Happy Thursday Cougs!!!
As we close out the month of June, we are less than a month and a half away from fall camp! Traditionally, the start of fall camp is when incoming freshman make their way to campus, but not under the Paul Wulff regime. In the last couple of years, an unprecedented number of freshman have enrolled in summer session. This is huge for a rebuilding program that needs freshman to come in and make an immediate impact. It allows them to get acclimated to their surroundings, get a head start on classes, build a stronger bond with their teammates, and get started in a Pac-12 quality weight room.
This year was no exception. In addition to the seven players (LB Darryl Monroe, WR Henry Eaddy, WR Isaiah Meyers, OL Rico Forbes, DE Ian Knight, DE Xavier Cooper, OL Taylor Meighan) who enrolled early and participated in spring ball, an eye-popping 14 freshman have enrolled in summer session, per Cougfan. They are:
QB Cody Clements, DT David Davis, OG Matt Goetz, TE Max Hersey, RB Marcus Mason, LB Logan Mayes, DL Darryl Paulo, S Tana Pritchard, LB Chester Sua, TE Mansel Simmons, DT T.J. Poloai, CB Spencer Waseem, DE Lenard Williams, WR Dominique Williams
We are still awaiting word on ATH Rahmel Dockery, OL Wendell Taiese, OL Alex Mitchell, DE Demetrius Cherry, DE Niko Aumua, ATH Brock Lutes. Some of these guys are on the ropes academically, but others have the grades and expect to be suited up for fall camp starting August 7th. Note: DE Eli Edwards and S Max Gama are expected to greyshirt and enroll next spring.
So now that the picture is a little more clear on who will be on campus for sure for fall camp, I’d like to take a look at who could possibly make an early impact for 2011. This is a crap shoot at best, you never know who has the goods to come in and earn playing time until fall camp starts. For example, I thought for sure last year that Marquess Wilson, and his 173 pound frame would redshirt, and Bobby Ratliff would come in and crack the 2-deeps. Boy was I wrong. In my defense, so was everybody else.
So here are a few players who I feel could climb the depth chart and make an impact this fall. Thankfully, the list will be a bit smaller than previous years, because the Cougs actually have some depth at various positions. For the sake of optimism, I will include the players not yet enrolled…
RB Marcus Mason: Mason was a late bloomer in high school and I’m really high on this young man. While still a bit raw, but he’s a home-run hitter in every sense of the term. When he hits a hole, it’s off to the races. He’s still not equipped to carry a huge load of carries, but would compliment the slashing/dashing Ricky Galvin, and the bruising style of Logwone Mitz very well. I could see him earning in the area of 5-7 carries a game.
WR Henry Eaddy: Eaddy and his friend Isaiah Meyers are at a huge advantage to earn playing time due to the fact that they’ve already participated in spring ball. While I was pleasantly surprised by the play of Meyers this spring, I still think he is a prime candidate to redshirt with the depth we have at the position. Eaddy on the other hand is another freshman with speed to burn, and he gives the coaching staff some different options in the play-calling department out of the slot. If you saw the spring game then you saw evidence of that when he took an end around to the house. However, if Dockery makes the grades, he could beat Eaddy out for this role.
ATH Rahmel Dockery: As just mentioned, Dockery is on the ropes academically, and while reports are positive that he’ll make it in for fall, nothing is for certain. Nonetheless, he is my favorite prospect in the 2011 class. He is flat-out EXPLOSIVE. He’s still a bit undersized, but he will make an immediate impact on our return game, and the coaches will find a way to get the ball in his hands offensively as well. If he can qualify, other coaches in the Pac-12 will be kicking themselves for not recruiting this kid. Mark my words.
OL Taylor Meighan: Meighan was neck and neck with Andrew Roxas for the starting center position this spring. While Roxas appeared to beat him out for the job, a strong fall could put Meighan in the starting lineup. Even if he doesn’t win the job, he will still be an anchor for the middle of the line in the two-deeps and will step in to any of the interior line positions when needed.
DE Ian Knight, DE Xavier Cooper: These guys earned a lot of reps this spring, partly due to injuries, but also because they can both play. Cooper might move inside to DT if he keeps growing, but both of them showed great speed off the edge and their pass-rushing was relentless, something the Cougs have dreadfully lacked the last few years. You can never have enough quality D-lineman in rotation, so for that reason I think both of these guys will play this upcoming season.
DT David Davis: As just mentioned, you can never have enough quality D-lineman in rotation. Additionally, you can never have enough mean, nasty, wrecking-balls wreaking havoc in the interior. That’s why Davis will play. He’s still very young, and a bit undersized, but the grandson of NFL Hall-of-Famer Willie Davis has a ceiling higher than a cathedral. With how pathetic our run defense has been, I expect him to come in and make an impact out of the shoot.
LB Logan Mayes, LB Chester Sua, LB Darryl Monroe: We are already pretty stacked at linebacker, but with the loss of Louis Bland for another season to injury, and Andre Barrington being kicked out of the program last season, the door is open for someone to step up. I’m not sure who it will be, but I expect at least one or two of these guys to crack the 2-deeps this fall and play on Saturdays. Monroe has a leg-up having played this spring, but Mayes and Sua are uber-talented and well put together. Needless to say, we are set at the position for years to come.
The Wildcards….
S Tana Pritchard: I don’t know what it is, but something just tells me that Tana Pritchard will not only play, but will be a stud. After the coaches watched him play basketball this season, they decided to move him from linebacker to safety…He’s that athletic. He’s also a competitor that has great bloodlines. Again, this is going against conventional wisdom, but I just have a hunch that Tana will find the field this fall.
CB Spencer Waseem: This one I’m not as sure about. I think Waseem will need to redshirt, but with the loss of Aire Justin and the injury history of Nolan Washington, we just might need that extra body in the secondary by the end of the season. I know the coaching staff is high on Waseem, so he would be a prime candidate.
Ideally, Coach Wulff would like to redshirt all his freshman. However, this is a do-or-die scenario for him at this point. Therefore, don’t be surprised if he puts a lot of newcomers on the field. If they are more talented than the guys above them, then they will play.
GO COUGS!!!
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