Ahh yes. It is football season once again, a time many consider the most wonderful of the year. There is something about bone-crunching hits, epic come-from-behind victories, and the scent of fungus-laced jock straps permeating the autumn air that just seems to wax poetic … Oh, but I digress.

What we’re here to talk about is football, and more specifically, Northeastern football. After experiencing an offseason straight out of a Danielle Steele novel, play on the gridiron is finally underway. A 71-0 thumping over Cheyney at Parsons Field was a fitting way to bless the chalice that is this young season, but says little about this team’s prospects at attaining a second conference championship in the last three seasons. Some may liken a repeat of 2002’s success to the odds of Star Jones fitting into one of Mary-Kate Olsen’s tank tops; I do not. Okay, I’m gassing it, but the fact is a lot of heads around campus are drinking hater-ade in regards to the Kent Street Killers. The truth is I predict Northeastern to have a season better than last year’s 8-4 record, and for several reasons:

Don Brown: Love him or hate him, the man built a heck of a program in four years. He stimulated interest for a team no one at this school cared about, which ranks about two steps above the Great Wall on the modern miracle scale. Even more impressive, he sold incoming recruits on coming to a school in the middle of Boston that plays its games on a high school football field, with attendance figures that rival Pop Warner games.

So what does all this have to do with this year’s football team? Simply put, Brown’s players are still here. Granted, Brownie may have taken his coaching armada with him to Amherst, but he didn’t take the Freak, the Boomer, or the other Brady with him. In Liam Ezekiel and Adam Bourget, the Huskies have two All-American players on the defensive and offensive side of the ball. In senior quarterback Shawn Brady, they have a proven leader and winner who makes sound decisions on the field. Add the other 11 returning starters from last season’s team, and the only thing missing is Brown himself, which brings us to …

Rocky Hager: Now, to say Rocky Hager and Don Brown are different coaches is kind of like comparing Michael Jackson 15 years ago to the “Jacko” of today; the differences there are so blatantly obvious that you have to remind yourself that they’re the same person. Brown was a fiery, temperamental coach who seemed to will his team to victory. Hager is a disciplined, high character coach who seems to carry a more dignified gait in regards to football matters.

Here is one thing they do have in common: wins. Hager was a two-time national coach of the year, has won four national championships (two as the head coach, two as a defensive coordinator), and has developed a reputation as an excellent recruiter. Those characteristics sound awfully familiar to me. Still, a 15-42 mark at Temple between 1999-2003 can leave a sour taste in the casual observer’s mouth… until you realize that Temple played and competed for recruits against some of the best teams in 1-A, a list that included BC, Syracuse and Miami. Though Hager’s experience working on the offensive side of the ball (where he worked with the tight ends, quarterbacks, and slot receivers) will benefit the team, Northeastern’s biggest offseason acquisition may just be …

Eddie Davis: Let me just start by saying that I respect former offensive coordinator Kevin Morris. He was diligent, disciplined, and taught the players to sacrifice for the sake of victory. Nevertheless, my man brought an offensive game plan so conservative that Bush and Cheney could have used it as their political platform for the upcoming election. Yes, Northeastern set numerous offensive records last season, but those numbers are deceiving. Teams knew that once they got a jump on the defense (which was rare), it would be difficult for the offense to compensate. It wasn’t as if the squad was short on firepower; with Quintin Mitchell, Cory Parks, and Anthony Riley, the Dogs have more than enough weapons to stomp with the Big Boys of the Atlantic-10. It was the way in which those weapons were utilized that left much to be desired. For all of their offensive firepower last season, NU had one come-from-behind victory, against Rhode Island. One. That is unacceptable.

Now, I don’t know new coordinator Eddie Davis from Tommy Mottola, but what I do know is that his James Madison University Dukes scored a lot of points last season with him calling the plays, and word on the street is that the offense is going to open up quite a bit at Parsons. Are Davis and Hager the right men for the job? Heck, I don’t know. All things considered, however, Dave O’Brien did the best he could with the situation that was dealt to him.

Defensive continuity: Yes, the Huskies lost some key players from last year’s standout defense. The men stepping in their place, however, have been regular contributors and are simply seeing an expanded role. Mike Hall and Rold Louis, who will flank Ezekiel, are more than capable of getting the job done. James Abosi is a beast, plain and simple. All this brings us to the primary reason why this team will be in great shape coming into this season …

Hunger: If your head coach telling you one thing, then flipping the script and bouncing on you the next moment does not motivate you to show him that he made the wrong decision, then someone should check your pulse. Many understand that he had to do what’s best for him, but are angered that no explanation was given behind the departure. We’ll find out just how motivated the team is, when they host Massachusetts on Nov. 6 in what may be the biggest game in the program’s history.

This team will be fine. Who I really worry about is the opposition; I hope they brought they mama’s biscuits, because we bombshellin’.

– Evans Erilus can be heard every Friday from 3:30 to 6 p.m on WRBB. He may be reached at [email protected]