MARSHALL, Texas – Looking to do big things in the American Southwest Conference this year, the East Texas Baptist University football team is gearing up for their season opener on September 1st. The task will be tough opening up with #3 Wesley College. Below is an interview with head coach Mark Sartain. See what he has to say about the new season.
AL: Adam P. Ledyard (Director of Sports Information) l MS: Mark Sartain (coach)
AL: What are you looking forward to the most this season as a head coach for your team?
MS: To see the carry-over from the off-season in terms of the approach to the sport and the commitment to the team these young men have made.
AL: Talk about your team and why they are special to you this year?
MS: Our approach last winter and spring was based on the notion that, “When I become a better man, we become a better team”, “ Individual commitment=collective success”. That prevailing theme really brought these young men together like never before. I have been very pleased with the elevated expectations and their mutual accountability. I am very excited to see how that plays out in this team's chemistry and, of course, it's performance.
AL: What are the team goals that they will be trying to accomplish this year?
MS: Generally we want to achieve all that we are capable of. We are tired of falling short of our own reasonable expectations. We want to play for the conference championship, make post season play and really mess up family holiday plans!
AL: Talk about your returners and what they will bring back to the team?
MS: Returning Starters(Offense) Kwame Spikes, Sr. WR, James Fugate, Sr. OL, Drew Dawson, Jr. OL, Michael Garcia, Jr. OL, Chad Bowers, Sr. TE. Seth Hubbard has started several games in his career and been very successful but not last year. Returning starters(Defense) Jordan Hayes, Sr. LB, Mark Gray, Sr. Safety, Collin Bieschke, Sr. Safety, Alex Cloudy, Sr. CB, Clyde Omo-Iyase, Sr. CB, Dewon Davis Jr. DT, Quinton Thomas, Jr. DT. As you can see there is a great deal of experience in that group. They have started a lot of games in their career at ETBU and they really understand what it takes for us to be successful. These are quality young men that represent this university well on and off the field. All but one of these has played his entire career here. There are some VERY good football players in that group as well.
AL: Talk about your newcomers and what they will bring to the team?
MS: It is too early to talk about freshmen newcomers but I can address a few guys who will be assuming bigger roles from last season as well as a couple of transfer prospects. Offensively watch for sophomore offensive linemen Charles Williams, Jacob Alford and Landon Boffman to have a big impact. Sophomore wide receivers Roy Denbow and Roy Butler are exceptional prospects outside and inside along with Northwest Mississippi JC transfer Alphonso Buford. The battle in the backfield is still up for grabs but transfer John Gable is really looking good at tailback. Defensively we have a couple players who saw playing time last year that will play bigger roles this season in linebacker Delon Sevillano and defensive end Chris Hendrix. Cisco JC transfer Chris Frazier will be expected to compete for a starting role, too. Expected to make a splash in the secondary is a trio of talented sophomores in Tfadswa Charuma, Dylan Bethea and Brian Chase. All three are exceptional athletes who really had great off-season progress. Young at defensive end with another bunch of sophomores, Thomas Warren, Jacory Hunter and Trevor Hamilton will battle it out along with two young men returning to our program after a year away in Michael Hamilton and Dylan Maxwell.
AL: How does the American Southwest Conference look like this year?
MS: The ASC stacks up like it always has…the toughest top to bottom in the country. There are great teams in every DIII conference but I don't believe anywhere is there a tougher conference to get out of in the country.
AL: How is the competition of your schedule shaping up outside of the American Southwest Conference?
MS: We always look to schedule the best available opponents we can find. Since we arrived in 2007 we have played the 1st and 2nd winningest programs in NCAA Division III history in St. Johns (MN) and Wisconsin-Lacrosse. We have played Redlands twice and have now taken on Wesley College, who were national semi-finalists the last two years. We also pick up Willamette this year along with Austin College.
AL: Why do you love to coach your sport and how does that play into your teams?
MS: There is no other game on the planet that can compare to football for the things it demands, teaches and affords young men. There is a reason we love it so much in this country. There is no other level of the sport that rivals the college game for the way it presents the game. And, there is none better than NCAA Division III for the purity and all that is good about the game.
