Chadron State College

BISMARCK, N.D. - After what head coach Bill O'Boyle described as "a long and hard camp," the Chadron State College football team will open its season Thursday night by tangling with the University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D. Kickoff will be at 5 p.m.

O'Boyle noted that the Eagles have been practicing for about 20 days and are anxious to play a game. He said the Mary Marauders will be a good test for his team. He said they are big and well-coached and have considerable experience, particularly on offense.

They may also have one of the nation's outstanding defensive players in linebacker Shawn Melland.

This will be just the second game between the Eagles and the Marauders. CSC won the 2006 opener 21-3 in Bismarck.

O'Boyle believes the Eagles will be solid again this fall after going 12-1 each of the past two years.

"We've got a few uncertainties, but I think we're in good shape and have a lot of veterans, which is great," O'Boyle said. "We graduated some great players last year, but this year's group of seniors is one of the best we've ever had. They've been providing good leadership in practice."

This week's 57-man travel roster includes 21 seniors, 15 juniors, 10 sophomores, nine redshirt freshman and two true freshmen.

All but three of the Eagles' probable starters against Mary have started at least a few games or been in the regular rotation. The exceptions are wide receiver Tyler Watson, defensive tackle Maverick Churchill and safety Steve Garcia. Churchill, a redshirt freshman from Scottsbluff, is the only non-letterman listed as a starter for the opener.

O'Boyle said he expects the defense to be very good. He said it has been so strong during the preseason that the offense has struggled at times. He called the linebacking corps "great," and said seniors such as Trevor Hyatt and Craig Kaiser lend stability to the secondary.

O'Boyle added that the line doesn't have as much depth as he and defensive coordinator Todd Auer would like, but he said seniors Jared Koester and Shaine Odell at end and Aaron Ide at tackle are exceptional players.

Offensively, O'Boyle said the absence of all-time great Danny Woodhead leaves some uncertainties, but said receivers such as Brandon Harrington, Isaac Stockton and Joel Schommer are "special kids." He also said some of the offensive linemen are on the small side, but he anticipates they'll play hard. In addition, the coach said quarterback Joe McLain "is as good as it gets in the RMAC and nationally."

Mary went 7-4 last year. The Marauders lost their first three games, won six in a row, lost to Wayne State and then won the season finale. None of the losses was by more than a touchdown.

Eight offensive starters return for Coach Myron Schulz.

The line is huge, averaging 300 pounds from tackle to tackle. One of the offensive standouts is wide receiver Mike Williams, who caught 55 passes for 870 yards and nine touchdowns last season.

The starting quarterback is expected to be senior Jesse Kozak, who also started against the Eagles two years ago, but was injured a couple of games later and has played sparingly since then. He threw just three passes last season.

Another quarterback on the roster is 6-foot-5 Henry Lau, who began his college career at Purdue and played at Rochester Community College last year before transferring to Mary in January. The Marauders' primary ball carrier is expected to be sophomore Jamal Lomax, who rushed 83 times for 347 yards last season.

The defense is led by senior Melland, a 6-5, 240-pound linebacker who is the Northern Sun Conference preseason defensive player of the year. Last fall, he led the team with 82 tackles, intercepted five passes and forced three fumbles. He returned two of his interceptions and one of the fumbles for touchdowns.

The other returning starters are end Pierre Atkinson and linebacker Chris Moody. Five sophomores are listed as probable starters.

The Eagles will make their home debut on Sept. 6 against Pittsburg State.