Bronx, N.Y. - We continue our position-by-position breakdown of the 2021 Fordham football Rams today with a look at the offensive line.
Similar to the running backs and wide receivers, the Rams have plenty of quality and experience on the offensive line, returning not one, but two, preseason first team All-Patriot League selections in senior captain
Nick Zakelj and senior
Phil Saleh.
A three-year starter at left tackle, Zakelj was named First Team All-Patriot League last spring as well as Academic All-Patriot League and CoSIDA Academic All-District. He helped the Fordham offense lead the Patriot League, and rank 17th in the NCAA FCS, in scoring, averaging 31.7 points/game.
Saleh, a two-year starter at center, was a First Team All-Patriot League pick last spring after earning Second Team All-League honors in 2019.
Other returning starters include seniors
Austin Glazier, juniors
Giovanni Potente,
Lucas Portes,
Nolan Aloia, and
Ryan Joyce.
Glazier started all 12 games on the offensive line as a sophomore in 2019, starting eight at right tackle and four at right guard, while Potente started all three spring games at right guard to help the Fordham offense lead the League and rank 14th in the NCAA FCS in total offense (433.3 yards/game).
Portes, who didn't play in the spring, started all 12 games as a freshman at left guard in 2019 while Aloia started all three games at right tackle for the Rams in the spring season. Joyce started all three games at left guard for the spring as the Rams led the Patriot League and was sixth in the NCAA FCS in passing offense (349.7 yards/game).
Other returners include seniors
Gabriel Jacques,
Kyle Rinsky,
Fox Fay and
Aidan McCarty, junior
Wyatt Klawiter, and sophomore
Patrick Barr.
Jacques played in two games in the spring season, serving as the backup center, while Rinsky also appeared in two games on the offensive line during the spring, serving as a backup at left guard. Fay saw his first varsity action on the line last spring after moving to the offensive line after starting the 2018 season as a tight end while McCarty has seen limited action on the offensive line after transferring from William & Mary. Klawiter appeared in two games on the offensive line in the spring, serving as a backup at right tackle while Barr, who did not see action as a freshman, was named offensive lineman of the year at Montclair High School in 2019.
Newcomers to the offensive line include
Hank Perry and
David Evbomenya. Perry is a graduate of Walnut Hills High School in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he was a two-year starter for the Eagles. Evbomenya was an honorable mention All-State selection at Sprayberry High School in Marietta, Georgia.
