TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University football team enters the 2017 season having to replace its top two receivers from a season ago. The Tigers do not have that go-to guy right now, but they do have plenty of weapons to utilize during the season.
The group returns just three players who caught a pass in a game last season. Those three players combined for just 29 catches a season ago.
"It is a pretty hungry group of a bunch of guys who do not have a lot of experience on the field," said wide receivers coach
Mike Moyseenko. "They are hungry to learn and they are hungry to get reps. They are very competitive, but also a very close knit group.
"There is competition at every spot. Nobody has been declared a starter anywhere yet. That in a sense is very refreshing and kind of new at this position."
The leading returner is junior
Sam Gallahan who finished the 2016 season with 22 catches for 212 yards and a touchdown.
Trey Kilgore emerged as a threat late last season, catching five passes for 73 yards over the final two games. He played a key role in the final drive in setting up the game-winning field goal against Rhode Island.
Sophomore
Morgan Scroggins was the only true freshman to play at receiver last season, catching a pair of passes.
Brent Richardson,
Ryan Rutkowski and
Noah Staub are all expected to make contributions this year after redshirting a season ago.
Jabari Allen joined the team in January and had the opportunity to go through spring practice. Allen hauled in 11 touchdowns in his senior season at Courtland High School.
Shane Leatherbury also joined the team in the spring and has continued to improve throughout preseason camp.
"We were very fortunate to have a bunch of these guys here in the spring and they got a ton of reps," said Moyseenko. "Our carryover from spring to fall camp has been very good. We excelled the pass game install faster than usual and our guys handled it mentally pretty well."
The Tigers added depth with graduate transfer
John Tsimis from Rutgers. Tsimis has battled injuries throughout his career. He made 11 starts for the Scarlet Knights, recording a season-best 19 catches as a sophomore.
Tsimis was not the only transfer to join the Tigers this season as Jabari Greenwod comes to Towson after spending two years at Kentucky.
"The consistency of a couple guys,
Shane Leatherbury,
Sam Gallahan,
Jabari Greenwood, have set the bar really high for our guys," said Moyseenko. "But, everybody kind of pokes their head out now and then. It is who can be the most consistent going forward, that is what we are looking for."
The Tigers added a pair of freshman on signing day that bring a lot of speed to the outside in
Rodney Dorsey and
Chris Greaves.
The all-everything Dorsey rushed for 923 yards and 18 touchdowns, while catching 44 passes for 625 yards and three scores as a senior at Tuscarora High School.
Greaves was a first-team all-county selection his senior year after leading the state in receiving yards as a sophomore.
Individual game tickets for the Battle for Greater Baltimore against Morgan State on Sept. 2 are now on sale. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the gate. Tickets can be purchased on TowsonTigers.com, or by calling 1-855-TU-TIGER.
