect Alex to do the same kind of things as Stephen Hughes did for us this year. A lot of times in our offence when we’ll have three backs on the field at one time."
With the departure of 2000/01 Hec Creighton nominee and all-around stud back Dean Fisher, the Dinos ground assault looked like it would stall in 2001/02. However, to the delight of coaches and fans alike, the running game proved to be one of the strongest facets for the 3–5 Dinos. Fasano will look for the six-foot-one, 200-lbs Andrews to add a little healthy competition to his potent backfield.
"I’m pumped," he said, excitement dripping from his every word. "This guy has a great background from his time at Bowness [High School]. He’ll definitely help step up the intensity at practice and in games because he wants to carry the ball all the time."
And carry he has. The Trojans’ Most Valuable Player two years in a row, Andrews has made a strong play for a three-peat following his 32 touchdowns and 2,000 plus yards rushing in eight games last fall.
While Andrews is the most recent acquistion the Dinos have made this off-season the recruitment process is a work-in-progress and is far from over. And though he’s not specific about any one individual, Fasano knows where the team needs improvement.
"Our offensive line definitely needs to get better," he said, alluding to the fact that more protection is needed for his flashy, yet economical, backs.
Quarterback Lincoln Blumell will return to exhaust his fifth-year of eligibility in 2002/03 after breaking his thumb on the second series of the Dinos’ first game last year. And while Brent Hargreaves did a great job in his absence, Fasano is definitely looking to beef up at the pivot position.
"We weren’t ready when Lincoln went out," the coach said. "Brent did well for us but we’ve always got our eyes open."
The Dinos will host a recruitment camp Feb. 9–10 because like Leno, you can never have enough power.