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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 16, 2023 17:46:58 GMT -5
While I enjoy as much as anyone reminiscing about events that occurred decades ago and projecting several years ahead, I do know many here would like start to focus on what’s right in front of us! We have a team returning that is absolutely stacked on offense and while returning some key pieces on Defense; has a whole lot of unanswered questions and unproven players. So, for those of us counting down the days, we are ~1 month till the start of Spring Practice (week of March 13). Here is what I have for the likely 2-deep for spring ball highlighting where I think some of the biggest questions and position battles will be over March and April.
Offense:
QB Sluka / Joe P
RB Fuller / Purdy
WR 1 Coker
WR 2 Shorter
WR 3/4 Shipman, D Thomas, Gregory, Youngblood - this by far the most open competition on offense. If you are a top 4 WR in our O, you are going to get a lot of snaps. Who emerges? A healthy Shipman is the favorite for #3. Can Dom T stay healthy? Both Gregory and Youngblood are similar in style to Gilliam and likely in direct comp with each other.
TE - Morris / Lane **Petersen still rehabbing
LT - Newman / Declan Mac
LG - Schon / Metzger
C - C Kelly / Declan Mac - Declan looks to be our utility OL this season and to plug in wherever needed
RG - Hanson / Daddona
RT McNair / Cachon OR Eldridge - both Underclassman tackles will get a lot of reps with **Pat McMurty still recovering. Pat obviously starter when healthy come fall if all goes well.
Defense:
DE - BV / Osa
DT - Springer / Dyer
DT - Williams / Boobie OR Danolds
DE - Ross / Reynolds OR Townsend - both will also get a ton of reps with Ross limited this spring. However, I believe Ross will start come fall if no setbacks.
LB - Dobbs* / Monte - Dobbs likely no full contact reps so lots of reps for Frankie with the 1’s.
LB - Bolden / Kane OR Boyer (nice battle with these 2 and both will see lots of reps)
CB - Haskins / Duchemin
SS - Ruane / Kreimer OR H Kelly
FS - Jarmo / Raiger
WS - Harris-Lopez / J Wood
CB - Spence / Scott - Kam Molten still rehabbing and will miss spring.
***Incoming freshman. IMHO the positions most likely to see a freshman on the 2-deep post fall camp are DE, at least 1 Safety, maybe 2 and 3 unlikely but plausible, LB, OL, WR.
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Post by dharry13 on Feb 16, 2023 17:59:54 GMT -5
This is great insight Midwest and from my standpoint spot on
I do have personal opinions on Frosh possibly on the two deep which we’ve discussed.
A few dates: Junior prospect days: March 18, March 25, April 1
Summer start date: June 4th
Not sure on exact Spring FB dates but should start the week of March 13th and roughly span 1 month encompassing 15 practices - including the Spring Game.
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Post by breezy on Feb 16, 2023 19:41:36 GMT -5
Very interesting -- thanks!
One of the downsides of having 5th year players (not complaining about that) is that the younger players get less playing time and thus we don't really get to see what they can do.
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Post by KY Crusader 75 on Feb 16, 2023 19:59:17 GMT -5
Great recap--very helpful as we look forward to Spring practice and going for the 5th PL championship in the Fall.
I'm hoping to see what Sammy Slade can do at RB as well as the two fine runners Fuller and Purdy who may be ahead of him
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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 16, 2023 20:49:55 GMT -5
Very interesting -- thanks! One of the downsides of having 5th year players (not complaining about that) is that the younger players get less playing time and thus we don't really get to see what they can do. I might add some nuance to this Breezy. Underclassman get a ton of looks and PT opportunities in practice. The 5th year returnees can be a window into the coaches assessment. I’ll use TE as an example. Morris being invited back as a likely full ride player (coaches are weighting the trade-off of getting that money back for the upcoming season) means that with Petersen coming off injury, none of the underclassman TEs are likely ready to contribute by fall. And per KY’s comments, same goes for RB. IMO, Slade would occupy the same lane as Purdy (not an every down RB but a guy with niche skills you want to get 6-10 touches a game) By asking him back there is something in Purdy’s game that Slade doesn’t completely possess yet. |
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Post by KY Crusader 75 on Feb 16, 2023 20:55:35 GMT -5
Purdy has had some success catching passes downfield I think
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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 16, 2023 21:31:02 GMT -5
Very much so. 15 receptions for 257 yards (17 yd avg) with 3 TDs between ‘21 and ‘22. Purdy has exceptional hands for a RB and most definitely a weapon in the pass game.
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Post by HC92 on Feb 16, 2023 21:38:34 GMT -5
I think we probably believe next year could be our best chance to win a national championship. If so, I’d expect the staff to take any advantage they can at any position. In many cases, a fifth year senior is going to give you an advantage over a true soph and I would expect us to keep those 5th year seniors wherever we can even if the sophs will eventually be really good.
