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After what is surely the longest off-season head coach Craig Cirbus has ever had to endure, the 1998 University at Buffalo Bulls can't wait to start writing their new history.

After a disappointing 2-9 season in 1997 ­on the heels of a historic 8-3 campaign in 1996 ­the Bulls have gone back to work with a passion to regain the winning ways that Cirbus has long been associated with.

Before last year, Cirbus had been a part of only one losing season since becoming a college coach and that was his first year at Buffalo when he inherited a program that had won only 13 games the previous five seasons.

The UB coaching staff has undergone some changes (Tom Jones and Mike Gebbia have joined the defensive staff) and the Bulls lost 11 seniors from last year's team. So it is with many new faces that the Bulls get ready to tackle their final year of Division I-AA football.

With only 23 upperclassmen on the squad the Bulls enter this historic season as one of the youngest in the country. The "baby Bulls" will have to grow up in a hurry, however, as they face seven road tests, including four of the first five, during the '98 season.

·OFFENSE·

Quarterback

This is one position the Bulls have depth, talent and experience at. Start with senior signal-caller Chad Salisbury (Newell, PA/Frazier HS) because that's where opposing defenses certainly will.

In his first year at UB after transferring from New Mexico State, all Salisbury did was break the school records for attempts (384), completions (218), yardage (2,889) and total offense (2,797).

With a talented cast of receivers and a year in the UB offensive system under his belt, Salisbury should be even more effective this year. He'll need to stay away from the turnover bug (he threw 17 interceptions last year) but with his arm strength and big-play ability the Bulls' have an NFL-type talent to lead the way.

Right behind Salisbury are two capable backups in Erik Rusin (Amherst, NY/Amherst Central) and Bill Feldmaier (Birmingham, MI/Seaholm HS). Rusin, a junior, threw for 217 yards and a pair of touchdowns last season and has started three games in his career.

Feldmaier, a sophomore, hit 10-of-27 passes for 169 yards last year but shows promise as well. Redshirts Joe Freedy (Bethel Park, PA/ Bethel Park HS), Mike Gaydosz (Ellwood City, PA/Riveside HS) and Mike Taylor (Elma, NY/Iroquois HS) are waiting in the wings.

Running Backs

The Bulls lost all-time leading rusher Anthony Swan to graduation and will likely struggle to establish the consistency they look for in a balanced offensive attack.

Senior tailback David Hinson (Jamestown, NY/Jamestown HS) tops the depth chart at tailback going into fall drills. A former New York State Player of the Year, Hinson is an elusive runner who has the ability to catch the ball out of the backfield as well.

Joining him at tailback are a pair of talented youngsters: David Schmidli (Wilson, NY/Wilson HS) and Theron Walker (Pickering, Ontario/Dunbarton HS). Schmidli, a redshirt freshman, is Western New York's all-time leading rusher and is elusive and quick. Walker, a sophomore, is a combination of power and speed at 5-9, 217 pounds.

At fullback, junior Josh Roth (Conewango Valley, NY/Pine Valley HS) was the team's second leading rusher last season (163 yards) despite a chronic ankle sprain. He will be pushed, however, by talented redshirt freshman Marvin Brereton (Missisauga, Ontario/Clarkson Secondary). Brereton was moved from defense to offense during the spring.

Both backs have great size and are powerful blockers and runners, a big key to the UB offense. Brereton also has the ability to play tailback.

Wide Receivers

Another one of the Bulls' strengths is the dynamic duo of senior Kali Watkins (Rochester, NY/West Irondequoit HS) and junior Drew Haddad (Cleveland, OH/St. Ignatius).

The two combined for 121 catches and 1,772 yards last season and may be I-AA's top receiving tandem.

Watkins ­ a tri-captain ­ is a tall, rangy receiver with excellent strength who runs precise routes. Haddad, meanwhile, broke the school record for receptions (67) and yards (1,058) as a sophomore last season and became a game-breaker in the process.

The Bulls are a little thin behind these two. Junior Enrico Pierre (Montreal, Canada/Vieux HS) looks ready to contribute at split end while the other backups: Jon Fields (Brooklyn, NY/Brooklyn Tech), John Opfer (North Ridgeville, OH/N. Ridgeville HS) have caught just one career pass between them. Opfer, however, has been a special teams standout.

