Starting DL next year.. thoughts?

[gofurman]

Sticking with a theme...

Reid is a loss for sure.

I would think DE- Seabrook, NG- Stokes, DT- Tibbs and Hodge are the front runners?

Hanff, Sochovka, Landon Lawrence, London Lewis in rotation? Maybe Devonté Jones use the Redshirt 4 game rule?

Thoughts on starters / backups / rotation?

[soconjohn]

I thought they moved Tibbs to DE?

[Jasper]

Sticking with a theme...

Reid is a loss for sure.

I would think DE- Seabrook, NG- Stokes, DT- Tibbs and Hodge are the front runners?

Hanff, Sochovka, Landon Lawrence, London Lewis in rotation? Maybe Devonté Jones use the Redshirt 4 game rule?

Thoughts on starters / backups / rotation?

I think it's difficult to determine starters at this point. There is no question but that Parker Stokes, Matt Sochovka and Dru Seebrook had excellent springs and are certainly in the mix. Both Alex Hanff and London Lewis missed all of last season and we don't know how they will come back. Hanff was a starter and Lewis is a very imposing physical presence. Landon Lawrence seems to be better suited to DE as well. Cameron Coleman should also be in the mix at NG. Jonah Tibbs, last year's starter at DT was supposedly switched to DE but then played DT in the scrimmage. All in all, if everyone stays healthy it looks like a lot of depth and room for a good rotation.

[gofurman]

true.. I guess one way to answer is just who you see as the top 3/4 guys and then the next 3/4 guys in rotation.. just an offseason question and I realize there is a lot left to play out

[Flagman]

I'm hoping we won't have anyone on the disabled list on day 1.

[AstroDin]

I like Sochovka a lot. I like him in his limited play in 2018 and I really thought he played well in the spring scrimmage.

[FUBeAR]

Vs. today’s Offenses, FUBeAR is of the opinion that you really need 9 DLmen (3 of those MUST be able to play NG...any of those 3 could also be able to play DE, but GOTTA have 3 that can play Nose), in a 3-4 alignment, that can play, in order to be where you want to be. You need 6 that can darn near rotate interchangeably with almost no drop off from your #1’s to your #2’s. And, you need 3 more that you can plug in for spot play, as needed & for any injuries to your Top 6.

So...I think the important question(s) for this position group is not, “who are our 3 starters,” but instead are, “who are our Top 6,” “who are the 3 (of the Top 9 that can play NG) AND “who are the 3 that can give us some quality reps?”

FUBeAR has no idea of the correct answers to those 3 questions.

[gofurman]

Vs. today’s Offenses, FUBeAR is of the opinion that you really need 9 DLmen (3 of those MUST be able to play NG...any of those 3 could also be able to play DE, but GOTTA have 3 that can play Nose), in a 3-4 alignment, that can play, in order to be where you want to be. You need 6 that can darn near rotate interchangeably with almost no drop off from your #1’s to your #2’s. And, you need 3 more that you can plug in for spot play, as needed & for any injuries to your Top 6.

So...I think the important question(s) for this position group is not, “who are our 3 starters,” but instead are, “who are our Top 6,” “who are the 3 (of the Top 9 that can play NG) AND “who are the 3 that can give us some quality reps?”

FUBeAR has no idea of the correct answers to those 3 questions.

and thus my bromance on REID... NG extraordinaire

[AstroDin]

I love REID but he's no longer eligible. The good news Furman heavily rotated Stokes and Reid.

Stokes is the leading man in 2019, I'm excited to see what he does as the starter, I think Stokes plays a tad nastier. To Bear's point here's our depth per roster:

NG
Stokes
Coleman
DT
Hodge
Sochovka
Lewis
DE
Seabrook
Tibbs
Lawrence
Hanff
FRESHMEN
Jones* 6-2 307, is listed as DL my guess is Jones size and athletic ability allow him to play at NG or DT.
Barton* 6-4 225, played DE and some DT in high school. Is listed on the roster as DL. Barton needs to add weight and I have no doubt he will bloom into a 245 - 250-pound player. I still think he's a DE.
Clark* 6-2 230, was a late pickup, not sure if he's PWO or a scholarship, my guess is he redshirts and develops.

