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Since we have some time before our next game can we talk a little about next year and hopefully somene can talk me off the bridge. Looks like we will lose about 15-16 startes:
Offense: Lose the entire offensive line, tight end, quarterback, top 2 running backs, 2-3 receivers.
Defense: Lose half the defensive line, 3 of the top 4 linebackers, most of the scondary or at keast half.
I know there are some capable backups but how many? Certainly some talent we haven’t seen but how much?
Of course the big question marks will be quarterback and replacing the whole OL. The transfer portal certainly helped this year so that is an option. If we use the portal what are the likely positions that need and get help? On the surface it looks like we will go from very experienced this year to very inexperienced next year. Would appreciate any thoughts. TIA

So, to some degree, this would be the most "experienced" team in Furman's history. The addition of graduate programs and COVID eligibility allowed some guys to stick around the program a lot longer than they would have in prior eras. Furman, uniquely, I think, managed to retain a lot of those type of players.

Nationally, we alway knew that extra eligibility would eventually balance out. I think we've taken "normal" sized recruiting classes every season, so the roster will probably go from 120+ to something more akin to what it normally is, or at least has been for most of the program's history.

At the same time, graduating players doesn't mean we go to a completely inexperienced football team.

If there's a complete list of graduating seniors, I have not seen it. I do not want to speculate about what may or may not happen with players with eligibility. Some guys may get a medical waiver. Some may have stood for senior day but haven't really made up their mind yet. Some guys have eligibility and may not return because they are ready to move on.

Bottom line is our coaches have built a good program. There is going to be a next man up philosophy. Good football programs lose players every year and replace them with a talented guy who has been working while waiting for his turn. There's a whole crop of players on this roster that are going to be really good we haven't even really seen play yet.

I also think that Furman is going to be a desirable location for graduate transfers. We've seen Furman really use that to their advantage. So, if there is a gap on the roster, I think we can address it.

I'm not there YET to look into the crystal ball of 2024.

I obviously have a different lens than Apaladin. Looking at Furman sometimes and analyzing our future Furman teams, I'm sure our lens will differ.

I will say this. I believe in the program CCH and this staff have built. The foundation is there. In part, this is due to solid recruiting. Behind the scenes, how are these players developing? We have some hints based on Clay saying how good the scout teams are this year.

In closing, there are opportunities for players to earn substantial playing time next year. No doubt, this is playing a role in what appears to be a highly regarded incoming class.

AP, we still have this year!

AstroDin wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 21, 2023 7:40 am

I'm not there YET to look into the crystal ball of 2024.

I obviously have a different lens than Apaladin. Looking at Furman sometimes and analyzing our future Furman teams, I'm sure our lens will differ.

I will say this. I believe in the program CCH and this staff have built. The foundation is there. In part, this is due to solid recruiting. Behind the scenes, how are these players developing? We have some hints based on Clay saying how good the scout teams are this year.

In closing, there are opportunities for players to earn substantial playing time next year. No doubt, this is playing a role in what appears to be a highly regarded incoming class.

1. I think experience helps, but it as much program culture as anything, I think. Get the right people with the right mindset in the building.

2. Furman has shown that if you are the best player for the job, you'll play. It's not a seniority system. We have 42 seniors/grad students and are playing true freshmen at several spots. They are that talented.

3. Good programs have buy-in. They aren't one guy here or there. You look at programs like UGA and Alabama or SDSU or NDSU or Montana State and it's all "next man up." They lose guys every year (sometimes a lot of guys) and you generally can't tell year to year. The team looks largely the same every season.

apaladin wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 21, 2023 1:45 am

Would appreciate any thoughts. TIA

We have the entire offseason to think about this. Why worry about it now?

Furman Football is In Progress. Go Dins!

gman84 wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 21, 2023 9:05 am

AP, we still have this year!

Did I not say “since we have some time before the next game”?

apaladin wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 21, 2023 1:48 pm

gman84 wrote: ↑

Tue Nov 21, 2023 9:05 am

AP, we still have this year!

Did I not say “since we have some time before the next game”?

Yes you did, and my wink was an attempt to make light of my statement. Probably not the best emoji.

