ST. PAUL, Minn. – A year ago, the Concordia-St. Paul football team was anticipating a culture change for the second straight season as head coach Shannon Currier reunited with his defensive coordinator from a successful first run at CSP in Craig Stern.
 
Armed with two spring seasons, two summers and a full season of game experience in a new system, the Golden Bear defense is taking aim at making another big leap.
 
There are many first year gains Stern and the CSP defense can point to as a start to what the program hopes to be the start of things to come. The team allowed 70 fewer points, cut down the amount of games an opponent topped 40 points in a game in half (6 to 3) with all three of the 40-point outbursts occurring in the 2017 season's first five games and more than doubling the number of times the team held an opponent under 30, from three to seven including five in a row to end the 2017 campaign.
 
The defense created three more turnovers, going from nine to 12 which shows room for improvement in Stern's second year but inside that data is a massive increase in fumbles forced, from just two in 2016 to 17 in 2017 including eight more recoveries from one to eight.
 
The secondary held opponents to under 200 passing yards per game (195.8) and issued six more pass breakups (39 to 45).
 
As an overall unit, Concordia's defense forced 11 more punts (40 to 51), had a six percent improvement in third down efficiency (44% to 38%) and allowed opponents in the red zone eight fewer times (56 to 48) with nine less touchdowns (36 to 27).  
 
In Currier's return to the Concordia sidelines, the Bears have posted shutout wins against the NSIC North Division to open each of the last two seasons, 24-0 over Minot State in 2017 and 17-0 over U-Mary in 2016.
 
But the Northern Sun instituted a major scheduled change in 2018, playing its first four games against the NSIC South Division before facing the North Division for the middle four games of the year. The result has Concordia heading on the road to #20 Sioux Falls (also ranked #18 by D2Football.com) in the season opener, which will put Currier's season opening shutout streak to a major test on Thursday, August 30 at Bob Young Field at 6 p.m.
 
The game can be watched online (free) and also features a free live audio stream (KWSN AM 1230 & FM 98.1). The broadcasts can be supplemented with live stats, as well. Keep an eye on all the league scores at the NSIC scoreboard.
 
All Northern Sun games are available to watch via numerous streaming devices: Roku, Amazon FireTV, Apple TV and Android TV. Simply search for NSIC to find the Stretch Internet application to view all contests streamed by league members on your TV, and in high definition (where available).

While shutting out the Cougars in their home opener is a tall task, CSP will look to continue improving its team defense which nearly cut the amount of points allowed to USF in half last year (27) to the 2016 season (51).
 
And while Stern and his crew can point to a number of key areas that trended in the right direction a year ago, in order to turn a nine loss team from 2017 into a winner, the team will need to show continued improvement in 2018.
 
Currier has the confidence that things are headed in the right direction and points to continuity as a driving force. Stern was the fourth defensive coordinator in as many seasons in 2017 for the program – entire careers for true seniors.
 
"Just being in the second year of a defensive scheme will mean so much to their production," he said. "We'll be more disciplined, yes, but we'll also be faster and feature more depth with a lot of returning players."
 
In the second part of the season preview, Currier insisted that while the program made progress in 2017, he was not satisfied with the results. It's something he was consistent about throughout interviews for the 2018 season preview series, which will culminate in similar comments about the offense which is the final piece of the five part series dropping during opening week.
 
He was specific in addressing areas in which the defense needs to improve, "We expect to be better against the run, create more tackles for loss and create more takeaways to do its part of closing the turnover margin."
 
He offered specific ways that the changes have been addressed, as well, "It will happen through being more relentless with better pursuit. We also have more depth and competition which brings out the best in our players."
 
DEFENSIVE LINE
"It starts up front, and this is the most important position we attacked in recruiting. We have a tremendous amount of young talent and some key transfers who are ready to be a force in week one. These guys are critical to our success in stopping the run game, and if you can stop the run you can win football games," said Currier.
 
While the staff made recruiting defensive line – both first year players and transfers – they also return four key players with established game experience with proven ability to disrupt.
 
On the ends, its junior Jackson Dobbs and sophomore Chris Garrett while the interior will be fortified by juniors Kelly Pierce and Dylan Wood.
 
"Jackson has had a great camp, is a solid player and playing well this fall. Kelly has played well and is back from injury and Dylan brings a lot of experience. Chris is a phenomenal athlete with speed, explosiveness and relentless play that make him a special player."
 
