Senior Billy Harrell and Junior Fred Shear are two of the incumbents that have the best shot of keeping their jobs.  Harrell is the best athlete on campus as he also moonlights as the shortstop of the baseball team.  This Norristown PA product goes 6’1 but plays the wing and is one terrific leaper.  He was second on the team in boards last year (to Shear) and is also the best defensive player on the team always getting the call to guard the other team’s best player.  He is not a great scorer and that might put him in jeopardy as McCaffrey is brining in more than a few athletic wings who are much more used to the three-point shot.  Harrell will play but he does have fall back plan if these new kids are indeed that good.  We know one thing about them: they are much bigger then Harrell.  Speaking of size, Shear is vastly undersized for the inside game.  He was fine at the lower levels but this 6’2 lefty had to switch down to the small forward to stay in the lineup and the Saints most definitely needed his scoring and thus kept him on the court even though he has a hard time keeping up with the supreme athletes in this league.  He is in the same boat as Harrell but for now they are the best these Saints have when they come marching into their new arena this year.  Fellow junior Steve Walters does not get his due he is every bit as good as Shear and a bit bigger.  Both of these guys have a good chance of getting some quality minutes but with McCafferey bringing in a truckload of his own kids,  who knows how long that will last?

Robert Hermann, Ed Lange, Charles Northup and especially Matt Pelinski are a group of undersized post players who’s better days are behind them here.  These guys have done alright when called upon but none are going to bang with a Jeff Ruland or Rik Smits.  Heck, Pelinski gives up 15 inches to the Dunking Dutchmen.  Fellow seniors George Weber and Tom Poltenburgh have some size and will be counted on to guard the rim for the Saints.  Weber is a daunting 6’7 and is not afraid to crack someone across the bow.  Poltenburgh is 6’9 but not as solid and has been pushed around some.  They will platoon for now.  Junior Gary Holle was expected to be the King of the court  last year on the front line but it did not work out.  He is not really a low post guy and is nowhere near big enough (6’6) to bang down low though he will get in there and throw a few elbows.  This inside-outside offensive machine had a killer jumper from the corner but will be the first to admit he is not much of a defender.  He can hit the glass but McCaffery wanted somewhere bigger and better on the boards but he kept the first baseman in the rotation for his solid leadership.  That’s right, like Harrell, is a superstar on the baseball field.  He had a triple crown season and looks like he will be a great pro.  Unlike Harrell, he will probably not stay around for his senior year here as he will almost assuredly be a first round pick in the draft.  This is his last year for the Saints but there are some good ones chomping at the bit to grab those minutes.  Sophomores Steve McCoy, Doug Poetzsch and Dan Terwilliger got some time on the court primarily on the JV and produced some solid minutes in the paint.   Terwilliger and McCoy are better suited for the inside play and had solid seasons playing together on the juco.  Now they will be battling each other for minutes and they are fairly equally matched both being 6’7 with solid but not phenomenal talent.  Both can board and defend and at six seven are big enough for the paint though they are nowhere near the Aircraft Carriers who man the waters of the MAAC.  Poetsch is a 6’6 combo wing but has a chance as well with the upperclassmen’s lack of height.  We know McCaffrey is bringing in some good talent at point guards and wings but how well his big men are going to be is still up in the air but he does have a couple of kids packing some weight down low with a little height. 

Speaking of guards for the Saints they might even be less stocked here then up front which shows how important McCaffrey’s so called super class is.  Besides Harrell on the wing, the new coach will rotate in seniors Joe Gundermann and Billy Hogan, junior Rod Brooks and sophomore Jeffery Robinson.  Hogan, like Harrell, is a terrific athlete who has to work on ballhandling to claim a starting role.  He is capable of doing this.  Gundermann and Brooks bring a little offense to the table but neither will start.  Robinson has by far the most upside of this group.  He goes 6’6 and is a terrific defender but can also score and board and is a decent ballhandler.  If he doesn’t play it will not be because any of the upperclassmen he is competing against.  At point McCaffrey only has two guys returning which is why he made it a huge priority to get some good freshmen.  He has brought in a couple of studs but they are both under 6’0 but can flat play.  As for the returnees junior Michael Catino will start and he is not going to give up his job without a fight.  He can play, too.  At 6’2 this Schenectady kid can score and pass almost equally well.  His offense is fine and diverse but he does have some issues guarding waterbug points.  Fellow junior is only 5’11 and a pass first player who is better suited as a backup but that may be in jeopardy. 

Hopes are high in Loudonville (and Albany) with a new coach in town.  The first goal is to put out a product that makes sure the fans are filling up a 15,000 seat arena almost nightly now.  As long as they don’t run into some dead skunk in the mdidle of the road somewhere, it won’t be long until the Saints are marching on up the standings of the MAAC.