University of the Cumberlands Football
2008 Season Preview

In 2007 the University of the Cumberlands football team went from being a hard nosed Mid-South Conference opponent --- to a team that opened up eyes on a national level. The Patriots finished the season with an 8-3 record with a final national ranking of 16 th. The 2007 squad advanced to the NAIA Playoffs for the first time since 1988 and captured the 3 rd MSC Championship in school history. The Cumberlands’ football program had been knocking on the door of a big season for several years, and last season was one that definitely got the Patriots over the hump. Coach John Bland said, “I was very proud of the way our team played in ’07 from start to finish. We were consistent and sound in all phases of our team. The accomplishments of the ’07 championship team will not be forgotten, especially realizing how strong the conference is.”

Reigning Mid-South Conference Eastern Division Coach of the Year, John Bland, enters his 3 rd at the helm of Cumberlands football. He has led the Patriots to a 14-7 record in two seasons. The team’s 8-3 mark last year is tied for the 3 rd best record in school history. Coming into this season, the Patriots had a preseason ranking of 16 th in the nation and a number two spot in the Mid-South Conference Eastern Division behind rival Georgetown. Bland stated, “Our team will be talented and young in 2008. We will attempt to build on the success of the ’07 season. The highlight would include winning the first conference championship in 19 years for the school. The one rough spot that we would like to attempt to smooth out would be, having more success in the playoffs.”

The team will take a big hit on their roster, as the lose RB/KR Moses Cochran (Thomasville, GA), OL Shelby Goldey (Lancaster, KY), OL Thomas Leinenbach (Henderson, KY), DL Derrick Hightower (Dothan, AL), and DL Jeremy Kidd (Harrodsburg, KY). All five of these players were All-Conference players. Cochran and Leinenbach were All-Americans, while Goldey, Hightower, and Kidd were selected to play in the Victory Sports Network Senior Classic Bowl. Bland said, “We will have to fill some big shoes in Moses Cochran, but we will put an emphasis on our improvement in perimeter blocking and our passing attack. I believe that we will be more productive overall as an offense.”

Another key point this season will be the amount of talented players that are coming back. The Patriots will return a little over half of their offensive and defensive starters. Seven players come back on offense, and six return on defense. On the offensive side of things, QB Kyle King (6-1, 180, SR, St. Cloud, FL), RB Ricky Walker (5-9, 205, SR, Thomasville, GA), WR Matt Jones (5-10, 185, SR, Williamsburg, KY), OL Josh Frosch (6-2, 200, SR, Corbin, KY), and OL Justin Norman (6-4, 260, SO, McDonough, GA) will be back to give the maroon and white some experience in key positions.

Walker, King, and Jones will be looking to pick up where they left off last season. Walker finished with 736 yards on the ground and a team-high 11 rushing touchdowns. He enters the 2008 season 5 th on the all-time Patriots rushing list with 1955 yards (935 behind Moses Cochran). King was a prime example of a dual threat QB. He tallied 835 yards passing with 3 scores and 360 rushing with 8 more touchdowns. Jones led the Patriot receiving corps with 24 catches for 382 yards and 2 TDs.

Defensively for the Patriots, DB Brian Abshire (6-1, 194, JR, St. Cloud, FL), DB Shavon Patton (5-8, 185, JR, Dublin, OH), LB Desmond Cruver (5-10, 190, SR, Newnan, GA), LB Travis Thurmond (6-1, 220, SR, Statham, GA), LB P.J. Hughes (6-0, 199, JR, Montezuma, GA), and DL Alex Wright (5-10, 252, JR, Quitman, GA) will give the Cumberlands a hard hitting, but yet athletic defense. Statistically, this “Hit Squad” put up some nice numbers in ’07. Abshire collected 71 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 5 interceptions, and 2 fumble recoveries; Patton tallied 26 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 3 interceptions, and 1 fumble recovery; Cruver had 63 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery, and 3 forced fumbles; Thurmond notched 73 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, and 1 interception; Hughes led the Patriots with 83 tackles, also had 7 tackles for loss, 0.5 sack, and 1 fumble recovery; and Wright garnered 48 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, and 2 forced fumbles. “We will be young in the D-line, but we will have more overall team speed in that area. Our linebackers will be leading the defense with the most experience and our secondary will be strong once again,” stated Bland.

The aforementioned players plus several other key returners should give the Patriots an added edge for the ‘08 campaign. Bland said, “We found that the more people that play and contribute in the ballgame, the better we became as a team. Saying that, leads me to say we have lots of key players. There are several All-Conference players returning for us, in Ricky Walker, Brian Abshire, Josh Frosch, P.J. Hughes, Shavon Patton, Alex Wright, Travis Thurmond, and Sean Mounts.”

The kicking game should be in the Patriots favor this season as both PK Hunter Meade (5-11, 154, SR, Bristol, VA) and P/DB Sean Mounts (5-10, 180, SR, Norris, TN) return to aid the team with their strong legs. Meade was 10-16 on FGs (long of 38 yards), and 38-42 on PATs. Mounts punted the ball 42 times last season (long of 52 yards), averaging a respectable 38.9 yards per punt.

As usual, Coach Bland has a loaded recruiting class, with over 80 student athletes coming to play football in the fall. With so many players coming, it is sometimes hard to pinpoint exactly which ones will have that ability for play time right away. “We are excited about our entire recruiting class. It would be unfair to pick a top recruit without having the opportunity to see them compete. We are counting on several freshmen to help in ’08”, stated Bland.

The Patriots will have another strong schedule in 2008. All of the MSC East regulars will be featured (Pikeville, Union, Georgetown, West Virginia Tech, Campbellsville, and UVA-Wise), as well as, Bethel College and Cumberland University from the MSC West, and NCAA Division II opponents Mars Hill College and Mississippi College. Bland commented, “If you look at our schedule in the past, it is on record that Georgetown is our toughest opponent, although I feel that everyone in the MSC can be more than competitive each week.”

The most notable change to the schedule is the Cumberlands versus Union game. The past two seasons, this game has been played on the opening Saturday of the season at Corbin High School’s Stadium. The contract was not renewed, so the series will go back to the original format of alternating each season between the two school’s home fields for the Battle for the Brass Lantern.

The Patriots will open the season on September 6 th, as they travel to Mars Hill, NC to take on NCAA Division II Mars Hill College.

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