Mercer Could be the Surprise Package in SoCon This Fall

SoConJohn22
Aug 9, 2017 · 7 min read

SPARTANBURG, S.C. — Mercer head coach Bobby Lamb will enter some uncharted territory with his team this fall. The Bears graduated 30 letterwinners, including 10 starters, and it completed the first full class to go through the four-year cycle of football since the Bears brought back football after a 72-year hiatus back in 2013.

The legacy left by Mercer’s first class of collegiate football players won’t soon be forgotten by both Mercer fans, but most especially, Lamb.

“It’s incredible the legacy those guys left. You take 30 guys and they stay all five years to see us through the entire start of the program and those guys will be remembered forever for starting Mercer football. Obviously we would have liked to have gotten in the playoffs last year with that last class, but it didn’t happen, but we had some great moments and obviously beating third-ranked Chattanooga a couple of years ago was the highlight moment for the class. They will always be special because they were there with me from day one,” said head coach Bobby Lamb.

Lamb’s first crop of recruits were impressive, paving the way for a bright future for the Bears going forward. It was a class that posted a 28–19 record over a four-year stretch, including a 10-win campaign in 2013, which was the only season Mercer spent as a member of the Pioneer League.

The Bears have posted six wins in two out of the last three seasons, including finishing 6–5 and 4–4 in Southern Conference play, which helped the Bears finish fifth in Southern Conference play last fall.

The four wins by the Bears last fall in Southern Conference play was the most conference wins for Mercer since joining the league as an official member in 2014. Prior to last season, the Bears had compiled a combined record of 3–11 in Southern Conference games. With another six wins this fall, Lamb will reach a personal milestone as a head coach, as he will reach the century mark in career victories.

However, Lamb is ready for the Mercer football program to take its next step, which means competing for a league title and FCS playoff appearance. With a progression similar to that of last season, the Bears could be ready to take that next step as soon as 2017.

“The new cycle is exciting because we have our first four scholarship classes in place to compete this year in the Southern Conference and we’ve been very competitive, but as a program we’re ready to take the next step.”

The biggest step offensively will be replacing four-year starting signal-caller John Russ, who embodied the grit and leadership that Lamb once displayed himself as a quarterback at Furman back in the early-mid 1980s.

Russ was a threat as a runner or a passer, completing his standout career as a Bear with 10,905 (8,569 pass yds/2,336 rush yds) total offensive yards to go with 109 TD responsibilities (79 passing/30 rushing) operating Lamb’s pistol offense. He left quite a void to be filled, but there is talent waiting in the wings for the Orange and Black.

“You can’t say enough about John Russ. He was the heart and soul of our program for four years and he took every significant snap that we played in four years and that’s hard to do as a quarterback, especially as much as we ran him so he was a really tough football player and we’re really going to miss him.”

“We’ve got Tanner Brumby and Kaelen Riley back in the program and they took every snap in spring practice, so we’ve got a lot of experience there. We’ve signed a young man named Robert Riddle out of Chattanooga (McCallie School) and he has a tremendous amount of talent. While to have a household name like John Russ back there at the quarterback position, and hopefully out of those three guys one of those guys will be the household name.”

While the quarterback job is up for grabs during fall camp on the offensive side of the football, there are some solid talents returning for a Mercer offense coming off a 2016 season, which saw the Bears rank fifth in the league in total offense (389.3 YPG) and fourth in scoring offense (27.1 PPG).

The skill positions will be well-stocked with returning production and talent, starting with running back Alex Lakes (105 rush att, 449 yds, 4 TDs, 4.3 YPC/7 rec, 48 yds, 6.9 YPR). The 5–11, 216-lb senior from Newnan, GA., has rushed for 2,248 career yards, including 1,107 yards in 2014, and has posted 28 rushing scores in his Mercer career.

Also returning on the offensive side of the football are three very talented, veteran wide receivers. Avery Ward (30 rec, 416 yds, 2 TDs, 13.9 YPR), Marquise Irvin (65 rec, 766 yds, 7 TDs, 11.8 YPR) and Chandler Curtis (33 rec, 396 yds, 6 TDs, 12.0 YPR) are all explosive, and give whomever the starting signal-caller is come Aug. 31, some very exciting and reliable options at receiver heading into the season opener against Jacksonville at Five Star Stadium. Irvin was a preseason second-team All-SoCon pick.

Curtis has been a huge weapon in the kick return game for the Bears, leading the club with 368 return yards last fall, including returning a kickoff 45 yards for a score in a win over Austin Peay, marking the second kickoff return of his career. Irvin was a preseason second-team All-SoCon selection.