Lol, missed the winking emoji!

Long post warning.

Hope this answers some of your questions apaladin. I think there are some guys you are assuming are leaving who might have another year. I've tried to focus on the guys we expect to be back right now. Just my opinion on this. I spend a lot of time looking at recruiting stuff, so I'm always up for looking at the future. Hopefully Astro can add to this when he's ready.

Note: Several guys on the team are listed as redshirt seniors, so based on the covid year, I think they all have a year they can still use. I'm basing some of this off of that assumption.

I think we'll still be a pretty good football team, but I also think there will likely be some growing pains just because it's hard to replace the experience of some of the guys we could be losing. Thankfully, some of the less experienced guys who could be starting next year have already played a decent amount of football for Furman.

QB: This will always be a question mark when you lose a multi-year starter. I think it's good that Jones did get a few starts this year. Mixed results, but that's not unexpected with a young guy's first extended playing time and the pressure that goes along with that. I think you can infer from Jones's good throws that he has arm to be successful. It will come down to how quickly the recognition part of it comes along I suppose. I'll also be interested to see if he's used at all in the run game. I've not seen anything of Garcia except his HS tape, and I'm not sure it's ideal to have a true freshman (Hedden) getting a lot of playing time. Furman had to go that path several times in the last 15 years and it usually didn't work out well. I would not be opposed to bringing in a transfer QB but it would have to be a guy like Sluka. A bonafide starter looking for a 1 year stint.

RB: Based on the seriousness of Smith's injury, it's probably going to be Grant Robinson as the featured back next year. KT tested the portal last year, but he should be in line for more carries next year assuming he stays. Hicks has been such a good blocker for us and has run hard when he gets the ball so hopefully he stays as well. I've said it every week in the recruiting thread but I'm really excited to see Gavin Hall get on the field. He's producing at a high level at the highest level of GA football. I think he's going to be a really good player for us. That would give us 4 guys next year. The way this year has gone, not sure if they would look to bring a portal guy in here or not. That's assuming Smith isn't ready to go next year. If he is, then I doubt they bring anyone else in besides Hall.

WR: Assuming everyone returns, I think we'll be ok with Harris, Harris, Ferguson, Hinton, Hughes (?), Holbrook, and Hamilton (we have a lot of WR's with a last name that begins with H...). We're also bringing in two guys, Varvel and Hester (another H). I'm shocked we haven't seen a few more jump balls to Josh Harris this year. He's so good at going up and grabbing them when he's had the chance. I've heard the coaches are high on the guys we have there now, so I don't see a portal addition but who knows.

TE: This spot is interesting. Chappel played a lot as a true freshman, but with Pline and Gissinger moving on, we're going to have two guys who need to put on some weight in Tormey and Pryor. Not sure if Youngblood is coming back. Preferred walk-on Ruckh has the size but I haven't seen much of him. I wouldn't be surprised if we tried to grab another portal TE.

OL: Brasher, Hundley, Wilson, Petit, and Lamb should all be back and have started. Several of them have played a decent amount. Johanning, Hughes, and Toomey are all listed as RS seniors. I think they each could have 1 more year left. If all those guys came back our depth would be fine here I think. After that though, there isn't a lot of playing experience. Elliot will be a RS SR but from what I can tell he's never played a snap at CSU and he hasn't played this year according to the participation report. After that we'll have RS freshmen Balliew, Garner, and Luna and true freshmen Akinsola, O'Dell, and Gregory. If the 3 RS SRs don't/can't come back, then I think we may look for at least 1 guy in the portal.

DL: DE Jackson, DT Stanfield, and NG Stephens should all return. Barton is listed as a RS Sr so he might have another year? Returning at DE would be RS freshmen Bussey and Stoneking. Additional DT returners would be RS sophomore Dudek and RS freshman Vincent. Additional NG returners would be RS sophomore Harrison and RS freshman Hernandez. Incoming freshmen are Dobbins, Edwards, and Knauber. I like what I've seen from all of them but I really love watching Knauber's film. That guy seems relentless. Not really sure what they'll do here. If Barton isn't back, they might target a guy in the portal. Not sure.