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Post by football44 on Feb 17, 2023 6:01:12 GMT -5
Great recap--very helpful as we look forward to Spring practice and going for the 5th PL championship in the Fall. I'm hoping to see what Sammy Slade can do at RB as well as the two fine runners Fuller and Purdy who may be ahead of him I’m with you on Sammy Slade. A much different type of back. Fast and very shifty. Everyone keep your eyes on incoming freshman JC Clearveaux. Quick powerful back that played at Williston but played on 4 Everett high school state championship teams. Should be fun to watch. |
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Post by hc6774 on Feb 17, 2023 7:29:21 GMT -5
Very interesting -- thanks! One of the downsides of having 5th year players (not complaining about that) is that the younger players get less playing time and thus we don't really get to see what they can do. I might add some nuance to this Breezy. Underclassman get a ton of looks and PT opportunities in practice. The 5th year returnees can be a window into the coaches assessment. I’ll use TE as an example. Morris being invited back as a likely full ride player (coaches are weighting the trade-off of getting that money back for the upcoming season) means that with Petersen coming off injury, none of the underclassman TEs are likely ready to contribute by fall. And per KY’s comments, same goes for RB. IMO, Slade would occupy the same lane as Purdy (not an every down RB but a guy with niche skills you want to get 6-10 touches a game) By asking him back there is something in Purdy’s game that Slade doesn’t completely possess yet. re 5th years' participation in spring practice are they a mix of spring semester enrolled & unenrolled, depending on their academic program? |
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Post by hc4life on Feb 17, 2023 8:02:08 GMT -5
All 5th years are enrolled in Spring Semester...
As far as the TE position having Morris back is key as he and Petersen provide different strengths. Petersen is an excellent vertical threat and will open up more of the field where as Morris is a very good blocker and good pass threat as well. Dickson really emerged last year as well and will certainly provide quality depth as well
As far as the team goes, How fortunate are we that we have 5 legit All Americans returning in Dobbs, Sluka, Coker, Newman & Haskins. Having the leaders of your offense and defense both back is such a huge boost.
Need some young guys to really take a big step on D particularly upfront and in the Secondary but I think the talent is there just need to continue the strong winter and have a strong Spring practice.
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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 17, 2023 10:54:49 GMT -5
Great recap--very helpful as we look forward to Spring practice and going for the 5th PL championship in the Fall. I'm hoping to see what Sammy Slade can do at RB as well as the two fine runners Fuller and Purdy who may be ahead of him I’m with you on Sammy Slade. A much different type of back. Fast and very shifty. Everyone keep your eyes on incoming freshman JC Clearveaux. Quick powerful back that played at Williston but played on 4 Everett high school state championship teams. Should be fun to watch. Having watched nearly every 23’ commit on film, I would say JC is one of the top 3-4 most college ready players in this class…which is saying something. RB will be deep with lots of competition. |
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Post by hcnj on Feb 18, 2023 12:54:28 GMT -5
To me Jayden looks like his game is between Slade and Fuller, he's got size and strength to hit holes and good acceleration if he gets a seam. I'm not sure Sluka will have to run quite as much next year unless someone shuts down our backs.
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Post by dharry13 on Feb 18, 2023 14:46:13 GMT -5
IMO have to throw to RBs and TE more - esp Peterson.
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Post by efg72 on Feb 18, 2023 19:59:48 GMT -5
While we are deep at TE Petitta just might be ready and talented enough for time
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Post by efg72 on Feb 18, 2023 20:01:26 GMT -5
I think we probably believe next year could be our best chance to win a national championship. If so, I’d expect the staff to take any advantage they can at any position. In many cases, a fifth year senior is going to give you an advantage over a true soph and I would expect us to keep those 5th year seniors wherever we can even if the sophs will eventually be really good. I think the best chance so far, but we will get better each year |
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Post by hcnj on Feb 18, 2023 20:46:22 GMT -5
IMO have to throw to RBs and TE more - esp Peterson. First, someone has to make the decision to throw more to them, esp TE. This staff has always erred on the side of blocking over catching with TE's. And so unless Pederson can block he won't be out there a lot. I haven't seen him enough to know if he can block like Morris. The earlier comment about Dickinson's change and emergence as a TE tells me that we haven't yet decided to open up the TE passing game. |
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Post by newadvisor on Feb 19, 2023 0:03:43 GMT -5
IMO have to throw to RBs and TE more - esp Peterson. First, someone has to make the decision to throw more to them, esp TE. This staff has always erred on the side of blocking over catching with TE's. And so unless Pederson can block he won't be out there a lot. I haven't seen him enough to know if he can block like Morris. The earlier comment about Dickinson's change and emergence as a TE tells me that we haven't yet decided to open up the TE passing game. I think with 2 healthy TE’s we will see the passing game involve them more. Morris was playing through some pretty serious issues last year as well as loosing Petersen 2 weeks before the first game set us back. Every great QB has a TE that becomes their security blanket. DL is what concerns me the most, generally most games are won upfront. Its gonna be exciting to see which guys step up to the plate. |
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Post by joutsHC77 on Feb 19, 2023 11:28:05 GMT -5
As long as I can remember, HC has never used their TEs effectively in the passing game. We had a 6’7” TE from Minnesota in the past, 10 years or so ago, who had rave reviews but we hardly ever threw to him except in occasional goal line situations.
