Bearkat offensive line ready for leadership role in 2007
8/9/2007 1:00:00 AM | Football
With the Southland Conference's top running back, all three starting wide receivers, and eight defensive starters gone, the four returning starters in the Bearkat offensive line realize they must assume a leadership role for the 2007 Sam Houston State football squad to be successful.
"We feel like it's our responsibility to keep up the tempo at pracitce and keep everyone's spirit up," senior offensive guard Ryan Dretke said as the Bearkats entered the end of their first week of preseason camp.
"We need to be the rock for the team, the group that is always steady and others can always depend upon," Dretke said. "Everything really starts with the offensive line. If we do our jobs blocking, the runners can pick up yardage and the receivers have time to make big catches. We know we're being counted upon to be leaders this year."
Dretke is one of four offensive line starters returning from last year's 6-5 Bearkat squad that finished as runner-up in the 2006 Southland race. Dretke along with tackle Brandon Hale, guard Hunter Schmidt, and center Brennan Williams started every game last season, blocking for Southland Conference Offensive MVP D. D. Terry who led the league with 1,328 yards rushing and 15 touchdowns.
"D. D. has
gone on to play in the NFL with Jacksonville, but we have some young,
talented running backs returning, a great quarterback, and quality
receivers and, if we play well, those guys will step up," Williams
said. "This offensive line is a closely knit group. We've put in a lot
of time together, not just on the football field, but in the weight
room and away from the field. Brandon, Ryan, and I all were here in
2004 when we won the championship, so we know what it takes and we're
eager to work towards that goal."
Williams, a preseason All-Southland Conference selection, has started
23 games in the offensive line during his Bearkat career. He started
two games during the 2004 Southland title season when the Kats reached
the NCAA Division I championship semifinal round. The Kat offensive
line gave up only four sacks in 13 games going into the semifinals in
2004.
"We want to set the bar high this season, allowing as few sacks as we can," Williams said. "Rhett Bomar is a talented and smart quarterback. We need to give Rhett time to get it done."
During the 2006 season, Sam Houston allowed only four sacks in six Southland Conference games and did not give up a single sack against the nationally-ranked University of Texas Longhorns.
"The Texas game in Austin gave us a lot of confidence," Hale, a preseason All-America and All-SLC selection said. "The offense is progressing but we still have a lot to prove. We're getting better every day."
The closeness and confidence each lineman feels in one another is a strength for the entire unit.
"We know each other really well. We all worked out together this summer and have become really close," Schmidt, who started as a redshirt freshman last year, said. "We use that to our advantage. We know each other well enough that we can change things at the last minute. We all on the same page."
Sam Houston State will open the 2007 season on August 30 when the Bearkats play host to Angelo State in a 6 p.m. game at Bowers Stadium. The Bearkats will hold two scrimmages during preseason camp, each on the next two Saturday mornings (Aug. 11 and 18) at 8:30 a.m.
"There's no doubt how important a good offensive line is to having a strong football team and this group of linemen gives our offense a strong foundation," SHSU head football coach Todd Whitten said. "We certainly are counting on this group for leadership in the coming year."
