Preview: Montini

Montini coach Chris Andriano poses the question: Is the glass half-full or half-empty?

Last season Montini overflowed with talent. Three Division I recruits and 13 returning starters sent the Broncos behind only Driscoll in the Suburban Catholic Conference, pitching five shutouts in seven games before losing to Class 5A semifinalist Marian Central.

Remaining are sole returning starters defensive lineman Mark Kaseeska and quarterback Tom DiCristina, who in the spread formation completed 175 of 256 passes for 1,923 yards, 25 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.

"There's two sides to the coin," Andriano said. "The first side is, these guys were with us all last year, they're ready to go, it's their turn, they should be hungry. I feel they have something to prove.

"The other side of that is they don't have much experience."

Thanks to Montini's 363-96 scoring edge in 2007, the Broncos do return a fair amount of lettermen, including DiCristina's targets this season, Christian Westerkamp, Brendan Shannon, Grant Goebel and running back Matt Sloan. Mike Size and Carl Meister - who with Paul Luhrsen most closely resemble Montini's graduated hulks - spelled the seniors on the offensive line.

Andriano's main concern lies in his new defensive line's ability to stop the run and therefore force teams into obvious passing situations.

"In our conference there's a lot of good skill players," said Andriano, on the precipice of 200 wins. "It's who plays better up front."