University Gets Hyped as Football Team Preps for USF

Stony Brook graduate student Katie Lohan is perhaps a little more excited than most to see the Seawolves open the football season against South Florida tomorrow. The former high school cheerleader did her undergraduate work at a school which didn't have a football program.

"I'm excited to see some good football," Lohan said.

She is just one of many getting into the hype surrounding the big game – the Seawolves' first matchup against a Football Bowl Subdivision team.

"It's big for the school," senior Bahaa Daoud said. "It will increase school spirit, something we've been lacking over the past few years."

The Seawolves, picked to finish second in the Big South in the preseason poll, know they have a huge task ahead of them. In the 2007 season, South Florida was ranked as high as No. 2 before losing to Rutgers.

Leading the Seawolves will be junior quarterback Michael Coulter, who led the Big South with 15 touchdown passes and finished with over 2,000 yards of offense in 2009. The team also needs big plays from junior running back Brock Jackolski and sophomore running back Miguel Maysonet, both of whom transferred to Stony Brook when Hofstra shut down its football program after the close of the 2009 season. Stony Brook head coach Chuck Priore will also look for smart moves from senior linebacker Stephen Schwicke, whom he described as a very unselfish player.

Priore said the speed of the game and South Florida's athleticism will be factors in the outcome.

"We're not straying too far from who we are, but certainly we're paying attention to those things," he said.

The Seawolves will also pay attention to USF sophomore quarterback B.J. Daniels, who rushed for 772 yards and nine touchdowns in 2009. However, the Bulls' darling running back, senior Moise Plancher, is out with an injury.

"We're excited, but we understand the strength of an FBS team that has had some past rankings," Priore said in a statement. "A tremendously talented team who has a new coaching staff, so you know they'll be ready to play."

News & Notes: With 65,000 seats, Tampa's Raymond James Stadium, home to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, is the largest stadium the Seawolves will have played in ... The university announced Sept. 1 that it signed a four-year membership extension with the Big South. Stony Brook, which joined the league in 2008, will play Big South football through 2015.

How to Catch the Game on Saturday: SNY (Cablevision channel 60); DIRECTV (channel 639); DISH Network (channel 438); Time Warner (channel 26); Verizon Fios (channel 77); ESPN3.com; WUSB radio; Sirius Satellite Radio (channel 138).

Andrew Coen contributed to this story.