Position battles to watch this Spring

[Forty_Sixand2]

I would like to get some input on what position battles interest you guys this coming Spring. I will start with two that stick out to me.

1. TE

Contenders: Eric Martin r-Jr, Randall Dunn r-Sr, George George r-Sr, Duan Perez-Means r-So, Ryan Malleck So, Darius Redman r-Fr, Dakota Jackson Fr

There have been murmurs this offseason that one of the current tight ends may get a look at offensive line. The only player that I can see this happening with is Martin as he has the size and two years of eligibility left to make the full transition. Whether or not this is the case, he is more of a blocking tight end. He did have a touchdown catch last year, but he is much more seasoned as a blocker and will likely not be the guy that is looked at to be an offensive weapon this year. Randall Dunn will get a lot of time in the Spring and he has the tools to become the starter, but the transition from WR to TE has not been easy for him. Ryan Malleck played last season, mostly on special teams and has impressed the coaches. He is a quick kid with good hands and may be the leader going into Spring for the pass-catching TE spot. Darius Redman is a freakish athlete with good hands, good quickness and a lot of leaping ability. He could develop into a game changer at tight end down the line and a breakout spring could see him earn a starting spot. George George will likely only add depth, and I expect Dakota Jackson to redshirt, barring an incredible Spring. Duan Perez-Means is an intriguing prospect here aftet moving over from DE. He played TE in HS, but the college game is different. It will be fun to see how his transition pans out.

If I had to guess, i would expect to see Martin play the role of blocking tight end and Malleck get the Week 1 starting gig as the pass-catching option. By the end of the season, I expect Malleck to become the everyday starter and Redman to get a lot of work in special sets where he may have his hand in the ground or slit out into the slot. It also would not shock me to see Martin move inside.

2. Whip

Contenders: Jeron Gouveia-Winslow r-Sr, Alonzo Tweedy r-Sr, Wiley Brown r-Sr, Nick Dew r-So, Ronny Vandyke r-Fr, Dahman McKinnon Fr

JGW will not be ready for practice in the Spring and Linsfranc fractures are very hard to fully recover from. Considering this fact, and JGW's inconsistencies throughout 2010, I think that this spot is wide open in the coach's eyes. Alonzo Tweedy is fast and a great tackler but has never fully grasped this position, and gets swallowed up by blockers a lot. He is a great situational player and the best there is when it comes to making tackles in space, but if he was going to be entrenched as a starter here, it would have happened by now, in my opinion. The proverbial "light" has not come on yet for Nick Dew so this will be a big Spring for him. He has all of the tools and was highly rated coming out of high school. If he has a big Spring and embraces the system, he could earn this spot and be a lock down Whip for the next couple of years. There has been some talk of Ronny Vandyke getting a look here as well. I think that he will, but the coaches will not force the issue if they feel comfortable with the three guys above. He may be the next great Whip, but he has not seen the position yet, so Spring should tell us more. I really think that Dahman McKinnon has a serious chance to get significant playing time at this position in 2011. He has al of the tools that are needed at Whip (fast, sure tackler, gets off of blocks) and with the position up for grabs, a huge Spring could see him get right into the rotation here.

If JGW, Dew or Tweedy have a great Spring, they will likely take the starting spot going forward and McKinnon will redshirt. If the spot is still open, and confidence is not high, expect to see him in uniform on the sideline and traveling with the team. His shirt may not get burned but I do not see him spending time with the scout team this year. I hope that Dew emerges as an every day starter, and Tweedy is able to continue to be the weapon that he has been for us. This position battle likely will not be won until late summer, and is (obviously) dependent on the health of JGW and how well he is able to get back to game speed.

 

[hokiecheme11]

I'm also intrigued with the Kyle Fuller situation and our backup DEs.

Obviously there has been tons of talk about what is gonna happen in our secondary, and I'm excited to see how it ends up. If Jarrett takes to FS, if Manning plays, how Bonner looks, where Fuller ends up.

