Howard Grads In National Football Playoffs

Where would the Salisbury University football team be without players from Ellicott City?

More specifically, how do four graduates of Howard High end up on the same winning team at the Division III level?

Well that is exactly what has happened this fall on the Eastern Shore, as Salisbury has advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals in football for the first time in 25 years.

The Sea Gulls will play on Saturday, Dec. 3, at 1 p.m. at Wisconsin-Whitewater in the Division III quarterfinals and SU has four Howard graduates on its roster: senior Tyler Curley, sophomore defensive backs Calvin Ford and and freshman defensive back .

"He has had a great career," Ryan Fleetwood, the offensive coordinator and director of football operations at Salisbury, said of Curley. "He tore his ACL last year and missed the end of the season. That was a big loss for us. His older brother, Ronnie, played quarterback for us" as a senior in 2008.

Calvin Ford had three tackles and Curley ran six times for 25 yards and a touchdown on Saturday as Salisbury won at home, 49-47, in triple overtime over Kean of New Jersey to earn a trip to Wisconsin this weekend.

Bruce Strunk, the Howard High head football coach, told Patch on Thursday that he coached Calvin Ford and Allebach at the school. "Calvin played quarterback as a senior. He had been a wideout. Calvin did have larger schools looking at him but he really liked Salisbury," Strunk said.

Listed at 5-foot-8, Curley ran 11 times for a career-high 76 yards in a win over Frostburg earlier this season. He also had a career-high two touchdowns in a win over Hartwick on Oct. 22.

He had three catches for 57 yards in 2009 against Wesley, a Division III power in Delaware. The only loss this season for Salisbury came against Wesley.

Fleetwood has been involved in the recruiting of Curley and other players from Howard High.

The Ford brothers have aided the Salisbury defense. "They have both had great seasons for us," Fleetwood said. "They both play cornerback and that was a position we were thin in this year."

Allebach is a backup safety and sees a lot of time on special teams, according to Fleetwood.

For good measure Connor McNeil, also from Ellicott City, is on the roster as a freshman defensive back. He went to Marriotts Ridge High.

Salisbury is 11-1 this season and has scored at least 40 points in nine of those games.

Curley has played in nine games and has rushed 44 times for 298 yards, for an average of 6.8 yards per carry. He has six touchdowns and a long run of 37 yards. He also has one catch for 15 yards and that was for a touchdown.

On defense, Calvin Ford has played in all 12 games, with 11 starts, and has 47 tackles and one interception. Curtis Ford has played in 12 games as a reserve and has 21 tackles and an interception.

Allebach has played in 10 games as a reserve and has 15 tackles. The head coach for Salisbury is Sherman Wood, the former head coach at Division II Bowie State.