GETTYSBURG, Pa. – The team that returns for Gettysburg College’s 112th

football season will have plenty of positives to build on when training camp

opens in mid-August. A year ago, the Bullets handed NCAA-bound Waynesburg its

only regular season loss, knocked off six-time defending Centennial Conference

(CC) champion McDaniel and remained in the conference title picture as the

calendar flipped to November.

What happened once November arrived should also provide a fair amount

of motivation. Gettysburg took a lead into the fourth quarter in each of its

final three games before letting victories against Muhlenberg, Dickinson and

Franklin & Marshall slip away, turning a 5-2 start into a .500 finish.

Despite 2003’s tough ending, 27th-year head coach Barry

Streeter and his squad are upbeat and looking forward to turning those

near-misses into victories in 2004.

“Our goal is to win the conference and beat our rivals,” said

Streeter, who is 132-126-5 with three CC titles at Gettysburg. “There isn’t

any team that our guys look at and say, ‘We have no chance against them.’

We’re optimistic, we’re much more confident and we plan on contending for a

championship.”

The Bullets led the CC in rushing for the second straight season, but

finished fourth in pass efficiency and sixth in passing yards per game. The

coach knows that an improved aerial attack is crucial to his team achieving its

goals.

“We want to lead the conference in rushing again, but we also want to

lead in total offense,” said Streeter. “To do that, we have to be much more

efficient in the passing game. That’s something we really want to improve.”

Gettysburg, which opens its 2004 campaign on Sept. 4 at Lebanon Valley,

returns 33 letter winners and 12 starters from last season’s 5-5 squad,

including five starters on each side of the ball. Many of the vacancies will be

filled by a sizeable and experienced junior class that accounts for two-thirds

of the squad’s returning letter winners.

“We have to replace some starters from a year ago, but I believe we

can,” said Streeter. “I know we have a core of veterans who are good leaders

and can get us going in the right direction.”

Senior Joe Gossweiler (Florham Park, NJ/Hanover Park) returns for

his third year as the starting signal-caller. Gossweiler, a former All-CC

honorable mention, finished fourth in the conference in total offense (145.7

yards per game) while throwing for a career-high 1,072 yards and six touchdowns

in 2003. He also carried the ball a team-high 150 times for 385 yards and four

touchdowns.

As he goes, so will the Bullets’ offense.

“Joe has the talent to be as good as he wants to be,” said

Streeter. “He has to make better decisions in the passing game. If he becomes

more consistent, we’ll be very difficult to stop.”

Sophomores Mark Campo (Arendtsville, PA/Biglerville) and Mike

Szczesny (Carteret, NJ/Carteret) will both see an increased number of

practice repetitions in the battle to serve as Gossweiler’s backup.

Senior co-captain Mike Schwalb (Bernardsville, NJ/Pingry School)

also returns for his third year in the starting backfield. Despite nagging

injuries that limited him to four starts, the former All-CC selection carried

134 times for a team-high 610 yards and four touchdowns in nine appearances last

season.

“When Mike’s healthy and feeling good, he does a good job for

us,” said Streeter. “Mike’s one of those hard-nosed guys and his teammates

respect him. He’s definitely the guy on the field and he’s a great

leader.”

Junior Joe Fricchione (Branchville, NJ/High Point Regional)

opens the preseason as Schwalb’s backup. After moving from linebacker to

fullback before his sophomore season, Fricchione flashed his offensive potential

with 93 rushing yards against Lebanon Valley in his lone varsity action of 2003.

Sophomore Mike Lamb (Broomall, PA/Episcopal) could also

see playing time after transferring from conference rival Franklin &

Marshall.

Of all the offensive positions, halfback may possess the steepest learning curve

with sophomores Jerry Jones (Mt. Laurel, NJ/Lenape) and Dusty

Green (Idaville, PA/Bermudian Springs) set to replace multi-year

starters Gentris Bryant and Nick Nocar, who combined for 1,333 yards from

scrimmage and 11 touchdowns in 2003.

Jones rushed for 42 yards and one touchdown in two appearances last year

while Green saw action in three contests, but is still seeking his first

collegiate carry. Both possess the skills to fill the Wing-T offense’s most

versatile position.

“We’ll have the speed that we had there before, and both Jerry and

Dusty catch the ball pretty well,” said Streeter. “They got a lot of

repetitions in practice, so they’ve gone against our top defensive people.”

It’s not just Gossweiler’s evolution that has Streeter excited about the

Bullets’ passing prospects. Senior Derek Landi (Vineland, NJ/Vineland

South) and junior Bryan Wheatly (Lancaster, PA/Manheim Township)

will provide Gossweiler with a pair of speedy, veteran targets.

