Tapa, Bartley, now Bender
- Thread starter Fab5Coug
- Start date
There was this guy named Leon though...
Maybe Marcellus Pippins could play DL. Probably be all conference.
Of those three, only Tapa would have played significant minutes this season. Bartley appeared to be growing into a d-tackle, and Bender was definitely looking more and more like a d-end (his weight dropped from 255 last season to 241). Tapa's absence is going to be felt this season. The fact he was held out of spring ball to focus on academics means the staff should have brought in at least two or more larger prospects for this season and beyond. As I stated earlier, guys like Dallas Hobbs and Willie Rodgers might end up as interior d-linemen, but they are two years away from making a difference.
I think both DT's from NE Oklahoma St A&M (McBroom) are available- Wiley Lester and Isaiah Johnson. That would be a pleasant surprise.
Who is Marcellus Pippins? Is he a new player? Why hasn't anybody brought up his name before?
They're big dudes. Lester is 6-5 290 and Johnson is 6-5 300. Are they still waiting on summer course work?
I don't know their story...it's undocumented and I can't find anything on the web.
What does the D-Line depth chart (as of now) look like going into fall practice?
Which offensive lineman would be most likely or best suited to making the switch to defense?
Still time for coaches to put available players in the best spots to make a run at a special season.
Which offensive lineman would be most likely or best suited to making the switch to defense?
Still time for coaches to put available players in the best spots to make a run at a special season.
There is no OL best suited for DL. Completely different positions. This is too high a level of football to just switch and be successful. They either find a JC guy that's a late qualifier or they go with who they have. Trying to coach up an OL this late in his career isn't gonna work.
Agreed. A change like this usually takes a player a season or two to get the hang of things. It can happen but it's best to have a guy that played some DL in HS or Juco. Hope a player steps up to the task.
Good point about the difficult transition from offense to defense, but can anyone honestly imagine Mike Leach being caught short-handed with this attrition?
I'd guess Leach's Hall of Fame resume is a big reason many experts are picking WSU to make a serious run for the Pac-12 championship.
Wonder if CML has some graduate transfer "Steak Eaters" — whether from Division I-A or a lower tier — looking to play for a New Year's Day bowl contender. That might be a better option for WSU than relying on a late-qualifying JuCo diamond at the 11th hour.
I'd guess Leach's Hall of Fame resume is a big reason many experts are picking WSU to make a serious run for the Pac-12 championship.
Wonder if CML has some graduate transfer "Steak Eaters" — whether from Division I-A or a lower tier — looking to play for a New Year's Day bowl contender. That might be a better option for WSU than relying on a late-qualifying JuCo diamond at the 11th hour.
If there was a kid transferring in that had already graduated don't you think we would have heard about it by now?
You're reaching.
You are right, of course, but with our interior Dline as thin as it is, reaching and grabbing at straws is about all one can do. No one can really blame Pete for expressing a desire tinged with desperation.
Fernandez, Mattox, and even Comfort are going to have to play a lot more unless someone comes out of nowhere. Mata'afa definitely takes some DT snaps situationally as he did last year.
The freshmen are pretty light to throw into the middle.
Fernandez and Mattox will play, but neither one is a freshman. Comfort is a redshirt junior walk on. I think what we'll see is a steady rotation to keep guys from getting worn down.
I don't mean to sound too critical, but the staff, which knew following last season that Tapa was at risk academically, should have brought in more interior d-linemen. This failure could ruin this season and next.
There is a freshman walk on from Lind-Ritzville/Sprague High School, who played d-line and o-line in high school. Pake Taylor is currently listed as a 6-5, 300-pound O-lineman, but with the depth there, the staff should consider a move. He won't be ready for Pac-12 play for 2 years, but he's a big body and appears pretty active (see his sack of the QB at the 1:53-55 mark of his senior year highlights in the Hudl video).
FWIW, I think we are fine this year. What concerns me is that 6 out of the 8 players on our roster that are listed as "defensive line" are going to be gone in the next two seasons. Mata'afa and Ekuale could both be gone this year if Hercules decides to go early. There are a lot of defensive ends listed beyond that, but the big bodies are all scheduled to be gone soon. We have no room for error on player development and recruiting in the next two seasons.
The good news is that there aren't many teams on our schedule that can fully exploit our weakness on the interior DL. The bad news is that all of our biggest P12 competitors can; Stanford, USC, UW, Oregon, and Utah.
Looks like 7-5 / 8-4 might be the ceiling.
Looks like 7-5 / 8-4 might be the ceiling.
I stopped reading (and started laughing) after "walk on from Lind-Ritzville/Sprague."
Where'd you see that? I've seen 1 or 2 call WSU a dark horse, but pretty much everyone has UW and SC locked in with Stanford 3rd.
You have to score. You need the offense to go up by 14 and force them to throw the ball. Then your lighter kids are pass rushers. If you can't get up on them and the offense can run the ball if they want they'll eat you alive.
first quarter doldrums need to be a thing of the past. They did better last year, but this offense should average 10pts a quarter, IF we are to make a serious run at the P12 north title.
absolutely, if we can jump out to a nice lead it will mask our weakness inside, this will work against most teams, against the teams we can;t get a jump on we could be in trouble. time to load up with some JC d line, if we can get them. And I don't mean the Josh Luapo's of the world
I mean this doesn't really apply until late-game situations. Under 8min. Teams aren't going to abandon the run in the 2nd or 3rd quarter down 2 scores if they know they have a huge advantage up front. Then again maybe I'm overestimating some of the coaches in this league....
i wonder how"weak" the D line will really be? Of course.coach speak says they have confidence in the line and the D line coach sounds positive. I would feel better if Tupa was out there.
I stopped reading (and started laughing) after "walk on from Lind-Ritzville/Sprague."
Because you knew Will Derting from little Okanogan HS was going to be a surefire success... . Does the name Doug Wellsandt mean anything to you?
