Colonials Corner

Over the next three weeks, Colonials Corner will post a variety of observations, notes, news, and analysis from training camp as the football team gears up for its 16th season under Joe Walton. We will also post several feature stories highlighting various topics, players, and coaches under the spotlight for this season. This is the first of those features.

Ian Milanak, left, and Alex DiMichele, right, will be two of the leaders of a veteran defense for Robert Morris. Photo by Andrew Chiappazzi

Within minutes of beginning a post-practice chat on the team’s defensive leadership, Alex DiMichele and Adam Lawrence – fully capable of carrying a conversation about football on their own – roped fellow defensive stalwarts Michael Landers and Ian Milanak into the conversation. With DiMichele and Lawrence already showcasing an uncanny ability to understand exactly what the other was saying, Landers and Milanak jumped in and created an even more impressive display of cohesiveness.

Four minds, four personalities, one set of answers. In a sport that loves cohesion, especially on defense, it should come as no surprise that four of the leaders on a defense that returns ten starters are on the same page. The foursome is an example of the overall team construction that Robert Morris coaches are hoping will create a championship caliber team in Moon Township, something the school hasn’t seen since 2000.

“Coach Walton is always talking about [a championship team], how we only have one team for 2009 and we’re never going to have another one,” DiMichele said.

Landers, a senior safety who is in the argument as one of the best defensive backs in the Northeast Conference, agrees.

Landers, a senior safety, believes an elimination of mistakes and penalties will help propel the Colonials to an NEC title. Photo by Andrew Chiappazzi

“It took us a year to let that sink in,” Landers said. “Last year we were getting used to playing with each other and it slipped by. We learned from it and now we’ve got to make it right this year.”

DiMichele, a junior from McKess Rocks, Pa. received a baptism by fire last year, transitioning from his freshman year at Temple as a fullback to a leader and devestating tackler at linebacker. Now, with a year under his belt, he has one goal in mind.

“One goal, that’s it, and that’s to win a ring,” he explains to emphatic nods from his three teammates. “All I want to do is win a ring.”

Part of what might carry him to his goal is the experience and depth on defense. The only missing starter from last year is Shannon Smoot, a fiery defensive end who graduated in May. Officially, though, the Colonials return a fifth starting defensive back. Nathan Argenta missed all of last season with a foot injury and is back healthy, adding experience to an already weathered back four that includes Landers, safety David Pittman, and corners Rolf Bathold and James Snider.

“We’ve played together for a year and I think we mesh well,” Landers said. “We have to hit the ground running this season, no more mistakes, no more dumb penalties like last year.”

Milanak agreed with Landers on the concept of the defense playing together for a full year ultimately helping this year’s squad, saying, “Last year, we came out here and our biggest concern was filling positions. We had a lot of people leave, a lot of people battling for positions, so it wasn’t about technique and fine-tuning stuff, it was about finding people who could play. This year, you’ll see a lot of positions are already set. There are still some positions up for grab, but we already started planning for VMI. We started breaking VMI film down the second day of camp.”

Adam Lawrence, senior linebacker for Robert Morris, hopes ten returning starters can help propel the team to a conference championship. Photo by Andrew Chiappazzi

The Colonials hope that the opportunity to focus primarily on technique will cut down on their mistakes from a year ago. The defense often thought they had stopped an opponent cold, only to have a penalty extend the drive. As the season progressed, the defense’s inability to stay off the field took its toll.

“One of the biggest problems last year is we were out of shape,” Milanak said. “Defensively, our first three games we came out and pounded teams, but the season took its toll. Next thing you know, we’re getting run over and stomped on and things that we knew we were better at. This year, we found a lot of our mistakes, and I think we’re coming together and fixing a lot of that stuff.”

It’s early in camp, and while the team is in full pads and practicing at a high speed, it’s not as intense as it will be towards the end of August, when the drag of two-a-days and the start of fall classes ratchets up the stress and shortens the fuse. But these four believe that the positive early returns will continue through the dog days of summer, and that the time is now for a veteran defense and a deep football team to reclaim its vacated spot on top of the Northeast Conference.

“Personally, I feel like this is an uprising for Robert Morris,” Milanak said. “We’re starting to play real teams and we’re not sinking down to D-3’s and D-2’s for out-of-conference play. Also, we have a lot of experience this year due to fifth year seniors, so next year is going to be just as good – if not better – than what we can provide this year. Hopefully this sets the pace to pick up where Robert Morris left off about 5-6 years ago.”