For the past four years, NESCAC football teams have been faced with the same daunting question: can anyone beat the Trinity Bantams?
And for the past four years, the answer has been a definitive "no."
Trinity's numbers are staggering. The Bantams haven't lost a game since 2002 and have held a lock on first place since 2001. Their current winning streak of 30 games is the nation's longest, and unfortunately for other NESCAC teams, they show no signs of slowing down.
The Bantams didn't just beat their opponents last year; they pummeled them. A 47-0 pummeling of Bates opened the 2005 season, and a 63-7 routing of Wesleyan closed it. Opponents should expect more of the same from Trinity, as the squad returns a deadly duo of running backs in seniors Gennaro Leo and Jordan Quinones.
Trinity also returns its top receiver in senior Chris Olenoski, but it will have to rebuild its passing game after the graduation of its top two quarterbacks.
"Our team should be interesting," Trinity coach Jeff Devanney said. "We graduated an exceptionally talented class, so we have some very talented players that haven't had to play much during pressure situations. It'll be fun to see how they respond to a starting role."
Devanney himself is among the changes to the 2006 squad. After leading the Bantams to four straight NESCAC championships, former head coach Chuck Priore accepted the top job at Div. I-AA Stony Brook University. Devanney brings his personal experience back to Hartford; he played both football and baseball at Trinity before graduating in 1993, and was NESCAC football's Defensive Player of the Year in 1992.
While Trinity plowed through its eight-game schedule last season teams, the one team it did not play-each school plays only eight of nine NESCAC teams every year-was likely its most viable challenger this season, Colby. The Mules compiled a 7-1 record last season, losing only to Amherst, and will look to dethrone the Bantams this season. That chance will come in the season's opening weekend, as the two schools face off this Saturday.
While Trinity is the league's 800-pound gorilla, Colby is its biggest success story. The Mules won just four games in 2002 but have improved their record in every season since. After winning five games in 2003, six in 2004 and seven last season, coach Ed Mestieri hopes that this can be the year his squad finally comes out on top.
"Our team this year is different in many respects, different strengths and weaknesses," Mestieri said. "It's my hope that some of our younger players develop as the season goes on, so that we can remain one of the elite teams in this league."
And from Mestieri's desk, and the desks of the other NESCAC coaches, that title is well-deserved. The final New England Div. III football poll of last season showed Trinity and Colby in the top two spots in the region. Saturday's game will settle the struggle for the top spot once and for all, and Mestieri, for one, can't wait.
"Trinity has clearly established themselves as the preeminent team in our league; their record speaks for itself," Mestieri said. "They've developed a program that competes at the highest level within our league and in New England. We're excited for the opportunity to play them." Saturday's Trinity-Colby showdown may prove to be NESCAC's game of the season, but there are several other teams in the league with the potential to make some noise.
"I think the NESCAC will be tougher this year," Devanney said. "There are the usual suspects with a lot of talent, but many of the other teams have really improved in the last couple of years."
This conference-wide improvement could make for a great deal of parity in the NESCAC this season, as several other powerhouses are ready to emerge.
"Amherst was down for a stretch of maybe 10 years, but they've turned it around and gotten back on track," Tufts Athletic Director Emeritus Rocky Carzo said. "Williams is usually out front, and I'm sure they'll continue to play great. And the really up-and-coming teams out there are Colby and Bowdoin, as far as I'm concerned."
And then there are the Jumbos. Tufts' squad finished 2-6 last season, with its two wins coming right out of the gate against Wesleyan and Bates. And it was the Jumbos that put up the best fight against Trinity last year, slowing down the running duo of Leo and Quinones and losing 7-0, a margin made even more respectable by Trinity's high-powered offense, which averaged 34.5 points per game.
"We've had some very close games in the past few years and had some lucky breaks to end up with a win," Devanney said. "The Tufts game last year was very close and could have gone either way."
The Jumbos' biggest strength may be their tenacious defense, led by All-NESCAC senior defensive end Chris Decembrele as well as junior linebacker Adam Arsenault and senior defensive backs Bryan McDavitt and Brett Holm. On the other side of the ball, senior Matt Russo is untested so far at quarterback, returning to the turf after sitting out last season due to injury.
"They look like they're going to be a fairly tough team," Carzo said of this year's Jumbos. "They look big enough, and they should be very good defensively. They seem to have a good attitude too."
See tomorrow's Daily for a full Tufts football preview.