Last year, Wood was the only of the four to play in all 11 games, making the most of it with 51 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 5.0 sacks and four pass breakups. Garrett, Dobbs and Pierce each battled through injuries and made five starts. Garrett was a menace in leading the defense with 9.0 tackles for loss and 6.0 sacks, also forcing five fumbles and batting down three passes while making 44 tackles in seeing action in seven games.
 
Dobbs returned from an early season injury that forced him to miss the first four games. In seven games, Dobbs finished with 33 tackles, 3.5 for loss and three sacks.
 
Pierce, meanwhile, saw his season cut short after five games due to a season ending injury after making 23 tackles and 2.0 tackles for loss to start the year.
 
The unit also features returners Cole Riemer and Adam Miller who are expected to miss time early in the season. Last year, Riemer played in nine games with four starts while Miller played all 11 games and made three starts up front as he made 3.5 tackles for loss among his 32 tackles.
 
Although less experienced, Leo Johnson and Shawn Aarhus are in the mix at defensive end with Aarhus debuting on the season opening two deep.
 
Two newcomers the program will see early contributions from are defensive end Cole Marmor and nose tackle TJ Diallo who both come to St. Paul from the Southern California junior college circuit.
 
Marmor is listed as a starter on the opening two deep while Diallo is listed on the second line but is expected to bring the type of presence to the interior necessary to clog the middle.
 
"TJ is a big, physical nose tackle and we need him to hold the point and not get moved around. We want to see him penetrate and disrupt the offense and he's been getting better every day throughout camp."
 
Injecting youth to the position are defensive tackle Corey Guenther and defensive end Richard Ficociello – both true freshmen who are competing for travel roster positions as rookies.
 
LINEBACKERS
With experience and incoming impact players up front, Currier's defense aims to see the linebackers freed up to make big plays.
 
"This is arguably one of the deepest positions on our football team and we're excited about the starters."
 
It's an interesting three player mix, too, with the one returner being a true sophomore while being joined by a redshirt freshman and a Division I transfer.
 
Sophomore Blake Evans made it impossible for the staff to keep him out of the starting lineup as a true freshman, forcing his way into the role by making 31 tackles in his first five games as a reserve. It was his 10 tackle performance against Minnesota State that thrust him into the starting role the following week at Upper Iowa and as a starter he made 66 tackles in six games including at least 10 in each of the last five games of the year.
 
By season end, Evans led the team with 97 total tackles to rank seventh in the Northern Sun while producing the ninth most in a season since Concordia joined the Division II ranks in 1999.
 
While Evans will man the weakside, sophomore transfer Andy Aune will start opposite on the strong side. The DI-FCS transfer from the University of South Dakota is a Twin Cities native from Golden Valley and poised to make an immediate impact.
 
In the middle is redshirt freshman Jake Portz, with Currier noting, "We're excited about Jake after a great high school career. He'll benefit from a redshirt season and now has experience and learned the system."
 
Senior Isaiah Walker will also play the SLB position with Aune, providing a strong 1-2 punch at the position. Walker played all 11 games last season, including a pair of tackles for loss and a sack.
 
The WLB spot features another sophomore behind Evans in Dalton Smerchek who also handles the team's long snapping duties and is a standout special teams player. While he was second on the team in special teams tackles last year, Smerchek also had a nine tackle performance at Augustana as he showed he was capable of playing extended snaps even as a true freshman in 2017.
 
Redshirt freshman Opi Aghenu brings the defense a local flavor as a graduate from down the street at St. Paul Central High School. The former Minutemen standout has shown impressive athleticism early in his CSP career.
 
Incoming Minnesota junior college transfers Adrian Jackson and Andrew Costello bring added experience, size and athleticism. The JC duo, Jackson from Central Lakes and Costello from Minnesota State CTC (Fergus Falls) are 6'1" and 6'3", respectively and each about 220 pounds.
 
SECONDARY
The secondary is one of the few positions on the team that does not expect to see a newcomer play a significant role, although a pair of redshirt freshmen are in the mix for starting positions and two more will likely be part of the second group.
 
The cornerback position is anchored by returning All-NSIC honorable mention pick Dion Wallisch. The junior led the defense and was third in the league with 13 pass breakups and also had two of the team's three interceptions. He was third on the team with 58 tackles, as well.
 