The list above is impressive - but - Bear's point is a great one. Looking at the depth - I think Jones comes in and plays as a true freshman. He can rotate at NG and at DT. We need Lewis to finally see the field I hope he gets the medical approval. Furman is loaded at DE all four of those players can disrupt.

The other position worth noting here - and - as several others have noted BANDIT is loaded but with some questions. Will HOPE start or be a specialist? Davonta Porter has developed into a 6-2 225 player. I've thought for the last two years Porter hasn't been fully used to the Dins advantage. The move to Bandit is IMO perfect and a great bookend with Hope. Dillon Vann is another player that for several reasons has moved positions and is now back at a more natural fit.

One more thought if things get wonky - injuries - or something else the coaches could take a look at Jacob Johanning. Johanning started both ways for St. Joe's as well as he started both ways in the North/South game and was the leading tackler for the north.

[gofurman]

To FUBeAR’s point. We are gaining depth and quality w each class ! I am impressed w each successive recruiting class. However, The one place we are still a little thin on DL is at NG which is probably most important. As Bear says the NG needs to free up LBs. I too suspect Jones will either play as a Fr or at least play 4 games and keep redshirt

[The Jackal]

Also to be seen is how often we rotate players. Staggs rotated guys a bunch. I imagine Vaughn will too.

[The Jackal]

Also, while technically listed as a 3-4, we do a bunch of different things defensively. Last season, we had various packages for a number of situations. Sometimes we had defenders hovering around the line with no one really in any position.

Here's an example of that on a big play that snuffed out a late UTC drive.

I realize the differences between defenses can be slight, but this does not much resemble a "3-4" defense. I cannot read everyone's number, but I count what looks like 6 defensive backs. The only linebacker is Porter (37), who at that time was still a hybrid safety. Hope is on the line and appears to be shaded just outside the RT.

Up front, it looks like Seabrook, Stokes, Hodge, and Hope. We often used those guys in pass rush situations. That's technically 3-man front (by titles and positions), but the "NG" (Stokes, I guess) isn't lined up over the center. The pre-snap look appears to far more closely resemble a 4-man front than a 3-man front with two DEs and two DTs.

I wouldn't get too wrapped up in position titles and who plays where. The game situation dictates what we do defensively, and we are really creative on that side of the ball. We move in and out of defensive looks all game long.

[soconjohn]

So the top three would be...Tibbs, Stokes and Seabrook...Next three would be Hodge, Lewis and Coleman.

[soconjohn]

One thing to watch is I expect for Hope to line up at DE some this season...And we forget Dillon Vann’s athleticism, too, as he could factor in at times along the DL...I think coach Vaughn, having been the OLB coach last year, will do some tinkering with putting Hope and Vann at DE in certain situations...We shall see, as it is just a guess on my part, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all.

[The Jackal]

One thing to watch is I expect for Hope to line up at DE some this season...And we forget Dillon Vann’s athleticism, too, as he could factor in at times along the DL...I think coach Vaughn, having been the OLB coach last year, will do some tinkering with putting Hope and Vann at DE in certain situations...We shall see, as it is just a guess on my part, but it wouldn’t surprise me at all.

I mean, I guess we get into semantics. In a 3-4 defense, the DE usually covers the OT in some capacity. In a 4-3, the DE is generally with his hand on the ground shaded outside shoulder of the OT/TE.

Furman's Bandit position is a bit of a hybrid mix of a 3-4 OLB and a 4-3 DE. They play in a two-point stance like a linebacker, but don't seem to have much responsibility in pass coverage.

I'll be the first to tell you, though, that some of the distinction between those positions is pretty fine. In that video above against UTC, Hope is on his feet, but shaded on the OT in an even man front. That's a DE in a lot of defensive schemes.