David Earl
8/11/2006, 03:12 PM
D-Line
I’d like to start by saying I think this has the chance of being one of the best, if not the best, Sooner d-lines since Bob Stoops came to Norman. The depth we have is embarrassing. I actually, physically blush out in public when someone shouts across the restaurant, “Hey David Earl, y’all sure do have a lot of depth at d-line.” That happens all-the-time. ;)
Seriously, we are deep and we are good. At defensive end we have Ah You who played really well last year. Dotson and Williams backing him up are both solid. Williams was playing really well last year before blowing up his knee. If he is fully recovered, we should have three to rotate on the left side.
LEFT DEFENSIVE END
99 C.J. Ah You 6'4", 270 Senior
91 Alonzo Dotson 6'4", 250 Junior RS
98 John Williams 6'5", 265 Junior RS
82 Laenar Nixon 6'3", 215 Senior RS
Pryce Macon 6-1, 260 Freshman
I’m not sure I have these guys placed correctly. I’m probably a little light on some of these weights too. The official site is not always updated so I’m not sure about what they have. It’s possible some of them may go in either position, but I think the Three-Tech position tends to be the quicker more agile guy and the Nose tends to be the stronger guy, as a general rule. (Someone please correct me if I’ve got this mixed up.)
Coleman and Pendleton are said to be playing good ball with all the competition nipping at their heels. McCoy has all the promise in the world, but he’s young. He has to learn the defense well enough so he can react more and think less. Having to think diminishes his athletic advantage. That being said, I believe he’ll be playing more as the season goes along, at least rotating in at times.
Bennett played pretty well last year. Granger is said to be getting better and will certainly play. He’s another young one with a lot of promise. I’m not sure about Blackard. I’ve heard Moore is lacking a little in zeal and I’ve heard he’s stepped it up. I have no idea which is true. If he’s stepping up he could play a little.
It looks to me like we can easily rotate five tackles, Coleman, Pendleton, McCoy, Bennett and Granger. If we rotate just four and four ends that’s two complete d-lines playing with the subs being QUALITY players. If we rotate six ends and five tackles that’s rotating eleven linemen, nearly three complete d-lines. Can that be!?
THREE-TECHNIQUE TACKLE
90 Steven Coleman 6'4", 310 Junior RS
*68 Carl Pendleton 6'5", 285 Junior RS
-- Gerald McCoy 6'4", 305 Freshman
NOSE TACKLE
97 Cory Bennett 6'2", 285 Sophomore RS
96 DeMarcus Granger 6'3", 295 Redshirt Freshman
78 Billy Blackard 6'3", 280 Redshirt Freshman
89 Cordero Moore 6'4", 305 Redshirt Freshman
On the right side Birdine is back. Thibs is still in there and should frequently rotate in. Between Davis and English I’m not sure who did the best, but both played a little last year. Which ever of those two you pick, we still should have three to rotate on the right side. Will BV rotate six defensive ends? He has that option if he wants to.
RIGHT DEFENSIVE END
92 Larry Birdine 6'4", 260 Senior RS
58 Calvin Thibodeaux 6'1", 255 Senior RS
95 Alan Davis 6'2", 255 Sophomore RS
33 Auston English 6'3", 250 Sophomore
Tim Johnson 6'5", 265 Sophomore RS
Adrian Taylor 6'5", 280 Freshman
Linebacker
The starters in this group look really good. Our problem is depth, though it’s not a critical issue. Rufus will be awesome. Lewis baker can back him up and I understand play SAM, in spite of his size. Tabon’s status is a big question mark. The way I understand it is he has completed some classes and is awaiting clearance to play. That could be wrong. If Tabon makes it on campus he brings great physical talent. Whether or not he can learn the defense quickly enough to be able to play effectively is another matter altogether.
Latimer should be solid in the middle. Lofton is good as well. I have no idea how Robinson has looked, nor have I heard much on Beal. Pleasant was neck and neck with Reynolds until Ryan got hurt. Pleasant should do well at SAM with Crow backing him up until Reynolds is ready to play. Generally I’d rather see a freshman redshirt, but I hear a lot of great things about Crow. I figure he at least may see time on special teams. He may be the steal of this year’s recruiting class.
"WILL" LINEBACKER
42 Rufus Alexander 6'1", 230 Senior RS
16 Lewis Baker 6'2", 210 Junior RS
Daniel Tabon 6'3", 215 Signed Commitment (Altus, Okla.)
"MIKE" LINEBACKER
46 Zach Latimer 6'3", 230 Senior RS
40 Curtis Lofton 6'0", 245 Sophomore
30 Lamont Robinson 6'1", 225 Redshirt Freshman
Jeremy Beal 6'2", 245 Freshman
"SAM" LINEBACKER
51 Demarrio Pleasant 6'2", 235 Junior RS
8 Ryan Reynolds 6'2", 235 Sophomore
Brandon Crow 6'2", 215 Freshman
Though we’ve got some solid players in the secondary, most fans have perhaps regarded this as our weakest link on defense. However, that perception may be changing. First, our front seven (especially the line) should be good enough to make our secondary look good. If the front four can get pressure without too much blitzing the secondary won’t have to hold their coverage long for the offensive play to fail or go sour.