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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 19, 2023 12:04:49 GMT -5
Joutshc got me thinking so I did a bit of due diligence. HC has had 3 All Patriot TEs since 2000 pre Sean Morris. Here are their receiving stats for that season.
2005 - Luke Dugan (6’5) - 28 receptions 373 yds (13.3 avg) 4 TDs
2008 - Ryan McGuire (6’4) - 30 receptions 343 yds (11.5 avg) 4 TDs
2009 - Alex Schneider (6’7) - 33 receptions 275 yds (8.3 avg) 6 TDs
*both Dugan and Schneider were from MN!
DHarry has said he thinks it would be criminal for a healthy Petersen not to have at least 30 catches this year and those benchmarks seem to make that a very reasonable standard. Conversely, Petersen could end up like the last two TEs we had that both had phenomenal size and good athleticism (Lucas Nikolaisen and Derek Mountain - both 6’5) that rarely had many chances to show their potential.
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Post by nycrusader2010 on Feb 19, 2023 12:30:42 GMT -5
Schneider also didn't develop much beyond his freshman year IIRC.
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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 19, 2023 14:19:00 GMT -5
Soph year NY but yes YRC.
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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 19, 2023 14:26:37 GMT -5
First, someone has to make the decision to throw more to them, esp TE. This staff has always erred on the side of blocking over catching with TE's. And so unless Pederson can block he won't be out there a lot. I haven't seen him enough to know if he can block like Morris. The earlier comment about Dickinson's change and emergence as a TE tells me that we haven't yet decided to open up the TE passing game. I think with 2 healthy TE’s we will see the passing game involve them more. Morris was playing through some pretty serious issues last year as well as loosing Petersen 2 weeks before the first game set us back. Every great QB has a TE that becomes their security blanket. DL is what concerns me the most, generally most games are won upfront. Its gonna be exciting to see which guys step up to the plate. I second newadvisor in that my number one concern heading into next season is DL and esp DE. Some of you might remember I was on the record last year submitting that Dobbs and Anderson were not as likely to have the same production numbers (TFLs and sacks) without Modak and Cedeno. We only got 3.5 games with Dobbs but one can extrapolate from that sample set if they so desire. I’ll just say I’m even more concerned with the loss of Kuz and Reich. The optionality both these guys allowed the coaches was immense. One of the reasons I think we will run more 4 man fronts next vs 3 man is because we just don’t have two guys that can line up in 3 different techniques like they could. Now, I will say closely watching BV, he was much more comfortable and productive in the 4 man fronts (with Kuz/Reich playing a hybrid DT) that we ran a majority of the time vs UNH and SDSU. I think his game is much more suited for a 4 man. Ross, Reynolds and others will have to be in the process of just amazing offseasons to give us a chance against the better O-lines we are going to face. The arrival of freshman Will Robinson should provide immediate depth as I think he and LB Drew Spin are 1A and 1B for most college ready from Day 1. |
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Post by hcnj on Feb 19, 2023 14:26:51 GMT -5
05, that's my point about Peterson if he can't block close to Morris he might not have the opportunity to catch 30+, also Morris, on the occasions he's thrown to, seems to be able to catch the ball. The "don't throw to the TE" syndrome has been at HC for a very long time but I've limited my comments to the only relevant period which is now.
My feeling about the DL is that we're ok, not in "great" shape. I hope Santiago is in the scrum for significant PT this spring. The interior DL recruit from NJ may push in the fall. Same thing with ends but I'm hoping Ross is healthy plus a push in the fall from Robinson. DB was my biggest concern, the staff did a great job getting Wood and bringing a lot of high potential candidates to push. I know the refrain about the freshmen but this class is not the same IMO.
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Post by midwestsader05 on Feb 19, 2023 14:40:07 GMT -5
NJ, looks we were posting at the same time and got crossed up.
DB is my second biggest concern but I think returning Haskins and Spence does provide some good continuity. Plus I think Harris-Lopez is a step up athletically from Argys. However, Argys was always in the right position even if he didn’t always make the play. Our DBs had very few busted coverages even if they got beat one on one with solid coverage vs better QBs and receivers. Prince, Reynolds and J Smith just had so much experience that their in-game IQ, pre-snap adjustments etc were so good. That’s where I think we will see the biggest drop off at Safety simply from a lack of experience.
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