Looks like the Paladin secondary has already had some success against this Golden Eagle QB…
https://www.gpb.org/blogs/gpb-sports-b ... at-roswell “Milton’s Jack Rhodes intercepted a fourth-down pass to turn away a last-minute Roswell comeback and give the Eagles a 16-12 win in the 65th renewal of North Fulton’s oldest rivalry. Roswell had driven to the 19 and faced fourth-and-8 when Rhodes picked off Ethan Roberts pass to secure the win. ”
That said…we better watch out for a former Roswell Hornet…they are known to STING ‘EM!
When I saw where Roberts was from I knew you’d have something to say! Everything I’ve seen from the preseason indicates he’s done very well so we’ll see what happens!
Was the JC kid the same guy TTU told they couldn’t get him enrolled or was that a different guy?
Not a lot of college game experience for any of them, so hopefully Furman’s front can make life tough for them for a few hours.
Will Furman have a live band and food trucks in the Fan Zone this year? I haven't seen anything listed about that. If so, I would like to know which food trucks will be there for each game. If not, I need to make food plans. We really have enjoyed the Fan Zone the last couple of years but would like to know before each game what, if anything, will be available.
Go Paladins! I am so excited about this season!
In case you haven’t seen it, Fan Zone opens at 4PM with a live band(Commodore Fox) and Food Trucks but they are unannounced. I think it’s a secret!
Seems like they are bigger across both lines than last time. Looks like Ethan Roberts wins the starting QB job but the JC transfer is listed as “or” so we may see both.
With a new/inexperienced QB starting, bigger OL, and addition of Marcus Knight. I would not be surprised to see a similar game plan to what Mercer rolled out. Heavy dose of run with some safe throws early and a few deep balls here and there if the right match up presents itself.
Looks like the Paladin secondary has already had some success against this Golden Eagle QB…
https://www.gpb.org/blogs/gpb-sports-b ... at-roswell “Milton’s Jack Rhodes intercepted a fourth-down pass to turn away a last-minute Roswell comeback and give the Eagles a 16-12 win in the 65th renewal of North Fulton’s oldest rivalry. Roswell had driven to the 19 and faced fourth-and-8 when Rhodes picked off Ethan Roberts pass to secure the win. ”
That said…we better watch out for a former Roswell Hornet…they are known to STING ‘EM!
Ivan Yates would have been on that Roswell team too, so we have a Hornet of our own
Looking at the TTU game notes again, I noticed they list themselves as a 4 man front (4-2-5). I don't know if Furman saw more than 1-2 of those last year. Most SoCon teams list themselves as some sore of version of a 3-4 or 3-3-5 I think. I think Clemson and UIW were the only true 4 man fronts we faced last year. I know some of these D's have the option to bring that hybrid guy down to act like a 4th man along the line, but I'm talking about how they list it in the game notes.
Granted, Clemson and UIW were 2 of the best teams we faced all year, but we didn't run the ball particularly well against either of them. Getting behind early against UIW probably had something to do with that in that game. TTU isn't likely to be as tough up front as those two teams but it will be interesting to see if we have any difficulty running against that front.
It's probably nothing, but it is something relatively unique compared to what we see week in and week out in the SoCon at this point.
Looking at the TTU game notes again, I noticed they list themselves as a 4 man front (4-2-5). I don't know if Furman saw more than 1-2 of those last year. Most SoCon teams list themselves as some sore of version of a 3-4 or 3-3-5 I think. I think Clemson and UIW were the only true 4 man fronts we faced last year. I know some of these D's have the option to bring that hybrid guy down to act like a 4th man along the line, but I'm talking about how they list it in the game notes.
Granted, Clemson and UIW were 2 of the best teams we faced all year, but we didn't run the ball particularly well against either of them. Getting behind early against UIW probably had something to do with that in that game. TTU isn't likely to be as tough up front as those two teams but it will be interesting to see if we have any difficulty running against that front.
It's probably nothing, but it is something relatively unique compared to what we see week in and week out in the SoCon at this point.
Couple of thoughts on that.
I think we do see some of that alignment and can replicate it in practice. Furman may even technically start out in a 4-2-5, which is essentially what we do with Cally Chizik.
From what I can see, TTU's defensive ends (at least last year) are your typical hand-on-the ground bookends.
