It’s all about the quarterback and the offensive line for the ‘Dores. Larry Smith only completed 47 percent of his passes last year with six touchdowns and five ints. The question is, can the senior get it done his last season? He’s shown a propensity to get nervous in the pocket and make bad decisions. His olines have not been that good in the past and not sure how good they’ll be this year. Have nine on the roster and four coming in. There are actually some pretty good players on the line though just not a lot of depth. Wesley Johnson (6’5″, 285) will be a stellar player at tackle. Logan Stewart (6’4″, 290) should be a pretty good center. Caleb Welchans (6’5″, 3oo tackle) and Jabo Burrow (6’4″, 290) should be good players as well. Ryan Seymour (6’4″, 305) is another. Mylon Brown (6’4″, 310) should be a good player as should Andrew Bridges (6’6″, 265) though he needs to gain some weight. Offensive guard/tackle Kyle Fischer (6’6″ 310), a senior, could be in the NFL in 2012. He’s an impact player. If Smith gets some protection, he can be pretty good. In the spring game he made some nice throws and the offense looked more suited to his strengths, which is throwing the quick passes to the receivers and throwing the deep ball some.
He has some good receivers this year. Jordan Matthews is a 6’3″ target who caught 15 passes and four tds as a frosh. He could have a breakout year. Jonathan Krause is another guy who could really shine this year. He’s a speedster and caught 24 passes for 243 last year and ran it six times for 121 yards and two tds on reverses. Chris Boyd, Brady Brown and veterans Udom Umoh and John Cole should supply some punch on the outside as well.
There are some good running backs in Warren Norman (5’10”, 200) and Zac Stacy (5’9″,210). Both guys can break it and are pretty tough if they can get some holes. Norman was hurt in the spring but will be back in the fall. Again it’s about the offensive line. Can they perform. Wesley Tate is a little bigger back at 6’3″, 225 and he gives the running game a power dimension with some speed, too. They need a couple more to step up with the way backs get injuried in the SEC. There are a couple of frosh coming in whom they’re high on so maybe they can add some depth.
Tight end is pretty solid with senior Brandon Barden back. He caught 34 passes for 425 yards and three tds last year and had a good year the year before. Has some pretty solid depth and two heralded freshmen coming in.
The offense has not been good for a while now, so the coaching staff really needs to figure out a way to move the ball and score on offense. They need to be pretty creative, but I think James Franklin, the first year coach, and his staff are. His offensive line coach, Herb Hand, is excellent.
Defense looked sharp in the spring game. New defensive coordinator Bob Shoop has brought a toughness to this defense. They were hitting harder, going after the ball and making plays on defense.
The secondary should be high caliber. Casey Hayward (6’0″, 185) is coming back for his senior year at cornerback after intercepting six passes last year. He’s one of the top corners in the conference. He looks like he’ll be on an NFL roster in 2012. At the other corner, Trey Wilson (6’0″,190) looks like he’ll still be fighting for the job with Eddie Foster (5’10”, 175) come August. Andre Hal (6’0″, 185 though I think he’s bigger now) and Kenny Ladler (6’1″, 205) look like excellent players at safety. Incumbent Sean Richardson (6’2″, 215) might have his work cut out for him to make the starting lineup. Those two can really play.
The Dline is 10 deep according to Shoop. Colt Nichter (6’2″, 290 dt) had an excellent spring. T.J. Greenstone (6’3″, 285) should be a beast as should redshirt freshman Kyle Woestmann at defensive end. Walker May (6’5″, 235) and Tim Fugger (6’4″, 255) should be good bookends on pass rushing situations. And there is good depth there.
Linebacker has some good players but is very thin. All-SEC performer Chris Marve (6’0″, 235) is back. He plays the run very well, but needs to work on his coverage skills. Guys like DeAndre Jones and Tristan Strong look promising as does Chase Garnham. Archibald Barnes looks OK. They need to stay healthy for sure.
Punting and kicking game fine with Richard Kent a pretty good punter and either Ryan Fowler or Carey Spear handling place kicking duties. Spear looks ahead there. Return game on kickoffs should be excellent with guys like Norman, Stacey, Eric Samuels and Wilson returning kicks. Need to get better in their punt return game though.
James Franklin has come in with a lot of energy and passion and has his team jacked up. It’s kind of a rebuilding job and there will be depth issues this year and Larry Smith is a question mark, but there are some good players on the roster. Jordan Rodgers, Aaron Rodgers’ little brother, is trying to compete for the job but he’s been hurt, so Smith is pretty far ahead of him. It’s probably Smith’s job to lose, but Rodgers is a talent. There are some freshmen qbs coming in, two who have good reputations and were high quality recruits. Don’t think they’ll start, but if Smith falters and Rodgers can’t get the job done, these guys could be in the mix.
The Schedule:
It’s a meat grinder, as my friend coach Chris Yeager of Mountain Brook, says. Elon, UConn and Ole Miss at home; potentially three wins, but no guarantee by any means. Vandy loses games some times there supposed to win and they won’t be favored against Ole Miss, but they’ve beaten Ole Miss three times over the last five years, so it should be a highly competitive game. UConn could be tough, too. They blasted the doors last year at Stoors. Don’t know much about Elon. At South Carolina (played SC tough the last four years and beaten them twice) and at Alabama (loss there). Georgia at home, Army at home, Arkansas at home. At Florida, home against Kentucky, at UT and at Wake.
Five wins would be a successful season and six victories and a bowl game would be outstanding. Got some games at home that they can win, but it’s just a tough league to play in for a school that has such high academic standards. But there are some good players and the new coaching staff has put a new life in these players. They’ve just got to believe they can win.
Next: Tennessee
(James Franklin is trying to change the culture at Vanderbilt.)