Appalachian State University athletics wraps up its fall preview week with a look at the 2005 Mountaineer football squad. There are nine teams in I-AA football that are going to return to the gridiron this August trying to fill the large shoes left behind by a 2004 Walter Payton Award finalist. There are six other squads that are fortunate enough to have an '04 finalist for the award given to the nation's top I-AA football player back on campus in '05. And then, there is Appalachian State University football, which is the only program in the nation that falls into both categories. Appalachian may have to fill the shoes left behind by wide receiver DaVon Fowlkes, who turned a season in which he led the nation in receptions, receiving yards and all-purpose yards into a third-place finish in the Payton Award voting and a free-agent contract with the Indianapolis Colts. However, there is a man with a rather large pair of shoes of his own that is back and ready to show off those hefty feet - not to mention a golden right arm - and prove that the Mountaineers' record-breaking offensive outburst a season ago didn't necessarily leave town in a shoebox bound for Indy. The huge boots that still call Kidd Brewer Stadium home belong to ASU senior quarterback Richie Williams. And, it is those boots that the Mountaineer faithful are counting on to kick down the door to the I-AA playoffs for the first time three seasons. Despite the offensive fireworks of a season ago that saw nearly every single-game and single-season passing and receiving record in Appalachian history shattered by Fowlkes and Williams, the Apps became just the second ASU football squad in 19 years to miss out on postseason play in back-to-back seasons. And, while the individual accolades are nice, playing for Southern Conference and national championships has become the benchmark by which football seasons are measured in Boone. Without a sniff of either the past two seasons, even Williams' feet must be feeling a bit small heading into the 2005 campaign. Certainly, it can not be expected for Williams to do much more than he did a season ago, when he made it look easy in setting new Appalachian standards for passing yards (3,109), completions (234), completion percentage (.669) touchdown passes (24) and total offense (3,393) in a season. However, as the undisputed leader of this year's squad, he will be expected to elevate the entire team to a championship level. Fortunately for Williams and the Mountaineers, he will have plenty of help in the quest for a return to Thanksgiving weekend football and beyond, as the Apps return 15-of-22 starters from last year's 6-5 squad. However, no matter what the point of view, it would be fairly easy to argue that last season's 6-5 mark was a fluke. Mountaineer faithful will point to ASU's flawless play at home, where they posted a perfect 6-0 mark, with wins over No. 2 Furman and No. 5 Wofford, and outscored their opponents 234-122, as proof that Appalachian was a much better team than its record would indicate. On the other hand, ASU's detractors will bring up the Mountaineers' winless road slate in '04, a stretch which saw them suffer a pair of 40-plus point defeats and squander significant leads in three-point losses to SoCon cellar-dwellers Chattanooga and Western Carolina. Like most polarized arguments, the truth probably lies somewhere in the middle. But, the fact remains that the influx of experience that this year's Mountaineer club will receive, combined with the raw talent that ASU exhibited at times a year ago, make the Apps a legitimate contender for the grand prize that Appalachian always sets as its ultimate goal: championships. Making Williams' job a little bit easier is the return of a pair of all-conference bookends on either end of the Appalachian offensive line in senior left tackle Grant Oliver and junior right tackle Matt Isenhour. In addition to the proven all-SoCon caliber anchors to the line, Appalachian returns a load of youngsters -including center Scott Suttle and guard Kerry Brown - eager to prove that they belong in the discussion of the best linemen in the league. "I really like the way our offensive line is made up," Appalachian head coach Jerry Moore said. "We have the majority of them back from last year, plus have only one senior (Oliver). It is exciting to think about that group, not only for this year, but beyond." In addition to providing protection to Williams as spends the majority of his time in the pocket in ASU's no-huddle scheme, the offensive line must find a way to get more yards on the ground than a year ago. Appalachian's 1,132 rushing yards a season ago were the fewest in the modern era of Mountaineer football, dating back at least 40 years. Moore knows that no matter how well you throw the ball, a solid running game is a must. "If you're going to win championships, there is going to be a point that you have to run the football," Moore said. "We didn't do a good job of running the football when we needed to last year." Expected to pick up the majority of the carries for the Mountaineers is sophomore Kevin Richardson. Richardson led the Apps in rushing for much of his true freshman campaign in 2004, eventually finishing second on the squad with 347 yards on the season, but tops among regular rushers with a 4.9 yards per carry average. In addition to his talent, ASU coaches point to Richardson's work ethic and leadership ability during offseason workouts as a reason why he is ready to be the featured runner in Appalachian's one-back attack. Wrapping up the Mountaineer offense is a young, but extremely talented, corps of receivers. Leading the way is senior Zach Johnson. Johnson, who has developed from an relative unknown into one of the SoCon's top receiving threats, was tops among ASU returnees with 20 receptions (231 yards) a season ago. Likely to claim the other two starting spots at receiver are sophomores Hans