They'll be asked to rush the passer and keep outside contain. It appears (at least on the Lindenwood film) that they'll line up either head up on the TE or outside the OT.
I think there are a couple advantages for Furman here.
1. The 4-2-5 works well to defend modern spread offenses. It's not as helpful stopping a big physical run game.
2. Furman has a bis size advantage on the edge. The two TTU DEs are listed at 232 and 246, so they're significantly smaller than whomever we will line up across from them at OT or TE. They'll be giving away a lot of beef.
3. Roper likes to manipulate the defensive alignment with formation. If they are going to stick in a 4-2-5, I would expect to see some trips formations and then weak side runs - basically forcing TTU to put their extra man on the side of the field we aren't running to. At that point, it's time to see who the better man is in the run game.
One other advantage there is our QB is essentially a big running back on a lot of our play calls. So, that weakside run where Huff keeps it and the RB lead blocks is an automatic numbers advantage.
4. The RPO is going to be an issue for them. I have to think TTU is going to be coming hard against the run knowing they can ill afford to let us pound away inside the tackles. Furman's gotten pretty good at that RPO with Huff. I would expect those linebackers to be reading downhill quickly and Furman can take advantage of that.
I suppose this tells me they’ve been injured all camp and Furman has had plenty of time to prepare for their absence.
Hope to see both back soon
That good for prep time but man I hope they are back in a week or so. Mercer etc !,, Plus that really hurts our shot at USC et. Dam
Please get healthy guys ,!
The two guys on the depth chart at weak side linebacker are Sciana and Kuzemka, are both redshirt seniors with 65 games and 22 starts between them. So, it's not like the backups are guys that don't know what they are doing out there.
Johanning is replaced by Luke Petit, who is less experienced, but from all the write-ups would have played extensively last year but for an injury. He should be fine in that spot.
It's really more Johanning that concerns me. Ill explain. One he is probably the BEST OL we have. That's huge.. Full stop. Second, we lost Evan Jumper to Coastal I think? The worst we looked last year was at CSU - guess who was out? Evan Jumper. So to lose him and then for Jake to be out who was possibly the guy to replace Evan - from the Furman sports report:
v"With Evan Jumper moving on as a grad transfer to Coastal Carolina, Johanning was looking to slide from left guard to center. With his injury, it looks like Wyatt Hughes will shift from right guard to center." Now you are starting to get deep in the depth chart.
Hope Johanning is indeed back in a few weeks.. esp by Mercer.
Agree GF, my biggest concern going into this season was the center position. Currently it seems like that is a big question mark. Hope we are both wrong.
Agree GF, my biggest concern going into this season was the center position. Currently it seems like that is a big question mark. Hope we are both wrong.
Yup. I am not saying it's bad but if we find a weakness I wouldn't be surprised if it's there.
Last season we managed to stay pretty healthy on the OL as far as starters went, but we didn't have a ton of depth. Hendrix has mentioned several times our OL last year was essentially the starting 5.
This season we have a number of guys back on the depth chart we did not have last year. We also added some transfers along the line. So, I get your point, but the unit as a whole should be a fair amount deeper than it it was last season.
In regards to losing Johanning, the big difference is that Hughes has had all camp to prepare at center versus Johanning going down this week and having to scramble. Hughes has played a lot of football for Furman and with the time to prepare, I’m choosing to believe he’ll be fine. CSU was a rough game for a lot of reasons, not just Jumper.
It’s not the center position directly that worries me. I think Hughes will be ok with a whole fall camp to prepare. Instead of having 1 new person on the interior though, now we have two and a guy playing a “new” position. Maybe it takes a little time for them to come together in a real game? We’ll see tomorrow. Personally, I think they’re going to be fine. A good OC and a good, mobile QB can hide some struggles on the line if it takes a few series to get going.
I know Scianna and Kuzemka have played a lot of football for Furman, but losing McCormick for who knows how long probably worries me the most, but we’ll probably be ok there too. I just hope he can shake what’s going on with him. That stuff can linger for a while in some people.
At this point I’m just excited to get going and “worry” about that stuff later if it’s warranted.
You deal with the cards that are dealt. Neither of these issues is a current reveal. The coaches have had plenty of time to prepare the next men up. I know we are talking all SoCon players, but CCH has more depth now than he has ever had. Enjoy the season as it unfolds.
