Aug. 19, 2009

Stony Brook, N.Y. - With fall football practice now in full swing for the Stony Brook University Seawolves, GoSeawolves.org will present a position by position look at the 2009 team during the course of fall camp. Today the Stony Brook quarterbacks will be featured.

Quarterback was a question mark going into last season, with no experienced players returning for the Seawolves. The experience level will be improved in 2009 with the return of last season's starter, sophomore Dayne Hoffman (Ada, Mich.), but he is the only player on the roster with significant game experience. Despite the lack of experience, the position will be deeper than it was a year ago, providing Stony Brook with more options at the position.

As a redshirt freshman last season, Hoffman stepped in as the starter in the first game and stayed there all season. Gaining experience and confidence as the season wore on, Hoffman finished with a respectable 1,636 yards and 11 scores through the air. Hitting his stride once conference play started, Hoffman completed over 53 percent of his passes in Big South games and threw for seven scores vs. just three interceptions.

While they have not played a down at Stony Brook, the Seawolves have two other quarterbacks from the JC ranks that bring game experience and solid credentials to the position. Sophomore Michael Coulter (Yorba Linda, Calif.) has been with the team since January after playing last season at Santa Ana College in California where he threw for over 1,600 yards and 10 scores. Junior Matt Dardenne (Fremont, Calif.) redshirted last season for SBU and now has a year and a half of experience with the system under his belt. A two-year starter at Laney College in California, he threw for over 5,000 yards and 50 TDs in his two years there.

Also returning for his senior season is Dan Sweeney (Niskayuna, N.Y.) who was Hoffman's backup in 2008. He threw for a career-high 110 yards, completing 14 of his 22 attempts.

"We are fortunate to have the players that we do at quarterback," said head coach Chuck Priore. "Dayne Hoffman had a very good first year playing for us and we need him to take the next step forward this season. We still have Dan Sweeney who is a fifth-year player that has been a great backup and provides a lot of leadership at the position. We have Matt Dardenne, who redshirted last season after coming in from the JC ranks, and we added Mike Coulter from junior college as well. I think that there is keen competition among our quarterbacks and it should make for an exciting preseason."