Santos' brave new world

[UNHWildCats]

RICKY SANTOS said this upcoming year with the University of New Hampshire football team is going to be different. He'll be a senior, a guy who has to lead, set the example.

But Santos has always been a leader, always set the example. That's why he won the Walter Payton award this fall as the best player in Division I-AA. That's why he's a record-setting quarterback who has been starting for the Wildcats since his freshman year.

uys who follow don't accomplish those kinds of things.

What really will be different for Santos is that he will no longer have David Ball to throw to or Chip Kelly to call the plays for him.

Today, during the team's annual Blue/White scrimmage at Cowell Stadium (12:30, admission is free), Ricky Santos will be on his own.

Ball, who broke Jerry Rice's Division I-AA record for career touchdown receptions and recently had his number retired, signed with the Chicago Bears as a free agent last week. Kelly, who turned the UNH offense into an art form, is now the offensive coordinator at the University of Oregon.

"It'll be tough, but I'm trying to move on," Santos said. "I'm really excited with what we had to work with in the spring."


http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Jim+Fennell%3a+Santos%27+bra ve+new+world&articleId=e5e07907-72b3-4671-9a58-af64859a9fbf

[PantherRob82]

Looking forward to watching his senior year.

[aust42]

After watching Santos come in for the injured starter and light Delaware's 2ndary up for a huge upset his Freshman year, I told my tailgate buddies this guy is GOOD. Sure enough he is what he is now, but this year will define how good he really is without the support a great receiver in Ball. If Santos can post impressive #'s this year with unproven talent and lead New Hampshire thru a good season he's at least a 3rd rounder hands down. He's already on NFL scouts' radar. Good luck. (except against Delaware)

[Tod]

He's da man! Santos! xbowx xbowx xbowx xbowx xbowx

[Mr. C]

Ricky will do fine. Not having Chip Kelly around might be a growth point for Ricky. I'd like to see him call more audibles and make more decisions on his own. We talked at the Sports Network Awards last year about the final play of one of the UMass games where David Ball was spilt on the far left in one-on-one coverage and Ricky was suppose to throw that little short, quick pass that Hatchell deflected. Santos said Kelly didn't like him to audible very much.

[PantherRob82]

Santos said Kelly didn't like him to audible very much.
Maybe with good reason?

[jmuroller]

Tell him to "DUCK" when he plays JMU!

jk...actually I hope he gets lost on his way to the stadium.

[UNHWILDCATS05]

Ricky will do fine. Not having Chip Kelly around might be a growth point for Ricky. I'd like to see him call more audibles and make more decisions on his own. We talked at the Sports Network Awards last year about the final play of one of the UMass games where David Ball was spilt on the far left in one-on-one coverage and Ricky was suppose to throw that little short, quick pass that Hatchell deflected. Santos said Kelly didn't like him to audible very much.
Please don't remind me of the final play calls of both UMASS games last year...xsmhx xsmhx xsmhx

[89Hen]

After watching Santos come in for the injured starter and light Delaware's 2ndary up for a huge upset his Freshman year, I told my tailgate buddies this guy is GOOD.
xnodx Granieri on crutchs in foreground.

[DD Wildcat]

Ricky look very good today! WR's had some drops but overall the offense was very explosive! 15-25 250yds 3 TD 1 rushing

[SunCoastBlueHen]

A bold prediction - Joe Flacco will be all conference over Santos. xpeacex

[UNHWildCats]

Ricky Santos 15-25 253 yards 3TD
Hank Hendricks 14-24 165 yards 2TD
RJ Toman 16-28 268 yards 2TD

[UNHFan99]

Thats a very bold prediction.

[Cobblestone]

I have no doubt Santos will light it up agianst us, no matter who is calling the plays or who he is throwing to. xsmhx

[*****]

... he is what he is now, but this year will define how good he really is without the support a great receiver in Ball. If Santos can post impressive #'s this year with unproven talent...I think Levan and Brown are proven. Ball is a great loss but he was injured nearly the entire 2006 season.

