Coastal's plan ahead of schedule

CONWAY, S.C. (AP) Coach David Bennett had a feeling his second-year finish at Coastal Carolina was going to be disappointing no matter how many games the team won.<br> <br> Even a Big South Conference title and a gaudy 10-1 record couldn&#39;t get the upstart Chanticleers into the NCAA Division I-AA playoff selection.<br> <br> ``I knew it was a long shot,&#39;&#39; Bennett said. ``It&#39;s the toughest tournament to get into.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> The biggest beef? Coastal&#39;s schedule was weak, filled with Division I-AA nonscholarship programs and Division II schools. The lone loss came against Newberry, a middle of the pack team in the Division II South Atlantic Conference.<br> <br> His players had advanced beyond Bennett&#39;s expectations with 16 wins and a conference championship their first two seasons. Bennett knew it was time to up his team&#39;s profile with a more challenging schedule.<br> <br> ``It was time,&#39;&#39; Bennett said. ``Can we handle it? Don&#39;t know yet.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Gone are all but one of the Division II foes. In their place are Elon and Appalachian State of the powerful Southern Conference, and Delaware State and South Carolina State of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Coastal&#39;s home opener is defending Division I-AA champ James Madison.<br> <br> ``I&#39;d like to see the reason they give us if we win&#39;&#39; with this schedule, quarterback Tyler Thigpen said, still miffed at his team&#39;s playoff snub.<br> <br> Bennett didn&#39;t think he would have a team capable of matching up with the top Division I-AA schools until 2007 when he had five full recruiting classes and fans latched onto Coastal football.<br> <br> Almost everything has happened faster than anyone imagined.<br> <br> The team averaged more than 6,200 fans last season, nearly capacity at 6,408-seat Brooks Stadium.<br> <br> Bennett is swamped by local groups wanting his team for speeches and gatherings. The school rewarded Bennett with a raise, a contract extension and improved deals for his assistants.<br> <br> Maybe most important of all the coaching staff&#39;s message about starting a tradition has hit home with prospective players.<br> <br> ``It&#39;s why I&#39;m here,&#39;&#39; said Patrick Hall, the Big South preseason offensive player of the year who gained 1,107 yards and 13 touchdowns last year.<br> <br> Bennett worries his team may still be a year or two away from tackling such difficult foes. Elon, Coastal&#39;s first game, held SoCon champ and preseason favorite Furman to 10 points last year. Appalachian State is particularly dangerous at home, not having lost a game there since 2002. James Madison, even at Brooks Stadium, is another killer game.<br> <br> ``I don&#39;t see many people scheduling Southern Cal in the I-A ranks,&#39;&#39; Bennett said.<br> <br> Bennett&#39;s players sound ready for the enhanced schedule. ``You can&#39;t help but get excited about it,&#39;&#39; said Thigpen, Coastal&#39;s junior quarterback. ``We&#39;ve got to make sure we&#39;re prepared.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> Part of that, they say, is a more balanced attack. Coastal led the Big South with 3,058 yards on the ground, more than twice their passing total.<br> <br> Thigpen and Hall think more success in the passing game will open up both avenues for improvement. ``If there&#39;s more balance, it should mean more rushes and more chances to gain yards,&#39;&#39; Hall said.<br> <br> Coastal&#39;s defense should again be a strength all four starters at linebacker return as does safety Quinton Teal, who set a Big South mark with six interceptions last year.<br> <br> No matter what occurs, Bennett realizes his team has hills to climb before it can regularly contend for the playoffs. ``There are still all kinds of firsts to still happen in this program,&#39;&#39; he said.<br> <br> He&#39;s got a field house to build along with potentially adding seats to the stadium. ``The commitment is there,&#39;&#39; he said.<br> <br> And now he won&#39;t have to listen to the critics gripe about Coastal&#39;s schedule. ``If you want to make the playoffs, you&#39;ve got to, number one, win your conference and beat nationally ranked, nationally accredited teams,&#39;&#39; Bennett said. ``We certainly think with JMU, App, South Carolina State, we are.&#39;&#39;<br> <br> (Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)