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2023 Football Season Preview

8/29/2023 10:00:00 AM

LOOKING BACK AT 2022

The Salisbury University football team continued its postseason streak to 18 straight seasons and captured its fourth consecutive New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Championship with a 9-2 record and a perfect 6-0 mark in the NJAC. It was the third straight season that the Sea Gulls made a trip to the NCAA Tournament.

The NJAC recognized Salisbury with a league-high 13 All-NJAC selections. The Sea Gulls also received four D3football.com All-Region accolades with Joey Bildstein, Caleb Brubaker, M.J. Ajimatanrareje and Tony Mason all named All-Region. The season culminated with Brubaker selected to the D3football.com All-America Second Team.

THE 2023 SEA GULLS

Salisbury enters the 2023 season as the 25th-ranked team in the nation. The team returns eight of the league-high 13 All-NJAC selections from the 2022 season with the expectation of winning its fifth consecutive NJAC Championship and a return trip to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth straight season.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

SB Joey Bildstein | Sr. | Ridgely, Md.

OL Tony Mason | Jr. | New Castle, Del.

LB Jimmy Celentano | Jr. | Jackson, N.J.

DB Caleb Brubaker | Jr. | Mechanicsburg, Pa.

LB Brock Keeler | Sr. | Bridgeville, Del.

DB/RET A.J. Butler | Sr. | Swedesboro, N.J.

LB Casey Counts | Sr. | Oakton, Va.

SL Jaden Davis | Jr. | Lewes, Del.

Joey Bildstein - Sr. Superback

Bildstein is a two-time All-NJAC First Team superback that led the NJAC and ranked 14th in the country in rushing with 1,235 yards in 2022. Bildstein was also among the nation's best in rushing average and rushing touchdowns. Bildstein sat ninth in the nation in yards per carry, averaging 6.82 yards per attempt and tied for 10th in Division III with 15 rushing scores. He was named the NJAC Offensive Player of the Week five times last season.

Bildstein is approaching the top-10 in rushing in program history. The bruising superback enters the 2023 season with 2,200 rushing yards with 25 career touchdowns.

Tony Mason - Jr. Offensive Lineman

Mason has proved to be a strong piece of the vaunted SU offensive front. Mason earned All-NJAC First Team accolades in 2022 after helping the Salisbury offense finish third in the nation in rushing offense with a 325.4 yards per game average. The Sea Gulls also ranked 22nd in the country in fewest sacks allowed and 28th in passing efficiency.

Jaden Davis - Jr. Slot

Davis earned All-NJAC Honorable Mention nods last season after he led the NJAC in yards per carry with an 8.9 yards per carry average with 554 total yards, which was fifth-best in the league.

Caleb Brubaker - Jr. Defensive Back

Brubaker earned D3football.com All-America Second Team honors following the 2022 season after he led the NJAC and tied for third in the nation with seven interceptions. Brubaker had a stretch of five consecutive games with a pick during the regular season. He also led the Sea Gulls with 68 tackles.

Before the season, Brubaker was honored as a D3football.com Preseason All-America First Team selection.

Casey Counts - Sr. Linebacker

Counts is a three-time All-NJAC selection with back-to-back All-NJAC Second Team honors in 2021 and 2022. Counts has turned into one of the most dynamic linebackers in the conference with five sacks and nine tackles for loss. His five sacks were tied for fifth in the league while his nine tackles for loss ranked 10th. Counts also totaled 34 tackles, three pass breakups, two forced fumbles and two blocked kicks a season ago.

In his career, Counts has accounted for 98 tackles, 19 tackles for loss, nine sacks, eight pass breakups, three forced fumbles and two blocked kicks.

Jimmy Celentano - Jr. Linebacker

Celentano was a force in the linebacking group for the Sea Gulls and was key in the dominant defense. The All-NJAC First Team linebacker led the squad with 9.5 tackles for loss, which ranked eight in the NJAC. Celentano notched 67 tackles in eight games for Salisbury, which ranked second on the team. The linebacker also tallied three sacks, good for a tie for third on the team.

In his career, Celentano racked up 125 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, five pass breakups, four sacks, an interceptions and a fumble recovery.

Brock Keeler - Sr. Linebacker

An All-NJAC Second Team pick a season ago, Keeler was in a tie for second in the league with three interceptions. Keeler began the 2022 season on a three-game interception streak. Keeler also accounted for 54 tackles, good for third on the team a season ago.

A.J. Butler - Sr. Defensive Back / Returner

The two-time All-NJAC selection, with second-team nods last year was big in both pass defense and special teams for Salisbury. Butler tied for second in the conference with three interceptions and added 24 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and two pass breakups. In the return game, Butler led the NJAC with 127 punt return yards.

The Sea Gulls bring plenty of experience back from a battle-tested team in 2022. The team brings back four quarterbacks that have seen time under center with Micah Brubaker, Gage Katzenell-Hall, Diego Mendez and Ben Hutchins all coming back and looking to gain the starting role in 2023. David Fletcher, Hunter Hruz and Baebaa Sayeh all look to build on a strong 2022 season. Fletcher finished second in the NJAC with 8.6 yards per carry. Fletcher also added 385 rushing yards. Hruz and Sayeh tallied four and three rushing scores a piece. Gabriel Mendez and Gabe Williams brings experience out wide for the Sea Gull offense.

Up front, Connor Shephard, Tre Price, Dusty Krotee and Will Perkins along with Mason with lead the formidable SU offensive line.

On defense, Ben Speiss, Chase Lomax, Frank Gianetti, Ryan Muller and Sa'Veon Olfus all look to make an impact in the front seven. Speiss and Muller recorded 32 and 30 tackles respectively a season ago. Muller also intercepted three passes. Charles Barley would look to add to his pair of interceptions from 2022 and an interception from 2021 this season.

Kollin Samaha and Noah Christenson spearhead the specialists for the Sea Gulls. Christenson punted the ball 26 times with a 37.85 punt average, Alex Richards brings depth in the return game as well as at wide receiver on offense.

2023 Salisbury Football Roster

We have a one game at a time mentality. We have lofty goals and expectations but we want to appreciate the process. The team had a good camp and want to be as ready as ever for each game so we can get the NJAC Championship and make a run in the NCAA Tournament.

Sherman Wood SU head football coach