By Gary Housteau

sports@vindy.com

CAMPBELL

It’s been three seasons since Ed Rozum got back into the coaching game at Campbell and this year’s team has his fingerprints all over it.

“Yeah, I think so,” Rozum said. “We took our lumps, we played a lot of young kids and now we’ve got some veterans back here and hopefully we’ll do well this year.”

Rozum said things are starting to improve for Campbell.

“We’re getting to the point where we [found] kids that are going to be at practice and they’re going to work hard and that was my goal here,” he said. “We’re still a very small school and we play a pretty tough schedule.

“We don’t have open enrollment like a lot of schools, so we can’t bring kids in. So we go with what we got here and do the best we can,” he said. “But I think we got some good kids here.”

Offense

“Both of our quarterbacks are back from last year,” Rozum said. “They both had playing time and they’re battling for the quarterback spot.”

Junior Darian Jones and senior Zion Williams are the two candidates vying for the job. Jones also ran some fullback when he wasn’t under center.

Senior Yianni Koullias returns at running back and juniors Brandon Liggens and Antwaan McMeans both ran the ball and played some receiver last year.

“We’ve got a pretty good mix,” Rozum said. “Being that we don’t have that many people here, we have to rely on guys learning at least two positions in case somebody gets hurt.”

Up front the line is anchored by senior Ignatius Horvath, a four-year starter and an all-conference selection last season, who is switching from guard to center.

Senior guard Andrew Van Jura also returns and sophomore tackle Rayshawn Hicks played both sides of the line as a freshman last year. And senior Seth Jackson returns at tight end.

Defense

“We have our defensive line back and we have some experience at the linebacker positions but we have to get better,” Rozum said. “In the secondary, we have three out of the four back, we’re looking for another corner.

“It all depends on how we come together on defense and what kind of mental attitude we have.”

The cast on defense is mostly the same as on offense. Hicks will man the nose guard position. Horvath will move from end to a tackle position and Van Jura, Jackson and junior Najii Robinson will all be vying for the two end positions.

Rozum is expecting big things from senior Josh Collins returning at a linebacker position. Darian Jones and senior Lazarus Lebron also return at linebacker from last year.

And in the secondary, Koullias, Brandon Liggens, Antwaan Means and Williams are the leading contributors.

Special Teams

“We have our punter back, Darian Jones. He was first-team all-league,” Rozum said. “And we also have our kicker back [Yianni Koullias]. So we should be pretty good there.”

Outlook

Rozum wants his team to play hard and be physical for 48 minutes every game.

“I think we’ve got some kids with experience and it’s time, I just hope that mentally, that they believe in themselves and they believe in what we’re doing,” Rozum said. “If our kids play hard every play and fight all the way till the whistle, that’s all that I can ask for.

“We’re optimistic. I expect some nice things coming from these kids and if we stay away from injuries I think we can be pretty good.”