March 22, 2006

The Wayne State University football team commences its spring practice season this Thursday at 3:30 p.m. WSU will have 12 practices plus two scrimmages along with the spring game slated for Saturday, April 22 at noon. The complete practice schedule is at the bottom of this release.

The Warriors won their final three home games in 2005 starting with a 25-14 victory over then No. 9-ranked Michigan Tech on Parents' Day. WSU finished in a tie-for-eighth in the very competitive Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), an improvement of five places with a roster consisting of just eight seniors.

Head coach Paul Winters enters his third season at the helm of the Warrior football program with 44 past letterwinners on the 2006 spring roster.

Leading the charge for WSU in 2005 was Chris Middlebrooks (Romulus, Mich.) who became just the fifth player in school history to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season as he gained 1,029 yards in only 10 games.

Wide receiver Nick Body (Ortonville, Mich./Our Lady of the Lakes) had 67 receptions (second-highest mark in school history) for 809 yards and three touchdowns. Both Middlebrooks and Body were Second Team All-GLIAC selections in 2005.

Four of the five starters on the offensive line return in 2006, anchored by tackles Grant Fodor (Lake Orion, Mich.) and Muhammad Abdullah (Detroit, Mich./Central/Grand Rapids C.C.). Guard Chris Ostosh (Belmont, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) started every game in 2005 as a true freshman while center Frank Lietke (Walled Lake, Mich./Central) started nine contests last season.

All three tight ends -- John Rehberg (Livonia, Mich./Livonia Stevenson), Kenny Schmidt (Waterford, Mich./Waterford Mott) and Dale Knuth (Canton, Mich./Dearborn Divine Child) -- will be redshirt juniors this fall.

The defense showed remarkable improvement last season, cutting the points allowed nearly in half from 2004.

Linebacker Alan Guy (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams) had 68 tackles, forced two fumbles and had three sacks among his 8.5 tackles for loss. Dan Barnes (Grand Ledge, Mich.) was averaging over six tackles per game before an injury sidelined him for the final four games.

The defensive backfield was led by a quartet of juniors in 2005 in Ryan Oshnock (Lakeview, Mich.), Derrion Fuqua (Detroit, Mich./Henry Ford/Grand Rapids C.C.), Jerriel Burrus (Belleville, Mich.) and Floyd Ferjuste (Jonesboro, Ga./Cambridge (Mass.) Rindge & Latin/Univ. of New Haven). Oshnock finished third on the team with 61 tackles, while Fuqua had a team-best three interceptions and tied Burrus for team-high honors with six pass break-ups. Burrus made 59 tackles, including four for a loss, plus had four quarterback hurries. Ferjuste contributed 55 tackles.

Place-kicker David Chudzinski (Belleville, Mich.) was a sophomore in 2005. He made seven field goals and finished second on the team in scoring.

Four mid-year transfers will be participating in spring ball - running back Daryl Graham (Detroit, Mich./St. Martin de Porres/Michigan Tech), defensive back Terrence Merritt (Detroit, Mich./Renaissance/Michigan Tech), defensive lineman Andrew Bates (Howell, Mich./Howell/Grand Rapids C.C.) and wide receiver Chris Alsina (Beaumont, Calif./Beaumont/Mt. San Jacinto J.C.).

Wayne State finished sixth nationally in strength of schedule for 2005 and was rated 40th in the country by the Masseyratings.com.

In addition, the Warriors were one of three teams during the regular season to have a second half lead against Grand Valley, the national champions.

The future looks bright in 2006. WSU's home opener is scheduled for Sept. 9 against the Saint Joseph's Pumas at Adams Field. The Warriors have six home games this fall including GLIAC contests versus Mercyhurst, Grand Valley, Hillsdale, Indianapolis and Ashland.

Returning Letterwinners (letters won at WSU only):

Offense (20 returning letterwinners/10 returning starters - denoted by *)
QB (2) - Chad Blair (3L), Nolan Martin (2L*)
RB (2) - Chris Middlebrooks (3L*), Smith Julmisse (1L)
FB (1) - Luis Gomez (2L*)
WR (4) - Nick Body (3L*), Jake Weingartz (3L*), Adam Carter (2L), Wes Brown (1L)
TE (3) - Dale Knuth (2L), John Rehberg (2L), Kenny Schmidt (2L*)
OL (8) - Grant Fodor (3L*), Muhammad Abdullah (2L*), Frank Lietke (2L*), Matt DuBois (1L), Michael Finch (1L), Chris Ostosh (1L*), Ryan Cue (1L-2004), Merrick Steele (1L-2004)

Defense (22 returning letterwinners/9 returning starters - denoted by *)
DL (6) - Mike Ellison (3L*), Chris Smilo (3L*), Alan Clay (2L), Alex Jachym (1L), Josh McLean (1L), Jason Thomas (1L-2004)
LB (7) - Dan Barnes (3L), Alan Guy (2L*), Tristan Black (1L*), James Cook (1L), Prosper Iwu (1L), Antonio Mansour (1L), Jamar Bird (1L-2004)
DB (9) - Jerriel Burrus (3L*), Ryan Oshnock (3L*), Floyd Ferjuste (2L*), Dante Dunn (1L), Derrion Fuqua (1L*), Jonathan Klyce (1L), Adam Nuckols (1L), Tyrone Spencer (1L*), Nigel Hamell (1L-2004)

Specialists (2)
PK - David Chudzinski (1L)
Special Teams - Steve Wisniewski (1L)

Starters Lost (3)
Offense
OL - Dontee Jenkins (2L*)

Defense
DL - Michael Hall (4L*), Leo Wells (4L*)

REVISED 2006 WSU SPRING FOOTBALL PRACTICE SCHEDULE

Saturday, March 25 -- Noon
Sunday, March 26 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, March 29 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Friday, March 31 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 1 -- Scrimmage at noon
Sunday, April 2 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, April 5 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Friday, April 7 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 8 -- Scrimmage at noon, with clinic
Sunday, April 9 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, April 12 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Monday, April 17 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Wednesday, April 19 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Friday, April 21 -- 3:30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 22 -- Spring Game at noon