This year's Waynesburg University men's basketball team will certainly have a different look to it as three starters and one of the team's most used bench players are gone. Also, don't expect to see the same starting five used in back-to-back games for this young team.

Starting forward Colby Grubich, along with starting guards Jason Clark and All-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) honoree Dan Happe, are gone from last year's 6-19 team that went 2-10 in PAC play.

“We'll be totally different,” seventh-year head coach Frank Ferraro said. “We're going to try to continue to play a rotation of guys. We may play 10 guys a night and we had some success with that last year. I think we have the depth to do that.”

That added depth comes from a large incoming class of freshmen and transfers that should number in the double digits. They will supplement a group of returners led by seniors Jarell Rodriguez and Ryan Courneen.

Rodriguez, who started 19 games last year at point guard and will looked upon to be a veteran leader on the team. Courneen returns after finishing second on the team in scoring average last year (13.0 ppg), and made 18 starts last season. He is also the top returning scorer for the 2009-10 Jackets.

Ferraro is looking to a group of young, but experienced players to step up and fill several holes left by last year's graduating class.

“Larry Alexander, Steve Iser, Lou Galante and Erick Noone are all guys that should see more minutes,” Ferraro said. “Those guys were playing a lot more minutes over the last eight games of the year or so. They definitely made some improvements.”

Alexander, a sophomore guard, brings an electricity to the court that he showcased in five starts over 19 games played last season. He averaged 4.2 points per game and dished out 17 assists.

Iser, a junior backcourt player, appeared in 20 games off the bench last year for the Jackets and is considered more of a defensive specialist. Galante and Noone, a pair of young forwards, combined to make three starts and played in a combined 37 games last season. They will be counted on to improve the team's rebounding.

Sophomore forward James Allenby, who saw time in 18 games last season, is also expected to see a jump in his time on the court.

“I think we'll be very improved defensively and I think our depth will help us with that,” Ferraro said. “We won't have to be tentative and have to worry about the foul situation. I also think that our increase in size will help us with our rebounding, which I think we'll be a little better at than in the past.”

Ferraro is also excited about burly sophomore guard Luke Baker's potential. After missing a large part of last year with an injury, Baker returns healthy and his head coach believes he can make a difference on this year's squad.

With so many  new faces on this year's team and the likelihood that a dozen or more players could see time on the court as a part of Waynesburg's rotation style, the team's offseason preparations will be more important than ever.

“That first month of practice will be vital,” Ferrarro said. “We're working a lot of new guys into our team. It will be really important to put that jigsaw puzzle together and start putting guys into their roles.”

The Jackets tip the 2009-10 season off on Nov. 17, when they travel to Hamburg, N.Y. to face Hilbert.