College football is unique in the landscape of collegiate athletics in that all the sports coaches, no matter division or institutional size, have to sweat the details.
 
No other sport penalizes a team for lining up incorrectly before play begins, or for a flinch before the initiation of play. Football coaches have to worry about those things because nothing will cause a team to put itself in trouble more readily than procedural mistakes.
 
Stetson's second year head coach, Brian Young, knows that concern all too well.
 
Kickoff for the 2022 season-opener is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Saturday at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium in DeLand. The game will be televised on ESPN+ with Victor Anderson and former Stetson standout Davion Belk on the call for the game.
 
Entering his first season last fall, Young prepared his team to play fast a loose. The speed in which they wanted to play ended up costing the Hatters in terms of those preventable mistakes.
 
"We have talked a lot this summer about Hatters not beating Hatters," Young said of the conversations he has had with his coaches and his team. "We want to make sure we get lined up correctly and not get those silly procedure, false start and offsides penalties like we have had in the past. We want to be able to execute under the gun so that we can get ready for conference play.
 
"We want to be sound in the things we do. We still want to play fast, but we have to understand how to execute the game plan without beating ourselves."
 
Young has a retooled coaching staff behind him that he is both familiar and comfortable with. With veteran assistants JJ Johnson, Jeremy Perkovich and returning assistant Brandon Wright working with the Stetson defense, along with second year assistant Jeffrey Eberhardt, recent Georgia Southern graduate Michael C. Smith and former Stetson defensive tackle Zane Smith, Young has confidence that the defense will execute his style of play.
 
"They all know how I want to play on defense," Young said. "I was never a coach who was afraid to get beaten by being aggressive, and we are going to be aggressive. I have confidence in JJ to call the game on defense. He knows I will be in his ear, but he also knows I have confidence in him."
 
On the offensive side of the ball, new offensive coordinator Brian Sheppard has put an emphasis on playing fast, but under control. He has the experience and pedigree from both his father, a long-time college and NFL coach, as well as those who he has worked with.
 
"We are going to try to run at least 80 offensive plays per game, so we are going to go fast," Young said. "Brian is a Neal Brown guy, so our offense will look a lot like what he runs at WVU.
 
"I expect our offense will be better than last year. We went fast, but we were out of control too much. I think we have a better grasp of what we are doing now and we will be better under control."
 
In addition to Sheppard, Young added former NFL standout David Clowney IV to the staff to work with the receivers, who Young says are going to be the best in the Pioneer Football League, as well as help with special teams. Clowney was a standout special teams player for Frank Beamer at Virginia Tech, and those abilities helped him enjoy a long NFL career.
 
"I am excited about our receivers and Coach Clowney has been a great addition to the staff," Young said. "To me, hands down, we have the best receivers in this league. We are going to spread the field with those guys and be creative on how we get the ball to them."
 
In addition to Sheppard and Clowney, the Stetson offensive coaching staff includes running backs coach Harry Richards, now in his fifth year at Stetson, along with second year offensive line coach Jake Reed. Another recent Georgia Southern product, Ryan Favre, is working with the tight ends while Florida State grad Hunter Todd is serving as an offensive analyst.
 
Even with a staff in place that has given Young added confidence going into the season, the players on the field will determine how much success the Hatters have during the 2022 season. There are veterans on both sides of the ball who will lead the team with their experience, some transfers who will bolster forces in some areas, but there will also be some youngsters who will be thrown into the fire right away.
 
"We have a veteran group on defense, with our defensive line, and we feel good about our freshmen," Young said. "We have a veteran group at linebacker at well and all of those guys have been exactly who we thought they would be. We are looking for those veterans to help bring along that younger talent that we have."
 
The key veteran on the defensive line is graduate end Fermon Reid, who enters the season second in modern Stetson history in career sacks, just eight behind Belk's mark of 24. Sophomores Josh Hughes and Finau Fine also got plenty of experience last year and return. Junior Tyler Lewis and sophomore Jacarri Braddy step into the nose tackle spot and will get their first significant playing time.
 
