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Monday, June 13, 2005

HOFSTRA PROJECTED TO HAVE TOP *05 I-AA RECEIVING TANDEM

Contact: Jim Sheehan
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PRIDE PROJECTED TO HAVE TOP '05 I-AA RECEIVING TANDEM

HEMPSTEAD, New York * The Hofstra University football team has been projected to have the top receiving tandem in I-AA in 2005, according to a preseason scouting report by the editors of The Sports Network. The Pride, who return nine starters on each side of the ball, are expected to challenge for the Atlantic 10 championship-a title they captured in 2001-this season.

Hofstra senior wide receiver Devale Ellis (Brooklyn, NY) was selected as the fifth-best returning receiver in The Sports Network report on I-AA receivers.
Ellis hauled in 74 passes for 1,067 yards and 13 touchdowns including a school record 16 catches in the '04 season finale at Massachusetts. The 74 catches are the fourth-most in Hofstra single season record book and he became just the fifth player in school history to record 1,000-yards or more receiving in a single season.

While Ellis may be picked fifth, sophomore Charles Sullivan (Nanuet, NY) came in at number 16 and is worthy of close attention by opposing defenses. Sullivan crushed the Hofstra freshman record with 68 receptions for 938 yards and seven touchdowns while leading I-AA rookie receivers. While Ellis posted 22 catches through the first five games of 2004 and closed with 52 in his last six contests, Sullivan opened up hot with 40 catches in his first five outings including a career-best 12 receptions for 213 yards against Rhode Island.

If you thought two standout receivers were enough for the Pride, who ranked fourth in passing yards in the country, guess again. Senior Marques Colston (Harrisburg, PA), the Pride's 6'4 receiver who red-shirted the '04 season with a shoulder injury, returns to the Hofstra line-up this season after leading the Pride in receiving yards in 2003. Colston, who had pro scouts buzzing about his size and deceptive speed, tallied 51 catches for 910 yards and seven touchdowns.
In the 2003 season finale at Liberty, he broke Wayne Chrebet's single-game record with 267 yards on seven receptions and scored three times.

Hofstra also has senior Brian Wolman (Potomac, MD), who had a career-best 36 catches for 482 yards last season, returning to a starting role. Senior tight end Brandon Sebald (Stone Ridge, NY), a transfer from Miami (FL), joined the Pride this past January and will be another big target for junior quarterback Anton Clarkson, who will get his shot at being the starting signal-caller from the start of the season in 2005.