Change is the theme around the Southern Illinois football program this offseason.
Entering his fourth season in charge of the Salukis, Nick Hill has five new coaches on his staff, including new coordinators on both sides of the ball. He’ll also have to break in a new starting quarterback after losing a pair of seniors who split the job last season.
But perhaps most important is the renewed sense of optimism within a program that hasn’t had a winning record in five years. Last year’s 2-9 mark was the worst since 2001 and Hill — who quarterbacked the Salukis in the 2007 FCS quarterfinals against UMass — wants to steer Southern Illinois back into the postseason.
“Nothing has changed as far as the core principles and the culture we want to build,” Hill said. “But you’re always adapting and adjusting. I was 30 years old and only coached in college for two years (when I took over), so there was a lot for me to learn. I feel excited about where we’re at right now and know we have the right people in place to be successful here.”
OFFENSE: There isn’t a real favorite to take over the reins of the Salukis offense considering none of the four candidates for the position have much experience on the field. Nic Baker went 4-for-6 in mop-up duty against North Dakota State and Stone Labanowitz completed a pass late against Mississippi.
In such a wide open race, Hill said he is hopeful that someone naturally rises to the top and takes command of the offense. But he isn’t concerned about the lack of a signal caller, saying he believes there is still plenty of time to allow the young quarterbacks to develop.
Whoever wins the battle under center, he’ll have a stable running back to rely upon and relieve some pressure off his shoulders. D.J. Davis ran for 1,118 yards and averaged 6.3 yards per carry last season as he assumed a larger role in the offense.
Davis’ role should grow this season with a new quarterback, and Hill said the senior has become a key voice in the locker room and on the field for the Salukis.
“He’s a great kid, he’s the leader on our team, and you’d love to recruit 100 D.J. Davises,” Hill said. “That’s what separates him is his work ethic and he’s a great teammate, he’s awesome to coach, and that’s why he’s successful.”
The Salukis have several options at the other skill positions led by Landon Lenoir, who was second on the team with 48 catches and 486 yards last season. Southern Illinois also returns tight end Nigel Kilby, who took six of his 16 catches to the end zone last year.
The unit will be protected by an experienced left side of the offensive line, which started all but one game together last year. Center Jacob Marnin also returns along the front as Hill looks for separation in the race to fill out the right side of the line.
DEFENSE: Last season was challenging for the Southern Illinois defense.
The Salukis faced three top-12 FCS teams from their own conference in addition to playing Mississippi’s high-octane offense. But the unit also suffered from a rash of injuries to some key players that forced some shuffling at the back end.
But 10 starters return this season and several backups earned valuable playing time during those injury-plagued stretches. So even though the Salukis surrendered more than 40 points per game last season, Hill said he thinks the unit will learn from its 2018 mistakes.
“Experience is something you just can’t put a price tag on,” Hill said. “They had some growing pains last year. They played well at times last year, but experience is going to help all of those guys out. It’s something they need to build on, learn from past experiences then build on it.”
The Salukis are deepest at safety, a group that includes four of their top nine tacklers from last season. Three of the four players who made starts at the position last season missed some time due to injury.
Jeremy Chinn led the team with three interceptions, two forced fumbles and seven pass breakups in nine games. Michael Elbert played in seven games but returned a fumble and an interception for scores. Qua Brown made 38 tackles in six games and Joe Patterson made 47 stops while playing in all 11 games.
That secondary is aided by the explosive pass rushing of Anthony Knighton, who has made an immediate impression for the Salukis. He’s started all 22 games in his career with 15 sacks and 24 tackles-for-loss in those two seasons. He’s the leader of a defensive line that returns all four starters from last season as well as three key reserves.
In the second level of the defense, Bryce Notree and Luke Giegling return to solidify the linebacker corps. Notree led Southern Illinois with 78 tackles a year ago and also added a pair of sacks, two interceptions and five tackles-for-loss.
Josh Walfish can be reached at jwalfish@gazettenet.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoshWalfishDHG. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage.