D-Line Needs

[BUS]

One more time.... WE need some Big men. I like what I see for the O-Line right now. Between red-shirts and what's been committed this year I feel better about the size and depth of the O-Line but now let's look to the other side of the ball.

The recruit from Skyline ( I think ) is a 6-2 270 D-End YaHoo. That will bode well for the team next year. I would Like to see I-Stansbury put on 30 Lbs and move Adami to D-End... but to do that.... We need two 300 plus D-Tackles.

I see this as the reason why we do not get a lot of presure on the QB and also why we get burnt up the middle. We need size in the middle to make two O-Linemen handle each Tackle and that would put less o-linemen to pay attention to the LB's that we have.

May I have that for Christmas?

[PonyFan]

Unless Skyline has another big DE prospect, you're thinking of Stephen Coleman - he's 6-5, 295 and plays DT, not DE, although he's recruited as an offensive lineman. And yesterday he committed to Oklahoma.

They have another strong DT candidate - Travis Ferguson. Coach Rob, what's his recruiting status? Top five schools for him?

[PX]

Actually, i think he means the DE from Carter who is already committed to us. He just got the school wrong.

[hpfan]

great point. The d-line is way too thin(no pun intended).After this year with Croy gone they will get even lighter. Coach Fello likes to have an all D-end type of line. By that I mean all players at about 270+.Next year adami will be about 270, Karrington at 275, Stansbury would be perfect at +30,then who else can fill in. I hear Karrington may be the best d-end playing tackle.If someone else steps up in the middle then he can shift back outside..

[The Q]

If he's talking about Desmond Jones, he is in the 270 range, and he's super quick for his size. He looks like Kevin Aldridge did as a senior.

FYI: Darrin Johnson has been moved back to tight end.

[BUS]

I got the school wrong. Carter is correct as our new recruits school.

We still need size and two seep size at that.
G

[PerunaPunch]

BUS is right, we need more D-line recruits... Although, especially at tackle, I'd like to see some kids in the 6'5"+ 250+ range. I'd take a taller, lighter, more athletic kid, knowing that they'll quickly put on 20 lbs. once they get into a real strength and conditioning program.

Our current D-line is young, so they'll certainly benefit from another off-season of weights, but I think you guys are overestimating the kind of quality weight you can put on in 12 months.

Marcus Walker is closer to 280 I think. So he already has good size and some backup experience at NT. However, isn't he only a RS-freshman? I imagine he'll be pretty stout as a junior and senior, but next year he'll just be coming into his own.

Allen Adami may be able to bulk up to 270 by next year, so I imagine he'll be pretty effective. He already has the strength and ferocity, so a year of experience under his belt and some more weight to throw around and we should be good there.

I wouldn’t expect Karrington to be more than 260, Melvin Williams to be more than 250 and Ieremia-Stansbury any more than 245 (he’s thick for his size already) next year. When you start a serious strength program, you tend to pack on muscle comparatively quickly (e.g. Melvin Williams last year), but that tapers off as you near the capacity for your height and frame.

Unless something terrible happens, Desmond Jones will redshirt next year.

I don’t hang out and lift with these guys, so take this all with a grain of salt. But I do know what the human body is capable of. Kevin Aldridge at 6’2” 272 was about at thick as they come. To get bigger than that, you either need a larger frame to being with or it’s superfluous, performance inhibiting fat.

[Charleston Pony]

What about Denman and Guidry? Both of these guys came out of H.S. at 260 lbs. Do they have potential as interior DL? I see we list Bey as a DL, so he must be packing on some weight. Unless we find a JUCO or two or have some guys changing position this spring, I've got to believe we are still a couple of years away from solving our problems in the trenches.

[PerunaPunch]

Yes, that's my point. We continue to be a year or two away from getting our act together on both lines.

We haven't been solid enough in recruiting to get quality from DE to DE and OT to OT. You have a couple of spots with real quality, and then a bunch of young guys who are still growing into their roles.

We almost had it this year, then we lost Birdwell and Pratt. I think with those two guys in the mix, we would have had some extra weight when needed and some quality relief to keep people fresh though 4 quarters.

What would our team have looked like this year if we could have squeezed another year of eligibility out of McCarthy, Slaten and Aldridge?

So yes, I think when the current crop of young guys are juniors and seniors (with the kind of quality recruits it seems like we're signing up folloing in their footsteps), we'll have it solved. But that's still two years away.

[BUS]

The above explain out depth problem. Not that we just have depth problem but also injury problem that wipe us out.

This is the one point I did not like about Cavans recruiting. WE stocked up on small athletes and not huge guys that may play as Jr's or Sr's.

Bring in a herd of big guys and let them mature on the sidelines.

[SMUFan]

Jamar Bey might be getting listed at DL, but the other tall LB, Cole Horton, is getting thicker every day.

And Martin Guidry will be a player. I go to practice once in a while, and he just kills people. He'll surprise a lot of people.

[Charleston Pony]

there's no question our DL was hurt by graduations, players losing eligibility and guys quitting. Everyone forgets that on top of Aldridge, Pratt, Post and Birdwell...we also lost J.D. Blagg the previous spring. Even though he was chronically injured, at 280 lbs, he migght also have given us some much needed depth. With Croy leaving next year, it's critical that we find some new guys who can come right in and contribute on the DL. This is one of those situations where our competitors would be out looking for JUCOs to bridge the gap until our young guys can mature.