BAN: Both Clark and Maier could return. In addition to them, RS freshman David Alabi returns. Dobbins or Edwards could possibly move here as well. If both Clark and Maier are back, we're absolutely fine here.

LB: Gilby moves on, but we should return DiMaggio and hopefully McCormick will be able to and want to return. If they're both back, our starters will be pretty good. In addition to them, Achina, Chiedo, Earl, and Herbert return. Not sure if the coaches will be looking for a portal guy here. May depend on if Scianna and Kuzemka have an extra year and return. I think there is a lot of potential here, so I don't foresee a portal addition.

CB: We could have both Yates and Robinson back which would give us two good starters. I think they've both upped their games this year and would feel good about this position with them both back. With that said, like several positions, there are some unknowns after them. Ingram has played some but not a ton. Dalton and Moson both have have a lot of potential but will have been relatively untested. Both played in the VMI game. Holmes is listed as a DB, so I'm not sure if the coaches see him here or at a safety position. There are 3 potential DBs committed currently: Den Johnson, Jordan Miller, and Fredrick Logan. Might bring in a portal guy here, but my guess is they roll with Yates, Robinson, and Ingram as the rotation unless one of them leaves.

FS: This is going to be an interesting spot. Ryan possibly has the 6th year he could use and would be huge if he returned. Jack Rhodes went from a RS sophomore last year to a Senior this year, which makes me think he's planning on leaving. Seth Johnson did something similar last year. AK Burrell would be next in line and has played some this year, but if both Ryan and Rhodes leave, this could be a spot for a portal guy. They may feel good about Burrell taking over though. Will still need another guy here for depth purposes.

SS: Like Ryan, I think Brinson might have a year left he could use? If he does leave, then I think Caleb Williams will likely slot in to start here. He's played the last two years and has looked pretty good. Tre Mcleod and Justin Hartwell would be the back ups here. I'd expect one of the true freshmen might slot in here as well.

K/P: All specialists will hopefully return so we should be ok here.

Lots of food for thought, FUwolfpacker. Thank you.

So for the TL;DR crowd. If we assume none of the seniors come back, yes we're going to be untested in a few spots, but we return more playing time/starters than you might think. If some of those guys come back, I think we're in a good spot.

Potential portal targets: (my opinion)
QB: maybe 1?
RB: 0
WR: 0
TE: at least 1
OL: maybe 1-2
DL: possibly 1
LB: 0 unless McCormick, Kuzemka, and Scianna all move on. Then likely 1
CB: 0
S: 0 but maybe 1 if Ryan, Rhodes, and Brinson all move on

Portal targets: 4-7 depending on who leaves. Over the last couple of years, this has been around the number we've targeted. 5 last year, 6 the year before.

Excellent post FUwolfpacker.
You're spot on for all positions.

One position change I've noticed: Dylan Chiedo appears to have moved position to Bandit. I am curious to know if this is permanent.

I wonder about running back; my gut tells me the DINS either bring in one more back (bigger back) or we bring in a guy from the portal. JGH is going to be a player.

AstroDin wrote: ↑

Wed Nov 22, 2023 9:58 am

Excellent post FUwolfpacker.
You're spot on for all positions.

One position change I've noticed: Dylan Chiedo appears to have moved position to Bandit. I am curious to know if this is permanent.

I wonder about running back; my gut tells me the DINS either bring in one more back (bigger back) or we bring in a guy from the portal. JGH is going to be a player.

Interesting about Chiedo. Still showing as LB on roster, but he has the size this staff seems to like at that bandit position.

RB could definitely be a position of high turnover and portal need. I hope everyone stays, but just speculating that we could see a guy jump into the portal which we would need to replace. Given our style of play, it wouldn't hurt to have another guy in Roberto's and Hick's mold. I see Hall a bit like Wayne Anderson. I don't know if he has the top end speed of Anderson but it's not far off. He's a good receiver and runner, plus he was a QB until this year so he's a bit of a swiss army knife. I have incredibly high hopes for him. He could end up being a bit like Dylan Laube at UNH where he does a little bit of everything.