Just what does it take to be a great high school defensive lineman?

A good person to ask is West Potomac coach John Howerton. His Wolverines faced two of the Journal's five defensive linemen to watch this season - Robinson's Adam Fassnacht and West Springfield's Tony Jenkins - in Patriot District competition last year.

``Size, speed and strength are often the factors in making a winner," Howerton said. ``He's got to be able to move his feet, use his hands."

So an imposing but mobile physical presence is definitely needed. But what about upstairs - is there a certain mentality these defensive linemen need?

``Defensive linemen are different than offensive linemen," Howerton said. ``An offensive lineman, he can sit back and wait for them to come. A defensive lineman, he's a target. They're going to be coming at you from all directions to stop you.

``He definitely wants to have the desire to hit somebody."

And when going against these defensive linemen, as Howerton's Wolverines must again do at least twice this season, sometimes the best strategy is to dodge those hits altogether.

``Normally with the option you can take kids out of the picture," Howerton said. ``We just go the other way."

Sometimes, though, it isn't that simple, especially when standing on the defensive line are these five players:

ADAM FASSNACHT

Robinson (5-foot-11, 230 pounds, Sr.)

At the rate he's going, Fassnacht will have to add a second page to his resume before his senior year is through.

Maybe even a third.

Entering his fourth year at Robinson, the much-decorated defensive lineman can already place the title of 2001 Journal Defensive Player of the Year atop his pile of All-State, All-Region and All-District football accolades garnered since his freshman year.

``If there's a more decorated player, I don't know who it is," Robinson coach Mark Bendorf said. And that's just in football.

Add in his laundry list of wrestling and lacrosse awards, and it becomes quite clear Fassnacht could vie for the title of best athlete in the state.

Fassnacht's proven his worthiness for that honor on the football field.

At 5-foot-11, 230 pounds, Bendorf describes Fassnacht as ``almost a freaky combination of speed and strength."

``He's as fast as any running back," the Rams coach said, ``and big as any lineman. You're not going to outmuscle him and you're not going to outquick him. When you're going to face [a player like] that, I don't know what you're going to do."

That's the truth, even for Bendorf himself.

After three years of sending offenses against his star defensive lineman in practice, Bendorf still has trouble countering Fassnacht's one-man infantry of a rush.

``We can't [defend him]," Bendorf said. ``We're not able to handle him consistently."

It's no wonder, then, the problems opposing teams have trying to stop him.

Last season, en route to the Group AAA, Division 6 state title, Fassnacht recorded 120 tackles, three fumbles and one blocked punt. His team-high 12 sacks in 2001 gave him a total of 31 for the past two seasons.

And all of that's just the good news for anyone lining up across from him.

The bad news: Fassnacht only gets better when there's more riding on a game.

He showed it last year during the state playoffs.

Playing in the semifinals opposite Deep Creek offensive guard Darryl Tapp - who now plays at Virginia Tech - Fassnacht had ``arguably his best game" according to Bendorf.

``Then he stepped it up and played better in the championship against Thomas Dale," Bendorf said. ``It seemed like the bigger the game we got into, the better he played."

The secret to that success, aside from his obvious athleticism? Preparation, preparation, preparation.

According to Bendorf, Fassnacht spends a considerable amount of time studying scouting reports, blocking schemes and individual tendencies of opposing teams and players.

``That allows him to have a tip for what's going to happen," Bendorf said. ``It's like a hitter in baseball understanding `I'm going to get a curveball here.'

``I'm certain he knows opponents almost as well as the coaches."

Although the same question has been asked about Fassnacht at this time of the season the last two years, it bears repeating: What can Fassnacht do for an encore?

``We'll find out," Bendorf said. ``Every indication is he's faster, heavier and stronger than last year. ``Like any player, he's still got room to improve. He's not reached his fullest potential."

TONY JENKINS

West Springfield (6-2 1/2, 260, Sr.)

Bill Renner hits pause and looks at the gift on the screen.

