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University of New Hampshire Athletics
Max Brosmer's 3,154 passing yards last fall were fifth-best in UNH history. (Stu Horne photo)
Insider Report: The Countdown's On
5/9/2023 2:01:00 PM | Football, UNH Insider
Santos & Co. Welcome Lofty Expectations
DURHAM, N.H. – The Blue-White spring game sits in the rearview now and the 2023 season awaits.
Fewer than three months remain until the University of New Hampshire football team begins fall camp at the start of August – after dozens of players gather in Durham for optional training sessions in June and through July.
As of Tuesday's WESPY Awards that honor the Senior Class - see www.unwhildcats.com for viewing details - the countdown to the first football game, Saturday, Sept. 2 at Stonehill College, stood at 116 days.
Last week, UNH landed at No. 14 in an early Football Championship Subdivision poll put out by Sam Herder of HERO Sports. The Wildcats were one of three Colonial Athletic Association teams in the poll's Top 25, sandwiched between No. 7 William & Mary and No. 24 Delaware. Three other CAA teams – Elon, Rhode Island and Richmond – were among six "other teams considered" by Herder.
UNH plays its first CAA game of the season at Delaware on Saturday, Sept. 23. The Wildcats do not have William & Mary on their regular season schedule.
Head coach Rick Santos has been telling his troops since last season ended in the second round of the NCAA Division I FCS tournament that the Wildcats will be sneaking up on no one this year.
As opposed to entering the season off an eight-game losing streak and 3-8 record as they did a year ago, they will come in off a 9-4 overall mark, a 7-1 title-sharing CAA record and another playoff appearance, their first since 2017.
"I think at the end of the day we've got the makings of a really good football team," Santos said after last month's spring game. "I've told these guys before we've been fortunate to be part of a team when we were No. 1 in the country as a player and as an assistant coach. I think these guys have the ability to be that type of team. We can be a Top 10 team. We can compete for a national championship and that's our goal. It's lofty expectations for sure, but I think we have the ability to do that. For these guys, it's kind of staying in the moment, making sure that we continue to get better every day and not rest on what we did last year."
Season tickets for Wildcat football start at just $99 per ticket. Click here to buy 2023 season tickets today or fill out a Season Ticket Interest Form to be contacted by a season ticket representative about seating options and pricing details! For more information on group opportunities, please fill out our Group Interest Form. We can also be contacted at 603-862-4000 or email unh.tickets@unh.edu.
Great season, tough ending
Losing in the second round at Holy Cross last December helped deliver a harsh message.
"The good thing is, I think for these guys, we got humbled pretty good against Holy Cross," Santos said. "I think it was the perfect recipe to go into the offseason where even though we thought we overachieved last year, I don't think any of these guys are satisfied with that, which is great to see."
He loved the approach he saw during the offseason.
So, too, did linebacker Bryce Shaw, selected by his teammates as one of five captains for 2023, along with junior quarterback Max Brosmer, senior running back Dylan Laube, senior center Osho Omoyeni and senior safety Max Oxendine.
"When you come off a year like last year, it's easy to get complacent and kind of go through the motions, thinking you're going to do it again," Shaw said.
There's more in play than the loss to Holy Cross, he noted.
"You know, we kind of flipped the switch last year so we know what it's like to be on both sides of it," Shaw said. "Especially the guys that are returning now, we have so many guys who were young during that 3-8 season. We still feel the sting of that, even after such a great year last year. We have a target on our back now. Obviously, we're antsy a little bit, but we're excited for sure."
A trio of new coaches
Santos is excited about the three new assistant coaches – all of whom played at a high level – that the Wildcats have on staff.
Randall Jette is coaching cornerbacks, Luke Carrezola is with the defensive line and Charles Watkins works with wide receivers.
Jette was an all-conference defensive back at Massachusetts, Carrezola started for three years at linebacker for Connecticut and Watkins played wide receiver for three years at Durham and one at Wagner. Jette and Carrezola were working at their alma maters before coming to UNH and Watkins was at St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. and has also been an assistant at Rutgers.
"They're all FBS talent guys and they have that presence about them on the field," Santos said. "I think the guys are instantly connected to them because they understand they did it themselves at a high level and they all have worked for really good head coaches so their process is great. They're really good teachers. They're great motivators. They've already added a ton of value so far to the program."
A numbers game
Brosmer completed 263 passes for 3,154 yards and 27 touchdowns with eight interceptions last season.
Six players who accounted for 19 of the TD catches are back. Sophomore-to-be Joey Corcoran led the team with 56 catches for 670 yards and caught three scoring passes.
Laube was second with 49 catches, two for scores. Senior tight end Kyle Lepkowski had 42 catches for two touchdowns.
Grad student Heron Maurisseau led the team with six TDs in his 15 catches and sophomore D.J. Linkins had five TDs among 12 catches. Sophomore Caleb Burke also caught a touchdown pass.
Brosmer's 3,154 passing yards, by the way, rank as the fifth-best single season total in UNH history. Santos holds a pair of the top five spots at No. 1 with 3,797 yards in 2005 and No. 3 at 3,318 in 2004. The others in the top five are Trevor Knight at No. 2 with 3,433 yards in 2017 and Kevin Decker at No. 4 with 3,272 yards in 2011.
Brosmer is ninth on the career passing list with 5,252 yards. Jim Stayer (1992-94) is just ahead with 5,349.
Laube's 1,205 rushing yards last season rank No. 7 on the all-time single season list.
