Since the end of last season, Princeton has lost three defensive starters — then-junior linebacker Zak Keasey, then-sophomore cornerback Jay McCareins and then-junior free safety Brandon Mueller — to academic ineligibility, and the team will get knocked around because of it.
When an opponent runs a play against the football team this fall, it looks like it will be either a stop in the backfield or a touchdown. That is because the defensive line is as solid as one could hope for, but the linebackers and secondary are a motley collection of untested underclassmen and inexperienced upperclassmen.
Head coach Roger Hughes had been expecting to rely on his defense this year to take pressure off a young offensive line. That is no longer the case.
"The offense may have to outscore teams while the defense gets its feet on the ground," he said.
Defensive line
Easily the most experienced part of the defense, the line returns four starters and will bear the brunt of high expectations because of it.
The two defensive ends are likely the best pair of bookends in the Ivy League. Joe Weiss — a first-team All-Ivy selection last year — led the league in tackles for a loss last year with 18 and had eight sacks, while Tim Kirby, an Academic All-American last season and co-captain this year, will line up on the other end of the line. Weiss and Kirby have been two of the most reliable players on the team. Expect about 10 tackles between the two in every game this year.
The inside of the line has similar experience with seniors Jeff Micsky and George Pilcher, who clogged the middle last year. They didn't get much publicity, but they often freed up Weiss and Kirby to get the big numbers they recorded.
Linebackers
Once an opponent breaks through that defensive line, it is anybody's guess what will happen next. Keasey was the team's leading tackler the past two seasons, and both the other starting linebackers graduated.
The top of the list to fill the hole at linebacker is senior Steve Jameson. He was projected to start at the beginning of last year, but J.R. Sauder '03 moved over from tight end to take his position. Now, Jameson will get his chance to start as the strong-side linebacker.
Three sophomores will try to fill the other two linebackers spots — Justin Stull, Alan Borelli and Abi Fadeyi.
"They're going to be great," Hughes said. "I just wish they didn't have to play until they are juniors."
Defensive backs
The defensive backfield lost one starter to graduation, strong safety Kevin Kongslie '03, and two more to academic ineligibility, McCareins and Mueller. Nonetheless, there are less question marks here than in the linebacking corps.
McCareins' replacement at cornerback will be under the most scrutiny, because his backups saw virtually no time last year. Back then the defensive backfield was arguably the most complete position on the field. Now McCareins' shutdown ability is gone, and his replacements, according to Coach Hughes, had "glassy eyes" during the scrimmage this fall against Yale. "I wouldn't want to check their underwear about halfway through," he said.
Freshman Tim Strickland leads the hopefuls to fill the role. Strickland and fellow freshman Brian Shields both moved over from wide receiver and are still learning the basics of secondary play. Freshman J.J. Artis — a converted linebacker — is the third frosh who could see the field at corner.
Senior Blake Perry, the opposite corner, is the only holdover from last year's group. A big hitter, he will be asked to improve as a cover corner this year because he will have to take on the opponent's best receiver each week.
Kongslie's replacement at strong safety, senior Sam Snyder, saw the field last year mostly on special teams but is consistent and technically sound, if not as exciting or punishing as Kongslie was last year, when he earned his second straight All-Ivy selection.
"[Snyder] is the most physically fit kid on the team," Hughes said. "It's his time."
Junior Nick Brown, the best free safety on the team, may miss the season opener at Lehigh and more because of a shoulder separation. He has taken off of practice most of the last two weeks. Though he backed up Mueller last year on the depth chart, he saw plenty of minutes as the nickel back on passing down. If he is unable to go for the opener, Perry will be moved to the free safety spot, and the Tigers will probably start two freshman corners.
Punt
Punting may be the best tool the defense has. If the opponent is pinned deep consistently, the inexperienced defense will be able to give up a few first downs without having to give up too many points.
Junior Joe Nardello lost his punting job last year midway into the Ivy League season, mostly because of inconsistency. From one punt to the next, he could boom the ball sixty yards or drop the snap.
"When Joe goes in, I hold my breath," Hughes said.
Sophomore Elliot Bishop is a more technically sound punter who handles the snaps better and gets the ball away faster, though without quite as much of an upside as Nardello's leg.
Probably the most overlooked position in the history of football is long snapper. Senior Tim Releford's snaps have never been much of a problem, but Hughes described his punt protection last year as "erratic." Most of the time that pressure got the punter last season, it came up the middle, which Hughes contributed to Releford overanalyzing the situation and missing a relatively simple assignment. Releford's snaps have been coming in faster and tighter this year, which means punts will get away faster most of the time. If the ball is off line, though, watch out for a safety every few games.
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