Flash Points:

• As the first week of Spring practice continues, we take a look at the returning members of the backfield.
• The Red Flash will need to replace quarterback Zack Drayer (Hershey, Pa./Hershey).
• However, the new quarterback will have plenty of options at running back to help out.

LORETTO, Pa. – After three seasons of steady quarterback play, the Saint Francis football team will be looking for a new signal caller.  The Red Flash will not be the only team in the NEC replacing its starting quarterback as quarterbacks from four of the top five teams in the 2016 standings graduated their signal callers.  However, finding the right guy will be a big key in SFU's goal to repeat as NEC Champions.
 
No matter who the Saint Francis quarterback is this year, they will have a deep and talented group of running backs to help. 
 
Senior Marcus Bagley (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights) earned First Team All-NEC honors in 2016 after rushing for 891 yards and a touchdown on 207 carries.  Bagley averaged 4.3 yards per carry and posted two 100-yard games.  The 5-foot-11, 230-pound Cleveland native ranked second in the NEC with 81 rushing yards per game.  Bagley's top performance of the season came in a 220-yard effort in a win at Columbia.  He also caught 12 passes for 109 yards, including a 14-yard touchdown at Robert Morris.
 
After one year as a starter, and three as a major contributor, Bagley has 1,944 career rushing yards, just 71 behind Ted Helsel (1978-79) for fifth all-time at Saint Francis.  Bagley is also in range of a Top Five place all-time in carries (396) and rushing touchdowns (10).
 
Junior Jymere Jordan-Toney (Philadelphia, Pa./Franklin) was a key part of the running back rotation last season.  The 5-foot-11, 215-pound Jordan-Toney ran for 375 yards and five touchdowns on 87 carries.  He averaged 31.3 yards per game.  He also caught four passes for 32 yards.  The Philadelphia native's top performance of the season came in the win over Malone, when he rushed for 156 yards and four touchdowns on 23 carries. 
 
Sophomore Avery Miliner (Clayton, Ohio/Northmont) entered into the rotation towards the end of last season.  Miliner made his debut in the win at Sacred Heart.  He ran for 96 yards on just eight carries, including a 74-yard run.  The 5-foot-10, 195-pound Miliner totaled 132 yards on 14 carries in the four games he played.  He also had two kick returns for 36 yards.
 
Byron Johnson (Germantown, Md./Northwest) is also returning at running back after redshirting last season.  The junior appeared in three games in 2015, rushing for seven yards on four carries.
 
In the Fall, the running back rotation will add freshmen Joel Denley (Beaumont, Texas/West Brook) and Syaire Madden (Wyndmoor, Pa./LaSalle College Prep).  Denley, a five-foot-nine, 185-pound Texas native, ran for 1,693 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior.  Madden, a five-foot-eight, 200-pound LaSalle College Prep alum, was a First Team All-State selection in Class 6A in Pennsylvania.
 
Fullbacks Alex Woicehovich (Macedonia, Ohio/Nordonia) and Zachary Rohland (Carlisle, Pa./Cumberland Valley) return for the Red Flash.  Woicehovich, a senior, started all 12 games last season, catching four passes for 43 yards.  Rohland appeared in nine games.  Redshirt freshman Kobe Pinkney (Alexandria, Va./St. Stephen's & St. Agnes) will enter the mix at fullback.
 
The Red Flash will need to replace Zack Drayer (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) at quarterback.  Drayer left the school among the all-time rankings in passing yards (2nd, 6,031), touchdown passes (2nd, 53), completions (4th, 437) and attempts (4th, 764).  He is also third all-time in total offense (6,072 yards). 
 
Redshirt sophomore Andrew Koester (Imperial, Pa./West Allegheny) served as Drayer's backup last season.  Koester appeared in four games, against Towson, Malone, Bryant and Sacred Heart, but did not attempt a pass.  The six-foot-five, 210-pound Koester threw for 4,000 yards and 40 touchdowns at West Allegheny High School.
 
Junior Tyler Magaha (Frederick, Md./Gov. Thomas Johnson) made an appearance against Malone last season.  He did not attempt a pass, but had a nine-yard run.  The six-foot-two, 190-pound Magaha played at Governor Thomas Jefferson High School in Frederick, Md.
 
Nicholas Marsilio (Harrisburg, Pa./Bishop McDevitt), six-foot-three, 205 pounds, redshirted last season after throwing for 3,776 yards and 44 touchdowns as a senior at Bishop McDevitt High School.  He is the Crusaders' all-time leading passer with 6,493 yards and 76 touchdowns. 
 
Redshirt junior Freddy Bopst (Jarrettsville, Md./Boys Latin), six-foot-four, 215 pounds, has not appeared in a game at Saint Francis but threw for 1,974 yards and 16 touchdowns as a senior at Boys Latin High School in Maryland.
 
In the fall, freshmen Jason Brown (Fredericksburg, Va./Chancellor) and Mike Fine (Belle Vernon, Pa./Belle Vernon) will join the quarterback competition.  Brown, six-foot three, 225 pounds, was rated a three-star prospect by 247Sports.com after throwing for 6,051 yards and 71 touchdowns in his Chancellor High School career. Brown also ran for 1,814 yards and 25 touchdowns in his career.  Fine is a six-foot-one, 230-pound alum of Belle Vernon High School.  A dual-threat quarterback, Fine threw for 1,146 yards and ran for 1,233 yards in his career, while accounting for 26 total touchdowns.
 
The Red Flash is in its first week of Spring practice.  The NEC Champions will hold their Spring Game on Saturday, April 22 at Noon at DeGol Field.