Laube needs nine yards rushing to climb into the Top 10 in career rushing. He's at 2,228 yards for his career. Avrom Smith currently holds down the No. 10 spot. He had 2,237 yards rushing from 1991-1994.
Fewer than three months remain until the University of New Hampshire football team begins fall camp at the start of August – after dozens of players gather in Durham for optional training sessions in June and through July.
As of Tuesday's WESPY Awards that honor the Senior Class - see www.unwhildcats.com for viewing details - the countdown to the first football game, Saturday, Sept. 2 at Stonehill College, stood at 116 days.
Last week, UNH landed at No. 14 in an early Football Championship Subdivision poll put out by Sam Herder of HERO Sports. The Wildcats were one of three Colonial Athletic Association teams in the poll's Top 25, sandwiched between No. 7 William & Mary and No. 24 Delaware. Three other CAA teams – Elon, Rhode Island and Richmond – were among six "other teams considered" by Herder.
UNH plays its first CAA game of the season at Delaware on Saturday, Sept. 23. The Wildcats do not have William & Mary on their regular season schedule.
Head coach Rick Santos has been telling his troops since last season ended in the second round of the NCAA Division I FCS tournament that the Wildcats will be sneaking up on no one this year.
As opposed to entering the season off an eight-game losing streak and 3-8 record as they did a year ago, they will come in off a 9-4 overall mark, a 7-1 title-sharing CAA record and another playoff appearance, their first since 2017.
"I think at the end of the day we've got the makings of a really good football team," Santos said after last month's spring game. "I've told these guys before we've been fortunate to be part of a team when we were No. 1 in the country as a player and as an assistant coach. I think these guys have the ability to be that type of team. We can be a Top 10 team. We can compete for a national championship and that's our goal. It's lofty expectations for sure, but I think we have the ability to do that. For these guys, it's kind of staying in the moment, making sure that we continue to get better every day and not rest on what we did last year."
Season tickets for Wildcat football start at just $99 per ticket. Click here to buy 2023 season tickets today or fill out a Season Ticket Interest Form to be contacted by a season ticket representative about seating options and pricing details! For more information on group opportunities, please fill out our Group Interest Form. We can also be contacted at 603-862-4000 or email unh.tickets@unh.edu.
Great season, tough ending
Losing in the second round at Holy Cross last December helped deliver a harsh message.
"The good thing is, I think for these guys, we got humbled pretty good against Holy Cross," Santos said. "I think it was the perfect recipe to go into the offseason where even though we thought we overachieved last year, I don't think any of these guys are satisfied with that, which is great to see."
He loved the approach he saw during the offseason.
So, too, did linebacker Bryce Shaw, selected by his teammates as one of five captains for 2023, along with junior quarterback Max Brosmer, senior running back Dylan Laube, senior center Osho Omoyeni and senior safety Max Oxendine.
"When you come off a year like last year, it's easy to get complacent and kind of go through the motions, thinking you're going to do it again," Shaw said.
There's more in play than the loss to Holy Cross, he noted.
"You know, we kind of flipped the switch last year so we know what it's like to be on both sides of it," Shaw said. "Especially the guys that are returning now, we have so many guys who were young during that 3-8 season. We still feel the sting of that, even after such a great year last year. We have a target on our back now. Obviously, we're antsy a little bit, but we're excited for sure."
A trio of new coaches
Santos is excited about the three new assistant coaches – all of whom played at a high level – that the Wildcats have on staff.
Randall Jette is coaching cornerbacks, Luke Carrezola is with the defensive line and Charles Watkins works with wide receivers.
Jette was an all-conference defensive back at Massachusetts, Carrezola started for three years at linebacker for Connecticut and Watkins played wide receiver for three years at Durham and one at Wagner. Jette and Carrezola were working at their alma maters before coming to UNH and Watkins was at St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn. and has also been an assistant at Rutgers.
"They're all FBS talent guys and they have that presence about them on the field," Santos said. "I think the guys are instantly connected to them because they understand they did it themselves at a high level and they all have worked for really good head coaches so their process is great. They're really good teachers. They're great motivators. They've already added a ton of value so far to the program."
A numbers game
Brosmer completed 263 passes for 3,154 yards and 27 touchdowns with eight interceptions last season.
Six players who accounted for 19 of the TD catches are back. Sophomore-to-be Joey Corcoran led the team with 56 catches for 670 yards and caught three scoring passes.
Laube was second with 49 catches, two for scores. Senior tight end Kyle Lepkowski had 42 catches for two touchdowns.
Grad student Heron Maurisseau led the team with six TDs in his 15 catches and sophomore D.J. Linkins had five TDs among 12 catches. Sophomore Caleb Burke also caught a touchdown pass.
Brosmer's 3,154 passing yards, by the way, rank as the fifth-best single season total in UNH history. Santos holds a pair of the top five spots at No. 1 with 3,797 yards in 2005 and No. 3 at 3,318 in 2004. The others in the top five are Trevor Knight at No. 2 with 3,433 yards in 2017 and Kevin Decker at No. 4 with 3,272 yards in 2011.
Brosmer is ninth on the career passing list with 5,252 yards. Jim Stayer (1992-94) is just ahead with 5,349.
Laube's 1,205 rushing yards last season rank No. 7 on the all-time single season list.
Laube needs nine yards rushing to climb into the Top 10 in career rushing. He's at 2,228 yards for his career. Avrom Smith currently holds down the No. 10 spot. He had 2,237 yards rushing from 1991-1994.
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