"We have about five or six guys on the defense line who give us a strong rotation and then there are some young guys who are impressive and have a chance to be good," Young said. "There have been flashes from those guys and we are excited to see what they can do."
 
The Hatters' trio of returners at linebacker – graduate Ethan Hull in the middle with senior Majeste' Hansberry and sophomore CJ Davis on the outside – gives Stetson an impressive first group. Juniors Alex Alteus and Christian Jolley along with sophomores Jordan Williams and RJ Williams, gives Stetson depth at those positions.
 
In the secondary, junior free safety Rassie Littlejohn will lead the way with fellow junior Davion Maxwell at one dawg safety spot.
 
"We have some young guys in the secondary who are going to get tested early, but we have some veterans back there as well," Young said. "We have a couple of transfers who will be a big help for us. Rassie is the quarterback who will lead us. He is the guy who we will count on to help the younger guys back there."
 
Graduate transfers Ja'Veon Ensley, from Wagner, and Eric Diggs, from Cornell, will both play in the dawg safety/nickel back role and provide experienced depth. The question mark is at the two corner positions, which will both be manned by talented, but untested, players.
 
"David Stubbs has moved over from receiver to corner and has really adapted to it well," Young said. "He has great hands and can really run. Freshmen Julian Sampson and Malik Giles have both impressed in camp and will get tested right away."
 
Young said sophomore Jason Reidy may be the most talented of the group but, like the others, he is still learning how to play and where to be on the field.
 
On the offensive side of the ball, veteran quarterback Alex Piccirilli is back for his final season. The preseason All-PFL selection at quarterback, Young said the Jupiter native has total control of the offense.
 
"He has adapted well to the new offense, his third in three years," Young said. "He has control of all the protections and he has all of those weapons at receiver and running back at his disposal. There is no reason for him not to have an outstanding season."
 
Piccirilli, who changed jersey number from 16 to 15 for his final season, spent the entire summer working with those receivers and running backs in DeLand. He also took a trip to Nashville for some training at an invitation only event for potential future WWE Superstars, where he was coached on everything from in-ring skills to interviews.
 
Piccirilli enters the 2022 season having thrown for 1,567 yards and eight touchdowns in 19 career games. He has also rushed for 749 yards and is capable of pulling the ball down and scoring from anywhere on the field using his feet.
 
That ability to run with the ball should cause opposing defenses nightmares when you consider the offensive weapons that will be arrayed across the field. That talent doesn't just include the riches at receiver, the running back room is also stacked with talent.
Junior Jalen Leary returns for his junior season, having accumulated 1,791 rush yards on just 334 carries in his career. He has averaged 77.9 yards per game and has scored 15 touchdowns. He is joined again by sophomore Kaderris Roberts, who got his feet wet last year, and graduate transfer Devon Brewer, who was Cornell's leading rusher a season ago.
 
In addition to running the ball, all three are proven pass catchers out of the backfield.
 
Then, there are the receivers – so many receivers.
 
"When we start talking about receivers we have NaNa, Q, Carley, Becker, Sauce, Martinez, Proch, Warthen and on and on," Young said. "We are going to spread the field with those guys. There are also some young guys who are really talented, they just have to learn what to do."
 
Sophomore Nazeviah Burris, "NaNa" to his teammates, exploded onto the scene last year with a seven catch, 127-yard, four touchdown performance against eventual PFL champion Davidson. It was just a flash of talent he possesses.
 
Junior Quinton Lane was the leading receiver for the Hatters last year, making 31 catches for 465 yards. He is big (6-3, 205) and physical, and is a nightmare matchup for opposing corners. Sophomore Michael Carley (6-4, 207), senior Connor Becker (6-4, 194), senior Mason Proch (6-4, 231) are also big and strong with plenty of speed.
 