"Dion was great last year and was our defensive MVP. He's evolved, proven at this level and has the production to back up that status. He's a former wrestler with a good mindset for defensive football, is a good tackler and disciplined in his assignments," said Currier.
 
Expected to start opposite Wallisch is redshirt freshman Marcus Haskins who brings elite speed to the secondary and is also a sprinter on the track & field team.
 
The two backup cornerback spots are slated to be sophomores Desmond Hudnall and Lorenzo Kendricks who each had key roles a year ago and played in all 11 games. Kendricks even cracked the starting lineup four times, making 25 total tackles on the year with a pair of pass deflections and a forced fumble.
 
"Desmond and Lorenzo are both more matured and better players than they were a year ago. They provide us with four capable corners we can rely on."
 
 
The only expected starting senior on the defense is strong safety Brandon Russell, who worked his way through injuries as a junior to play in six games in 2017. He's played in 26 games over his career and was a true freshman contributor before Currier arrived in the 2015 season. He's made 89 career tackles including 48 as a sophomore in 2016.
 
"Brandon has enhanced his commitment, stayed in St. Paul this summer and comes into the season in the best shape of his life. He brings a lot of experience and has a knack for making football plays. He's a smart football player," said Currier.
 
He's expected to be backed up by redshirt freshman Dez Bassett who was in line for a big role last year as a true freshman before his season derailed due to injury in the second week. Like Haskins, Bassett is also a sprinter on the track & field team and was able to reach the podium at the NSIC Indoor and Outdoor championships.
 
The free safety is a spot that late in camp did not have a projected starter as redshirt freshmen Parker Powers and Rhett Sheehan were vying for the role with junior incumbent Brian Szutkowski also competing.
 
"Parker had a great camp. He's a ball hawk and made a lot of plays on the ball this fall. He's capable of coming up and stopping the run, too. Rhett also had a great offseason and Brian is a returning starter who adds leadership and experience. He has great speed and commitment."
 
Szutkowski was second on the team with 88 tackles and added six pass breakups last year, and has the foot speed and tenacity to be a factor on special teams.
 
"We need production from this position and we expect whoever is playing this spot to track down balls in the secondary," Currier concluded.

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Defensive Starters
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	Hometown
DE	98	Jackson Dobbs	6-2	250	Jr.	Little Canada, Minn.
DT	53	Kelly Pierce	6-3	265	Jr.	Gilbert, Iowa
NT	91	Dylan Wood	6-5	245	Jr.	Lindstrom, Minn.
DE	95	Cole Marmor	6-2	235	Jr.	Tucson, Ariz.
SLB	14	Andy Aune	6-2	220	So.	Golden Valley, Minn.
MLB	45	Jake Portz	6-0	227	R-Fr.	Plainfield, Ill.
WLB	17	Blake Evans	6-0	220	So.	Manhattan, Ill.
CB	20	Dion Wallisch	6-0	190	Jr.	Oakdale, Minn.
FS	5	Rhett Sheehan	5-11	190	R-Fr.	Menomonie, Wis.
SS	26	Brandon Russell	5-11	195	Sr.	Tracy, Calif.
CB	1	Marcus Haskins	6-0	180	R-Fr.	Cottage Grove, Minn.

 

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Defensive Reserves
Pos.	No.	Name	Ht.	Wt.	Yr.	Hometown
DE	73	Shawn Aarhus	6-5	270	R-Fr.	Benson, Minn.
DT	92	Hunter Quinn	6-2	230	R-Fr.	Watertown, Wis.
NT	7	TJ Diallo	6-2	315	Jr.	Greensboro, N.C.
DE	52	Chris Garrett	6-4	230	So.	Milwaukee, Wis.
SLB	42	Isaiah Walker	6-0	230	Sr.	Columbia Heights, Minn.
MLB	47	Ryan Sorensen	5-11	210	R-Fr.	Chippewa Falls, Wis.
WLB	32	Dalton Smerchek	5-11	210	So.	Casco, Wis.
CB	16	Desmond Hudnall	6-0	180	So.	Reseda, Calif.
FS	39	Parker Powers	5-11	185	R-Fr.	Tabor, Iowa
SS	23	Dez Bassett	6-1	188	R-Fr.	Mankato, Minn.
CB	21	Lorenzo Kendricks	5-11	180	So.	Cincinnati, Ohio

 

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Next up in the preseason preview series, part 5 (of 5): Key newcomers add to an experienced set of returning offensive starters