Dragon Football News for a Friday from the Forum
Craig Kutz, a quarterback from Sheboygan, Wis,. weaved a reference to the recent Brett Favre saga into Thursday’s Minnesota State Moorhead football media day. “I think that they paid Dustin $20 million to stay away,” Kutz joked, referring to a marketing deal the Green Bay Packers offered Favre to stay retired.
A redshirt junior, Kutz is the likely replacement for a team superstar on a smaller scale. The aforementioned Dustin Long completed his career last fall as the Dragons career leader in completions, pass attempts, passing yards and touchdowns. Long was the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference offensive player of the year last season passing for 3,223 yards and 34 touchdowns to help MSUM to a 4-7 record.
“I think any time you lose a quarterback of that caliber, it’s going to be difficult to replace,” Dragons head coach Damon Tomeo said. “There is going to be a change there.” Tomeo said Kutz has been taking “first-group reps” in practice, but added incoming freshman Tyler Wegner, from Oshkosh, Wis., could vie for playing time. Tomeo said he likes Wegner’s arm strength. “We have our guys compete every day and Craig understands that,” Tomeo said.
A two-year letter winner, Kutz has the experience edge. He backed up Long the last two seasons, appearing in six games. While the 6-foot, 195-pound Kutz doesn’t feature the same strong arm that Long possessed, Tomeo called Kutz “very intelligent and very cerebral.”
“Dustin, he has his golden arm. That’s the best way to put it,” said Kutz, who is a 4.0 student. “I’m really excited. I’ve been really waiting for this opportunity the last few years.” During his freshman year, Kutz saw his only previous extensive game action in a 32-6 victory against Minnesota-Crookston. After Long went down with an injury, Kutz entered that game late in the first half. Kutz completed 11 of 16 passes for 144 yards and three TDs in relief.
“It’s definitely something we’re going to miss, not having a quarterback like Dustin Long,” said junior running back Enol Gilles, who led the team with 899 yards rushing last season. “We have a lot of confidence in Craig. I know he has the ability to play at that level.” While Long is gone, the Dragons return other key aerial parts to their high-powered spread offense.
All-American junior wide receiver Jabari Taylor is back after a record-breaking year. Last season, Taylor caught 90 passes for 1,147 yards and 13 touchdowns, all school records. Junior wide receiver Bruce Green added 45 catches for 697 yards and eight touchdowns in 2007. "There is a lot of excitement because a lot of people are underestimating Craig, saying he can’t do what Dustin did,” Taylor said. “I look forward to proving a lot of people wrong.”
While the Dragons would like to maintain the 31 points per game they averaged last season, they also want to improve in the 30.6 points per game they allowed. Tomeo thinks the defense can be better. MSUM returns 10 defensive starters, including free safety Josh Jones. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound junior missed the last eight games a season ago after breaking a bone in his forearm. The year prior to that, Jones intercepted 10 passes and was named an NCAA Division II first-team All-American. “The way I look at it is we have to get better at defense no matter how many points we score,” Jones said. “If our offense scores six points, we have to get better. If our offense scores 60 points we have to get better.”
Readers can reach Forum reporter Eric Peterson at (701) 241-5513.
A redshirt junior, Kutz is the likely replacement for a team superstar on a smaller scale. The aforementioned Dustin Long completed his career last fall as the Dragons career leader in completions, pass attempts, passing yards and touchdowns. Long was the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference offensive player of the year last season passing for 3,223 yards and 34 touchdowns to help MSUM to a 4-7 record.
“I think any time you lose a quarterback of that caliber, it’s going to be difficult to replace,” Dragons head coach Damon Tomeo said. “There is going to be a change there.” Tomeo said Kutz has been taking “first-group reps” in practice, but added incoming freshman Tyler Wegner, from Oshkosh, Wis., could vie for playing time. Tomeo said he likes Wegner’s arm strength. “We have our guys compete every day and Craig understands that,” Tomeo said.
A two-year letter winner, Kutz has the experience edge. He backed up Long the last two seasons, appearing in six games. While the 6-foot, 195-pound Kutz doesn’t feature the same strong arm that Long possessed, Tomeo called Kutz “very intelligent and very cerebral.”
“Dustin, he has his golden arm. That’s the best way to put it,” said Kutz, who is a 4.0 student. “I’m really excited. I’ve been really waiting for this opportunity the last few years.” During his freshman year, Kutz saw his only previous extensive game action in a 32-6 victory against Minnesota-Crookston. After Long went down with an injury, Kutz entered that game late in the first half. Kutz completed 11 of 16 passes for 144 yards and three TDs in relief.
“It’s definitely something we’re going to miss, not having a quarterback like Dustin Long,” said junior running back Enol Gilles, who led the team with 899 yards rushing last season. “We have a lot of confidence in Craig. I know he has the ability to play at that level.” While Long is gone, the Dragons return other key aerial parts to their high-powered spread offense.
All-American junior wide receiver Jabari Taylor is back after a record-breaking year. Last season, Taylor caught 90 passes for 1,147 yards and 13 touchdowns, all school records. Junior wide receiver Bruce Green added 45 catches for 697 yards and eight touchdowns in 2007. "There is a lot of excitement because a lot of people are underestimating Craig, saying he can’t do what Dustin did,” Taylor said. “I look forward to proving a lot of people wrong.”
While the Dragons would like to maintain the 31 points per game they averaged last season, they also want to improve in the 30.6 points per game they allowed. Tomeo thinks the defense can be better. MSUM returns 10 defensive starters, including free safety Josh Jones. The 5-foot-10, 170-pound junior missed the last eight games a season ago after breaking a bone in his forearm. The year prior to that, Jones intercepted 10 passes and was named an NCAA Division II first-team All-American. “The way I look at it is we have to get better at defense no matter how many points we score,” Jones said. “If our offense scores six points, we have to get better. If our offense scores 60 points we have to get better.”
Readers can reach Forum reporter Eric Peterson at (701) 241-5513.
posted by Coach Tomeo @ 6:48 PM
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