80% of football still won in the trenches.
Its no coincidence the defense got good once jaquan, enyi and company showed up a few years ago. And that the offense became more consistent this year as the o line finally got it together.
Should we be concerned about the DL?
- Thread starter State43
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80% of football still won in the trenches.
Its no coincidence the defense got good once jaquan, enyi and company showed up a few years ago. And that the offense became more consistent this year as the o line finally got it together.
I noticed from the Walter Camp AA deal (Breece was on there), that Pittsburgh had TWO starters on the DL, yet they finished 5-5?? How is that possible?
They must have had a horrible offense.
They must have had a horrible offense.
McDonald will be a beast, especially if he puts on a little more weight, and has the potential to be a first rounder. He will be a strong threat to lead the nation in sacks next year (just looked and he tied for the lead at 10.5...13th in sacks/game), with 13-15 not being out of the question. My biggest concert is the propensity to stick with 3 on the rush (easier to double) and the loss of Bailey.
He's likely our best NFL prospect if he puts on the weight. Pass rushers are a premium in the NFL (much more than LB or RB).
Besides Enyi, Lee, Robertson, and Singleton, did any other returning players play interior D-Line this year? Curious which younger or less experienced guys got reps this year.
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Not sure who, but during the second half of the WV game when Lenny Brown was actually moving the ball, Jon Heacock was furious with the backups (maybe freshman) and decided to put the starters back in (which I thought let the kids play and work on their mistakes) but the professor knows best
I was more concerned before Enyi announced he was coming back. But have been looking at the DL a lot since it is one of the areas we will need new guys to play some snaps.
Also, DL / OL are always important, but I would say even more so given the way Campbell likes to play games. He likes winning with a very physical style of play. I always had 2021 circled as the year we might finally have both an experienced and talented OL... really excited about that group for next year. But, DL is a bit more of question mark to me.
Generally, across all of our position groups I am optimistic about the guys being developed behind the starters. But obviously, guys that have not played are always an unknown. It's great when guys force their way onto the field instead of not seeing them at all and then suddenly they are next up because of guys leaving in front of them.
Looking at the depth chart we are losing 3 from last year:
DE Ja Bailey - 1st team All B12 (6-2, 261)
DT Bankston - B12 Honorable Mention, one of the most disruptive interior DL we have had recently. But did not get on the field as much as it seemed his play would have warranted... given how it ended may have had some off the field issues... not sure. (6-0, 300)
DT Jo Bailey - Depth piece (6-2, 294)
Lots of people love Suttle. I am optimistic that he can be a great piece going forward. But what will he be day 1 next year? Also, I have no idea what he will develop into (DE or DT). But last year he was a 247 lb DE. Bankston was 300 lb interior player. So, based on position and weight he appears more likely to be a JaQuan Bailey replacement than a Bankston replacement.
DE the only concern is replacing Bailey. They have depth but Bailey was good v. pass and run. Very interested to see Suttle, Wilson at DE since they are bigger than McDonald. McDonald is prob a better pro prospect given his pass rush capability, but he could be a liability vs. the run if he does not add weight. Really interested to see how McDonald does this off season with the new strength coach Andrews. If he could add 20-25 lbs he could be unstoppable next year and our DE group could be elite.
Net, DE is probably good to go. But if we are starting Wilson, Suttle, or McDonald (with limited weight gain) in place of Bailey I think you could make the case for a possible (slight) step back early in the year.
DT main concern here is losing Bankston. If he were coming back I would be really excited about our DTs next year.
DT 2021: Lee, Uwazurike (this is HUGE in my opinion), then ?
So, we need one or two guys to step up to keep a similar rotation to this year.
Suttle (will be in yr 3, just finished R-FR season): Listed as DE and is 247 lbs on latest depth chart - so if we want him to play on the interior, he needs to add weight I think (+30 lbs at least). Everyone here lists him at DT so very well could be... i have no info. But he looks young and undersized right now for a Bankston replacement. Unless we plan to play four on the D-line next year we could be pretty undersized with McDonald and Suttle in place of Bailey and Bankston.
JR Singleton (will be in year 2, just finished FR season): Listed at 6-2, 288. Could step in as the depth piece (or better?) but obviously don't even know if he will make the depth chart... but size seems to be a better fit than Suttle to play inside.
Below are a couple older guys that could be a factor, but were also behind Josh Bailey this year... so hard to say how much upside they have. So, in order to upgrade Bankston/Bailey prob need Singleton (or Suttle, or a transfer) to step up.
Kleinow was on the OL for 3 years before moving to DL this year. Good size (6-6, 317) but didn't see him on the depth chart on the DL. Maybe with a year learning the position he will be good to go this year?
Tucker Robertson: 6-3, 296 has nice size... but has played sparingly through his first 4 yrs on the team. He had 1 tackle this year. But could be similar to Jo Bailey who had very little playing time until getting some back up time this year, his 5th year in the program. We will see...
DL Outlook / Options:
3 Starters:
Uwazurike (DE)
Lee (DT)
Z. Peterson / W. McDonald (DE)
Depth:
DT: Uwazurike, then two from Suttle, Singleton, Robertson, Kleinow, or a transfer
DE: Lots here.... Wilson, B. Peterson, Suttle, C. Bailey, likely go about 5 - 6 deep
Net, lots of potential but need some young guys to step up on the interior. I think DE is probably fine. Biggest question marks (not necessarily weakness just unkown) are interior DL, S, and TE in my opinion.
Is there any particular reason you keep referring to Corey Suttle as a defensive tackle? He plays end. Unless he’s bulked up a ton since last summer. You also missed Blake Peterson.
Singleton and Howard Brown will be fine as reserves inside.
Corey Suttle - Football - Iowa State University Athletics
Corey Suttle (45) Defensive End - Awards & Honors Big 12 Commissioner's Honor Roll (F21) 2020 Saw action in seven games, recording one tackle. 2019 Redshirte...
Blake Peterson DE will get lots of time i predict, either as a starter or backup. He got quite a few snaps in the asskickings to kstate and wvu.
Blake is 6-4 and all of 255, we beat out quite a few schools for him and I was impressed when he played. He looks like he belongs.
Does Cordarrius Bailey have a good chance to pull a Sean Foster/Josh Bailey and go from no playing time (I know Foster played his freshman year) to significant contributor as a 5th year Senior? I don’t hear/see his name mentioned very much. I love the stories of the kids that toil away for years to have it all pay off in the end, he certainly looks the part, would be nice to get a few more Bailey sacks!
