He didn’t sidestep last year’s result or make any excuse for it.

“We were just an inconsistent football team,” Elon coach Tony Trisciani said. “We had flashes of playing well in all three phases of the game, but we just weren’t consistent enough to be at the top of the [Colonial Athletic Association].

“We played like a middle-of-the-pack CAA team and that’s what we were.”

In Trisciani’s first season as Elon coach last fall the Phoenix sputtered to a 5-6 overall record and a 4-4 mark in the conference.

They reached the postseason in the two previous years under former coach Curt Cignetti, who left the prior offseason for the same job with James Madison. Before earning the promotion to head gig, Trisciani was previously Cignetti’s defensive coordinator.

JMU is slated to host Elon on Nov. 7.

“I’m real excited about year two as a head coach,” Trisciani said. “I learned a lot year one and I have a better feel for my team. And I feel like it is my football team.”

There were a few causes for the volatility during Elon’s 2019 campaign, according to the coach, and he’s hoping to stabilize those for his program this fall.

One part of the game he said he knows his offense needs to better is its effort in the run game. Last year, Elon ranked 11th in the CAA and 100th nationally in rushing offense while averaging 119.3 rushing yards per contest – nearly 80 yards fewer per game on the ground than the season prior.

“There will be some natural maturity and development from our group up front and our running back position,” he said. “It’s not like just because Curt Cignetti left that our desire to run the football left. It’s just our ability to run the football wasn’t as strong last year, so we’re still a football team that wants to run the ball.”

Last fall, the Phoenix tried to replace three starting offensive linemen — including two who went onto the NFL.

This year to bolster the offensive line, Trisciani said the Phoenix added Itawamba Community College transfer tackle Cameron Orr and that returning a healthy version of junior offensive lineman Cooper Cromer should give the unit a boost. Cromer earned a start in the Phoenix’s opener two years ago at FBS South Florida, but suffered a knee injury in that game and has tried to get back to form since. Those two will mix in along the front with senior Chad Nelson, who has started 21 games over the past two seasons at various positions, sophomore center Nick Cerimele and redshirt freshman Jabril Williams, who Trisciani said has a bright upside.

An improved offensive line could help junior running back Jaylan Thomas, the 2018 CAA Offensive Rookie of the Year, accumulate yards as he did two seasons ago when he rushed for 761 yards over eight games.

Trisciani said he believes senior quarterback Davis Cheek will be at his best, too, now that he’s more than a year removed from the ACL injury he suffered a week after leading the Phoenix to a 2018 regular-season stunning of JMU in Harrisonburg. The Dukes won at Elon, 45-10, last year.

Cheek has completed 59 percent of his throws for 5,624 yards and 34 touchdowns throughout his career.

“Davis played last year. He was back,” Trisciani said. “But that wasn’t Davis at a 100 percent. He had no spring ball. He had a limited summer and preseason camp. And I saw a different Davis this spring after having an offseason in the weight room, and he’s moving better and thinking even faster. So I expect to see the Davis Cheek that everybody else expects to see as a veteran, returning four-year starter. I’m looking forward to him having a great season.”

For Trisciani’s defense, he said he thinks for a largely returning group of players, they will benefit from having the same staff members and the same 3-3 stack system in place. On top of his move to head coach and the hiring of defensive coordinator Billy Crocker, Elon didn’t have a single defensive position coach stay in the same role at the school from 2018 to 2019.

Junior defensive back Cole Coleman led the team with 84 tackles last year. He’s back as is starting nose guard Tristen Cox, a senior, and defensive end Torrence Williams, a junior along the defensive line. Senior linebacker Tyler Sponseller, who recorded 47 tackles in his first year with the team after transferring from Cincinnati, returns as well.

Trisciani said aside from Orr, he’s landed Connecticut tight end transfer Donovan Williams and Wake Forest transfer long snapper Noah Turner.

Turner joins an already accomplished group of specialists with senior punter Hunter Stephenson and junior kicker Skyler Davis. Davis connected on 10-of-15 field-goal tries last season while Stephenson averaged 41.7 yards per punt.

“I feel good about that unit going into a season,” Trisciani said.

The Phoenix open Sept. 5 at The Citadel in Charleston, S.C., and also has a trip to FBS Duke and a home date with Campbell before jumping into CAA action.