Landi, who opened the 2002 season as the squad’s starting

quarterback, caught six passes for 101 yards and one touchdown in his first

season as an everyday wide-out. Wheatly started all 10 games in 2003, hauling in

six passes for 143 yards (an average of 23.8 yards per catch) and one touchdown

– an 85-yard, game-changing toss from Nocar in Gettysburg’s upset win over

McDaniel.

“I feel good about both of those guys,” said Streeter. “Wheatly

has excellent speed and Landi has good hands, runs good routes and has really

learned to play that position well.”

Sophomores Joey Gasparro (Carteret, NJ/Carteret) and Spencer

Davidson (Dumont, NJ/Dumont) are two of the squad’s young receivers

who impressed during their debut campaigns and could be running varsity routes

in the near future.

At tight end, senior Bill Colarulo (Sicklerville, NJ/Bishop

Eustace Prep) and junior Chris Halleman (Center Valley,

PA/Southern Lehigh) will take up the challenge of replacing four-year

starter A.J. Sutsko. Colarulo returns to the program after earning letters in

2001 and 2002. Halleman also lettered in each of his first two seasons,

appearing in all 10 games as the second tight end in the Bullets’ run

packages.

“Bill alternated series with A.J. two years ago and Chris played that

second tight end spot last year, so that’s two guys with experience,” said

Streeter. “They need to be good physical blockers like A.J. was and they both

have the potential to do it.”

Junior Matt Miller (Virginia Beach, VA/Norfolk Acad.)

appeared in three games last season after moving to tight end from the defensive

line before the 2003 campaign.

Experience on the ends and in the middle highlights Gettysburg’s 2004

offensive line. Junior right tackle Enoch Boateng (Vienna, VA/W.T.

Woodson) went from the junior varsity squad to the All-CC first team

with a remarkable 2003 campaign.

“Like a lot of freshmen do, he was learning how to be a college

player,” said Streeter of Boateng, one of two Bullets to make the All-CC first

team. “Before last season, he had a focus that he wanted to be a great player

and he ended up making himself into one. And he has the potential to be so much

better.”

Fellow juniors John Burger (Egg Harbor Twp., NJ/Egg Harbor Twp.)

and Keith Phillips (Massapequa, NY/Massapequa) enjoyed solid first

seasons in the starting lineup at left tackle and center, respectively, teaming

with Boateng to help Gettysburg lead the conference in rushing yards per game

(224.9).

Veteran replacement is another theme along the offensive line, where

the unit’s biggest question mark remains who will replace four-year starter

Phil Storace and three-year stater Tom Villani at the guard positions. Sophomore

Dain Alaia (Lake Ronkonkoma, NY/Sachem) is the most experienced of

the team’s returning linemen, with four starts among his five appearances a

year ago. Classmates Brandon Smith (Lititz, PA/Manheim Twp.), Bill

Doherty (Wilmington, DE/St. Mark’s) and converted tight end Kevin

Walker (Glenolden, PA/St. Joe’s Prep) will also get early looks in the

preseason.

No unit has more starters to replace or more potential replacements than the

defensive line. Nine letterwinners will compete to join lone returning starter Craig

Casagrande (Beachwood, NJ/Toms River South), a senior defensive end who

racked up 40 tackles a year ago.

Whoever joins Casagrande in the defensive trenches will need to replace the

149 tackles and 12 sacks compiled by the trio of Chris Hrynczyszyn, Pat Hagner

and All-CC second-teamer Matt Pinkney.

“We’re going to miss all three of those guys, but our line is

shaping up well this season,” said Streeter. “We’re feeling pretty good

about some of those younger guys.”

Junior defensive end Dan Petersen (Beachwood, NJ/Toms River

South) boasts four starts among his nine appearances last season.

Petersen, a two-year letterwinner and high school teammate of Casagrande’s,

recorded 25 tackles and 1.5 sacks in 2003. Juniors Harold Barton

(Somerdale, NJ/Sterling) (10 games in 2003) and Rob Mehmet (Haddon

Twp., NJ/Haddon Twp.) (8), and sophomore Stevenson Foote (Huntingtown,

MD/Calvert) are also in the running at that position.

On the interior, two-year letterwinner Tom Wilk (Bedford,

PA/Bedford), a senior with 15 career appearances, and junior Dan

Hogdahl (Riverdale, NJ/Pompton Lakes), who collected 11 tackles in nine

appearances last season, are the squad’s most experienced returning tackles.