Tight Ends

The Bulls have a pair of youngsters who will be battling it out for the top spot in fall practices.

Sophomore Gabe Kogler (Hamburg, NY/Hamburg Central) is the proven run-blocker at 6-1, 258 while another sophomore ­ Brandon Shaughnessy (Stafford, NY/LeRoy HS) ­ has better speed at 6-2, 236. With the loss of starter Casey Wakula, who decided to quit football, this job is wide open.

Offensive Line

This is a critical unit for the Bulls' entering fall camp. Probably UB's youngest unit, this position has seen plenty of reshuffling since last fall, although it does boast a pair of two-year starters in juniors Mike Garofalo (Sharpsville, PA/Kennedy Christian) and Joe Hattendorf (Shillington, PA/Governor Mifflin HS). Garofalo, a tri-captain of the '98 team, started at tackle last year but will probably move back to guard this year where he started as a freshman in '96.

Hattendorf, meanwhile, has been a wall at left tackle at 6-5, 304 and is a two-year starter at that all-important position. Another starter from last year ­ Tom Brown (Amherst, NY/Amherst Central) has moved from guard to tackle, while the other two starters have considerable game experience.

David Pruce (Chardon, OH/Chardon HS) is battling for a starting spot after starting four games at left tackle last season. Pruce, a sophomore, is UB's tallest player at 6-7, 288 pounds. Spring practive ended with the center position in the hands of sophomore Dominic Monacelli (Caledonia, NY/Caledonia-Mumford HS). Monacelli started three games last year at right guard. He will be backed up by redshirt freshman Bo Rogers (Ashland, PA/North Schuykill) who has shown promise. Also in the mix will be sophomore Rashon Bradley (Rochester, NY/Aquinas) and mammoth Tim Hedges (Tonawanda, NY/Kenmore East). The Bulls have no seniors on their offensive line at any position.

·DEFENSE·

Defensive Line

This unit will be tested after the loss of a pair of multi-year starters in Keith Hansen (school's all-time leader in tackles for loss) and Hardy Mitchell (who signed as a free agent with the Buffalo Bills.)

Senior tri-captain Dan Poulsen (North Tonawanda, NY/N. Tonawanda HS) will be the anchor of this unit and is coming off a strong season.

Poulsen, who hadn't had a sack in his first two seasons at UB, led the squad with seven quarterback captures last season. Poulsen may be used at both tackle and at the defensive end spot where he made 43 stops (20 solos) last year.

Joining him upfront on the pre-season depth chart are three players with talent but no career starts on the defensive side of the ball.

Sophomore Josh Stello (Moon Township/Moon HS) started seven games on offense last season but has yet to take a defensive snap collegiately. He is big, strong and aggressive at 6-2 and 288 pounds and figures to be a run stuffer.

At left end, junior Eric Campbell (Elyria, OH/Elyria Catholic) will get a shot after backing that spot up the past two seasons. Campbell has good quickness at 6-3 and 244 pounds. Also adding quickness to the defensive front is sophomore Brad Tanton (Vestal, NY/Vestal HS). Tanton showed big-play potential in a backup role last year with 1.5 sacks in limited action. Juniors Justin Long (Kent, OH/Kent-Roosevelt HS) and Mike Stumpf (Webster, NY/Webster HS) provide experienced depth while redshirt freshman C.J. Kintz (Swiftwater, PA/Pocono Mountain) shows promise at 6-5, 283.

Andre Thomas (Rochester, NY/Gates-Chili) and Tommy Welch (Grand Island, NY/Grand Island) could also get a look.

Linebackers

This unit will have to come up big if the Bulls' hope to have better success defensively than last season.

The cornerstone is junior Dan Curcione (Brick Township, NJ/Brick Memorial) who has started all 22 games of his UB career. Curcione doesn't do anything flashy but has been second on the team in stops in both his freshman and sophomore seasons. Last year he made 91 tackles (46 solos), had a pair of sacks, broke up four passes and had his first career interception. He is rangy and athletic at 6-3 and 220 pounds and can play either inside or outside.

