Emporia State senior cornerback Travis Lee used to take a lot of pride in being the fastest guy on the football field. He still believes he’s the fastest.
But ask anyone else on the team, and there are a couple new speedsters around that Lee and the rest of the MIAA cornerbacks will be chasing this season.
Receivers Chris Woods and Shjaun Richardson are now known as the fastest Hornets, fellow receiver Brian Murphy is not far behind, and no one is more excited about this development than quarterbacks Andre Sloan El and Zach Rampy.
“They’re definitely going to help us a lot,” Sloan El said. “We’ve got receivers this year that can take it the distance; they can run after the catch and they can make a lot of big plays for us.”
Rampy added: “The speed we have out there is tremendous. We can throw a five-yard slant pass and have somebody miss a tackle and take it to the house. We had two guys last year that had that capability, but we didn’t have it at every single spot. This year we’ve got that capability at every single receiver position, to take a little pass and turn it into a big play.”
What Sloan El and Rampy are describing — the potential to turn a short pass into a big play — is the goal of the spread offense that Emporia State runs. In Coach Garin Higgins’ first two seasons, the Hornets have had some talent at receiver, but not the depth and speed that they have this year.
Last season, Sean Partridge was the top receiver, catching 35 passes for 485 yards and two touchdowns. Partridge was the Hornet offense’s top playmaker, but speed was not his strongest attribute.
Replacing Partridge will be Woods, who like Partridge is a physical receiver. Woods started at defensive back at New Mexico State his freshman season — he transferred to ESU last year — and brings a defensive mindset to the receiver position.
“He’s that guy that not only goes over the middle and catches the ball, but he wants to deliver the lick,” said receivers coach Matt Walter, who also coached Woods at New Mexico State.
Walter said Woods is Emporia State’s strongest receiver, but it’s his speed that he’s sure to become known for around the MIAA.
“He can outrun or run with anybody,” Walter said. “He’s going to surprise some people when game time comes, because they’re not going to be used to seeing somebody like that, who can just get up and go. Speed is definitely his strongest attribute.”
On the other side of Woods will be Danny McEvoy, one of only two returning receivers for the Hornets. McEvoy caught 25 passes for 326 yards and a team-leading six touchdowns. He played his best football near the end of the season. In Games 7-10, he had four touchdowns and went for 48, 47, 80 and 54 yards receiving.
“Last year as a new guy, I was just trying to learn everything,” McEvoy said. “I didn’t learn everything until about the seventh or eighth game of the season. This year I know everything and I’m trying to help out, which is also an improvement.”
The other receivers Emporia State is expecting big things from are Richardson and Murphy. Both changed positions during the spring. Richardson was cornerback during his redshirt season last year, and Murphy was a backup running back. Murphy will be the starter in the slot, and Richardson figures to be a backup to McEvoy and Woods.
The other top backups will be sophomore Matt Coursen and transfer Andre Jones. Coursen caught two passes for 11 yards during his redshirt freshman season. Jones, who transferred from Butler County Community College, was a late addition, arriving on the fourth day of training camp.
“He’s going to be good,” Walter said. “He has a lot of talent, but he’s behind.”
The Hornets have also improved their talent and depth at tight end. Dominic Mirocke, who caught eight passes for 129 yards and a touchdown in 2008, is back for his sixth year with the program and expected to be the starter.
“Dom is a true leader of the bunch, and he’s been everything you want out of a millionth-year senior,” tight ends coach Jerrod Sparling said. “We know what Dom brings to the table. We know Dom knows what he’s doing on everything.”
Tracy Hageman also figures to be a big contributor from the tight end/H-back position. Hageman played receiver last year, catching 21 passes for 224 yards and two touchdowns.
“He has a tremendous pair of hands,” Mirocke said. “He seems to catch almost everything that gets thrown at him.”
Throwing most the passes will be Sloan El. The senior quarterback completed 60.1 percent of his passes for 1,416 yards and 10 touchdowns last season. He had to sit out the spring to retain his eligibility this year, and he came into a camp a little behind.
Rampy was the starter during spring and has moved back into the backup role this fall. Higgins calls Rampy his sixth man, and the coach has thrown Rampy in for a play or a possession during the middle of a game to change things up.
“I’m going to do whatever the coaches want me to do,” Rampy said. “Whether that means coming in being the sixth man, I’m going to do whatever the coaches want me to do to help the team win.”