Crusaders look beyond disappointing 2007 season

A 5-6 record was the last thing North Greenville expected last year. The Crusaders were coming off a school-best 10-2 campaign and had all of their top players returning.

Unfortunately, it was easier to explain what happened than it was to fix it midstream. The Crusaders lost their first three games and six of their first seven before getting the ship righted.

"We weren't a good defensive team early in the season," said North Greenville coach Mike Taylor. "Our kicking game left a little bit to be desired, our kick coverage and stuff. But the big thing is we were not a good perimeter defensive team and we just got taken to the woodshed until we got some things corrected."

When the correction came, North Greenville reeled off four straight wins to end the season and Taylor and his staff are hopeful that will carry over this year.

"We really emphasized defense in spring practice," Taylor said. "We made some adjustments on our defensive scheme, how we're coaching it and how we're approaching it. So we're hopeful we will be a better defensive team this year."

Offensively, North Greenville should be loaded. The Crusaders have seven returning offensive starters. The key will be replacing quarterback Eric Moeller, who threw for 2,883 yards and 30 touchdowns and was a four-year starter.

"Our quarterback has to play well for us to be good," Taylor said. "We'll see how that goes. We have the ingredients, the weapons. We just have to be able to get them the football."

North Greenville is looking at two quarterbacks — Richard Richard Harb, a transfer from Western Carolina, and Greg Woerner, who was on the roster last year but did not play.

Taylor noted that North Greenville has five of its top six receivers coming back, led by Brandon Dobbins of Stratford, who caught 52 passes for 689 yards and 8 TDs.

Running back also looks strong with Rashad Cummings and Matt Moore returning. Cummings ran for 1,573 yards and 16 TDs, while Moore rushed for 720 and eight.

"Those will be our three marquee guys," Taylor said.

Even with all the talent, North Greenville will have to play its best.

"Our schedule is brutal. We've probably got the toughest schedule in Division II," Taylor said. "We're playing four FCS (formerly Division I-AA) teams. North Alabama will be a top-five team when they play us. We're playing Newberry, and they'll be at least a top-20 team when we play them. So we're really playing a hard schedule. But I feel like our team really elevates their play when we're playing against schools that have more scholarships than us."