It’s been a busy few weeks but I wanted to put together my observational depth chart. This is simply based upon what this one fan saw and my own opinions. I caught 6 practices and all 3 scrimmages. Here’s how I feel we’ll see the team emerge for fall camp. Just going 2-deep here.
QB – Brady Gustafson / Eric Prater
Possibly the most “wide open” battle entering spring it appears to be about sewn up. Gus’s adaptation to this offense has been quite the fast process. His ability to improvise and build off the base system in the 3rd scrimmage is a great sign. Simis, Chalich, and Prater battling for depth at this point. Good news is we can RS Pflug as that dude is the future, really excited for him in 2017.
RB – John Nguyen / Lorenzo Logwood
Yes Favors and Counts could make this interesting come fall but both Nguyen and Logwood look ready for this offense. Neither are big “top speed” guys but they’re quick, hard to get a clean hit on, and protected the ball incredibly well the whole spring.
WR1 - Ellis Henderson / Reese Carlson
WR2 - Jamaal Jones / Josh Janssen
WR3 – Chase Naccarato / Caleb Lyons
WR4 – Ryan Burke / Zach Hollenbeck
This list is fluid, we’ve got at least one plus I’m hearing rumor on another transfer coming in, plus our huge freshman class of WRs. What’ll be interesting to see is how the new WRs that arrive impact this list. Stitt wants 8-10 WRs in the rotation, so all 8 of these guys plus also Nico Graham and Josh Horner who also made the roster could remain in the mix. I think the 4 starters of Hendu/Jones/Naccarato/Burke could be fairly locked in. Carlson had a great spring as did Lyons. Hollenbeck was the lone walk-on survivor of the freshman class that was mostly cut the other week. I’m expecting in fall camp we’ll see some movement with this depth chart
T – John Schmaing / Jared Clark
T – David Reese / Jackson Thiebes
G – Max Kelly / Clint LaRowe
G – Devon Dietrich / McCauley Todd
C – Ben Weyer / Robert Luke
There’s still some things up in the air with the O-line. Todd and Kelly appear to be close in the battle for the starting guard job, at this point Kelly holds it though. Also there’s been steady rotation with Reese and Thiebes at tackle as well. Dietrich / Weyer / Schmaing represent the solid veterans and will lead this O-line. Depth is “iffy” – should be interesting to see how they look come fall camp.
DE – Tyrone Holmes / Austin Chadderon
DE – Derek Crittenden / Tucker Schye
DT – Caleb Kidder / Jamaal Wilson
DT – Zach Peevey / Nate Bradley
It’s an interesting comparison of DT to DE. D-end is light on experience, Chadderon is a good speed rusher but rush defense isn’t there just yet. Schye is a converted MLB and looked good but I think some injuries slowed him in the 2nd half of spring. Ryan Johnson also in the mix at DE. Meanwhile DT is breaking in two new starters but Kidder, Peevey, and Bradley will all play a ton. Wilson has looked pretty good and there’s also Kyle Davis and Bo Harris that could contribute.
OLB – Herbert Gamboa / Connor Lebsock
OLB – Kendrick Van Ackeren / Addison Owen
MLB – Jeremiah Kose / Connor Strahm
Some changes to depth but otherwise the starting 3 stay intact. These guys are the heart and soul of the defense and will be relied upon for leadership and motivation this season. While it’s not a flashy bunch of guys our linebackers are hard workers, tough players, and will need to have the best season of their careers this year. Of this group I believe 5 are seniors with only Strahm returning next year. However there’s some emerging talent in the younger ranks. Watch for Buss, Vis, and Thomas to rise up in 2016.
CB – Nate Harris / Ryan McKinley
CB – JR Nelson / Markell Sanders
I would venture that Chris Parker could also be a CB we see a bit as well – him and Garner will probably pull a lot of ST duty. This group should be much more physical than starting groups of CBs we’ve seen in a while. McKinley had an incredible spring and Sanders showed his potential once returning from injury. I expect a lot of rotation. Nelson is one of the fastest guys on the team and has a bit of height to him as well, Harris is the long-time starter but missed most of camp with a bad ankle sprain.
S – Justin Whitted / Manu Rassmussen
S – Jake Dallaserra / Eric Johnson
It will be interesting to see how Whitted fares in fall camp once fully healthy. He missed spring camp as he recovered from a surgery. He’s the one experienced player of the group, he’s got great range, he’s quick, and he can hit hard. Manu Rassmussen is one of the more exciting young players I’ve seen in a long time. He looked ready to start this spring. Dallaserra is a hitter as well, kind of a quiet spring for the senior but I assume his job is safe. Johnson was kind of hot and cold this spring.
K – Dan Sullivan / Chris Lider
Don’t think much happened this spring to jostle up the kicker depth. Honestly I didn’t see a lot of kicking. Greenberg and Lider made their kicks in the 3rd scrimmage. Lider brings the interesting possibility of dual duties as punter as well.
P – Chris Lider / Stephen Shaw
This one is actually a toss-up and could be anyone’s job. Shaw looked to still be recovering from surgery (knee I think) and still has that slower wind-up/kick motion. Lider gets the ball away quicker and had some towering punts. The wind in the 3rd scrimmage wrecked both guys punts or made both look super human. Lider’s ability to do kickoffs might make him a more intriguing pick. A healthy Shaw (and maybe a little lighter too – overheard people wondering if he was an OT in the scrimmage) should make this position battle far more interesting in the fall.
KR – Ellis Henderson / Caleb Lyons
PR – John Nguyen / Ellis Henderson
Roll out the egriz bashers but I thought Nguyen showed the best potential as the PR. Stitt may just opt for Hendu to pull both duties which is just fine as well. Lyons had a few longer returns and I thought I’d mix it up – it very well could be Nguyen who is the other KR as well. It’s pretty obvious when needing a long return and a top-speed guy that Hendu is our man.
