FAIRMONT —
The West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference football coaches knew what they were talking about when they selected Fairmont State to finish fifth this fall in the nine-team league’s annual preseason poll.
Because that’s exactly where the Falcons ended up — tied for fifth with West Liberty University.
Coming off last fall’s 7-4 campaign, which was the program’s most successful one in terms of victories in 11 years, sixth-year head coach Mike Lopez and his staff had high expectations for the 2012 Falcons.
Those expectations, however, never came to fruition. A rash of early season-ending injuries to key players like senior free safety Dewey McDonald, senior defensive end Jordan Greathouse, junior wide receiver Mark Sampson, promising true freshman linebacker Trevor Malnick and others no doubt hampered FSU’s productivity on the field as Fairmont finished 4-6 overall and 4-4 in the WVIAC.
The good news is all those players will be back next season, including McDonald, who didn’t participate in a single game this fall, and Greathouse, who played in just two. They both received medical redshirts.
“We did have a lot of injuries this season and we didn’t want to talk about them, dwell on them or use them as excuses, but now we can talk about them,” Lopez said. “They hurt us. We had five medical redshirts this season. I don’t know if we’ve ever had five in my career here. That’s not counting the guys who got banged up here and there and missed one or two games.
“We started this season 0-3 and it was ugly. I wasn’t sure how we were going to respond to that, but we bounced back and went 4-4 in the league and I’m proud of the guys for doing that. They found a way to win some games and go .500 in the league.”
The Falcons lost both of their nonconference matchups, 7-0 to Clarion (Pa.) University in their season opener and 24-17 in overtime to Bowie State (Md.) University in a week three matchup in which FSU blew a 17-0 fourth-quarter lead.
Fairmont State Sports
FSU looking for improvements in offseason
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FSU, MVB team up for successful tournament
The Falcons and MVB paired to complete th 21st annual MVB-Fairmont State Athletic Association Golf Tournament at the Bridgeport Country Club on Friday.
Fairmont State’s mission during the event was to sell out, so thar FSU could raise as much money as possible for the athletic department. -
Cobb named Atlantic Player of the Year
Fairmont State’s Chelsea Cobb was named the Daktronics Atlantic Region Player of the Year and outfielder Holly Frampton was a first team all-region selection. Freshman Courtney Iacobacci was a second team all-region selection.
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Three Falcons earn All-WVIAC honors
Thee Fairmont State University baseball players earned All-West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference honors, the league announced Wednesday.
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FSU sweeps major WVIAC softball honors
Fairmont State University’s softball program took home all four major postseason awards given out by the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
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Caridi challenges FSU to ‘be brave’
Tony Caridi’s message Saturday evening to Fairmont State University’s student athletes, coaches, administration, alumni and friends was simple, yet very compelling, especially during this time of change in Falcon athletics.
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Falcons fall short in tourney championship
West Virginia State defeated Fairmont State, 3-1, in game two of the WVIAC Tournament Finals to clinch the WVIAC Tournament Championship. FSU picked up a 4-1 victory early in the day to force a second game.
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Falcons, State to clash for softball title
Fairmont State University and West Virginia State softball teams will clash today for the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Tournament Championship.
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COLUMN: Davis, Monroe set to lead FSU
As early impressions go, Garrett Davis could not have made more of a favorable one in the eyes of Jason Woodman.
Woodman, Fairmont State’s first-year head football coach and a Marion County native, certainly knew about the senior middle linebacker before he even took the gig last December. -
Falcon ‘D’ shines in 40-18 win: PHOTOS
As spring games go, Fairmont State University’s annual Maroon-White contest Thursday evening at Duvall-Rosier Field ran pretty much to form.
Using a modified scoring system that awarded points to the defense for turnovers and stops, the Falcons’ Maroon (defensive unit) came up with three turnovers and a number of stops to roll to a 40-18 victory over the White (offensive unit) in front of more than 500 fans eager to get their first glimpse of the new-look Falcons. -
N.C. point guard signs with Falcons
Fairmont State might have its point guard of the future.
Second-year head coach Jerrod Calhoun announced his first signing for the 2013-14 season on Thursday, as the program welcomed North Carolina standout Caleb Davis into the Falcon family. - More Fairmont State Sports Headlines
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