At first glance, one might think SFU’s football team was bound for a step back. Gone is quarterback Trey Wheeler, who led the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) in total offense — by over 700. Gone is star running back Bo Palmer, lost to graduation. And gone is last year’s offensive coordinator, Jason Beck, now at Division I’s Brigham Young University.
But not gone the team’s confidence or sense of optimism. Walk into the coaches offices in West Mall Complex and you’ll see the argument could be made that it’s higher than ever. And you’ll see the argument is being
made that said confidence is entirely justified.
I knock on new ofensive coordinator Nick Lucey’s office door, and he greets me with a smile, even though we’ve never met. I introduce myself, and he invites me in to chat. Within minutes, he’s gushing about his new team.
Steps were made to replace the teammates that were lost, Lucey assures me from his desk that overlooks the busy central bus loop. Even more were taken behind the scenes that could change SFU’s reputation from a scrappy underdog to a potential GNAC frontrunner.
“We added a running back, Chris Tolbert, from (Div. I) Central Connecticut, who’ll step in and start,” said Lucey. “Most guys drop down from Div. I because they weren’t playing. Chris was playing, and he came here to get the chance to lead. He’s a very accomplished back and a very mature guy.”
“We really, really like the guy we’ve got at quarterback, Ryan Stanford,” he continues. “We think our guy can be as good as anyone else in the league.”
Lost in the shuffle is the fact that much of the offense is returning, including most of the team’s offensive line and receiving corps, led by superstar pass-catcher Lemar Durant. “We have a lot of key players back from last year,” said Lucey, with a smile that hadn’t yet wavered. “We’ll see as we get going here, but our expectations are very high.”
After leading the GNAC in total offense last year, the Clan might be hard pressed to match those gaudy numbers from a year ago with a few fresh faces in offensive skill positions. But new quarterbacks coach Steve Axman will help.
Axman was the offensive coordinator for the University of Washington when they won the Rose Bowl in 2001 over the Drew Brees-led Purdue Boilermakers. He was the quarterbacks coach for Troy Aikman at UCLA, who’s in the NFL Hall of Fame. “To have a guy with so much experience . . . It’s been really good for me,” said Lucey of Axman.
Despite the losses on offense, a string of notable hires and recruits answer most questions. To the casual observer, those departures could have overshadowed the defensive side of the ball, where the Clan struggled last season.
The Clan finished with a 4–6 record last season, and too often those games turned into shootouts. For head coach Dave Johnson, defense had to be a priority for the 2013 season, and he brought in James Colzie III as the new defensive coordinator. Like Axman, Colzie has a resume that speaks volumes.
Colzie began his coaching career in 2000 at Florida International University, coaching cornerbacks and working with returners as the assistant special teams coordinator. From there, Colzie returned to his alma mater, Florida State University — where as a player he won a national title in 1993 — and served as cornerbacks coach from 2004-07.
“He’s got a tremendous background,” says Lucey of his defensive counterpart. “What he’s doing is really, really good.” He continues, “It’s just a matter of taking the time to coach [the new system], and have the guys master it. But I’ve seen a lot of improvement in the defense from spring practice.
“We’ve done so many things and brought in the people to put our guys in the best position possible,” said Lucey, who joined the team officially on April 1. “You go out there and hire a guy like coach Colzie or coach Axman, it’s exciting.”
Lucey’s excitement is infectious. The team will have played its first game by the time you read this, an away game against Humboldt State. No matter the result, it’s easy to tell this team is ready to make its mark in the GNAC.
“I think last year the guys were finally growing up enough to start going toe to toe with the big boys,” said Lucey. “I think we’re just set to take off from here.”