Also, we have heard all the hype in the world about Dadi Nicolas, I wanna see it happen. McCray and T. Wilson got a lot of playing time last year, so if Nicolas is all that he's cracked up to be and can sneak into the two deep, he will see the field.

An afterthought is Telvion Clark. heard lots of great things, hope to see him step up in the spring and earn some PT.

 

[Sleepy T]

A good couple positions to start with 46n2. They are definitely up in the air and alot of things could happen at either of those positions. Either way you look at it, there seems to be the best depth we have had at these positions, and the defense in general, maybe ever. That will go along way, when we go up against the top teams.

One position battle that I am interested in is RB. This is probably the biggest ??? that we have had at this position in quite some time (maybe since Evans' freshman season). It sucks that we lost 3 of the best RB's to wear the uniform in just a couple years time, but I think the talent is there to pick it up right where DW left off. Holmes sounds like he will have every chance to win the job, and he very well may be the starter going into September. We will see what happens with Gregory. I think his injury(s), coupled with underachievment in recent years, and ball security issues may ultimately be his demise. He could be starter, but I think he would have to have an exceptional summer session after coming back from his injury. He just hasn't shined at all in the opportunities he has had, and if he fails to come up big in the summer, the coaches will be content to move on. At any rate, he certainly provides depth, and a knowledge of the playbook, so I don't see him completely riding the pine all year. I am particularly excited to see Coleman (barring injury in the preseason), who seems destined to get some action this year. I think him getting here and being able to participate in the spring drills gives him a distinct edge (at least this year) over some of the other freshmen. Mangus and Harris I am very excited for too, but we may not see much (if any of Mangus this year) and sounds like possibly the same for Harris (ACL). I know there has been talk of putting Mangus out at slot, which I am OK with..but only if he is not our best option at RB..

I see the depth chart shaking out like this
1) Holmes
2a) Coleman
2b) Gregory
The rest...

 

[Lumbee09]

I will go ahead and mention the offensive line.

Most people have been expecting the line to look something like this:

Becton - Wang - Miller - Benedict - Painter/Via

4 new starters, but still those players have a lot of snaps under their belts. Some major concerns coming into spring with this group, though.

1. Can David Wang come back from his broken foot? As long as he's healthy, one of the guard spots should be his.

2. How good is Brent Benedict? We have heard reports from practice that he was an absolute force on the scout team. I'm interested what to see how he performs in the spring.

3. Who is at RT? Via is out for the spring (knee surgery this January). We are all hoping Painter has a big spring and can take the starting role. This is a guy that is an athletic freak, but has never been able to put things together on the field. Really rooting for this guy to have a good spring.

4. Will there be any surprises? I would like to see one or two of the younger guys take a step forward and try to compete for a starting spot. At the very least try to give us some depth on the line. A big thing last year was how we had great depth on the line. It would be nice to have that again next year. Players like Laurence Gibson, Matt Arkema, Mark Shuman, etc. will be competing for a spot in the 2-deep and may even be pressing the previously mentioned players for a starting spot.

 

[Forty_Sixand2]

Good stuff guys!

 

[HokieGhost]

A good couple positions to start with 46n2. They are definitely up in the air and alot of things could happen at either of those positions. Either way you look at it, there seems to be the best depth we have had at these positions, and the defense in general, maybe ever. That will go along way, when we go up against the top teams.