There, in that frozen instant just a few frames following the snap, the West Springfield coach sees a familiar sight - Spartans defensive end Tony Jenkins already up and barreling forward, easily the first player off the line.

``That's the exceptional thing that he does," Renner said. ``Invariably, Tony Jenkins moves almost simultaneously with the ball. When something moves and his eye sees it, he just goes.

``That's a god-given ability."

And one that many offenses - in the Patriot District and soon in the Big East Conference - wish had not been bestowed upon the West Springfield senior.

Those lightning-quick reflexes are just the start of an impressive package of speed, size and strength that Jenkins will take to Syracuse next year after verbally committing to the Orangemen in June.

``He's just a big, strong, fast kid," Renner said.

The coach hits play on the VCR, and witnesses in real-time the 4.8-second 40-yard dash speed Jenkins uses to get across the neutral zone before slamming his 6-foot-2 1/2, 260-pound frame into an offensive lineman.

Or two.

Opposing offensive coordinators are almost required to pay extra attention to the first-team All-Region end when he's on the field, and often assign additional players to Jenkins to make sure he doesn't get to the football.

``He has the ability to make people find him and block him every play," Renner said. ``That affects people's gameplans."

These adjustments makes West Springfield's defense all the more potent, with Jenkins' teammates overwhelming the weak spots in opposing offenses while they concentrate on the single defensive end.

``I don't think there's any question that he provides other people the chance to make plays by whatever scheme other teams use to keep him from getting to the ball," Renner said.

Still, Jenkins, who will start for his third year, is rarely stopped. Last season he recorded 55 tackles - 18 for loss - had five sacks and forced two fumbles.

A big player on a defensive line that should be one of the Spartans' biggest strengths this season, Jenkins could be a key to West Springfield's possible return to the playoffs.

``I think you have to have a dominating player on defense to win at any level," Renner said. ``He has the ability to dominate."

JONO PETROVITCH

Hylton (5-10, 240, Sr.)

Jono Petrovitch wasn't surprised by the fact he's on one of these lists, but by which list he's on.

``You mean not for offensive guard?" the Hylton senior asked when told he was one of the Journal's five defensive linemen to watch this season.

It's an honest question from a player who's spent the past three years protecting Bulldogs quarterbacks, but only part of last season going after opposing quarterbacks on defense.

Petrovitch made his debut at defensive end at the start of Hylton's 2001 campaign with very promising results.

``He was awesome," said Hylton defensive line coach Michael Thornton. ``He came ready to play every game."

But five games into the season, Petrovitch's stint on defense was cut short when he suffered a fractured ankle against Woodbridge while playing defensive end.

``Dude just came in from the side and took out my ankle," Petrovitch said. ``[I came back] four games later. They just worked me on offense after that."

Just five games worth of tape documenting Petrovitch's much-vaunted skills on defense, then, was all first-year Hylton coach Lou Sorrentino had in his possession when he took over for longtime Bulldogs coach Bill Brown prior to this season.

Those tapes, though, were buried when Sorrentino started viewing the stack of Bulldogs film to see what awaited him at Hylton.

``One of the first films I saw was [from] later in the year and [Petrovitch] didn't play any defense," Sorrentino said, ``and I said, `Why is this guy supposed to be so good?'

``And then I got an earlier film on and he just dominated [at defensive end]. ... He was blowing things up in the backfield."

It's an image Sorrentino is confident he'll see in real life this season as Petrovitch makes his return to defensive end and forms a potentially terrorizing tandem with battle-tested junior end Chris Winston. Winston replaced Petrovitch on Hylton's defensive line after the ankle injury.

``We expect those guys to be impact players," Sorrentino said.

Standing at just 5-10, Petrovitch doesn't resemble the typical impact defensive end upon first glance. But at 240 pounds, Petrovitch has the weight and strength to barrel through any line - or the speed and agility to cut around the corner and stop the ball.

``He's got the strength, the quickness, and then the toughness to be real destructive as a high school defensive end," Sorrentino said. ``He can't change his height, but he's awfully good at our level."

