Fordham's Eric Paschall, Christian Sengfelder Helping Rams Build a Better Future

Fordham head coach Tom Pecora has been saying all along that the Rams' three upperclassmen—senior Bryan Smith and juniors Ryan Rhoomes and Mandell Thomas—have to "lead the way."

When they do, Fordham has a shot, as evidenced by the wins over the New York Institute of Technology, Siena and Monmouth.

But it's also true that, at least to some degree, the Rams will only go as far as the current freshmen take them—this year and beyond.

The rookie class of Eric Paschall, Christian Sengfelder, Antwoine Anderson, Nemanja Zarkovic, Manny Suarez, Dekeba Battee-Aston and Zaire Thompson arrived with expectations. When you've completed 19 seasons in the Atlantic 10 and finished below .500 in 17 of them, expectations are a good thing.

If you're looking for hope—for an ounce of optimism about a program that's lost 90 games in four-plus seasons under Pecora—look no further than Paschall and Sengfelder.

Paschall, last year's New England Prep Player of the Year and the Rams' biggest recruit in recent memory, was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week following his 31-point, 10-rebound performance in Fordham's opening-night win over NYIT.

Through the first seven games—Paschall did not play at Maryland due to an irregular heartbeat—he's averaging 18.1 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.

He's had highlight dunks and knocked down some big shots, but his best play to date is one that happened on the defensive end of the floor.

In desperate need of a win against Siena following crushing defeats to UMass Lowell and Maryland Eastern Shore, Paschall blocked a shot at the buzzer that would have sent the game into overtime. The freshman saved the day.

Earlier this week, after leading the Rams to a 68-58 overtime win over Monmouth, Sengfelder was also named A-10 Rookie of the Week. In the game against the Hawks, he had a season-high 21 points and 11 rebounds.

Two other freshmen could end up playing huge roles as well.

Anderson and Zarkovic have both started games at the point and both are part of the long-term plan. Anderson has started the last three games and shown some promise.

It hasn't been smooth sailing for Fordham this year. The losses to UMass Lowell and Maryland Eastern Shore were as bad as losses can be.

Jon Severe, the team's leading returning scorer, was suspended for a week and missed the Rams' opener, then took a leave of absence a week later. He has yet to return to the team.

Fordham hasn't even gotten to the starting line of the most difficult part of its race: the Atlantic 10 schedule.

So, yes, the veterans are important. Two of them, Rhoomes and Thomas, will be around next year and have been instrumental in the team's wins this year.

But it's the Paschalls and the Sengfelders who are here for the next few years—building blocks on a team that's got a whole lot of building to do.

Charles Costello covers the Fordham Rams for Bleacher Report. A full archive of his articles can be found here. Follow him on Twitter @CFCostello.