AUGUSTA, Ga. -- When Augusta State takes the court Sunday for its first official practice of the 2006-07 season, one of the Jaguars’ first items of business will be identifying exactly who will run the team. ASU hits the floor officially as a team for the first time Sunday with a pair of practices at 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. in Christenberry Fieldhouse.

Karim Telfer, a two-year starter for the Jaguars at point guard, is making the switch from the playing floor to working as a student assistant on head coach Dip Metress’ coaching staff. The Jags themselves are in transition, looking to fill the void left by Telfer, who won the starting point guard job his first day of practice as a junior and never relinquished the role.

“It will be extremely difficult to replace Karim -- he did everything but drive the bus for us the last two years,” said Metress, who is beginning his third season at the helm of the Jaguar program. “What people don’t realize is how much influence he had on our program in terms of work ethic and his desire to win.”

While Metress acknowledges replacing Telfer’s production is a key concern, the Jags can rely on the return of leading scorer Tyrekus “AJ” Bowman, a 6-5 junior forward who paced ASU in scoring and rebounding while shooting 56.3 percent from the field. Bowman was an All-Peach Belt Conference selection and was a force defensively as well, leading ASU in blocks at 1.2 per game.

Joining Bowman as a returning starter is fellow junior Demetrius Howard, a 6-5 swingman who earned 16 starts as a sophomore and shot 30.1 percent from three-point range. He averaged 6.3 ppg. and his 4.4 rpg. average was third-best on the team.

Another key returnee is sophomore Garret Siler, a 6-11, 304-pound center who showed flashes of dominance during his redshirt freshman season in 2005-06. Siler led ASU in field goal percentage (.699) and made seven starts down the stretch while averaging 5.3 ppg. Arthur Thomas, a 6-2 reserve guard and the only senior on the squad, returns along with junior veterans Luke Tambon, a 6-7 forward, and Jamie Quarles, a 6-0 point guard who spelled Telfer the last two seasons.

“AJ has improved tremendously since he has been in our program,” Metress said. “I will have no problem this year with him taking the open three-pointer. He is a smart enough player to realize that this increased range will compliment his overall game and will make him a better overall player with the ability to score inside and outside. If he continues to work on his game and stays healthy, he has a chance to be a special player for us.”

Metress expects several members of his recruiting class to make an impact as well. The Jags’ list of newcomers includes five freshmen and 5-9 sophomore redshirt guard Steve Smith, who sat out last season after transferring from Belmont Abbey. Daniel Dixon (5-9) and Kip Small (5-11), a pair of freshman guards, will battle for playing time at the point with Smith and Quarles while Ben Madgen (6-4) and Robertas Kleiva (6-5) are expected to contribute at the shooting guard and small forward positions. Junior-college transfer Etsho Ilunga (6-7) and freshman Howard Brown (6-6) will look to beef up a Jags’ frontcourt that lost Dean Brebner to graduation, a three-year starter.

“We have more newcomers than returning players, but that is not unusual at this point in the development of our basketball program,” Metress said. “We have some talented newcomers and it is very difficult to say who will stand out since they haven’t been through any real practices yet. There are two things that all new players always need to learn -- the value of each possession and the importance of being able to defend at the intensity level which is needed to win championships. Without a doubt, a lot of them will play prominent roles this year.”

ASU will take on George Washington and Virginia in a pair of exhibition contests the first week of November before opening the 2006-07 regular season at Carson-Newman in Jefferson City, Tenn., on Nov. 18.