Penguins' 'O' line has lots of depth

Tuesday, August 22, 2006 Three senior backups are ready to help out any way they can. By PETE MOLLICA VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF YOUNGSTOWN — The heart of the Youngstown State offense lies with the offensive line and for the Penguins that heart carries much further than the five starters who will line up each game. The Penguins, who are winding down fall workouts this week, held a solo session Monday afternoon and will close out the camp today with an 8:10 a.m. workout at Stambaugh Stadium. YSU coach Jon Heacock will give the Penguins both Wednesday and Thursday off before returning Friday night to begin preparations for the season opener Aug. 31 against Slippery Rock. Veteran starters The Penguins will start three seniors on the offensive line, led by All-Gateway Conference selection Ryan Jewell (6-foot-4, 285 pounds) at center. He's joined by Jamel Lee (6-3, 280) at one guard and Pat Walker (6-5, 290) at one tackle. Junior Tyler Booth (6-6, 300) will man the other tackle and junior Josh Tanner (6-2, 305) and sophomore Brad Samsa (6-3, 280) will share the other guard spot. But the Penguins are deep on the offensive line this year and three other seniors are expected to draw considerable playing time. Center John Foster (6-1, 305) and tackles Joe DeBee (6-4, 300) and Erik Claxon (6-7, 340) are all looking forward to helping their team return to the I-AA playoffs this season. DeBee and Claxon are fifth-year seniors, while Foster was never redshirted and both he and DeBee have lettered twice. Best five are starting None of the three have any problems with the Penguins' current starting line. "We as a group have always felt that the best five linemen should be on the field and we feel that we have that," said DeBee, a native of Alliance and a graduate of St. Thomas Aquinas High. "We also know how difficult it is to play every down on the line and how valuable it is to have depth on the sideline to give the starters a breather," he said. Claxon, from Brunswick and Lakewood St. Edward, came to camp this year in the best shape he's ever been in and the coaches took notice. Claxon makes impression He's the biggest player on the team and still dropped about 20 pounds from his playing weight a year ago, which helped him pass the team's conditioning test for the first time. "I guess the fifth time was the charm," Claxon said. "I know that I couldn't have made it without the help from by teammates here on the line. They pushed me to work harder and it was difficult, but well worth it." Foster, a Bedford Chanel High graduate from South Euclid, said that this summer the line worked out together as a group. "We were there together nearly every day and it has definitely made a difference here in camp," he said. All have same goals All three players were in agreement that the Penguins definitely have what it takes to get back to the I-AA playoffs, where they haven't been since the 2000 season. Last year YSU finished 8-3 and in a three-way tie for the Gateway Conference championship, but still was left out by the NCAA playoff selection committee. "We don't intend to leave the choice up to somebody else this year," Foster said. "We'll just take care of it ourselves." mollica@vindy.com