For me IMHO.....
Offense: getting Bo Williams, Schwartz and Money along with Beshears will really elevate an already decent offense. I think there should be a move on offense - i think Hamilton should gain about 20 pounds of muscle and he would be a serious TE option. For whatever reason, he just has not seemed the player he was evolving into last year. Seems slower, and less motivated, maybe the competition at every position is not to his liking.
Let's see, you say he's slowed down because he's put on some additional weight--and you want him to put on twenty more?!! I think tight end is fine next season, with Franklin and Catlett--and Marquis will be a senior.
I'd be more worried about the hole where Doug Dedrick is graduating--or maybe center, where Mike Knapp can't seem to stay healthy.
LB in my opinion is not the most evident problem. Considering our incoming class of Moseby and Klein, and existing youth of Hamlin, Ferguson, Bell, Moser the LB position has players, not sure if Marry is that big of an upgrade.
Marry would be an
immense upgrade--in the middle. Klein is the only other real possibility--in which case Marry would contend with (or succeed) Cam Bell on the strongside. Most importantly, Smith, Schmidgall, Raven and Garrin
all graduate next season.
However, i've been preaching about our DL since last year. I still hate to think about losing DJ Marshall, that guy was the rush end we desperately need. We have Cleyon Laing, and Jake McDonough redshirting i think so that will help.
McDonough is now a defensive tackle. Laing a stronside end. Maggit was a trade for Marshall--he got the scholly D.J. would have gotten.
IMHO the one area on our defense that has been whipped all year is the DL.
You missed the
gaping holes the secondary has left?!!
Hopefully, Maggitt can add about 25 pounds of muscle and be a force like Charles Haley did around the 245 pd mark.
You do realize that Haley was 6-5, not 6-2. For Maggitt, I'd be more hoping for a Berryman--like performance (
on the field), as Jason was listed as 6-2 210 as a freshman--and turned into a terror.
We need pressure on the QB, that changes everything about our defense. We currently have very little pressure, and against the Big 12, that means a lot of yards and touchdowns.
The "lack of pressure" hurts, but we aren't entirely without a pass rush. No, the blown coverages, and poor safety play have been a much, much bigger reason for all of the long passing plays. the pass rush means nothing when a guy is completely uncovered downfield.
So for me, i'm going out on a limb and saying we have the guys that will get pressure from the edges as long as they don't have double teams.
Right now I'm more worried about the gaping hole at strongside end, where not one, not two, but all three seniors in the three deep graduate.
Only way to ensure the DE is iso'd is get a stud or two in the middle - our weakness this year and strength last year with Curvey.
First off, Curvey graduated two years ago. Secondly, the rush defense is actually improved this season.
I'm going to throw out a couple of names nobodies ever heard of, but, i think for what were trying to do on defense, they will make the biggest immediate difference.
I think that perhaps you have some misapprehensions as to just what Gene Chizik is trying to do on defense. Indeed, you seem to be defining things the way
you think they should work, not the way Chizik and Bolt are doing it.
Right now our position of biggest need is the Interior DL. Right now our guys are not big enough to stand up to the double teams they face and were manhandled in the trenches, thus exposing the LB's and DB's.
You're entirely mistaken here. Chizik's defense uses quick, penetrating tackles. Just the same as OU does--I believe that the name "Tommy Harris" should ring a few bells, and Gerald McCoy is no 300+ pounder, either.
That's entirely aside from the fact that Chizik himself has said that the problem with the rush defense is
experience at the tackles--or lack thereof. Before this season, even the upperclassmen had played very little at all. And the younger players have been hurt. There's a reason he's said that he's only recruiting one defensive tackle, and all indications are that that won't be a juco. Let alone an immense one.
And Chizik is correct about experence (and health) being a factor, as we have seen Nate Frere really beginning to emerge the last couple of weeks.
Getting Johnson, Black and Alburtis entirely healthy will be important, but I think with those guys, Frere and Ruempolhamer, and the addition of McDonough and a signee, we have a very nice core of returning players at DT. Especialy for what Chizik is trying to do.
To me, right now, Marry, Carpenter and Money are the most critical recruits, with additional youngsters at defensive end a necessity, due to graduation the next couple of seasons. Well, youth across the board, of course.
