University of New Hampshire Athletics
Defensive tackles Ryan Sosnak and Elijah Lewis line up during practice Thursday morning.
Spring Football: Sosnak Mans the Middle of D-Line
5/3/2018 5:08:00 PM | Football, UNH Insider
DURHAM – Senior Ryan Sosnak is the main man in the middle of the defensive line for the University of New Hampshire football team.
Last year, Sosnak teamed with Rick Holt as defensive tackles for the Wildcats. Holt had a big year as a senior and the focus is on Sosnak now as the anchor of the defensive line.
"It's a group that's developing," said assistant coach Peter McCarty, who is in charge of the D-Line. "Ryan's got experience, that's the biggest thing. He understands blocking schemes, pass protections. He supports and does a great job with the players around him."
The players around him include sophomores Elijah Lewis and Jacob Bradshaw.
Sosnak and the Wildcats close out spring football with their annual Blue-White spring game Saturday at 11 a.m. in Wildcat Stadium.
UNH kicks off the 2018 season with a game against border rival Maine on Thursday, Aug. 30, in Orono.
The Wildcats play six home games in Wildcat Stadium in 2018. The home opener is Saturday, Sept. 8 against Colgate.
The other home games in the fall are Saturday, Oct. 6 vs. Holy Cross; Saturday, Oct. 13 vs. Stony Brook; Saturday, Oct. 20 vs. Delaware; Saturday, Nov. 3 vs. James Madison; and Saturday, Nov. 10 vs. Albany.
Information on Service Credit Union Victory Club memberships in Wildcat Stadium and all other season memberships is available by contacting Ciaran Cullen at Ciaran.cullen@unh.edu.
Sosnak is a little over 6-foot-2 and played at just over 300 pounds last year and is at about 290 now. That's a good thing, McCarty said.
"He's improved his agility," McCarty said. "Cut down a little bit on his weight. He's moving around a lot better than he did. I told him you're as strong as you need to be. You just need to be more athletic. It's still a big man's game inside. . . . I told Ryan, you can line up and play against good guys each week at 290."
Sosnak has started all 27 Wildcat games over the last two seasons. He had 28 total tackles as a sophomore in 2016 and was up to 35, with six tackles for a loss, last season.
Sosnak had one of the defensive highlights of the 2016 season when he picked up a fumble caused by linebacker Ryan Farrell and carried it 39 yards for a touchdown to help seal a 21-7 win at Towson.
It was the second touchdown scored by a UNH defensive player in the game – cornerback Prince Smith, Jr. returned an interception for a TD earlier in the game – and was one of seven touchdowns scored by the defense that season. The seven defensive scores led the FCS that year.
Sosnak is the only defensive tackle with starting experience.
Lewis, 6-foot-1 and 278 pounds, played in seven games as a true freshman in 2016, but was redshirted last year with an injury.
"Elijah's had a very good spring," McCarty said. "He's improved. I think the most important thing going into spring practice for him was to develop an understanding of the little things. . . . He's our best rusher inside, too. We want to harp on that. His technique in the pass rush has been very good. He's been trying new things. I think in the pass game he's going to be a very big force for us. Those guys, Sosnak and Ricky Holt, were power guys. Now we've got a guy with a little more explosiveness, too."
Bradshaw, 6-foot-1 and 268 pounds, played in 13 games last year and had eight tackles, including a sack.
"Jacob's an intelligent guy," McCarty said. "He's come a long way and he's doing better each day. He's still learning and understanding the game. He did a good job in the Holy Cross game and a good job in the South Dakota State game. We saw strides and those strides are still moving forward."
Tyreak Richardson is a 6-foot-3 sophomore who is down to 305 pounds and has moved over from offensive line.
"Tyreak did a heck of a job getting his weight down," McCarty said. "He came here at 390 pounds. He came to us on defense last fall trying to pick everything up. He's shown signs. He just needs to understand technique."
Others in the mix at defensive tackle include sophomore Patrick Kaplan, 5-foot-11 and 261 pounds, and freshman Niko Kvietkus, 6-foot-3 and 264.
The Wildcats qualified for the NCAA Division I FCS tournament for the 14th straight season last year, the longest such streak in the country. They were 9-5 overall and advanced to the FCS quarterfinals.
Sean McDonnell will be in his 20th season as UNH head coach in the fall. He has an overall record of 150-88 and a record in the Colonial Athletic Association of 95-60.