One position battle that I am interested in is RB. This is probably the biggest ??? that we have had at this position in quite some time (maybe since Evans' freshman season). It sucks that we lost 3 of the best RB's to wear the uniform in just a couple years time, but I think the talent is there to pick it up right where DW left off. Holmes sounds like he will have every chance to win the job, and he very well may be the starter going into September. We will see what happens with Gregory. I think his injury(s), coupled with underachievment in recent years, and ball security issues may ultimately be his demise. He could be starter, but I think he would have to have an exceptional summer session after coming back from his injury. He just hasn't shined at all in the opportunities he has had, and if he fails to come up big in the summer, the coaches will be content to move on. At any rate, he certainly provides depth, and a knowledge of the playbook, so I don't see him completely riding the pine all year. I am particularly excited to see Coleman (barring injury in the preseason), who seems destined to get some action this year. I think him getting here and being able to participate in the spring drills gives him a distinct edge (at least this year) over some of the other freshmen. Mangus and Harris I am very excited for too, but we may not see much (if any of Mangus this year) and sounds like possibly the same for Harris (ACL). I know there has been talk of putting Mangus out at slot, which I am OK with..but only if he is not our best option at RB..

I see the depth chart shaking out like this
1) Holmes
2a) Coleman
2b) Gregory
The rest...

In regards to the RBs, here are some general thoughts....
'
Shane is going into his second season as the RB Coach...how will his SEC mindset affect who plays this coming year? We all know that a ton of SEC skill players get a chance to contribute as soon as possible...will that also be true for Coleman, Mangus, and Harris in the Fall?

Hite had a tough time playing true freshmen...they had to learn the nuances of playing the position, to include pass-blocking, before they ever stepped on the field during live action. Will Shane influence the play-calling in such a way as to get those true freshmen RBs on the field in situations that don't require them to pass-block?

 

[sparko]

Looks like Coach Gray answered some of the questions in the defensive secondary over the weekend. Jarrett will move to FS (good move IMO) and Fuller will be at boundary corner. If Bonner shows up in spring/summer, he'll be field corner. Depending on what Manning looks like, I wouldn't be at all surprised if he got some PT as well, instead of redshirting him. From the looks of the 2013 DB class (gets and wants), I don't think we'll necessarily need for Manning to redshirt if he proves ready to go.

http://blogs.roanoke.com/andybitter...n-jarrett-to-move-to-free-safety-this-spring/

From what I've heard, there is ZERO chance (barring injury) that Benedict won't start. He'll be at guard and Wang will be at the other guard. The tackles are the big ? in my opinion.

As far as RBs go, it sounds like a foregone conclusion that Holmes will be the starter with Coleman getting some PT.

I hope to see Leal a little more this season, when the opportunity presents itself. If we can fix our red zone offense and with such a strong defense, we should win some games running away early .. but that's the case every season and we rarely blow teams out.

 

[HokieGhost]

If we can fix our red zone offense and with such a strong defense, we should win some games running away early .. but that's the case every season and we rarely blow teams out.

Not only do we need to vastly improve our Red Zone offense, but we need to develop a killer instinct when we have a chance to put teams away.

Coach Beamer usually calls off the dogs when we get ahead by a comfortable margin because he doesn't want to show what he believes to be poor sportsmanship. I personally believe we need to keep the pedal to the metal so that we can continue to play at a high level offensively, and to get playing time for as many back-ups as possible.

 

[m477hokie]

I agree that we need to end games strong, but I'll take Beamer's overly cautious sportsmanship over some of the other coaches that really run up the score. I'm very excited to see how Holmes does in the spring, looking back at his recruitment it seems like he made it clear that he wanted to stay in state, so he didn't get much hype, but I think that the stats don't lie. And I really like his film, plus Gayle and Wilson both said very positive things about him. I know I've said this before, but I think he should have not had a redshirt last year, especially with the haul we had at RB in the 2012 class.

 

[Lumbee09]

From what I've heard, there is ZERO chance (barring injury) that Benedict won't start. He'll be at guard and Wang will be at the other guard. The tackles are the big ? in my opinion.

Yup I agree with the guards. Should be Wang and Benedict. I think LT is Becton's to lose right now. He is the only player with experience at LT (starting experience at that). RT is the biggest question mark. I'm not sure if there will be much of a position battle this spring because of Via being out, but this summer may be interesting. And as I said before, hopefully we can get a few of the younger players to step up to get us some depth.

