ORONO — Dan Collins is getting his first chance to start a football game. Malik Stokes may be getting his last.
When the University of Maine hosts Norfolk State at 6 p.m. Saturday in the season opener, the two men under center will also be under scrutiny. And likely under intense pressure from a pair of rugged defenses.
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NORFOLK STATE (3-9 last year) at No. 25 MAINE (10-3)
WHERE: Alfond Stadium, Orono
KICKOFF: 6 p.m. Saturday
TICKETS: At box office, call 581-BEAR (2327) or visit GoBlackBearsTickets.com.
WHEN MAINE HAS THE BALL: Dan Collins is making his first start at quarterback, against a veteran defense that ranked 13th in the FCS last season. Nigel Jones is a proven running back. But who will catch the ball? If senior wide receiver Damarr Aultman (hamstring) is available, that will be a big boost for a young offense. Moving the football may prove problematic, but turning it over could be disastrous. Collins must prove that he can make smart decisions, even if it means punting the ball away. When Norfolk State has the ball: The Spartans must replace five of their top six receivers from an offense that wasn’t exactly a juggernaut to begin with. New offensive coordinator Donald Hill-Eley is known for wanting to establish the run, and the Black Bears must first stop that. Malik Stokes will start at quarterback, and he is not afraid to call his own number on the option play. But he completed only 38 percent of his passes a year ago.
KEY MATCHUP: Maine RT Isaiah Brooks vs. Norfolk State LB Lynden Trail. Brooks is a redshirt freshman making his first start. Trail is a preseason All-American who will move all over the field looking for the ideal matchup. Brooks has been tested all offseason by blocking Trevor Bates, but can he handle Trail if the occasion calls for it?
KEY STAT: 12. The number of punts Maine forced last season in a 23-6 defeat of the Spartans.
OUTLOOK: The defenses seem to have a decided advantage in this game, and both will be looking to impose their will. If either are able to score off a turnover, that could swing momentum decisively. But if it’s a game of field position and place-kicking, Maine has a huge advantage with the legs of punter Jeffrey Ondish and All-American kicker Sean Decloux.
OF NOTE: Former Maine linebacker John Huard, a first-team All-American in 1965 and 1966, is being honored at halftime for his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. His number 32 will be emblazoned on the field and the marching band will form a “32” as part of the festivities.
DID YOU KNOW? Orono is the farthest north Norfolk State has ever traveled for a football game.
– Mark Emmert
Collins is the redshirt sophomore who won the Black Bears’ starting job Thursday after four weeks of training-camp competition with true freshman Drew Belcher. He is eager to prove he deserves the leading role and is intent on hanging onto it.
“I’ll be nervous before the first snap. After that first snap it will be like any other game I’ve played in since I was 5,” Collins said.
“I’m not going to let my foot off the pedal. I’m just going to keep driving and show these guys what I can do.”
Stokes is a junior who transferred to Norfolk State from Bowling Green and had a bumpy debut season last fall for the Spartans, who used four starting quarterbacks.
He came on in relief in a season-opening 23-6 loss to Maine, completing just 10 of 29 passes, although one was for a 34-yard touchdown. But he had only one more TD pass the rest of the year.
He’s starting Saturday only because Tyler Clark has a hamstring injury. Clark is expected to claim the starting job when healthy. Unless Stokes can change his coaches’ minds.
“It was really musical chairs,” Norfolk State Coach Pete Adrian said of his quarterback shuffling in 2013. “Every time somebody would do something good, the next week they would get hurt. You’re always back to Week 1 and can’t get momentum.”
The Spartans finished 3-9 last year but five losses were by 10 points or fewer. The offense was usually the culprit, averaging just 14 points per game despite a defense that forced 33 turnovers.
Linebacker Lynden Trail, the 6-foot-7 star of that defense, said it grew wearying.
“It wasn’t like anyone came out and smacked us around,” he said. “We just needed our offense to get going. Realistically speaking, we just needed them to step up. And they will. Practice has been a whole lot more intense.”
Norfolk State returns an experienced offensive line. The Spartans will try to run the ball against a Maine defense that is focused on stifling it.
Adrian said Maine caught him by surprise last year with the number of blitzes it used. Joe Harasymiak, who was the defensive backs coach then and is the defensive coordinator now, said that performance set the tone for a 10-3 season for Maine.
“If a team’s going to beat us, we want to make it throwing the ball,” he said. “We’ve got to keep it simple. We’ve got to be great tacklers. And hopefully we can cause some turnovers.”
Collins will lead an inexperienced offense. There are three new starters on the offensive line, a newcomer at tight end and potentially at both wide receiver spots, depending on Damarr Aultman’s health.
Maine Coach Jack Cosgrove has gained confidence in Collins after a shaky performance in his team’s final scrimmage last week.
“I hope to see a smart, disciplined playmaker and somebody that leads the team, plays with poise,” Cosgrove said of Collins. “We expect to see some nervous energy early.”
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