From IUP Sports Information
With less than a week before the return of football with the start of 2021 fall camp, IUP head football coach Paul Tortorella released his team’s current 82-man roster and new-look coaching staff this morning.
The roster is made up of nine senior or graduate students, 19 juniors, 14 sophomores, and 40 freshman eligible players.
With the pandemic forcing the cancellation of the 2020 season, student-athletes return to this year’s roster with the same eligibility as they did last fall. The 2021 freshman class is made up of this year’s incoming class, the 2020 recruiting class, and freshmen who redshirted in 2019.
Positionally, IUP’s 44 listed offensive players are broken down to five quarterbacks, seven running backs, four fullbacks/tight ends, 15 receivers, and 13 offensive linemen. The defense consists of 33 players, including nine linemen, nine linebackers, and 15 defensive backs. There are five kickers/punters/specialists.
Who’s coming back
Tortorella welcomes back 25 letterwinners and 10 total starters from the 2019 squad that finished 10-2 overall and made the program’s 19th NCAA Division II playoff appearance.
That group is headlined by a trio of preseason All-Americans in senior offensive lineman Josh Dauberman, junior receiver Duane Brown, and senior cornerback Nazir Streater.
Five other returning players have earned all-conference selections in their careers, including senior running backs Justice Evans and Malik Anderson, junior tight end Grant Smith, junior receiver/returner Qashah Carter, and junior defensive lineman Dajour Fisher.
Who’s new
Among the 40 first-year eligible players include 33 true freshmen, recruits and walk-ons who made up the 2020 and 2021 classes coming out of high school or prep school.
Tortorella and his coaching staff also welcome 12 transfers who have joined the program over the last year and will suit up for the Crimson Hawks for the first time in 2021.
Those transfers include Rashod Allen (Lackawanna CC), receiver Irvin Charles (Penn State), defensive back Bryce Gibson (Youngstown State), linebacker Jay Holmes (Wesley), linebacker Connor Kelly (Edinboro), receiver Nolan Labuda (Akron), defensive lineman Gregory Moore II (Stetson), linebacker Malachi Newell (Youngstown State), defensive back Akshay Thaper (Upper Iowa), defensive lineman Vaughn Wallace (Clarion), quarterback Harry Woodbery (Eastern Illinois), and running back Dorian Woody (Edinboro).
New numbers
Several returning players will be sporting new jersey numbers from the last time they touched the field in 2019.
IUP’s top two running backs have moved from the 20s to single digits, with Evans now No. 6 and Anderson No. 1. On the outside, Brown also moves to a single digit and will wear No. 3 this season. On the other side of the ball, defensive back Harrison Dreher has moved from No. 18 to No. 4.
New threads
Another new look on the field this year will be the Crimson Hawks’ new Nike uniforms. Design elements include triple stripes on the shoulders, the IUP football logo at the neck, block numbers with white borders, and matching triple stripes down each pant leg.
Tortorella shuffles staff, adds two positional coaches
Coach Tortorella’s coaching staff remained mostly intact since the last time they saw the field in 2019, adding two new faces to go along with a few title changes.
Joining the staff this season are Jalen Hairston (defensive line) and Octavius Thomas (running backs).
Hairston comes to Indiana after coaching the defensive backs at the University of Charleston during the 2021 spring season. He helped Reggie Collins and D’Vaughn Whitt earn All-MEC honors. He played collegiately at both Charleston and Concord University from 2014-19.
Thomas joins the staff after spending the last two years at Shepherd University, where he coached inside linebackers. He saw Chrys Lane earn All-PSAC and all-region honors in 2019. Thomas was a four-time All-MEC selection and 2016 All-American as a linebacker for the Rams.
Jim Smith, who has coached at IUP for 22 years including the last five as the defensive coordinator, has officially been given the associate head coach title. Mike Box, a 2013 graduate who came back in 2019 to coach receivers, added assistant head coach and recruiting coordinator to his title. Another change is Anthony Leonard, who will join Smith as a co-defensive coordinator and moved his position oversight to linebackers. He coached the IUP defensive line from 2016-20.
Crimson Hawks picked second in PSAC preseason poll
IUP was picked to finish second in the Western Division as the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) released its 2021 preseason football coaches’ polls last Wednesday.
The Crimson Hawks received three of the eight available first place votes, trailing division favorite Slippery Rock with four votes. Cal U received one first place vote and was third in the voting.
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