Richmond Spiders
Overall Rank: #21
#5 Colonial
Richmond Team Page
2010 Record: (6-5, 4-4)
2010 Postseason: none
Coach: Latrell Scott (6-5 at Richmond, 6-5 overall)
Returning Leaders:
Rushing: Kendall Gaskins, RB, 402 yards
Passing: Aaron Corp, QB, 645 yards
Receiving: Tre Gray, WR, 478 yards
Tackles: Darius McMillan, LB, 89
Sacks: Darius McMillan, LB, 2.0
Interceptions: Tremayne Graham, CB, 3
Despite the unimpressive 6-5 overall record, Richmond was right in the mix for a playoff spot heading into the late season. A win against William & Mary to close out the season probably would have been enough. However, that was a tough road game against the sixth ranked Tribe and the Spiders got slaughtered 41-3.
Strengths:
This offense was not very effective last season. The health of quarterback Aaron Corp, a transfer from USC did not help matters. He went down with a knee injury five games into the 2010 campaign. John Laub is not a bad quarterback. He is more mobile than Corp, but Corp is a big 6-3 signal caller with a great arm. If he can stay healthy and get comfortable with the offense, the passing attack could, and should, be very good. Tre Gray is an experienced receiver who caught 38 passes for 478 yards and two touchdowns. Those may not sound like great numbers, and they are not, but nobody else on the team had over 200 receiving yards in 2010 and Gray has proven in years past that he can be a great receiver. Richmond will need to find another receiver, but tight end Kevin Finney is a quality pass catcher. The offensive line was pretty young and inexperienced last season which did not help the offense. Led by Ryan Goss, Mark Speir and Richard Muldow, the offensive line should do a better job of helping out the passing game and the rushing game. The ground attack was pretty much non-existent last year too. Fullback Kendall Gaskins is a great goal line option and rushed for 402 yards and five touchdowns in 2010 and Jovan Smith and Garrett Wilkins are ready to handle a majority of the workload.
Weaknesses:
The defense was nothing special last year either, at least on a consistent basis. And now Eric McBride, Martin Parker, Patrick Weldon and Max Prokell are gone. The Spiders have some quality players capable of filling the production that has been lost, but the leadership role may be a bigger issue. The front four will have to find a way to get pressure on the opposing quarterback without Parker, who led the team with 8.0 tackles-for-loss and 5.0 sacks. There are some experienced players coming back, but they will not be the same without Parker. McBride was the leader of the entire defense, not just the linebackers and replacing him will be difficult. Darius McMillan will have to step into that role and Richmond will need to hope that some young talent is ready to make an impact. The secondary may have the fewest questions heading into the fall with the return of corner Tremayne Graham and safeties Darryl Hamilton and Colin Pehanick. However, the unit was not that great last year and it remains to be seen if they can improve enough with another year of experience under their belt.
The Bottom Line:
The Spiders have a lot of questions to answer on both sides of the ball. Some major holes need to be filled on defense and the offense needs to stay healthy. This is a team that is not far removed from a championship and the players are there for Richmond to make another run at a CAA title and FCS championship. All the pieces will need to come together, which is asking a bit much, but this group will again be on the verge of a playoff appearance late in the season.
Projected Postseason: none
2010 Team Stats:
Rushing Offense: 131.64 (75th in nation, 8th in conference)
Passing Offense: 141.36 (100, 9)
Total Offense: 273.00 (104, 10)
Scoring Offense: 15.55 (109, 9)
Rushing Defense: 167.55 (84, 8)
Pass Defense: 197.09 (50, 7)
Total Defense: 364.64 (72, 9)
Scoring Defense: 20.55 (27, 6)
Turnover Margin: -.64 (98, 8)
Sacks: 1.73 (65, 2)
Sacks Allowed: 1.36 (28, 2)
Madness 2011 FCS Football Recruit Rankings:
#44 Keevon Newsome
#70 Irabor Imobisa
#85 Mylon Blueford
#126 Cormac Craigie
