When Tufts' football team takes the field for its season-opening showdown at Wesleyan on Saturday, the defense will sport an experienced core eager to forget about last season's inconsistency and succeed after two of its key members graduated from Tufts.
But for this success to occur, nine returning defensive starters will have to make up for the two they lost: All-American defensive lineman Chris Lawrence and defensive back Donavan Brown, who had three interceptions and was a captain with Lawrence.
The defense ranked fifth out of ten teams for points-allowed in the NESCAC in 2004. Twice it allowed opponents to score over 35 points but then held its challengers to just 66 total points in the other six games. The pass defense ranked only seventh overall in yardage and intercepted the second-fewest passes in the league.
But the Jumbos' rush defense was superb, allowing opponents only 2.7 yards per carry and was second in the NESCAC only to Trinity.
"When you get someone like Lawrence who had a once-in-a-lifetime season and put up those statistics, sure we're looking to replace him," said defensive coordinator John Walsh when asked how the defense would react to Lawrence's departure. "He was just amazing."
It certainly will be tough to replace Lawrence, the sole Tufts defender to be named a NESCAC First-Team All-Conference selection. He also received All-New England, All-East, and All-American honors for his 2004 efforts, which included 72 recorded tackles, three sacks, and a fumble recovery. Still, the Jumbos had other stars on the line last fall.
Junior defensive end Chris Decembrele is coming from an impressive 2004 season, leading the team in tackles (73) and sacks (3.5), including recording nine solo tackles and 15 total against Amherst during Tufts' 10-3 quiet domination of the NESCAC's second-ranked scoring offense. Decembrele's 73 total tackles ranked sixth overall in the NESCAC, and for his efforts was awarded Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) All-Northeast honors for the 2004 year.
Walsh was quick to point out the benefits of players like Decembrele coming back.
"Last year we played five defensive linemen throughout the entire season, and four are back," explained Walsh. "So even though we lose Chris [Lawrence], we have four guys returning who got some substantial playing time. We lose one superstar, but we get more experienced players back."
Defensive linemen aren't the only asset returning to the Jumbos defense.
Sophomore Adam Arsenault was named NESCAC Defensive Rookie of the Year as a freshman in 2004, starting in all eight games for the Jumbos at linebacker while recording 52 tackles, a fumble recovery, and a sack assist.
The biggest concern lies in the secondary, which was leaky at times and has to cope with the loss of Brown. Senior free-safety Patrick Magoon, fifth on the Jumbos in total tackles in 2004 with 45, will return in 2005 as Tufts' lone team captain. The four-year starter will be key to anchoring the Jumbos' inconsistent defensive backfield.
"Magoon knows our defense, he knows every position, and he runs the show when he's on the field," explained Walsh. "But (Magoon) also helps off the field, helping me coach the younger guys."
Tufts hopes that the defensive backfield's extra year of experience, coupled with the senior captain's capabilities, can help Tufts better protect against the pass in 2005.
"We had so many new starters last year; we were just a young defensive team," Walsh continued. "Now we're more experienced; we have a bigger knowledge base. We lost Donavan [Brown], but the other defensive backs are coming back. The difference is, again, we just have more experience."
Despite its inconsistencies, the Jumbo defense was quite dependable during the 2004 campaign, giving a good degree of promise for the 2005 season, at least on that side of the ball.
Indeed, the Jumbos' 2-6 record in 2004 didn't really reflect the efforts of the defense, which earned three All-Conference selections and held its opponents under 15 points in five of the team's eight games, allowing a modest 17.4 points per game despite suffering two blowout losses.
One of those blowout losses was the 2004 season-opener against Wesleyan. It's hard to think this year's performance could be any worse than last year, when the Jumbo was burned for 37 points and 476 yards of total offense, including 339 yards and two touchdowns through the air by Cardinal sophomore quarterback Zach Canter.
If the nine returning starters can overcome days like that and overcome the loss of Lawrence, there is no reason to believe the Jumbo defense won't remain solid in 2005.
Look in tomorrow's paper for The Daily's review on the offensive side of the ball.