This is one in a series of stories we will be posting this spring about position groups on the Wildcat football team.
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
Last year, Sosnak teamed with Rick Holt as defensive tackles for the Wildcats. Holt had a big year as a senior and the focus is on Sosnak now as the anchor of the defensive line.
"It's a group that's developing," said assistant coach Peter McCarty, who is in charge of the D-Line. "Ryan's got experience, that's the biggest thing. He understands blocking schemes, pass protections. He supports and does a great job with the players around him."
The players around him include sophomores Elijah Lewis and Jacob Bradshaw.
Sosnak and the Wildcats close out spring football with their annual Blue-White spring game Saturday at 11 a.m. in Wildcat Stadium.
UNH kicks off the 2018 season with a game against border rival Maine on Thursday, Aug. 30, in Orono.
The Wildcats play six home games in Wildcat Stadium in 2018. The home opener is Saturday, Sept. 8 against Colgate.
The other home games in the fall are Saturday, Oct. 6 vs. Holy Cross; Saturday, Oct. 13 vs. Stony Brook; Saturday, Oct. 20 vs. Delaware; Saturday, Nov. 3 vs. James Madison; and Saturday, Nov. 10 vs. Albany.
Information on Service Credit Union Victory Club memberships in Wildcat Stadium and all other season memberships is available by contacting Ciaran Cullen at Ciaran.cullen@unh.edu.
Sosnak is a little over 6-foot-2 and played at just over 300 pounds last year and is at about 290 now. That's a good thing, McCarty said.
"He's improved his agility," McCarty said. "Cut down a little bit on his weight. He's moving around a lot better than he did. I told him you're as strong as you need to be. You just need to be more athletic. It's still a big man's game inside. . . . I told Ryan, you can line up and play against good guys each week at 290."
Sosnak has started all 27 Wildcat games over the last two seasons. He had 28 total tackles as a sophomore in 2016 and was up to 35, with six tackles for a loss, last season.
Sosnak had one of the defensive highlights of the 2016 season when he picked up a fumble caused by linebacker Ryan Farrell and carried it 39 yards for a touchdown to help seal a 21-7 win at Towson.
It was the second touchdown scored by a UNH defensive player in the game – cornerback Prince Smith, Jr. returned an interception for a TD earlier in the game – and was one of seven touchdowns scored by the defense that season. The seven defensive scores led the FCS that year.
Sosnak is the only defensive tackle with starting experience.
Lewis, 6-foot-1 and 278 pounds, played in seven games as a true freshman in 2016, but was redshirted last year with an injury.
"Elijah's had a very good spring," McCarty said. "He's improved. I think the most important thing going into spring practice for him was to develop an understanding of the little things. . . . He's our best rusher inside, too. We want to harp on that. His technique in the pass rush has been very good. He's been trying new things. I think in the pass game he's going to be a very big force for us. Those guys, Sosnak and Ricky Holt, were power guys. Now we've got a guy with a little more explosiveness, too."
Bradshaw, 6-foot-1 and 268 pounds, played in 13 games last year and had eight tackles, including a sack.
"Jacob's an intelligent guy," McCarty said. "He's come a long way and he's doing better each day. He's still learning and understanding the game. He did a good job in the Holy Cross game and a good job in the South Dakota State game. We saw strides and those strides are still moving forward."
Tyreak Richardson is a 6-foot-3 sophomore who is down to 305 pounds and has moved over from offensive line.
"Tyreak did a heck of a job getting his weight down," McCarty said. "He came here at 390 pounds. He came to us on defense last fall trying to pick everything up. He's shown signs. He just needs to understand technique."
Others in the mix at defensive tackle include sophomore Patrick Kaplan, 5-foot-11 and 261 pounds, and freshman Niko Kvietkus, 6-foot-3 and 264.
The Wildcats qualified for the NCAA Division I FCS tournament for the 14th straight season last year, the longest such streak in the country. They were 9-5 overall and advanced to the FCS quarterfinals.
Sean McDonnell will be in his 20th season as UNH head coach in the fall. He has an overall record of 150-88 and a record in the Colonial Athletic Association of 95-60.
This is one in a series of stories we will be posting this spring about position groups on the Wildcat football team.
Allen Lessels
@UNHInsider
Allen.Lessels@unh.edu
Players Mentioned
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