WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ- Monmouth University football wrapped up its second day of camp on Wednesday.

Coach Callahan was pleased with where the team picked up from the first day, noting the effort and the team's progression from Tuesday.

"As I said yesterday I thought we retained a lot of information from the spring." said Callahan. "I really like what the freshmen are doing. It's only day two, and they'll get to a saturation point somewhere along the way here. Right now they're picking things up and we're getting a great effort out of everybody, that's the thing that I really like."

 Monmouth returns all three starting linebackers from a season ago, losing only Dan Sullivan as a significant contributor to graduation. The group is led by redshirt junior John Sieczkowski (Manalapan, NJ/Manalapan) who earned preseason All-Big South honors at outside linebacker. Senior Tyler Thompson (Union Bridge, MD/Linganore) started 10 of 11 games while junior Payton Minnich (Harrisburg, PA/Central Dauphin East) will move to the middle after a solid sophomore campaign outside.

Veteran outside linebackers Anthony McDonnaugh (Philadelphia, PA/West Catholic) and Ryan Zuczek (Robbinsville, NJ/Robbinsville) return for their senior seasons. Callahan also noted that a number of underclassmen showed significant improvement pushing for 2 deep roles including Zach Talley (Quakertown, PA/Lansdale Catholic) and Brandon Anthony (Columbia, MD/Atholton). The coaching staff also brought in four talented freshmen who will progress through their first college training camp.

"Our hope is that it is a position of strength for our defense. We have a lot of experience there. We have guys who have been on the field and played before. John (Sieczkowski) is a two-year starter, Payton (Minnich) is a two-year starter, Tyler (Thompson) started last year. That group plus some younger guys that could really impact the position as well. I've liked what we've seen from Brandon Anthony, he's done some really good things and I think he's really pushing himself to get on the field for significant reps and significant time at an outside spot, so we're excited for that. We've got depth at the position in addition to Anthony, you've got (Anthony) McDonnaugh, who has played on and off for us throughout the years here. You got Ryan Zuczeck who has made great gains in the spring."

Monmouth moves to shoulder padded practice tomorrow, something the players are definitely looking forward to.

"We'll put shoulder pads on and there will be a lot of offense versus defense type drills," said Callahan. "We've limited that to just 7-on-7's through the first two, so the intensity will pick up and there will be more work to do. You hope that you just continue to retain the information and that you don't throw out the information you've learned just because you're going against someone else."

The Hawks are back on the field at 3:30 tomorrow. To see a full recap of day one, visit here

Nest Notes:

• DB Mike Basile made a diving catch on a tipped ball- watch it on MDN
• All six Monmouth quarterbacks were on the field for the first time this year, including transfer Mike Bimonte
• Redshirt freshman Reggie White Jr made an impressive catch in traffic, splitting the defenders for a touchdown
• MDN will have exclusive video of WR Coach TJ Dimuzio showing his group he still has it; keep a look out on Monmouth's social media platforms tomorrow for that
• Coach Callahan spoke about freshman wideout Tymere Berry

Callahan on Mike Bimonte
"It's his first day out here. He hasn't had the advantage of meetings, especially the summer ones that all the other guys were here for. He's learning a new system, he's learning new terminology, and he's getting a feel for it. But at the same time, he's a 4-year member of a college football program. He has a lot of experience that I think he can use to his advantage.  He's a smart kid, he's sharp, he's a student of the game, and he really wants to do it."

Callahan on freshman WR Tymere Berry (Toms River South)
"He has a lot of things we look for as an inside receiver and a guy that we can get the ball to in space. He has a lot of different skills. I think he's going to be in a position to really do a lot for us. Even though he's not actively on the field this first week or so, he's paying attention in the meetings and figuring out what he has to do, so that when he does get the clearance, which we're hoping is as early as the weekend or early next week, he'll be able to step right in and there won't be too much of a learning curve."