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I've edited the post since then and added CB.
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Impact Freshman
- Thread starter DisgruntledSebastianIbis
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Bain was a unicorn last year. Very rarely freshmen linemen are as technically skilled and physically developed as he was. I don’t think we have anyone quite that ready this year. I do think Justin Scott ends up making a bigger impact than a lot of people think. I would not be surprised if he’s in the top three right from the jump and possibly starting by the end of the year.
Damiencane86
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Bain level no but there will be lots of contributors: Lofton, Lyle, Trader are my main 3 on O. Scott, Pruitt, Zaquan my picks for the other side having most reps year 1.
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I don’t think any of these players are Bain and I don’t see Lofton taking as many snaps if Riley is healthy at TE and Fletcher healthy at RB. I do believe Zaquan can get a lot of burn because I’m not sold on Harris or Markeith in any way yet and Meesh may have to move around if injuries hit at CB.
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Depth was a train wreck and all the injuries forced the kid to play way too many snaps. He answered the bell but would’ve been even better with a rotation.
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Not to turn it into a Dawson vs Guidry thing but **** the rankings, what Guidry did working around the injuries we had was impressive to me
Not sure anyone thought we would beat A&M down big right away and losing Deen and Mesidor instantly
canesbrah
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Yeah may as well put an extra OL out there instead of him.
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Lofton could get snaps at TE, RB, and WR. That's awesome
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Great point. We all want impact freshmen, But an impact freshman like Bain means we did not have the upper classmen at his position to keep him to garbage time.
So instead of Bain, let me change the comparison and ask if anyone will have a Frank Gore type impact wherein he only plays garbage minutes, but when he does everyone is simply floored. And I know we should never compare anyone to freshman year Frank Gore, but my point being a freshman who turns heads when he plays late in games.
Or maybe a Jon Garvin type impact? Limited minutes, but meaningful contribution in that ime.
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We had a few years with guys like Joe Jackson, Garvin etc where they would come in for a few plays as freshmen and force a fumble or make a big play
I thought that’s what we would see this year with the young guys we got. Crazy talented group but they won’t be tasked with much other than pin their ears back and go make a big play
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I think a more appropriate question is how many of the true freshman will be special team impact players?
In previous years we relied more on freshman than we probably should have. Hopefully some will make impacts on offense or defense for us. I’m more intrigued on which ones will be returning kicks/punts, running down and laying someone out, blocking kicks/punts or just being ready to step up next year.
Who can you see making an important player for us on special teams.
In previous years we relied more on freshman than we probably should have. Hopefully some will make impacts on offense or defense for us. I’m more intrigued on which ones will be returning kicks/punts, running down and laying someone out, blocking kicks/punts or just being ready to step up next year.
Who can you see making an important player for us on special teams.
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We aren't going to be reliant on Freshman having an impact, which is a good thing. So I'd look at this more with just the question who will be Freshman Contributors. Guys that are just too good to redshirt - and not just because they're getting heavy Special Team snaps....
Offense:
- Jordan Lyle can very easily be a contributor early. We still have no idea how long Fletcher will be out, but the longer it is the more assured I'd be Lyle makes an impact. Chris Johnson and Ajay Allen are ahead on depth chart, sure, but Lyle is the only other bigger back after Martinez. And RB is a position you can expect guys to miss some time here and there. Chris Johnson is technically a freshman right? Does he count in this, cause he will definitely have an impact imo.
- Jojo Trader is going to be too good to keep off the field. And I fully expect us to run a lot more spread this season, and fully entrust Cam Ward to just let it rip. I think Robby Washington, Trader, and Ray Ray are all going to be steadily rotating in this season. Carr and Chance Robinson have a shot too, but not as likely as Trader imo.
- Elijah Lofton. We have had major TE injuries the last few seasons. So the guy 3rd on the depth chart there can definitely get serious PT. Especially after he was making so many plays this spring/summer. And he is versatile and can be used as a weapon which makes it easier for him to see the field.
Defense:
- Zaquon Patterson will play simply due to the semi-concerning safety depth. OJ Frederique has received some hype from the coaches as well, and wouldn't be a surprise to see get some valuable pt either. DB is by far the most open for a freshman to make an impact on this team. Like if he passed up Stafford on the Depth Chart, he'd be in line for a lot of PT.