QB – Brady Gustafson / Eric Prater
Possibly the most “wide open” battle entering spring it appears to be about sewn up. Gus’s adaptation to this offense has been quite the fast process. His ability to improvise and build off the base system in the 3rd scrimmage is a great sign. Simis, Chalich, and Prater battling for depth at this point. Good news is we can RS Pflug as that dude is the future, really excited for him in 2017.
RB – John Nguyen / Lorenzo Logwood
Yes Favors and Counts could make this interesting come fall but both Nguyen and Logwood look ready for this offense. Neither are big “top speed” guys but they’re quick, hard to get a clean hit on, and protected the ball incredibly well the whole spring.
WR1 - Ellis Henderson / Reese Carlson
WR2 - Jamaal Jones / Josh Janssen
WR3 – Chase Naccarato / Caleb Lyons
WR4 – Ryan Burke / Zach Hollenbeck
This list is fluid, we’ve got at least one plus I’m hearing rumor on another transfer coming in, plus our huge freshman class of WRs. What’ll be interesting to see is how the new WRs that arrive impact this list. Stitt wants 8-10 WRs in the rotation, so all 8 of these guys plus also Nico Graham and Josh Horner who also made the roster could remain in the mix. I think the 4 starters of Hendu/Jones/Naccarato/Burke could be fairly locked in. Carlson had a great spring as did Lyons. Hollenbeck was the lone walk-on survivor of the freshman class that was mostly cut the other week. I’m expecting in fall camp we’ll see some movement with this depth chart
T – John Schmaing / Jared Clark
T – David Reese / Jackson Thiebes
G – Max Kelly / Clint LaRowe
G – Devon Dietrich / McCauley Todd
C – Ben Weyer / Robert Luke
There’s still some things up in the air with the O-line. Todd and Kelly appear to be close in the battle for the starting guard job, at this point Kelly holds it though. Also there’s been steady rotation with Reese and Thiebes at tackle as well. Dietrich / Weyer / Schmaing represent the solid veterans and will lead this O-line. Depth is “iffy” – should be interesting to see how they look come fall camp.
DE – Tyrone Holmes / Austin Chadderon
DE – Derek Crittenden / Tucker Schye
DT – Caleb Kidder / Jamaal Wilson
DT – Zach Peevey / Nate Bradley
It’s an interesting comparison of DT to DE. D-end is light on experience, Chadderon is a good speed rusher but rush defense isn’t there just yet. Schye is a converted MLB and looked good but I think some injuries slowed him in the 2nd half of spring. Ryan Johnson also in the mix at DE. Meanwhile DT is breaking in two new starters but Kidder, Peevey, and Bradley will all play a ton. Wilson has looked pretty good and there’s also Kyle Davis and Bo Harris that could contribute.
OLB – Herbert Gamboa / Connor Lebsock
OLB – Kendrick Van Ackeren / Addison Owen
MLB – Jeremiah Kose / Connor Strahm
Some changes to depth but otherwise the starting 3 stay intact. These guys are the heart and soul of the defense and will be relied upon for leadership and motivation this season. While it’s not a flashy bunch of guys our linebackers are hard workers, tough players, and will need to have the best season of their careers this year. Of this group I believe 5 are seniors with only Strahm returning next year. However there’s some emerging talent in the younger ranks. Watch for Buss, Vis, and Thomas to rise up in 2016.
CB – Nate Harris / Ryan McKinley
CB – JR Nelson / Markell Sanders
I would venture that Chris Parker could also be a CB we see a bit as well – him and Garner will probably pull a lot of ST duty. This group should be much more physical than starting groups of CBs we’ve seen in a while. McKinley had an incredible spring and Sanders showed his potential once returning from injury. I expect a lot of rotation. Nelson is one of the fastest guys on the team and has a bit of height to him as well, Harris is the long-time starter but missed most of camp with a bad ankle sprain.
S – Justin Whitted / Manu Rassmussen
S – Jake Dallaserra / Eric Johnson
It will be interesting to see how Whitted fares in fall camp once fully healthy. He missed spring camp as he recovered from a surgery. He’s the one experienced player of the group, he’s got great range, he’s quick, and he can hit hard. Manu Rassmussen is one of the more exciting young players I’ve seen in a long time. He looked ready to start this spring. Dallaserra is a hitter as well, kind of a quiet spring for the senior but I assume his job is safe. Johnson was kind of hot and cold this spring.
K – Dan Sullivan / Chris Lider
Don’t think much happened this spring to jostle up the kicker depth. Honestly I didn’t see a lot of kicking. Greenberg and Lider made their kicks in the 3rd scrimmage. Lider brings the interesting possibility of dual duties as punter as well.
P – Chris Lider / Stephen Shaw
This one is actually a toss-up and could be anyone’s job. Shaw looked to still be recovering from surgery (knee I think) and still has that slower wind-up/kick motion. Lider gets the ball away quicker and had some towering punts. The wind in the 3rd scrimmage wrecked both guys punts or made both look super human. Lider’s ability to do kickoffs might make him a more intriguing pick. A healthy Shaw (and maybe a little lighter too – overheard people wondering if he was an OT in the scrimmage) should make this position battle far more interesting in the fall.
KR – Ellis Henderson / Caleb Lyons
PR – John Nguyen / Ellis Henderson
Roll out the egriz bashers but I thought Nguyen showed the best potential as the PR. Stitt may just opt for Hendu to pull both duties which is just fine as well. Lyons had a few longer returns and I thought I’d mix it up – it very well could be Nguyen who is the other KR as well. It’s pretty obvious when needing a long return and a top-speed guy that Hendu is our man.
