BUCKHANNON – West Virginia Wesleyan College recruited 73 true freshmen last year.
The Bobcats added 60 more this year.
“We are young,” West Virginia Wesleyan Coach Dennis Creehan said, “and we are going to be young for another year.”
That is why it is paramount for the Bobcats’ outnumbered upperclassmen to serve as team leaders.
One veteran who is doing exactly that is Mike Price, a 6-foot-2, 297-pound senior defensive tackle whose peers named him a team captain.
“He is a hard, hard worker,” Creehan said of Price, who is a business administration major. “He is one of those guys who is very, very quiet, but he leads by example. He works hard all the time.
“He is always in a great mood. He is fun to be around. I really like him and so do his teammates. He is a good, solid person to have on your team.”
Price understands the importance of his role on and off the field.
“As far as helping the team, I need to be a big part of our defensive attack,” he said. “I just need to play my role as a team player. I need to be a leader out there. On the field, it’s always changing. I need to help the guys out there and get them in the right places.
“As far as game planning for each game, you can never be too prepared. I feel you win before the game is started by just knowing what the other guy is going to do. That is what I want to focus on. That gives you an upper hand on the field.”
Price made the honorable mention list when the All-West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selections were announced last season, but Creehan expects the Morgantown native to earn a first- or second-team spot this season.
The 22-year-old Price finished 2009 with 32 tackles, including nine behind the line of scrimmage. He also recorded five sacks and two quarterback hurries. He also forced one fumble and recovered another. He also deflected five passes and intercepted another.
“He is an athletic kid,” Creehan said. “He can change direction well. He is a good pass rusher. He has a couple of different moves.”
Creehan said National Football League scouts have noticed and are interested.
“He really is a top-notch prospect,” Creehan said. “The NFL scouts were here this spring, and they said they liked him better than anybody else in the league at defensive tackle.
“We will see what happens. At this level, you really have to dominate for you to make it to the next level. That is the kind of season he needs to have.”
That would benefit Price and the Bobcats, who posted a 2-8 overall record and 2-6 conference mark in their first season under Creehan.
“No question,” he said. “That would be good for us.”
Price plans to approach his NFL dream the same way he approaches everything else.
“You have to take it day by day and work on it on and off the field every day,” Price said. “It takes a lot of time and dedication. You can always get stronger and faster.”
West Virginia Wesleyan returns 10 starters on offense and eight starters on defense.
“The guys that we played as true freshmen last year are another year older and more mature,” Creehan said. “They have been through the wars and have been tested a little bit.
“They aren’t going to be as intimidated as they were a year ago. Are we a championship team yet? I don’t know. It seems like all of the impact players from a year ago are back. It makes it tough to climb out of the hole. But we are a much better football team. We are much improved.”
Price agreed.
“The transition from the season to the spring, it was amazing how much we learned and how much we improved,” he said. “Last year’s freshman class is such a talented group. They are still young, and they are going to make young mistakes, but they have come so far and have so much talent. The conference will see it this year.”
Among those back on offense are center Sean Kundrat, left guard Jesse Buck, right guard J.B. Walton, left tackle Shannon Breen, right tackle Kyle McLain, quarterback Adam Neugebauer, quarterback Zane Zebrasky, tight end Stephen Campbell, split end Jon Meadows, slot receiver Lavaughn Hughes and wide receiver T.J. Benners.
Zebrasky started seven games last year, while Neugebauer started three. Creehan said Neugebauer is the leading candidate as fall camp nears an end.
“I like the things Neugebauer does and how he handles the offense,” Creehan said. “In the NFL games, you hear the commentators talking about managing the game. He does that really well. Zebrasky has all of the ability in the world and he can be a great player, but he needs to do a better job of managing the game.”
In addition to Price, the Bobcats return end Jonas Celian, end Dallas Burkhalter, end Brian Vukela, inside linebacker Jake Leninsky, middle linebacker Jesse Robertson, left cornerback Antoine Staten, right cornerback Ottis Scott, free safety Felipe Teixeira, free safety Adam Domico and strong safety Valentino Williams.
Creehan expects the Bobcats’ defense to get a lift from a pair of Division I transfers, former Central Michigan University safety John Maddox and former University of Notre Dame tackle Derrell Hand.
The combination of Hand and Price fix one of the Bobcats’ biggest problems from last season.
“We were weak,” Creehan said. “We weren’t tough inside. We got the ball run up our butts at times. That position has improved tremendously just because of Derrell. That position looks a lot better than it did.”