MU football intra-squad scrimmage/this will be longer than the Press story that will run Sunday

By TONY GRAHAM
STAFF WRITER

WEST LONG BRANCH - Fans watching Saturday's Monmouth University intra-squad football
scrimmage might have throught the Hawks were throwing caution to the winds.
Monmouth certainly
was throwing.

As footballs filled the air at windy Kessler Field all four quarterbacks, Brett
Burke, Ryan Folsom, Matt Fullam, and Kyle Brandon, lined up exclusively in shotgun
formation.

Wide outs Chris Kiley, Adam San Miguel, and Nick Romeo ran reverses, and tight end
Johh Nalbone dove into the line after catching shovel passes.

""This is not a new offense,'' said coach Kevin Callahan whose Hawks normally employ
a multiple look. He said the team is without fullback Marion Easley, who hurls the
javelin in the spring, and that Nalbone was the only healthy tight end.

""So we're doing a little bit more of our wide receiver package which has always
been a part of what we do,'' said the coach. ""That was a point of emphasis today in the
scrimmage to look at some specific things out of that.

""We added a little more option than we've had, we didn't run as much option last
year. We wanted to take a good look at that today.''

Wall High School graduate Brett Burke, the heir apparent to Brian Boland at
quarterback, had a big day Saturday.

According to the Monmouth sports information department Burke, who will be a
red-shirt junior in September, was 7-for-9 for 108 yards. Nalbone registered a team
high six catches for 123 yards.

Burke and wide out Chris Kiley (4-for 85 yards), a Point Boro High School graduate
who will be a senior in September, seemed to envision Saturday's spread attack as
evolving into more than a passing fancy.

""It's a fun offense for us,'' said Burke who ran the power-I at Wall. ""We've still
got to get better.''

The wide open approach led to a number of errant center snaps, receivers being
tackled in the backfield, and may have been a factor in some of the five fumbles.

""It's definitely a high risk, high reward type of offense,''said Kiley who caught a
45-yard TD pass from quarterback Matt Fullam, a transfer from Fordham.

It marked the lone TD scored by the offense despite its amassing 319 yards
(29-for-41) though the air.

The running game, substantially reduced by wide receiver losses and quarterback
sacks, netted just 12 yards.

Defensive highlights included some big hits by red-shirt freshman cornerback Joe
Arneth from Jackson, junior linebacker Tom Larkin, and an acrobatic pass break up from
senior corner Ayo Falae. Steve Scholl (Wall) had one of the team's five sacks.

""On the defensive side we weren't as solid against the pass as we need to be,''
said Callahan. ""There's a lot of work that has to be done there. We didn't finish
plays, we didn't tackle as well as we would have liked at the halfway point in spring
ball.

""As I told the team we're doing some good things, working hard, but we've really
got to take another step to be where we want to be at the conclusion of spring.''

Monmouth's 2007 spring practice ends with the Blue-White game noon next Sunday at
Kessler Field.

e-mail tonygsports@aol.com.