Gannon Golden Kngihts

2013 Record: 6-5 (4-3)

Head Coach: Brad Rzyczycki (9-13, 3rd year)
Defensive Coordinator: John Thompson
Offensive Coordinator: Josh Hoeg

Top returning players: QB Liam Nadler, WR Justin Caliste, WR Quad Law, LB Luke Rankie, OL Kelson Patterson

The upside: The offense is loaded at the skill positions and they have a lot of experience playing together.
The downside: The defense needs more depth to challenge for the West division title.



Before we jump into looking at Gannon's prospects on the field this year, we should recognize some special accomplishments off the field. The Golden Knights football team was the best in PSAC in the classroom last year with a cumulative GPA of 3.01. They were the only team to exceed the 3.0 threshold. In addition, a total of 29 football players earned PSAC scholar- athlete recognition and as a team, the Knights logged more than 1500 hours of community service in the 2013-14 academic year. Congratulations to the Golden Knights for these outstanding honors.


If the Golden Knights' defense can get a little bit stronger, this team could be a sleeper pick to win the West. The offense is loaded. The only concern they have on the offensive side of the ball is sustaining the running game that they established last year. Jansen Jones was a stud, but his loss is huge when you consider that he accounted for 83% of their net rushing yardage. The good news is that even though they'll be a little young at running back, they will have a veteran offensive line that returns four starters, including OT Kelson Patterson and G Alex Davis. Both were second team All-PSAC West.

The key to offensive success will be trigger man Liam Nadler who is set for this third season as the starting QB, and I expect a big year from him. At 6'7" and 235 pounds, Nadler doesn't really need to "grow" any more, but he has steadily grown in Gannon's system and will be one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the conference this year. He's a very smart player and has a great handle on playing the position. Cutting down on turnovers is something he still needs to work on, but otherwise, he has quite a skill set. He has a strong arm but also a very nice touch, and is deceptively mobile. With his frame he doesn't really look like a runner, but he did a much better job moving away from pressure last year and he also gained 442 yards rushing last year (sacks brought his net down to 296). He's also quite a weapon in short yardage. He wracked up 14 rushing TDs in 2013, which tied for fifth in the PSAC.

An experienced O-line and seasoned gunslinger is a great start, but it gets even better. Caliste, Law, Ocasio & Hamm. That's not a law firm reference, it's the receiving corps for the Golden Knights. Last year this group combined for 183 receptions, 2470 yards and 14 touchdowns. All four were in the top 20 in the PSAC in receiving yards per game. They cover all the bases with this group as well. Caliste and Law are diminutive (by football standards), but both have lighting speed. Ocasio and Hamm both stand 6'3".

Looking at the offense, it's a PSAC championship caliber team. The bad news is that as well as the offense did last year, opposing offenses did even better against the Knights' defense. Gannon was on the short end in points scored, rushing offense and total offense. Coach Brad Rzyckzycki told me in the spring that the defensive front was his biggest concern last year. In his words, they were exploited against physical teams like West Chester and Bloomsburg. They do have about eight players that they expect to be contributors on the line, and if that rotation works out, it will give them the depth they were missing last year. Luke Rankie (115 total tackles, 16 tackles for loss) is a rock at linebacker and will be an All-America candidate. They'll be a little young at the other LB positions, but Josh Wiechelt did start five games last year and finished fifth on the team in total tackles. The secondary was very young a season ago, but nearly every position now has experience and the Knights get back a pair of DBs that missed most of 2013 to injury.

The biggest news on defense is the off season addition of coordinator John Thompson. Thompson is a very experienced and successful defensive coordinator who has spent the last several years in western PA. His defenses at St. Vincent and Mercyhurst were among the best in their conferences during his years at each school. He should be a great fit for the Gannon program and his appointment will also allow Rzyczycki to step back from the coordinator role. Thompson just may be the difference maker the program needs to get to the next level.

Outlook
You have to like the potential in this team. They went from 3-8 in 2012 to 6-5 in 2013, and they bring back a lot of talent. Could they improve by three wins again? It's not out of the question. If they hit the ground running, the schedule gives them a great opportunity to start the season on a roll. The division is wide open this year and it could be the perfect time for a program like Gannon to upset the establishment.