West Point Football: Visit from Distinguished Alumnus

The West Point Black Knights held their last full-speed scrimmage on Friday before their season opener next Saturday night at Northern Illinois.

The team conducted the practice indoors at the hanger-like Foley Center, a spirited two-hour workout which included drills by each specialty area, a mock game for the offense and defense, and a talk to the team by a distinguished alumnus.

The chief of staff of the Army and next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Martin E. Dempsey, was on campus and was escorted into the Foley Center by West Point superintendent Lt. General David H. Huntoon Jr. 

General Dempsey came in smiling and addressed the team, seated on the indoor practice field. 

The 36-year veteran of the military encouraged the Black Knights in their game in December against Navy but emphasized, beyond football, appreciation that they had taken on the challenges at the Academy that will prepare them to serve as officers. 

The 1974 graduate of West Point described change going on in the Army and uncertainty about what the future will bring but emphasized the leadership the Army provides.

The Black Knights looked good going through their drills. 

Quarterbacks junior starter Trent Steelman, senior Max Jenkins, and freshman Angel Santiago worked side-by-side running plays and practising hand-offs. 

Wide receiver coach Andy Guyader had his receivers working through blocking drills.

Evident was the sense of organization as each group of players participated in drills in an organized way.

In the scrimmage itself, the first-team offense, directed by Trent Steelman, looked sharp.

One young player who continued to impress was sophomore wide receiver Jared McFarlin from Monroe, N.Y.  McFarlin at 6'5" demonstrated athletic ability and good hands in catching a long touchdown pass from Steelman. 

Look for sophomore Jonathan Crucitti from Salisbury, N.C., to see playing time in the backfield.

On the offensive line, receiving time with the first unit was center Michael Kime from Zionsville, Ind. 

At left guard, providing size at 275 pounds is Frank Allen from Palmyra, N.J., a hold-over from the 2010 line, and on the right side is Matt Villanti, at 278 pounds from Katy, Texas. 

At left tackle is Brad Kelley, at 255 pounds from Exeter, N.H., and at the right tackle spot is 6'6", 269-pound senior Mike McDermott from Stewartsville, N.J. McDermott played against Duke last year after having played in all 12 games as a sophomore in 2009. 

On defense senior captain Steve Erzinger from Houston, Texas,  played a regular shift at linebacker after siting out last week's scrimmage with a foot injury. 

Junior Zach Watts from Pittsburgh was getting time in at linebacker as was senior Chad Littlejohn from Katy, Texas.

Senior kicker Alex Carleton booted a 42-yard field goal, continuing to look sharp. 

Running backs Jonathan Crucitti and junior Brian Austin from Wexford, Penn., were back taking kicks.

Expecting to contribute to the Black Knights defensive line play is senior Broghan Carnes from St. Petersburg, Fla. Carnes has had to recover from a shoulder injury suffered a week before the start of the 2010 season that kept him out of the entire campaign. 

Broghan, who is active in regimental and company leadership roles at West Point, described his goals for the year: "Staying healthy, bonding with my brothers on the team, get[ing] victories under our belt, and having another successful season, just like we did last year."

Cadet Carnes said that the Black Knights defense has made adjustments this year.

"We are playing a two-tackle front with no permanent nose tackle like Mike Gann last year," said Carnes. "We have two down lineman and an end who will play some three technique.  We utilize our speed and technique and our reactions to the line's movement. It maximizes our ability to make tackles and fly around. We may not be big, but we are fast." 

The Black Knights will test themselves on Saturday night at Northern Illinois with a 7 PM EST start. Watch for a high-scoring game to start the season.

Ken Kraetzer conducts the "West Point Football Report" every Tuesday night at 5:30 PM EST during the season on WVOX radio, based in New Rochelle, N.Y., and heard on 1460 AM and nationally on WVOX.com. Contact Ken on [e-mail].