Another viable receiving option in the passing attack for the Bears will be preseason first team All-SoCon pick Sam Walker (24 rec, 206 yds, 3 TDs, 8.6 YPR). Walker replaces Robert Brown as Mercer’s full-time starter at the tight end position this fall.

Rounding out the Mercer offense will be two returning starters along the offensive line, as both Thomas Marchman and Caleb Yates return to anchor the offensive front. The Bears graduated three key pillars along the offensive front, with the departures of Avery White, Kirby Southard and Brett Niederreither.

Marchman heads into the season as the starting left tackle for the Bears, while Yates will head into the campaign as the starter at right guard for the Bears. Marchman was a preseason first team All-SoCon

The Bears return five starters from a defensive unit that finished the 2016 season ranking sixth in the SoCon and 72nd nationally in total defense (403.5 YPG) last season. Mercer also ranked eighth in the league in scoring defense (28.9 PPG), and 72nd out of 122 FCS teams in that category. Those numbers were down from the 2015 season, which saw the Bears rank in the upper echelon of the league in nearly every team defensive category.

The Bears will utilize a 3–4 defense, with a pair of starters returning up front for defensive coordinator Mike Kolakowski’s unit. Isaiah Buehler (31 tackles, 7.0 TFL, 3.0 sacks, 2 PBUs) returns to anchor the unit at defensive end and is a preseason second team All-SoCon pick. Buehler enters the 2017 season with 14.5 TFL and 6.0 sacks in his career entering his redshirt junior season.

Also returning along the defensive line is defensive tackle Dorian Kithcart (20 tackles, 2.0 TFL, 2 QBHs, 1 blkd kick). Kithcart, a 6–0, 282-lb native of Durham, N.C., was a SoCon All-Freshman selection last fall. Kithcart will line up at nose tackle once again this fall. Also expect senior defensive tackle Austin Barrett (8 tackles, 2.0 TFL, 1.0 sack, 1 FR) — a 2015 preseason second team All-SoCon selection — to be a significant contributor along the defensive line for the Bears in 2017.

A pair of talented linebackers return to the fold, as both LeMarkus Bailey (56 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 1 INT, 1 FR) and Lee Bennett (63 tackles, 3.5 TFL, 1.0 sack, 1 PBU) return for the 2017 campaign. Bailey is one of the more versatile athletes on the defensive side of the football for Mercer.

Bennett is the leading returning tackler for the Bears, while Bailey could be one of the most athletic linebackers in the SoCon this fall. Bailey is versatile and can even drop into pass coverage if called to do so. Bennett will enter the season as a starter at one inside linebacker position, while Bailey will be set to line up as a starter at outside linebacker.

The Bears must replace a pair of talented starters at linebacker, in outside linebacker Tosin Aguebor and inside linebacker Tyler Ward. Also slated to compete for starting jobs at linebacker heading into the season opener against Jacksonville will be Will Coneway (51 tackles, 10.0 TFL, 4.5 sacks, 5 PBUs, 1 FF), redshirt freshmen Sidney Otiwu and Ahmad Arnold, and Kyle Williams (17 tackles, 1.0 TFL). Coneway is coming off a season in which he led the Bears in sacks and tackles-for-loss.

The secondary has the potential to be the strength of the defense for the Bears this fall. Despite returning just one starter from a year ago, in cornerback Eric Jackson (56 tackles, 0.5 TFL, 5 PBUs, 1 blkd kick), there is plenty of talent waiting in the wings.

Junior cornerback Stephen Houzah (30 tackles, 4 PBUs, 1 INT, 2 FFs, 1 FR) seems like the likely replacement for Jeremy James at the other cornerback position. At the respective safety positions, look for Malique Fleming (3 tackles, 1 FR) and Brandon Gurley (19 tackles, 1 FF, 1 FR) to be in prime position to start at the two safety positions this fall.

The special teams unit returns place-kicker Cole Fisher and long-snapper Steven Nixon, but must replace punter Tyler Zielenske. Fisher is coming off a 2016 campaign which saw him complete the 2016 season connecting on 16-of-23 field goal attempts, while connecting on a perfect 34-of-34 PATs. True freshman Grant Goupil will have a chance to come in and compete for the starting job at punter this fall.

FINAL OUTLOOK:

Mercer has enough talent to be a real factor in the Southern Conference race this fall, despite massive losses of both starters and second-stringers due to graduation. The reason the Bears could be a factor this fall is due in large part to the recruiting of head coach Bobby Lamb and staff over the past couple of recruiting periods, with the Bears bringing in arguably the league’s top signing class this past February. The Bears should get by Jacksonville in the season opener and have a chance to make a real statement in week two, hosting preseason SoCon favorite Wofford.

SoConJohn22

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