Watch one of SMU’s spring practices, and it’s easy to notice what’s missing, including defensive ends Taylor Thompson and Margus Hunt are out while recovering from surgeries; safety Chris Banjo is limited while recovering from wrist surgery; and safety-turned-linebacker Randy McKinnon is sitting out while awaiting an NCAA ruling on another year of eligibility after his 2010 season was cut short by a knee injury.

Defensive coordinator Tom Mason said defensive end Beau Barnes could end up around 260 pounds and could play a key backup role in 2011 (photo by Travis Johnston).

But SMU defensive coordinator Tom Mason sees things differently. Maybe it’s simply a matter of a glass-half-full philosophy, but Mason says, “I think we can be pretty salty.” That optimism, Mason said, is due in part to the performance through the first half of spring workouts of a quartet of young players whose roles within the SMU defense should grow

Marquis Frazier could play either defensive end or nose tackle (or both) in the fall, but during the spring, he is doing little more than Hunt and Thompson, running through position drills but mostly watching as reserves take the majority of snaps in seven-on-seven and 11-on-11 drills. Mason said he has been impressed by Szymon Czerniak, who came on as a ke reserve in 2010, and Beau Barnes, who redshirted last season.

“Beau’s the kind of guy you want to get a ton of reps,” Mason said. “I think he’s a player who is excited about learning, and he’s a young kid with big growth potential. I think he’s a guy who has 255- or 260-pound potential. He’s an athletic kid who can be a good backup for us this year, getting maybe 25 plays a game or so.”

Among the linebackers, Mason and linebackers coach Joe Haering must replace two graduated starters: Pete Fleps and Youri Yenga. The plan all along has been for Cameron Rogers to replace Fleps at the “Buck” (inside) spot, and Mason said he already is impressed by Rogers’ performance.

“I think he’s going to be a really good football player for us,” Mason said. “He’s pretty mobile and he’s pretty strong, but he’s also a really smart player. Pete was second on the team in tackles last year, and as good as he was, I don’t really expect a lot of drop-off.”

Defensive coordinator Tom Mason said Uchenna Nwabuike has grown a lot in his first year on the Hilltop — both physically and as a player (photo by Webmaster).

Who will replace Yenga is a little less certain. There are several candidates vying for the job, but one who has stood out this spring to Mason is Uchenna Nwabuike, who will be a redshirt freshman in the fall.

“Uchenna has had some great practices this spring,” Mason said. “He and Victor Jones are both doing really well on that side.

“Uchenna’s a guy who was a defensive lineman in high school, so a lot of what we have our linebackers do isn’t really natural for him. But his potential for growth — both physically and as a player — is huge. He has worked really hard, and he’s a lot stronger. He’s learning a lot faster than I thought he would, too — when he really gets it, he’s going to be pretty good.”

The other linebacker who has caught Mason’s eye in the early part of spring practice is Kevin Pope, who is getting a look on defense after spending the 2010 season as a backup running back.

“Kevin played some linebacker in high school, but he’s a lot more instinctual than I thought he would be,” Mason said. “He’s a pretty fast learner, too, and the difference between his first week (at linebacker) and his second was like night and day.

“Kevin has something you can’t teach, and that’s the ability to accelerate into contact. In all the years I have been coaching, I might have had six guys who had that. He’s got a way to go, but he’s got a lot of potential to be a good linebacker.”