At boundary corner, Wolfe and Walker are battling for the starting spot. Expect them to rotate, whoever starts. Smith should round us out at the other side, providing solid corner play. I don’t know if Holmes is coming along fast enough to sub in much or not. I suspect he is and he will. Our corners should be solid.
Safety has been the question mark in my mind. I’m feeling better about this position as we hear more out of camp. Clayton is reported to be doing well and is a hard hitter. Carter provides veteran backup. At free safety we’ve got Williams and Harris. I’m not sure what I think about this position. We hear the Williams looks good in practice. We know Harris has a lot of promise. Word on Bowers is he has come a long way in maturity and ability. I believe we have a more-than-workable answer at free safety. I’m just not sure which player it will be.
Defensive Backs
BOUNDARY CORNERBACK
25 D.J. Wolfe 5'11", 205 Junior
24 Marcus Walker 5'10", 195 Junior
2 Brian Jackson 6'2", 195 Redshirt Freshman
Dominique Franks 6'0", 180 Freshman
FIELD CORNERBACK
3 Reggie Smith 6'1", 200 Sophomore
11 Lendy Holmes 6'1", 195 Sophomore RS
Jonathan Nelson 5'11", 180 Freshman
STRONG SAFETY
22 Keenan Clayton 6'2", 215 Redshirt Freshman
6 Jason Carter 5'10", 200 Senior RS
FREE SAFETY
41 Darien Williams 5'10", 200 Junior RS
5 Nic Harris 6'3", 230 Sophomore
26 Brett Bowers 5'11", 200 Sophomore RS
NICKELBACK
11 Lendy Holmes 6'1", 195 Sophomore RS
5 Nic Harris 6'3", 230 Sophomore
20 Quinton Carter 6'1", 185 Freshman
Defensive Summary
If our defense has a weakness, it would be depth issues at LB and a secondary that needs more proving. Outside of those areas, and they are not huge problems, the defense should be good. Really good. Good enough to win a championship? Everybody wondered about the offense in 2002 and had confidence in the defense. The two games we lost that season were more defensive breakdowns than offensive breakdowns. Everybody is wondering about the offense in 2006, while having great confidence in the defense. If our offense does as well as the 2002 offense, our defense should be good enough to win it all. I think this defense has the chance (a chance!) to be as good as we’ve had under Stoops. That is a might tall order.
I’d like to start by saying I think this has the chance of being one of the best, if not the best, Sooner d-lines since Bob Stoops came to Norman. The depth we have is embarrassing. I actually, physically blush out in public when someone shouts across the restaurant, “Hey David Earl, y’all sure do have a lot of depth at d-line.” That happens all-the-time. ;)
Seriously, we are deep and we are good. At defensive end we have Ah You who played really well last year. Dotson and Williams backing him up are both solid. Williams was playing really well last year before blowing up his knee. If he is fully recovered, we should have three to rotate on the left side.
LEFT DEFENSIVE END
99 C.J. Ah You 6'4", 270 Senior
91 Alonzo Dotson 6'4", 250 Junior RS
98 John Williams 6'5", 265 Junior RS
82 Laenar Nixon 6'3", 215 Senior RS
Pryce Macon 6-1, 260 Freshman
I’m not sure I have these guys placed correctly. I’m probably a little light on some of these weights too. The official site is not always updated so I’m not sure about what they have. It’s possible some of them may go in either position, but I think the Three-Tech position tends to be the quicker more agile guy and the Nose tends to be the stronger guy, as a general rule. (Someone please correct me if I’ve got this mixed up.)
Coleman and Pendleton are said to be playing good ball with all the competition nipping at their heels. McCoy has all the promise in the world, but he’s young. He has to learn the defense well enough so he can react more and think less. Having to think diminishes his athletic advantage. That being said, I believe he’ll be playing more as the season goes along, at least rotating in at times.
Bennett played pretty well last year. Granger is said to be getting better and will certainly play. He’s another young one with a lot of promise. I’m not sure about Blackard. I’ve heard Moore is lacking a little in zeal and I’ve heard he’s stepped it up. I have no idea which is true. If he’s stepping up he could play a little.
It looks to me like we can easily rotate five tackles, Coleman, Pendleton, McCoy, Bennett and Granger. If we rotate just four and four ends that’s two complete d-lines playing with the subs being QUALITY players. If we rotate six ends and five tackles that’s rotating eleven linemen, nearly three complete d-lines. Can that be!?