[Mr. C]

The guy I'm excited about for 2007 is RB Chad Kackert. I think he is going to have a breakthrough year.

[foghorn]

A bold prediction - Joe Flacco will be all conference over Santos. xpeacex
You are very astute Son coast!xnodx I'll go one step further and predict that Flacco gets drafted before Santos.;)

[Mr. C]

A bold prediction - Joe Flacco will be all conference over Santos. xpeacex
No chance. Flacco has plenty of competition to even be second-team All-CAA with Sean Schaafer of Towson and Liam Coen of UMass back.

[Mr. C]

Heard from someone who was at UNH's scrimmage today and this was what they reported about Santos:

"Santos looked very good today! I was on the sidelines and he made audibles and basically ran the show!"

[Mr. C]

I think Levan and Brown are proven. Ball is a great loss but he was injured nearly the entire 2006 season.
Personally, I think Michael Boyle will be Santos' go-to WR in 2007. He made some strong strides in 2006. The Wildcats will be potent again this season and should put up plenty of points.

[*****]

You are very astute Son coast!xnodx I'll go one step further and predict that Flacco gets drafted before Santos.;)NFL and FCS are very different.... can't compare

[*****]

Personally, I think Mike Boyle will be Santos' go-to WR in 2007..I was responding to a 2006 record post, Boyle had 16 catches... Levan 70. Boyle would be the "unproven" in that lot.

[Mr. C]

Boyle is not unproven in the eyes of his coaches, however. They are extremely high on him and Kackard.

[*****]

Boyle is not unproven in the eyes of his coaches, however. They are extremely high on him and Kackard.I hope you are talking to the right person because I never said any of the UNH receivers were unproven.

[GoWildcats789]

If Boyle is healthy he'll have a breakout year... he was insane against northeastern last year...

[*****]

The guy I'm excited about for 2007 is RB Chad Kackard. I think he is going to have a breakthrough year.I thought that Kackert was last year...????

[Longhorn]

No chance. Flacco has plenty of competition to even be second-team All-CAA with Sean Schaafer of Towson and Liam Coen of UMass back.


In this particular case I agree with Mr. C....and I'll go one step further...Schaafer, given his supporting cast at TU, has an excellent chance to earn first team honors over Santos. IMO, if Schaafer improves over his play from year ago TU may well emerge as a playoff team from the CAA in 2007...in fact, they may even win their division.

[Mr. C]

I'm not going to go that far. Santos is the defending Payton Award winner. Schaefer, while good, hasn't shown the consistency to play at Santos' level. There are four top-notch QBs in the CAA and while Schaefer is probably among the top 10 QBs in FCS, Santos is at the top of the charts. I do think that Towson can be in contention for a playoff spot, however.

[Mr. C]

I thought that Kackert was last year...????
He was good for a freshman, but Kackert has the capability to move among the elite RBs in FCS this season. That's what I meant by a breakthrough season.

Redshirt freshman Sean Jellison apparently had a big day in the scrimmage. The Wildcats have offensive talente all over the place.

[rcny46]

Personally, I think Michael Boyle will be Santos' go-to WR in 2007. He made some strong strides in 2006. The Wildcats will be potent again this season and should put up plenty of points.

I believe that Boyle was the leading receiver today,and supposedly not 100%.I don't know if he's still recovering from the injury problems he had last season,or is battling something new.

[Henny]

Ill take Flacco as the Hens QB any day. He is 6-6 230 with escapability and dosent let anything get to him. He now has the surrounding cast to have a breakout year and will be a legit pro prospect.

That being said Schaffer is a stud and Rickey is THE best and most exciting player in the A10/CAA since Brian Westbrook. He had a play against the Hens last year that is still hard to fathum. After a bad snap, he eluded a number of tackles and all kinds of pressure then flipped a pass in the flat to Kackert who was probably his 6th option for a TD.