And Petrovitch is excited to get back into the defensive rotation after the long absence - even if it's just to get the coaches off his back for a spell.

``Defense is more fun," he said. ``Offense you could screw up a lot more. You miss a block, they know it's you. You get yelled at a lot more on offense."

ERIC ROSENTHAL

Potomac School (6-5, 270, Sr.)

Eric Rosenthal is an eyeful on and off the field.

It's as true today for the Potomac School senior defensive tackle as it was early last year when he was sitting behind a desk, acting as a member of a panel interviewing football coaches for his team's recent coaching vacancy.

Which is how now second-year Panthers coach Ed Foster was introduced to the oversized lineman in 2001.

Sitting before that panel as an applicant, Foster saw the potential of the Panthers in that one massive player's representative.

``It made me feel good that I had at least one kid with good size," Foster said.

When it comes to football, of course, size isn't everything. And in the year since their first meeting, Foster has delighted in the full package that Rosenthal has provided for the Panthers.

Though Potomac School finished 1-7 last season, the two-way player - Rosenthal also starts on the offensive line - was a dominant defensive force, registering seven sacks according to Foster.

``He's a huge part [of our defensive line]," Foster said. ``If we've got to take him out and give him a break, we can tell he's missing."

And it's not just because there's nobody else on the field with a uniform that big.

Like many other high-quality defensive linemen, Rosenthal is deceptively fast for his size. ``He's quick off the ball," Foster said. ``He's got great feet. He just moves really well for a big guy."

So well, in fact, that Foster wouldn't think twice about placing Rosenthal in a different role if needed. ``If I wanted to, I could put him at tight end," Foster said. ``He can run and he can catch."

Moreover, Rosenthal can think.

According to Foster, the senior holds a 3.7 grade point average at the academically challenging private school and is on the recruiting lists of Virginia and every team in the Ivy League.

Rosenthal's intelligence has its pros and cons for Foster, though.

On one hand, the lineman can quickly adjust his defensive strategy to different offensive formations - he understands when to rush and when to hold back.

But on the other hand, said Foster, ``Sometimes he asks too many questions because he's so smart he wants to make sure he's doing things right."

The coach, though, can't complain too much about the contemplative manner of his huge lineman.

After all, Rosenthal was on the panel that thought enough of Foster to give him the Panthers coaching job.

CRAIG TORBETT

Oakton (6-0, 230, Sr.)

The move has done Craig Torbett well.

At the beginning of last season, Torbett, now a 6-foot, 230-pound senior at Oakton, started at defensive end, prowling the corners of the line for the Cougars.

But a midseason lineup shuffle shifted Torbett inside to defensive tackle - a change that has brought no complaints, least of all from the upbeat player.

``He's kind of found a home there at defensive tackle," Oakton coach Pete Bendorf said.

And he'll be staying home this season.

Torbett started at defensive tackle in the Cougars' opening scrimmage against Robinson last Saturday, and had an impressive performance on par with his stats from last season.

In 2001, Torbett was an anchor in a defense that gave up just 10.6 points per game - second fewest in the Northern Region. He recorded 64 tackles, eight for a loss, and six sacks.

According to Bendorf, Torbett had three or four tackles for a loss against the Rams to kick off 2002 and was a constant tormentor of Robinson's offensive line.

``He really was able to control the line of scrimmage," Bendorf said. ``He disrupted their offense quite a bit.

``If the Robinson scrimmage is any indication, we expect a banner year from him."

Those expectations go beyond Torbett's play on the field.

Voted a team captain by his teammates, Torbett will use his positive demeanor along with his solid work ethic to lead the Cougars through weekday practices as well as Friday night games.

``Football is a lot of fun for him," Bendorf said. ``He's excited at practice, he's excited at games.

``[His teammates] respect him for his hard work, and he's a team guy. He puts his team way before himself."

And he puts himself right in the middle of things for his team on the field. Which may be why the move to the middle of the line has suited Torbett so well.

``He's a prototypical defensive lineman," Bendorf said. ``He likes to be in the middle of the mess."