THREE-TECHNIQUE TACKLE
90 Steven Coleman 6'4", 310 Junior RS
*68 Carl Pendleton 6'5", 285 Junior RS
-- Gerald McCoy 6'4", 305 Freshman
NOSE TACKLE
97 Cory Bennett 6'2", 285 Sophomore RS
96 DeMarcus Granger 6'3", 295 Redshirt Freshman
78 Billy Blackard 6'3", 280 Redshirt Freshman
89 Cordero Moore 6'4", 305 Redshirt Freshman
On the right side Birdine is back. Thibs is still in there and should frequently rotate in. Between Davis and English I’m not sure who did the best, but both played a little last year. Which ever of those two you pick, we still should have three to rotate on the right side. Will BV rotate six defensive ends? He has that option if he wants to.
RIGHT DEFENSIVE END
92 Larry Birdine 6'4", 260 Senior RS
58 Calvin Thibodeaux 6'1", 255 Senior RS
95 Alan Davis 6'2", 255 Sophomore RS
33 Auston English 6'3", 250 Sophomore
Tim Johnson 6'5", 265 Sophomore RS
Adrian Taylor 6'5", 280 Freshman
Linebacker
The starters in this group look really good. Our problem is depth, though it’s not a critical issue. Rufus will be awesome. Lewis baker can back him up and I understand play SAM, in spite of his size. Tabon’s status is a big question mark. The way I understand it is he has completed some classes and is awaiting clearance to play. That could be wrong. If Tabon makes it on campus he brings great physical talent. Whether or not he can learn the defense quickly enough to be able to play effectively is another matter altogether.
Latimer should be solid in the middle. Lofton is good as well. I have no idea how Robinson has looked, nor have I heard much on Beal. Pleasant was neck and neck with Reynolds until Ryan got hurt. Pleasant should do well at SAM with Crow backing him up until Reynolds is ready to play. Generally I’d rather see a freshman redshirt, but I hear a lot of great things about Crow. I figure he at least may see time on special teams. He may be the steal of this year’s recruiting class.
"WILL" LINEBACKER
42 Rufus Alexander 6'1", 230 Senior RS
16 Lewis Baker 6'2", 210 Junior RS
Daniel Tabon 6'3", 215 Signed Commitment (Altus, Okla.)
"MIKE" LINEBACKER
46 Zach Latimer 6'3", 230 Senior RS
40 Curtis Lofton 6'0", 245 Sophomore
30 Lamont Robinson 6'1", 225 Redshirt Freshman
Jeremy Beal 6'2", 245 Freshman
"SAM" LINEBACKER
51 Demarrio Pleasant 6'2", 235 Junior RS
8 Ryan Reynolds 6'2", 235 Sophomore
Brandon Crow 6'2", 215 Freshman
Though we’ve got some solid players in the secondary, most fans have perhaps regarded this as our weakest link on defense. However, that perception may be changing. First, our front seven (especially the line) should be good enough to make our secondary look good. If the front four can get pressure without too much blitzing the secondary won’t have to hold their coverage long for the offensive play to fail or go sour.
At boundary corner, Wolfe and Walker are battling for the starting spot. Expect them to rotate, whoever starts. Smith should round us out at the other side, providing solid corner play. I don’t know if Holmes is coming along fast enough to sub in much or not. I suspect he is and he will. Our corners should be solid.
Safety has been the question mark in my mind. I’m feeling better about this position as we hear more out of camp. Clayton is reported to be doing well and is a hard hitter. Carter provides veteran backup. At free safety we’ve got Williams and Harris. I’m not sure what I think about this position. We hear the Williams looks good in practice. We know Harris has a lot of promise. Word on Bowers is he has come a long way in maturity and ability. I believe we have a more-than-workable answer at free safety. I’m just not sure which player it will be.
Defensive Backs
BOUNDARY CORNERBACK
25 D.J. Wolfe 5'11", 205 Junior
24 Marcus Walker 5'10", 195 Junior
2 Brian Jackson 6'2", 195 Redshirt Freshman
Dominique Franks 6'0", 180 Freshman
FIELD CORNERBACK
3 Reggie Smith 6'1", 200 Sophomore
11 Lendy Holmes 6'1", 195 Sophomore RS
Jonathan Nelson 5'11", 180 Freshman
STRONG SAFETY
22 Keenan Clayton 6'2", 215 Redshirt Freshman
6 Jason Carter 5'10", 200 Senior RS
FREE SAFETY
41 Darien Williams 5'10", 200 Junior RS
5 Nic Harris 6'3", 230 Sophomore
26 Brett Bowers 5'11", 200 Sophomore RS
NICKELBACK
11 Lendy Holmes 6'1", 195 Sophomore RS
5 Nic Harris 6'3", 230 Sophomore
20 Quinton Carter 6'1", 185 Freshman
Defensive Summary
If our defense has a weakness, it would be depth issues at LB and a secondary that needs more proving. Outside of those areas, and they are not huge problems, the defense should be good. Really good. Good enough to win a championship? Everybody wondered about the offense in 2002 and had confidence in the defense. The two games we lost that season were more defensive breakdowns than offensive breakdowns. Everybody is wondering about the offense in 2006, while having great confidence in the defense. If our offense does as well as the 2002 offense, our defense should be good enough to win it all. I think this defense has the chance (a chance!) to be as good as we’ve had under Stoops. That is a might tall order.