Gannon Football Preview: Head Coach Erik Raeburn and More
Head coach Erik Raeburn, linebacker Hayden McDonald and quarterback Jayden Whittaker give a preview of the 2024 Gannon football team.
Every football team wants to start the season strong.
Gannon was unable to do that last year, losing its first three games before winning three in a row.
Another difficult September awaits the Golden Knights this season. After opening at home against Northwood, they will play East Stroudsburg and defending Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) champion Kutztown, both of which reached the NCAA Division II playoffs last year.
More: PSAC Preseason Football Poll Released. Who Was Picked to Win?
Such is life in the PSAC. Gannon was ranked fourth in the West Division, two spots behind California (Pa.), its Week 4 opponent.
After a 5-6 record last year, five-year head coach Erik Raeburn is aiming for his second successful season at Gannon.
Here are five things you should know about the Golden Knights in 2024.
Local changes: What impact will Mercyhurst University’s decision to move up to Division I have on Gannon and Edinboro?
Focus on special teams
All-American kicker Eric Scarpino has graduated, but replacing him isn’t Gannon’s only offseason focus on special teams.
Scarpino anchored the kicking game, but Raeburn felt Gannon was deficient in all four phases of special teams — punt, punt return, kickoff and kickoff return. Several lapses in kick coverage, he said, contributed to last year’s slow start.
“Parts of our special teams have been excellent, but when you consider all four phases, we don’t perform as well as the top teams in the conference,” Raeburn said. “I think our roster is deeper, and hopefully that translates to better special teams play.”
More: 5 Things You Should Know About Edinboro Football in 2024
Whitaker returns as quarterback
Erie met Jayden Whitaker on October 22, 2023.
Whitaker replaced Nate Mikell at quarterback in the second quarter of a close game at Mercyhurst. The true freshman successfully answered Raeburn’s call, scoring three total touchdowns in Gannon’s last-second victory. Expect Whitaker to play quarterback again this season, now with a greater understanding of the offense he leads.
“I was very inexperienced and didn’t understand all the concepts as well,” said Whitaker, a native of Brownsburg, Indiana. “I got to know my receivers better, learned the intricacies of the offense and matured as a player.”
Whitaker completed 32 of 61 passes for 419 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions before suffering a season-ending injury in his third game.
“(Whitaker) had a great training camp,” Raeburn said. “With spring ball and last season under his belt, I think he’s more comfortable with what he’s doing.”
Strong line leads new skill players
Gannon’s offensive line has three regulars again, which could be his greatest strength.
There is less experience in the skill position rooms, but there is no lack of talent.
“We hope we get a good, consistent quarterback and feel like we have a lot of experience coming back to the offensive line,” Raeburn said. “These guys have played a lot of college football games, so we hope they play at a high level.”
Leading runner Donny Marcus transferred and All-PSAC wide receiver Ke’John Batiste graduated, leaving more than 1,500 yards of offensive production unaccounted for.
Donell “Tank” Mason returns after his sophomore season in which he caught 40 passes for 614 yards and four touchdowns. David Morgan, Jr. and Braxton Todd could be expanded in the backfield roles, but at both the back and receiver positions, the Golden Knights will begin to attack as a team.
“We feel like we’re more explosive,” Whitaker said. “These guys were willing to work and tried their hardest, and we feel like we really connected.”
Experienced linebacker room
With Hayden McDonald and Trey Baker, Gannon has two captains at the linebacker position.
The duo combined for 126 tackles, six sacks and four forced fumbles last season. They are the leaders of a veteran linebacker team that will look to improve on the 25 points per game Gannon allowed in 2023.
“We had a pretty disciplined team last year, but there were times when things got out of control,” said McDonald, a redshirt senior from Tigard, Ore. “We’re stronger, too, I said that last year. But we’re even stronger.”
Cross-City Thriller ’23: Back and forth scoring, a QB change and a last-second field goal. This year’s football game between Gannon and Mercyhurst was a thriller
Gannon led the PSAC in both forced and recovered fumbles last season.
“We’re going to fly to the football,” McDonald said. “We established that in 2022 when we were really good. I don’t think we were bad last year, but there were times when we got off track. You’re going to see 11 hats on the football every game.”
Improvement of the red zone?
Gannon outperformed opponents in both rushing yards and passing yards last season, but the team was ahead in points scored by an average of four points per game.
According to Raeburn, the blame lies partly with the attacks in the Red Zone.
Gannon scored a touchdown on 16 of his 36 red zone possessions in 2023. His opponents managed the same on 21 of 37.
“Our kicker was fantastic, so we scored points, but I don’t think we were that good on offense when it came to finishing our drives in the end zone,” Raeburn said. “I think that really cost us from a scoring perspective.”
Gannon hosts Northwood on September 5 at McConnell Family Stadium.
Contact Jeff Uveino at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @realjuveino.
