Football preview: Lenape

If Lenape was the sleeping giant of South Jersey football, the Indians seem to be awake now.

Whether than means a winning record, contention in the WJFL American Division and a SJ Group 4 playoff berth remains to be seen.

But under new coach Tim McAneney and his staff, Lenape football appears to have a whole new mentality.

"The whole team has a new attitude," Lenape senior RB Trevor Terrell said.

A better attitude and more enthusiasm are great, Lenape still needs to block and tackle and make plays to win football games.

Terrell has looked great in the team's new, run-oriented offense, according to McAneney. The speedy senior was the "best player on the field" in a recent scrimmage against NBC.

Lenape also did well in a scrimmage against Top 10 team Moorestown, although it's tough to get an accurate read on the Quakers early in the preseason because so much of their offense is based on timing.

Terrell and junior Arkemus Baskerville should be the team's halfbacks, with Adbul Crowther and Vernon Ingalls seeing a lot of carries at fullback.

McAneney has high hopes for quarterback Cory Jett, a senior who is a converted wide receiver.

The lines should be pretty solid led by Bobby Isopi and 315-pound Doug Gilbert along with Ulysses Amanfu.

"Our whole intensity level is different," Gilbert said.

A coaching change often invigorates a program, and that's no knock on the old coaches at Lenape. But McAneney and his assistant know it's really about the players.

Lenape opens with two-time SJ Group 4 champion Cherokee and then faces Williamstown in Week Two. So we'll find out fairly quickly if South Jersey's sleeping giant truly is awake.

-- Phil Anastasia