After winning only three games last year, the excitement is building at Morgan State for the upcoming football season.
A lot of it has to do with a much-hyped transfer who has arrived to help the offense.
It’s pretty hard to miss him if you’re watching a Bears practice. He’s the guy in red who towers over his teammates. And, oh yeah, he’s the starting quarterback.
“It’s like a fire ready to explode,” said Eli Staley. “I’m trying to just hold it in. I’m trying to just make sure I keep working on my craft and help lead this team.”
Standing 6’7’’ and weighing in at 245 lbs., Staley adds a new dimension to the Bears offense.
“Being a big quarterback comes with a lot of plusses. I can see over everybody. I have a big arm. My size helps me be able to take bigger hits than most quarterbacks can,” said Staley.
“To bring in a guy like him who has played at the level he has played at, with SEC experience, I think is a plus for us,” said Bears Head Coach Fred T. Farrier. “It gives some credibility to him. Our players believe in him.”
Staley comes to Morgan after a year at Tyler Junior College in Texas. Before that he backed up current Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott at Mississippi State.
“Me and Dak still keep in contact now. To make it easy he just tells me just attack everything I do,” said Staley.
Not only are the Bears getting a new look under center, the offensive backfield is getting a boost as well. Running back Herb Walker returns after missing most of the past two seasons. He was academically ineligible in 2015 and suffered a foot injury in last year’s season-opener.
“Really for me, I’ve been out two years so it’s very exciting for me to get back on the field,” said Walker. “I’m itching. I’m itching. I’m anxious but I’m very excited.”
Walker set the school’s single season rushing record with 1,408 yards in 2014.
The Bears are, of course, getting ready for game number one on the regular season schedule, which is now just two-and-a-half weeks away. It’s the Battle for Greater Baltimore, the new old rivalry against the boys from across town, the Towson Tigers.
“I know a lot of people who play for Towson. We’ve been talking back and forth all summer,” said Bears defensive lineman Jai Franklin. “It’s going to be a very exciting game for both sides of the ball. Hopefully we can get that win.”
Morgan State visits Towson on September 2.
Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter @StepnerABC2 and Facebook