Juniors Chris Liwosz (Pennington, NJ/Pennington School) and Chris

Manders (West Hempstead, NY/West Hempstead) each earned their first

letters in 2003. Streeter is also excited about 6-3, 255-pound sophomore Tristan

McLaren (St. James, NY/Smithtown) and sophomore Glenn Cain (Ewing,

NJ/Ewing), a CC silver medalist shot putter who will switch from end to

tackle.

Any linebacker discussion begins with senior co-captain Grant Acker

(Howell, NJ/Peddie), a 2004 Street & Smith’s and Football

Gazette preseason All-American who compiled an astronomical 139 tackles a

year ago (the most by a Bullet since 1978). Acker, who was named to the All-CC

first team and All-ECAC Southwest all-star squad for his efforts, led the CC

with 13.9 tackles per game and also returned one of his two interceptions for a

touchdown.

“Grant is an excellent athlete who has a great sense for the ball and

doesn’t get flustered about anything,” said Streeter. “Last year he really

came into his own and started understanding that the best way to play is to play

hard all the time and do the little things right. Now that he’s broken out, we

want him to stay broken out.”

Two-year starter Michael Schmidt (Huntington Station, NY/Walt

Whitman) finished second to Acker with 80 tackles last season. Schmidt,

a junior, made seven starts among his nine appearances at the other inside

linebacker position. Junior Ryan McGarry (Cliffside Park, NJ/Cliffside

Park) opened 2003 in the starting lineup, but missed the final nine

games of the season due to injury.

Junior Pete Johnson (Silver Spring, MD/St. John’s College [DC])

has started eight games among his 18 career appearances, compiling 47 tackles.

Junior Brandon Isaacs (Bethlehem, PA/Bethlehem Catholic) will also

challenge for the time on the inside after making five appearances in 2003.

At the outside “invert” position, junior Nathan Smith

(Cooperstown, NY/Cooperstown) returns after making a successful switch

from safety. Smith, one of the CC’s most dangerous return specialists,

finished fourth on the squad with 70 tackles and broke up a team-high 11 passes

in nine starts. He finished second in the conference in kickoff return average

(28.1 yards per return) and has three touchdown returns on his resume.

“We’re going to leave Nate right there,” said Streeter. “He has

good speed, he’s physical, he’s strong and he can make big plays.”

On the other side, juniors Eby Kalantar (Germantown,

MD/Northwest) and C.J. Hertrich (Wilmington, DE/Archmere Acad.)

bring contrasting styles to the vacancy left by the graduation of four-year

starter Chris Jordan. Kalantar has earned two varsity letters while appearing in

15 games during his first two seasons as a back-up cornerback. Hertrich, a

two-year letterwinner at linebacker, racked up 26 tackles while appearing in all

10 games a year ago. In his first collegiate start, the junior made 11 tackles

and picked off a pass to earn a spot on the CC Weekly Honor Roll.

Lone returning starter Jay Cage (Magnolia, NJ/Sterling) brings

game-changing ability back to the cornerback position he assumed in 2003. The

junior finished sixth on the squad with 49 tackles (32 solo) while ranking

second in both pass breakups (5) and interceptions (3) in 10 starts.

“We’re looking for big things from Jay,” said Streeter. “He’s

an excellent player and I thought he should have been at least a second-team

all-conference pick last year.”

The departures of three-year starter Matt Zangrilli at the other corner

spot and four-year starter Mark Johnson at safety leave question marks at the

other two defensive back positions. Kalantar or junior Ted Segal (Wayne,

PA/Great Valley), who appeared in three games last year, could slide

into a cornerback role. Sophomore Joe Keefer (Malvern, PA/Malvern Prep)

will get the first look at safety after spending a majority of his debut

campaign behind Johnson on the second team.

All four special-teams regulars return from a year ago, including return man

Smith, junior placekicker John Edgar (Gettysburg, PA/Gettysburg),

junior punter Tom Pettit (Blue Bell, PA/Wissahickon) and sophomore

kickoff specialist Ryan Dunn (Lawrenceville, NJ/Lawrence).

Edgar became the first kicker in more than a decade to lead the Bullets

in scoring, converting 8 of 10 field goals and 18 of 27 extra points to finish

with 42 points. Pettit averaged 33.9 yards on 52 punts, while knocking six kicks

inside the opponents’ 20. Dunn handled all kickoff duties and showed his

versatility with a 50-yard punt against Waynesburg.

Following the season opener at Lebanon Valley, Gettysburg kicks off its home

slate on Sept. 11 against nationally ranked Hampden-Sydney. The Bullets open CC

action on Oct. 9 at McDaniel.