His style is very similar to Rich Gannon and can carry UNH on his back regardless of who he has as recievers.

[WildcatFan]

Stats from Spring Practice - 83 points scored

http://www.unhwildcats.com/index.cfm?id=CA1D6500-9C14-9F72-F17E60B7B6771786&pid=5DFA97D3-0B9D-8C69-986A483EC726D393&archive=0

UNH Captains - I love that two Tri-Valley league players are now captains of UNH - Ricky Santos/Bellingham, Matt Perdoni/Dover Sherborn

http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Perdoni+joins+Santos+as+capt ain&articleId=2b44030a-9a29-4e4b-a0c6-c29e12288e55

[UNHFan99]

I am thrilled to see Perdoni as a captain. He is a kid that works harder than anyone on the team but would never let you know he does. One of the best teamates you could have. He lifted on his own almost every offday during the season. Santos was a given for captain. I wrote him in for captain when he was a sophmore and I was a senior and I know I wasnt alone. He is the best leader I have ever been around.

[yorkcountyUNHfan]

There was a bigger crowd for the spring game this year then UNH would get for regular season games just a few years ago.

[foghorn]

NFL and FCS are very different.... can't compare
I'm not comparing. While Santos could very well be POY in the FCS, mainly because of his superior running ability, Flacco has a major league arm in both strength and accuracy and is more suited for the NFL than Santos, IMO. He's also 6'6" and 235 lbs. xthumbsupx

[UNHWildCats]

Flacco 264-417 10INt 18 TD 63.3% 2783 yards

Santos 293-432 7INT 29 TD 67.8% 3125 yards

Santos doesnt exactly have an innacurrate arm.

[PantherRob82]

Stats from Spring Practice - 83 points scored

Great offense or shaky D?

[*****]

... He's also 6'6" and 235 lbs. xthumbsupxThat alone will get him selected before Santos, the NFL has that kind of mentality.

[yorkcountyUNHfan]

Great offense or shaky D?

Both...

The line backing looked good.

They need some younger players to step up on the d-line and backfield.

Plus with the no huddle they run a ton of plays were run.
Compaired to a team that huddles up I'll bet 20 to 30% more.

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

Great offense or shaky D?

I wasn't there yesterday, but I'll venture an educated guess that it is a little of both. With the number of players returning on offense compared to the number returning on defense, I expected the offense to dominate yesterday.

Graduation hit the defense harder than the offense in sheer numbers. The O lost David Ball and the D lost Corey Graham, but overall the defense lost more starters IIRC. I think there are a lot of young, talented kids coming into the defensive unit, but it's going to take time for them to gel. UNH 40, is that a fair assessment?

JMHO, but the defense playing well enough to let the offense win games is one of the keys to the upcoming season. Probably more pressure on the offense to execute and score this year than last.

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

That alone will get him selected before Santos, the NFL has that kind of mentality.

I agree 100%! Flacco's size and playing a game closer to the pro style will make Joe a higher prospect for the NFL. But as a FCS QB, Ricky Santos more than gets the job done. And IMO one's professional potential should not be a factor in any collegiate awards.

UNH probably asks Ricky Santos to do more than Delaware does of Joe Flacco. So, if both have outstanding seasons, then that could give Ricky the nod for post-seasons awards. But not for a minute do I think that Ricky is a slam dunk for 1st Team CAA QB. Very formidable competitors in Flacco, Coen and Schaefer for sure! How each team finishes up will also be a significant factor in addition to individual stats.

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

I am thrilled to see Perdoni as a captain. He is a kid that works harder than anyone on the team but would never let you know he does. One of the best teamates you could have. He lifted on his own almost every offday during the season. Santos was a given for captain. I wrote him in for captain when he was a sophmore and I was a senior and I know I wasnt alone. He is the best leader I have ever been around.

