PINE BLUFF — Monte Coleman insists he's not stuck in another era, even if his preferred style of offense suggests otherwise.
Coleman, Arkansas-Pine Bluff's second-year coach, said he knows college football has become a game of multiple-receiver sets, inflated numbers and no-huddle offenses. He knows this, and he doesn't care.
"We're looking to be running 30 times a game," Coleman said. "I'm accustomed to smash-mouth football, and as I'm the head coach that's what I'm going to do."
Coleman no doubt draws on his 16 years of experience as a linebacker for the Washington Redskins, all spent in an era when football was primarily a run-first game.
The Golden Lions were a run first team by necessity a year ago, with an offense that managed 15.8 points per game en route to a 3-9 record.
The absence of a go-to receiver and an inexperienced quarterback all but forced Arkansas-Pine Bluff to rely on the run last year.
Attempts have been made to improve quarterback play while beefing up the receiving corps. But while Coleman promises a more diverse offense, don't expect fireworks.
"It's hard to just come out and say you're going to throw the football when you've got running backs like Mickey Dean," said Coleman, referring to the senior from Little Rock who is a preseason All-Southwestern Athletic Conference selection.
Dean rushed for 632 yards and five touchdowns in 2008, splitting time with Martel Mallett. But with Mallett now playing for the British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League, Dean will shoulder the weight of Coleman's expectations for hard running.
"I've been waiting for this opportunity to carry the load," said Dean, a former All-Arkansas player at Little Rock Central. "I'm going to take advantage of it and see if we can win some ballgames."
But as 2008 proved, even an all-SWAC running back will get stonewalled if the defense stacks against the run. The Golden Lions threw for four touchdown passes last season, none from now-sophomore Gvona Turner, the most experienced quarterback on Arkansas-Pine Bluff's roster.
Turner appears to have gone from starter to third string, with Ouachita Baptist transfer Rontrell Bailey battling junior college transfer Josh Boudreaux for the starting job.
The Golden Lions also return junior receiver Raymond Webber, Arkansas-Pine Bluff's leading receiver in 2008 despite getting kicked off the team five games into the season. He'll team with sophomore Danny Evans, a former walk-on who impressed the coaching staff after injuries forced him into the starting lineup a year ago.
The good news is that the Golden Lions won't have to pile up the points in order to win more games. Arkansas-Pine Bluff was third in the SWAC in scoring defense last season, and returns senior defensive back Michael Witherspoon, who had 70 tackles a year ago.
Junior defensive lineman Ibraham Abdulai also returns after 41 tackles in 2008, as does senior linebacker Jared Dorn and defensive back Kevin Thornton.
The defense will be in its first year under coordinator Alonzo Hampton, who was promoted from defensive backs coach in the off-season.
"Playing for Coach Hampton, he expects perfection from every player at every position," Witherspoon said. "We have to work on perfecting our craft on every play."
Sports, Pages 32 on 08/30/2009