- One of the freshman Speed EDGEs could be a sneaky good pick to make an impact. Now Idk if Malik Bryant counts since he's a redshirt Freshman, but if he doesn't Lightfoot or Pickett are candidates for sure imo. And the reasoning is simple, they're not going to be ready to contribute in the run game as much and be expected to hold up at their light weight right now. HOWEVER A) I expect us to be winning a lot of games and being in many pass rush situations. B) 2-3 of our top 4 EDGEs are bigger guys who get moved inside in passing situations - Bain/Mesidor... and even Baron is a guy that can rush from the inside. Alston is really the only For Sure Outside guy no matter what. This leaves a lot of potential for Bryant/Lightfoot/Pickett to just be a pass rush specialist that sees a lot of PT this season. It's not like we NEED to move Bain/Mesidor/Baron inside, we'll be fine keeping them at EDGE, but if one of these 3 freshman stepped up as a legit pure pass rusher, they'd get PT even with how good our top 4 is at EDGE.
- Bobby Washington or Cam Pruitt or both will have games where they play a lot this year. All it takes is one injury to a LB and they are 4th. I expect Hayes to get a redshirt. We are replacing Flagg and Cloyds snaps. Wes prob wont see too much of an increase cause he already played a lot last year, Alderman will likely see about how many Cloyd received, maybe a little less. Popo will likely take up the majority of those snaps needing to be filled, but there is snaps to be had by freshman, especially if a guy goes down.
- Gotta just mention Justin Scott and Artavius Jones simply because they could be too talented to not earn some snaps. It really depends on Josh Horton and Ahmad Moten. If both of them have steeped up and developed nicely, I don't expect Scott/Jones to get much reps. But if they haven't I think they could easily be passed up, and that'd mean the Freshman would be seeing decent snaps weekly.
Offense:
- Jordan Lyle can very easily be a contributor early. We still have no idea how long Fletcher will be out, but the longer it is the more assured I'd be Lyle makes an impact. Chris Johnson and Ajay Allen are ahead on depth chart, sure, but Lyle is the only other bigger back after Martinez. And RB is a position you can expect guys to miss some time here and there. Chris Johnson is technically a freshman right? Does he count in this, cause he will definitely have an impact imo.
- Jojo Trader is going to be too good to keep off the field. And I fully expect us to run a lot more spread this season, and fully entrust Cam Ward to just let it rip. I think Robby Washington, Trader, and Ray Ray are all going to be steadily rotating in this season. Carr and Chance Robinson have a shot too, but not as likely as Trader imo.
- Elijah Lofton. We have had major TE injuries the last few seasons. So the guy 3rd on the depth chart there can definitely get serious PT. Especially after he was making so many plays this spring/summer. And he is versatile and can be used as a weapon which makes it easier for him to see the field.
Defense:
- Zaquon Patterson will play simply due to the semi-concerning safety depth. OJ Frederique has received some hype from the coaches as well, and wouldn't be a surprise to see get some valuable pt either. DB is by far the most open for a freshman to make an impact on this team. Like if he passed up Stafford on the Depth Chart, he'd be in line for a lot of PT.
- One of the freshman Speed EDGEs could be a sneaky good pick to make an impact. Now Idk if Malik Bryant counts since he's a redshirt Freshman, but if he doesn't Lightfoot or Pickett are candidates for sure imo. And the reasoning is simple, they're not going to be ready to contribute in the run game as much and be expected to hold up at their light weight right now. HOWEVER A) I expect us to be winning a lot of games and being in many pass rush situations. B) 2-3 of our top 4 EDGEs are bigger guys who get moved inside in passing situations - Bain/Mesidor... and even Baron is a guy that can rush from the inside. Alston is really the only For Sure Outside guy no matter what. This leaves a lot of potential for Bryant/Lightfoot/Pickett to just be a pass rush specialist that sees a lot of PT this season. It's not like we NEED to move Bain/Mesidor/Baron inside, we'll be fine keeping them at EDGE, but if one of these 3 freshman stepped up as a legit pure pass rusher, they'd get PT even with how good our top 4 is at EDGE.
- Bobby Washington or Cam Pruitt or both will have games where they play a lot this year. All it takes is one injury to a LB and they are 4th. I expect Hayes to get a redshirt. We are replacing Flagg and Cloyds snaps. Wes prob wont see too much of an increase cause he already played a lot last year, Alderman will likely see about how many Cloyd received, maybe a little less. Popo will likely take up the majority of those snaps needing to be filled, but there is snaps to be had by freshman, especially if a guy goes down.
- Gotta just mention Justin Scott and Artavius Jones simply because they could be too talented to not earn some snaps. It really depends on Josh Horton and Ahmad Moten. If both of them have steeped up and developed nicely, I don't expect Scott/Jones to get much reps. But if they haven't I think they could easily be passed up, and that'd mean the Freshman would be seeing decent snaps weekly.
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Guidry switching schemes mid season was a master class. He had a couple clunkers but I was really happy with his coaching and scheming as a whole.