A pair of Elmira, NY natives occupy the outside linebacker slots as camp opens. Senior Antonio Perry and junior Josh Trexler both hail from Elmira, NY and played their prep at Elmira Free Academy.

Perry packs a wallop at 5-10, 205 pounds and had a very good spring, while Trexler is one of UB's steadiest players. Trexler had 43 tackles (29 solos) in his first season as a starter and is an excellent coverage man.

The surprise of spring drills was the play of redshirt freshman Chris Shelly (Pittsburgh, PA/Shaler HS). Shelly is one of UB's strongest players at 6-0, 215 pounds, and is a ferocious hitter. He could challenge for a starting role. Waiting in the wings are a pair of backers with good size: sophomore Brandon Nishnick (Waterford, PA/Fort LeBoeuf) and converted fullback Dan Shefferly (Grosse Point Woods, MI/Grosse Point North HS). Nishnick made 19 tackles as a true freshman while Shefferly showed good instincts in spring ball after Coach Cirbus asked him to make an unselfish switch from offense. Shefferly is sure to challenge for significant playing time.

Defensive Backs

This unit is very young (seven sophomores and a freshman in the two-deep) and will be tested.

At corner the Bulls have a pair of youngsters who got their feet wet last season. Tory Smith (Dix Hills, NY/Half Hollow Hills East) had an excellent spring after starting four games as a true freshman. Smith made 28 tackles as a frosh and might be UB's best athlete on the defensive side of the ball.

Carlos Spencer (Buffalo, NY/Traditional) is a sure-handed tackler (15 of his 17 stops were solos) who improved each game as a true freshman. Backing them up is sophomore John Glanton (Webster, NY/Webster HS) and redshirt freshman Javunt Pratt (Rochester, NY/John Marshall). Pratt is a hitter at 5-9, 182 who is the Bulls' fastest player, while Glanton should be an important special teams performer.

At safety, the Bulls have a a pair of talented sophomores penciled in as starters. Eric Pipkins (Pittsburgh, PA/Valley HS) started all but one game last year as a freshman and was fifth on the team in tackles with 50. He also had six passes broken up and a pair of interceptions and will only improve.

At free safety, UB will turn to another sophomore ­ Jeff Lawrence (Austintown, OH/Austintown-Fitch HS). Lawrence saw his season end at Youngstown State midway through the '97 campaign with a fractured foot and has the unenviable task of filling the shoes of leading tackler Ted McDuffie (98 tackles) at free safety. However, Lawrence is a rangy athlete with a great sense for the ball who has always impressed the coaching staff in drills. Backing up at free safety are a pair of sophomores: Kevin Johnson (Pittsburgh, PA/Valley HS) who made the switch from tailback to strong safety and Jeff Homick (Niagara Falls, NY/LaSalle HS).

Special Teams

The Bulls will open camp with a pair of sophomores who saw all of the action last season back in place.

Scott Keller (Amherst, NY/Amherst Central) hit 25-of-30 extra points and 4-of-9 field goals as a freshman and has greatly improved his leg strength in the off-season. The coaching staff expects Keller to be a solid contributor and gain from a year's experience.

Also hoping to have learned from last season is punter Mike Masucci (Syracuse, NY/Christian Brothers Academy). Masucci kicked the ball well toward the end of the year but had several kicks blocked in his freshman year.

Nonetheless, Masucci did average a respectable 37.2 yards per kick and had six balls downed inside the opposition 20-yard line.

Backup quarterback Erik Rusin expects to do the holding again this year while Bo Rogers, Eric Campbell and sophomore Jermaine Jennings (Buffalo, NY/Turner-Carroll HS) will be the most likely long-snappers.

The Schedule

Although on the surface the 1998 schedule looks as challening as in year's past, when you factor in the Bulls' seven road trips the '98 schedule will be an even more daunting one for a young team.

Headlining the schedule are three games to close the regular season against teams that went to the Division I-AA playoffs last season (Western Illinois, Villanova and Hofstra) as well as a road trip to Liberty (9-2 last season). Western Illinois finished ranked #2 at the end of last year's regular season and return Walter Payton Award candidate Aaron Stecker. Villanova, meanwhile, was #1 at the close of the regular season in 1997.