I love the selection of Perdoni as a captain just to perpetuate the walk-on tradition at UNH! Sends a great message to kids that UNH provides real opportunities and rewards hard work and perseverance!

[DD Wildcat]

I love the selection of Perdoni as a captain just to perpetuate the walk-on tradition at UNH! Sends a great message to kids that UNH provides real opportunities and rewards hard work and perseverance!


Not your typical offense verse defense, number one's defensively and offensively where playing on both teams, so to say the defense struggles you have to realize they didn't all play together it was a mix!

[Tilldog40]

I predict that Santos will have a tough year. Losing his top two recievers will hurt him. He won't have the weapons this year, and the D isn't gonna win them games.

[UNH 40]

I predict that Santos will have a tough year. Losing his top two recievers will hurt him. He won't have the weapons this year, and the D isn't gonna win them games.

On the contrary I believe that Santos will have another superb season for the reason that he is going to have a better running game. Kackert is a year older and strong, Bobby Simpson as tough a downhill runner as there will be in the league with break away speed, Chris Ward is a proven player with great size and toughness, and one player that I will throw out there as a guy to watch is Sean Jellison who will be a Sophmore has a great build and speed to burn. He looked great in the spring game. This is going to help Santos tremendously and will set up the play action pass for him like never before. Also look for UNH to go back to using a tight end much more, I believe Scott Sicko is a future All-Conference tight end, from what I understand he had an enormous spring but was kept out of the spring game with an ankle sprain. Losing Ball is a huge blow to the whole program, especially Santos, but remember that Keith LeVan caught 70 passes last year and would have been a #1 option for almost any other team in the league. He had some unbelievable David Ball like grabs in the spring game. You can't under estimate the importance of the return of Mike Boyle, who has a ton of experience, great hands and big play ability. Kackert will also be used as a WR every once in a while as well.


Ricky will do what has done here from day one and that is win, losing Ball doesn't make him somehow forget how to win. He is 30 and 9 in his career, and still the best play in the FCS. Expect nothing less than what you have seen from this kid, because he believes and I do as well you will see nothing less.

[rcny46]

I have to agree with UNH 40 100% regarding the loss of Brown and Ball.This will be an offense with a new look,and a stable full of weapons - including a wealth of competent receivers - and it won't miss a beat.Now,if they can just come up with a DL(my biggest worry)that can get the job done.

[SunCoastBlueHen]

I have to agree with UNH 40 100% regarding the loss of Brown and Ball.This will be an offense with a new look,and a stable full of weapons - including a wealth of competent receivers - and it won't miss a beat.Now,if they can just come up with a DL(my biggest worry)that can get the job done.

How does your O Line look this year? It is amazing how good or bad the big boys can make the skill guys looks.

[BDKJMU]

I wasn't there yesterday, but I'll venture an educated guess that it is a little of both. With the number of players returning on offense compared to the number returning on defense, I expected the offense to dominate yesterday.

Graduation hit the defense harder than the offense in sheer numbers. The O lost David Ball and the D lost Corey Graham, but overall the defense lost more starters IIRC. I think there are a lot of young, talented kids coming into the defensive unit, but it's going to take time for them to gel. UNH 40, is that a fair assessment?

JMHO, but the defense playing well enough to let the offense win games is one of the keys to the upcoming season. Probably more pressure on the offense to execute and score this year than last.

That doesn't sound very good for UNH's defense. I was at the JMU-UNH game last yr, and after seeing JMU put up 42 (35 offensive) in a little over 3 quarters (and Rascati wasn't throwing very well that day- alot of low balls) I thought UNH's defense sucked, at least their run defense- JMU rushed for I think it was 259, and if they're not going to be any better or even as good this yr thats going to be bad news. I would expect that UNH will have a great offense and below avg defense. I'll be at the UNH @ JMU game on Sept 8th, JMU's 1st home game after probably losing to UNC. I was saying after last season that with JMU losing Rascati with 4th yr junior Rodney Landers taking over the starting role (super athlete who turned down numerous IA offers that wanted him to play DB) that with Landers and Holloman JMU's coaches should go visit WVU in the offseason to learn about installing a similar offense to try to be IAA's version of White and Slayton. Well, guess where JMU's coaching staff visited this offseason? Yep, Morgantown.
JMU's defense should be above avg, and their offense could be above avg to really good. I wouldn't be surprised to see JMU and UNH combine for 70 to 80 something points come Sept 8th in an overflow capacity (16k or so) night game, with JMU winning, of course. xsmiley_wix

