Wesley’s Ferguson returns to field

Dover High product, 25, provides veteran presence for Wolverines
 By Andy Walter 
 Delaware State News DOVER - Matt Ferguson doesn't need anybody to remind him he's not a kid any more.
  His body does that for him.
  "My body doesn't heal as well as it used to, that's for sure," said the 25-year- old Wesley College offensive tackle. "Camp is definitely tough."
  But don't think the Wolverine coaches cut Ferguson any slack just because he's the old­est player on the squad.
  "I wish, I wish," he said. "But I don't get too many breaks."
  Ferguson's not com­plaining, though. This is what the Dover High graduate signed up for when he decided to play another season this fall.
  After getting his degree from Wesley last year, Ferguson could be off in the real world right now. Instead, he's getting ready to take the field with his Wolverine teammates on Saturday at 1 p.m. when Wesley hosts Christopher Newport in its season opener.
  The 6-foot-5, 300-pound Ferguson stayed in school as a graduate student. He said he's glad he's still a Wolverine.
  "I'm really happy I came back," said Ferguson. "It was almost a no-decision for me. Right at the end of the (2008) season, I was like, ‘I'm going to want to come backand play.' I still had some stuff I wanted to accomplish.
  "I already went through that once when I stopped playing at Lehigh. That's why I came to Wesley. ... Two years later you're going to be like, ‘Man, I still have a year of eligibility. I should have played.'" Not surprisingly, coach Mike Drass is happy to have Ferguson still around.
  Now in his third year as a starter, Fer­guson was a first-team all-Atlantic Central Football Conference and all-South Region selection last season. He's a perenial all­academic team honoree as well as a team captain this season.
  "He had to sit down and make a decision on, ‘ What do I need in my life right now?'" said Drass. "Fortunately for us, he said he wants to play his senior year. Last year, as the season ended, we felt, if he wasn't the best offensive lineman in the South Region, then we didn't know who was."
  Besides, it's not like Ferguson has put off all his responsibilities by staying in school another year. He's still a member of the Air National Guard, working his regular rotation at Dover Air Force Base and flying some transport missions.
  It gives him a different outlook on life than many of his teammates. Some are as many as 7 years younger than him.
  "I like being in college because it takes me away from everything else," said Fergu­son. "But I've also been out there. I know what's going on. I have a much different perspective on the world than a lot of the other guys on the team."
  Ferguson just laughs to himself when he hears one of the younger players complain­ing about how tough college is.
  "I'm like, ‘ You have no idea what tough is,'" he said.
 Howard ready to step up
  It was four games into last season when Dakevis Howard's big moment finally ar­rived.
  The Wolverines had their backs to the wall in a close game with Iona when How­ard intercepted a pass near the goal line and returned it 46 yards. For the sophomore cornerback, it was really his first memora­ble contribution as a Wolverine.
  "After I made that play, they had more confi dence in me," said the Concord High grad. " They wanted to put me on the fi eld a lot more."
  This season, Wesley expects big things from the 6-foot-2, 200-pound Howard all the time as he moves into a full-time start­ing position. Howard said he just didn't know the Wolverines' defense well enough last fall.
  " They couldn't really throw me on the field when I didn't know my stuff," he said. "Now I know everything that's going on. I can read the field a lot better than what I used to."
  "Right now you can put Dakevis at any spot in the secondary and he knows what's going on," said Drass.
  Howard is also bigger than the average Division III cornerback, which Drass hopes gives him an edge.
  "It's my time to shine," said Howard. "It's my junior year, I've waited my two years. Now it's time to do my thing."
 Wesley, Captains square off
  Saturday's opponent, Christopher New­port, you may remember, was also sup­posed to play the Wolverines in last year's season opener.
  But that game was canceled after the Virginia school had to close because of the threat of Tropical Storm Hanna. Finally, the two programs will meet for the first time on Saturday.
  Both teams have become regulars in the NCAA Division III playoffs and both are ranked in the top 20 this year.
  " To me, that's the exciting part of this game," said Drass. " Two of the better teams in the South Region are going at each other. I don't think you can ask for anything more than that. It's an opportunity for us to prove ourselves against competition that's been to the NCAA playoffs six times in the last eight years."
 Sports editor Andy Walter can be reached at 741-8227 or walter@newszap.com.