Batichon and Dexter Jackson. The duo combined to catch 35 passes for 490 yards and a pair of touchdowns as true freshman in '04. William Mayfield, who started all 11 games at linebacker a season ago, is expected to be a top pass-catching target off the bench this season, but Jeremy Wiggins, an all-SoCon honoree at defensive back, has moved back to the defensive side of the ball after working exclusively at receiver over the final couple of weeks of spring drills. The return of veterans Brandon Turner and Jermane Little to the Mountaineer roster made Wiggins' return to defense possible. Rounding out the pass-catching unit are tight ends Daniel Bettis and Nic Cardwell. Bettis, a junior, has a nose for the end zone, having scored touchdowns on one-quarter of his career receptions. Cardwell, a sophomore, is being touted as one of the top blocking tight ends in the league. On the other side of the ball, the Appalachian coaching staff believes that it has the talent in place to turn around a defense that allowed 32.5 points and 400.7 yards of offense per game last season. The unit technically returns nine starters from a season ago, but with Mayfield's move to offense, only eight returning starters make their way back to the defensive side of the ball. However, the defense should also be boosted by the return of a pair of healthy defensive backs in safety Corey Lynch and cornerback Dominick Dingle. Perhaps ASU's top defensive individual, Lynch missed all but two games in '04 due to an elbow injury sustained while returning a punt in the waning seconds of a 49-21 victory over Eastern Kentucky. Prior to the injury, Lynch had already tallied a pair of takeaways in just two games in '04, bringing his total to number of takeaways to 12 in just 13 collegiate outings. Throw in Wiggins, a second-team all-SoCon honoree a season ago, and a trio of young, but extremely talented defenders in cornerbacks Jerome Touchstone and Justin Woazeah and safety Billy Riddle, and Appalachian should be able to shore up its porous defensive backfield from a year ago. Perhaps the most inexperienced group on defense for the Mountaineers, the linebacking corps has the potential to be perhaps the defense's top troupe before it is all said and done. A pair of players that admirably split time as undersized defensive ends a season ago - sophomore Charles King and junior Monte Smith - currently hold down starting positions at middle linebacker and bandit, respectively, with senior Zodd Kelly slated as the starter on the weak side. Ironically, the reserves may be more experienced than the expected starters at linebacker, with senior Brad West, junior Michael King and sophomore Cam Speer all expected to see significant playing time in '05. West, who missed spring drills after having surgery to correct a shoulder injury that Moore said "60 to 70 percent of players wouldn't have played with," is the most likely to earn a starting nod. Appalachian's much maligned defensive line returns looking to establish a consistent pass rush and an ability to stuff the run. Leading the way is defending all-SoCon selection Marques Murrell. Murrell established himself as the next in a long line of fearsome pass rusher for the Mountaineers, as he led the league in sacks (7.0) and ranked third in tackles for loss (12.5) in '04. Replacing last year's undersized tandem of Charles King and Smith at the other defensive end position are redshirt freshman Austin Guarino and junior-college transfer Marcial Medina. The two are expected to upgrade the Apps' run defense with their 235- and 230-pound frames, respectively, Anchoring the interior line are incumbent starters Joe Suiter and Omarr Byrom. They will also be looked upon to help shore up Appalachian's run defense, with brothers Arthur (275 pounds) and Daniel (290 pounds) Orlebar expected to see significant time as well. Despite the loss of Fowlkes, the SoCon's all-time leading punt returner, Appalachian's special teams situation is far less muddled than a summer ago. Sophomore Julian Rauch returns to handle both the placekicking and punting duties, while Eric Elsener will continue to serve as the team's holder. Jackson, who returned kickoffs with Fowlkes a year ago, is expected to be back deep for kicks along with Wiggins, who is the frontrunner for the punt-return position. Despite the depths of talent that the Mountaineers boast, they will have to overcome one of the most grueling schedules in school history to make a run at the championships that they covet. In addition to the always tough SoCon slate, which includes a home date with perennial power Georgia Southern and road trips to conference stalwarts Furman and Wofford, Appalachian must endure a non-conference schedule which was ranked the most difficult in the nation by The Sports Network. After a season-opening trip to Ohio Valley Conference-rival Eastern Kentucky, the Mountaineers make their first-ever visit to Big 12 country for a matchup with Kansas. A week later, ASU opens its home slate when it hosts defending Big South-champion Coastal Carolina. Rounding out the demanding non-conference lineup is a Nov. 5 visit to Baton Rouge, La. for a Death Valley showdown with national-power LSU. "We're going to use our schedule as a challenge, not necessarily a motivator," Moore said when asked how he expects his players to respond to the grueling schedule. "To be quite frank, I'm looking forward to it." A talented group of returnees, including one of the country's top players. A balanced influx of youth and experience. Perhaps the toughest schedule in the nation. One of the largest pairs of shoes to fill in school history. There are a lot of subplots surrounding Appalachian State University football heading into the 2005 season. However, the Mountaineers enter the campaign with a one-track mindset: Fill the shoes as best as you can and follow the boots as it kicks open the doors on the way to championships.