 

[wildturkey]

TE will only interest me if you guarantee me that we'd actually use them in the damn offense and not just when a play breaks down and LT3 says "Hey, that guy is open!" as he did with Dragerbomb this past year.


Whip is the only other position battle that has my interest because there are so many people that could get it. A couple of those guys could play safety (another concern as well) so it sort of affects that battle too.

 

[ACC_HOKIES]

I'm most interested in tailback. I don't follow recruiting very closely, so I've only seen the spring and game snaps of Gregory and Dyer. From that limited window, it's a huge unknown going into the spring. Without that traditional running game, more of the offense will fall on Logan Thomas. Thomas ended up the focus of the offense by the end of the season, so it is not unprecedented to expect him to carry the team. However, it is yet to be determined how much of that success can be attributed to the threat of David Wilson and experience of Coale and Boykins. At minimum, we need a tailback that can hurt the defense when they key in on the QB.

We don't utilize the tightend much. The whip position is so fluid and dynamic that it seems we set the other 10 positions and plug in the best remaining player. I realize that in reality this isn't what the staff does, but it sure is easy to take for granted when we continuously plug in unknowns and turn them into weapons.

 

[sparko]

Lack of a TE presence...

That's part of the reason that our red zone offense is bad. There's not even a whiff of a threat there. I think the bigger issue in the RZ was the lack of an inside, power running game. Holmes should help with our RZ offense problem .. as long as our OL does their part.

We should be running more spread/zone-read in the RZ. With a power-back, a semblance of a threat at TE, and fade-threat with DJ Coles -- we would be hard to stop down there with the right play-calling. Even if we don't want to pass, do some play-action and some QB draws .. shit .. running up the pipe with 3 LBs waiting on you 3 times in a row .. that's just elementary.

 

[Forty_Sixand2]

I agree Sparko. If you could get Malleck, Redman and/or Davis running around the end zone, and a 6'6" QB, there has to be a mismatch somewhere to exploit.

 

[hunzworth]

I agree Sparko. If you could get Malleck, Redman and/or Davis running around the end zone, and a 6'6" QB, there has to be a mismatch somewhere to exploit.

Think of the 2point conversion in the SB, davis came across the middle and it looked a guy in the back yard throwing to his buddy. EDIT: what i mean is that it looked sooooo easy.

 

[Sleepy T]

I agree Sparko. If you could get Malleck, Redman and/or Davis running around the end zone, and a 6'6" QB, there has to be a mismatch somewhere to exploit.

Have we even had a really significant "pass catching" TE (for multiple years)since Jeff King?? Andre Smith was pretty good for a year ago as well. We have certainly had alot of guys who have tried..but never anyone being special at the position...yet!

EDIT^^ I think LT could have been that "special" TE kinda guy..but hey, you gotta pick your poison, I will take him where he is at now.

 

[sparko]

I think back to the Tebow days .. Florida was unstoppable in the red zone with that zone-read crap. Teams knew it was coming and they still couldn't do a thing about it. Spread the defense out and give a QB like LT options, to hand off, throw a dump pass over the middle to the TE .. or best option -- tuck it and level some chumps.

Logan Train ... nuff said

speaking of TEs .. that Breneman kid's film is sick .. He's in western PA too .. We should offer him just cuz ... but he looks like he's Penn State (or at least Big 10) all the way.

 

[Taz_Hokie]

Logan Train ... nuff said

LOL, the defender did manage to get a hold of Logan's shoe.

 

[Taz_Hokie]

EDIT^^ I think LT could have been that "special" TE kinda guy..but hey, you gotta pick your poison, I will take him where he is at now.

Well, he showed he could do it in the Wake Forest game in 2010. But I'm with you, I'll take him as a QB.

 

[Hokie200proof]

Man... I felt REAL good after that ASU game. Real good. It just felt like a while since we had a no doubter like that. (Not a totally random comment if you watch the Logan Train clip).