[Mr. C]

That doesn't sound very good for UNH's defense. I was at the JMU-UNH game last yr, and after seeing JMU put up 42 (35 offensive) in a little over 3 quarters (and Rascati wasn't throwing very well that day- alot of low balls) I thought UNH's defense sucked, at least their run defense- JMU rushed for I think it was 259, and if they're not going to be any better or even as good this yr thats going to be bad news. I would expect that UNH will have a great offense and below avg defense. I'll be at the UNH @ JMU game on Sept 8th, JMU's 1st home game after probably losing to UNC. I was saying after last season that with JMU losing Rascati with 4th yr junior Rodney Landers taking over the starting role (super athlete who turned down numerous IA offers that wanted him to play DB) that with Landers and Holloman JMU's coaches should go visit WVU in the offseason to learn about installing a similar offense to try to be IAA's version of White and Slayton. Well, guess where JMU's coaching staff visited this offseason? Yep, Morgantown.
JMU's defense should be above avg, and their offense could be above avg to really good. I wouldn't be surprised to see JMU and UNH combine for 70 to 80 something points come Sept 8th in an overflow capacity (16k or so) night game, with JMU winning, of course. xsmiley_wix
In case you hadn't noticed, the West Virginia offense is almost identical to that run by Appalachian State. The only difference is that ASU almost never takes the ball under center, whereas West Virginia does for short-yardage situations.

[UNHFan99]

I think Ricky will be just fine. He still has pretty good recievers in Levan and Boyle. Almost every defense in the league was double or triple teaming his #1 all game. I think in a way its gonna be nice for him to just face a normal defense.

[BDKJMU]

In case you hadn't noticed, the West Virginia offense is almost identical to that run by Appalachian State. The only difference is that ASU almost never takes the ball under center, whereas West Virginia does for short-yardage situations.

Yeah, I should have said like ASU already does. That ASU QB and tailback were really good at running that offense (from the 4 playoff games I saw them on TV), made possible by an outstanding o-line. Landers (4th yr junior, 1st yr starter) and Holloman (sr, returning all-A10) are both very quick and can flat out fly, but JMU won't have the o-line ASU did. ASU avg 241 yards rushing a game last season. JMU avg last 3 seasons was 218, 234, 213. Throw in some of the no-huddle that JMU no will be doing and 8 or so more plays per game (back to old clock rules) and I think JMU, while won't do 300+ like WVU, could put up 250+ a game on the ground. I know, lot of depends & ifs involved. Back to the UNH-JMU, can't wait to see what should be a very high scoring game between what could be 2 of the top 3-4 offenses in the Colonial. Should be the game of the week in IAA that week. xcoffeex

[th0m]

For which we can vote now!

[rcny46]

How does your O Line look this year? It is amazing how good or bad the big boys can make the skill guys looks.

I think the O line will be one of UNH's strengths.They will have four starters back and some quality depth.The TE position doesn't look too bad either.

[UNH_Alum_In_CT]

I think the O line will be one of UNH's strengths.They will have four starters back and some quality depth.The TE position doesn't look too bad either.

I agree on both positions!!

[SunCoastBlueHen]

I think the O line will be one of UNH's strengths.They will have four starters back and some quality depth.The TE position doesn't look too bad either.


Thanks. If UHN gets good o-line play, I agree that they should put up a ton of points again this year.