Fresh off claiming their first-ever outright Ivy League football championship, 15 Bears were named to the All-Ivy team.
"Having 15 guys on the team speaks for itself about the way we played this year," said tri-captain James Frazier '06, a second-team honoree. "It basically lets everyone know how good a team we were this year."
Led by tri-captain Nick Hartigan '06 - the unanimous winner of the Bushnell Cup as the best player in the conference - the Bears placed seven men on the first team.
Hartigan was one of the most dominating running backs in the nation this season. He finished the year with 1,727 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns, setting several school and league records in the process. Hartigan, a Rhodes Scholarship finalist, set the Ivy mark for career touchdowns with 54 and finished the year with nine straight 100-yard games, including three over 200 yards. He was the Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week six times and joined wideout Sean Morey '99 and quarterback James Perry '00 as the only other Bears to win the Bushnell Cup.
Tri-captain Jamie Gasparella '06 joined Hartigan as a unanimous selection on the first team. Gasparella finished the season with seven interceptions, one short of Bruno's single-season record. He performed brilliantly down the stretch, making four interceptions in his last four games.
Linebacker Zak DeOssie '07 also made the first team. In a testament to the respect he has garnered throughout the Ancient Eight, DeOssie made the first team despite playing in just seven games due to injury. DeOssie was deactivated prior to the Bears' game with the University of Rhode Island and missed the last two contests and the majority of the Yale game with an MCL injury. In his time on the field, DeOssie was his usual disruptive self, recording a team-leading 80 tackles and five sacks. DeOssie's best performance came against Cornell, when he posted 18 tackles.
"That was my goal when I first came (to Brown)," DeOssie said. "I wanted to be the best. In reality I only played six games and 10 plays, but I played well enough those first few weeks to get some recognition. The coaches in the league watch film and they know who can play. Now it's all water under the bridge, though."
Joining those three on the first team were Steve Morgan '08 and Jarrett Schreck '06, both of whom had impressive seasons that saw them etch their names in Brown's and the Ivy League's record books. Morgan kicked an Ivy League record-tying five field goals against Harvard in September, helping him set the Ivy League's all-time mark for points by a kicker with 98, besting the previous high of 84.
Schreck torched Harvard, racking up 223 receiving yards, good enough for third place on Brown's single-game list. This year's performance against Harvard ranks one spot behind his 2004 game against the Crimson, when he put up 253 yards. Schreck also owns the top two spots on Bruno's longest pass plays from scrimmage, courtesy of an 85-yard touchdown catch this season against Cornell and last year's 83-yard play against Harvard.
Making their debuts on the first team were guard Alex Jury '06 and defensive lineman Pat Curran '06. Both players helped Bruno control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball in every contest this season. Anchored by Jury, a three-year starter, Brown's offensive line paved the way for Hartigan, and after each game Hartigan routinely deflected praise to his line's ability to open gaping holes time and again.
On the defensive line, Curran led a tenacious Brown front four that continuously harassed opposing quarterbacks and slowed down some of the nation's top running attacks. Like Gasparella, Curran seemed to save his best for last, forcing a fumble and recording a sack in the crucial win over Dartmouth two weeks ago and registering six tackles in the title-clinching victory over Columbia.
The four Bears named to the second team and the three who garnered honorable mention demonstrate the depth that propelled Brown to the conference championship. Tight end David Turner '06, fullback Carson Brennan '06, center Noori Abdul-Ghani '06, linebacker/defensive lineman Frazier and tackle Alex Doty '07 were all honored with second team nods. Receiver Lonnie Hill '07, quarterback Joe DiGiacomo '07 and defensive lineman Steven Storrs '06 received honorable mention.
Frazier made his second straight All-Ivy second team, albeit at a new position. Filling in at linebacker for the injured DeOssie at times, Frazier tied DeOssie for the team lead in tackles.
"(Being named second team All-Ivy) was extra special for me," Frazier said. "Especially with the new position and not getting a lot of reps there throughout the year, to still be recognized as one of the best is great."
The Bears will likely pick up more accolades and probably a few more pieces of hardware down the road. Hartigan, DeOssie and head coach Phil Estes are all finalists for the Division I-AA awards for best offensive player, best defensive player and top coach, respectively.
DeOssie acknowledged that he does not consider himself in the running for the Buck Buchanan Award - given to the nation's top defender - simply because he's "played in six games and everyone else has played in 12. I know for a fact that I will not win it. ... I was fortunate enough to be selected (as a finalist), and it's an honor."
As the Bears look to defend their title next season, the solid core of juniors on the 2005 All-Ivy team and the young Bears waiting in the wings bode well for the future.
"Guys know they can step up and do well in this program," DeOssie said.