But then you have the speedsters. Senior Jalen Mason, known as Sauce, is a former running back who relishes contact and dishing out punishment to defenders, but can just as easily leave them grasping at air as he slips past. Sophomores Jalon Warthen-Carr and Michael Martinez join with Burris to give the Hatters the ability to stretch the field vertically. Fellow sophomore Javaris Young is one of several others who showed in camp that they are ready to contribute.
 
"Those young guys are tremendous athletes, they just have to learn what they need to do to help us win," Young said.
 
The Hatters also have weapons returning at tight end, which doubles as an H-back or fullback in the Stetson offense. Sophomore Kaleb Costner started eight games last year and returns along with junior Dominic Carlucci and sophomore Trent Phillips.
 
The key to the offensive engine will be up front on the offensive line. The Hatters have five returners – graduate Andrew Nadolski, seniors Steven Godwin and Thomas Connors, junior Avery Samuels and sophomore James Rhodes – who have all played significant snaps in recent years, but have not always been the regular starters. Behind them, there is a lot of young, unproven, talent.
 
"We don't have a lot of experience on the offensive line, and that is going to determine how well we go," Young said. "We have some young guys, but we also have a lot of size. We are bigger than we have ever been and we are stronger than we have ever been. Godwin will be the leader up there at center. He will be controlling traffic up there."
 
Towering sophomores Dawson Harrington, Connor Lenczden and Kyle Gilliland all stand 6-7 and the 18 players in that position room total almost 5,500 pounds, averaging out to almost 293 pounds per player. Size is not an issue, but there will be a lot of on-the-job training to be done.
 
On special teams, sophomore punter Marshall Golic and sophomore kicker Cameron Gillis return as does sophomore long-snapper Michael Wojciechowski. Senior punter Matt Clements is still working his way back from a knee injury that ended his 2021 season in the first game.
 
The return game has plenty of options with receivers Mason and Warthen-Carr along with running back Roberts getting the early opportunities.
 
The Hatters will get tested right away against a Concordia-Ann Arbor team that is not the normal opening game opponent. The Cardinals posted a 9-2 record in 2021 and enter the new campaign ranked sixth in the nation among NAIA programs.
 
"This team we are playing will be good," Young said. "They are one of the top teams in their conference. We are bigger, and we should be faster, however, they are used to winning. That is why we wanted them on the schedule. We want to get ready for conference play by playing good teams.
 
"We have beaten up on some bad teams early in the past and I don't know if that has helped us get ready. The biggest thing is I want to see how we handle adversity, and there will be some in the game."
 
Saturday's opening game against Concordia is scheduled for a 6 p.m. kickoff with gates and ticket windows at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium opening at 5 p.m. Parking lots open for tailgating at 4 p.m. There will be a live band playing in lot 5 beginning at 4 p.m.
 
The North Ticket Booth includes visiting team will-call, Stetson student admission, general ticket sales and ADA patrons. The South Ticket Booth will be for Stetson team will-call as well as general ticket sales.
 
The first 50 students in the stadium will receive a voucher for free concessions and one lucky fan in attendance will win a pair of tickets to University Studios in Orlando.
 
Stetson will be celebrating the 10-year anniversary of the return of Hatters football at the game, recognizing football alumni on the field at halftime. After the end of the game there will be a free fireworks show.
 
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program is driven by a shared purpose. It is what inspires, motivates and binds us together. More than a task, a reason for being. THE HATTER PURPOSE is to create and provide an experience of a lifetime through teamwork and relationships to achieve excellence. This purpose is achieved through five Core Values: Communication, Integrity, Excellence, Value People and Commitment. To learn more about the HATS program and our Core Values, visit GoHatters.com/HATS. Get in on the conversation on social media by following Stetson Athletics on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. For video content, visit our YouTube channels: Stetson Hatters, Stetson Athletics and, for live events, Hatter Vision.