Depth Chart...

[SDHornet]

There is probably 4M people living within 150 miles of Sactown. Thats more than the entire state of ND.

Seems like a no brainer to me, but we have about 75K graduates living within about a 2hours drive, why not use the alumni list to sell some tickets-out of that list you should be able to sell 7K to 10K.

Don't get me wrong I agree there should be no problem getting people to come to games, I am just pointing out the Hornets are competing with other attractions. As I have always said, winning will solve this issue.

 

[ChiCity]

Really good start by SDHornet on the depth chart. Is Kenslow Smith still a viable option at running back? I have also heard that Wilkens may be used more as a slot rather than a running back. I agree that Douglas should redshirt this year. Let's not forget about Chase Deadder at WR, too. The coaches also seem to like Norrise who was a redshirt last year. WR will be loaded and with either MBT and Murdaca the most likely starter at QB, we should be good.

O line will be wide open with Nate Devan a possble starter as well as Matt Shinn (in addition to those mentioned). Who knows, Stickney may come in a blow everybody away.. The line is already being challenged by coach Adams, and they are responding in the weight room. We will see a really good competition this spring for the O line spots.

Avery White could also see time at LB along with Badger. Can't wait for spring ball to get here!

 

[glad2b-ahornet]

i am serious that there will not be a base 4-2-5 but rather nickel and base 4-3

also to be noted Geoff Warner has/will soon graduate and decided to hang it up even though he has one more year of eligibility. K. Smith hasnt been in workouts all spring. Evander will be used at slot. DAlso to be noted A.White has permanently been moved to DE as he started most of the time in the nickel this past year.

 

[Hammerhead Dad]

i am serious that there will not be a base 4-2-5 but rather nickel and base 4-3

also to be noted Geoff Warner has/will soon graduate and decided to hang it up even though he has one more year of eligibility. K. Smith hasnt been in workouts all spring. Evander will be used at slot. DAlso to be noted A.White has permanently been moved to DE as he started most of the time in the nickel this past year.

I'm glad you are serious, but I had a defensive coach tell me that the base was likely going to be a 4-2-5. However, things change and I heard this two weeks ago at the recruiting signing party, so it could be different now.

 

[SDHornet]

i am serious that there will not be a base 4-2-5 but rather nickel and base 4-3

also to be noted Geoff Warner has/will soon graduate and decided to hang it up even though he has one more year of eligibility. K. Smith hasnt been in workouts all spring. Evander will be used at slot. DAlso to be noted A.White has permanently been moved to DE as he started most of the time in the nickel this past year.

I am surprised to hear that news about Smith. He was a JC transfer and if he isn’t playing, it looks like things didn’t work out for him for one reason or another.

Sorry to hear the news about Warner. It would have been nice to see him contribute to the defense, especially after the experience he gained from last season.

White is listed at 240 lbs so it looks like he won’t be undersized to play that role. It will be nice to see if he can get a good speed rush going to terrorize opposing QB’s.

Thanks for your input on the 4-3 and nickel packages being kept. This will be good to keep in mind as spring camp starts up.

 

[glad2b-ahornet]

i think we are confusing each other. the 4-2-5 is technically a nickel as an LB is replaced by a DB however a 4-2-5 constitutes an idea of a rover position which as far as i know isnt the case. We will be playing with a true nickel back much the way we did this past year (D. Brown and J. Johnson). Obviously things will be determined based on personnel of both the opposition and how the players pan out and of course thats just the word now, who knows...

Dont know what happened with Kenslow Smith although I do know he needed shoulder surgery following the season. Geoff Warner is a great leader, hard worker, and sad to have him gone. Avery White has gained some weight and will be playing the weakside speed end much like he did in the nickel this past year but now in base as well as it is similar.

 

[Hammerhead Dad]

i think we are confusing each other. the 4-2-5 is technically a nickel as an LB is replaced by a DB however a 4-2-5 constitutes an idea of a rover position which as far as i know isnt the case. We will be playing with a true nickel back much the way we did this past year (D. Brown and J. Johnson). Obviously things will be determined based on personnel of both the opposition and how the players pan out and of course thats just the word now, who knows...

I've heard the base defense will only have two LBs, so I'm agreeing that its a nickel type package, as well. However, it was just a comment made to me and I didn't get into it in any depth, so lets just agree to wait and see. I'll let you know if I hear anything else.

 

[SDHornet]

Yes, the nickel package is a 4-2-5, but I figured the 4-2-5 in reference was the package with the rover style set-up. If in fact it is a more traditional nickel (a CB as the 5th player lining up in the secondary) then there will have to be alternative packages to defend the run where as having a 2nd SS (or LB with range as the 5th player) won't be as versatile to defend the run without a change of personnel.

Obviously the personnel packages will vary depending on the offense, but the concern will then be facing a team that can spread the ball with multiple WR looks and still have the capability to run the ball effectively. (EWU comes to mind.)

 

[superhornet]

The 4-2-5 alignment for a nickel package is only one of two possibilities. One does not HAVE to remove a LBer to get to a nickel. One could also remove a tackle to form a 3-3-5. Many base 4-3 teams do that, though one could remove a LBer from a base 3-4 to get to the nickel, too.

The alignment within the secondary also varies, and depends quite a bit on what the offense is doing. Once could see 3 CBs if the offense is using a ton of flankers. One could see 2 SS's if the opponent is using 2 or 3 TEs. One could even see 2 FS's if the opponent is running a lot of deep routes. While I can't confirm it, I would think that the most popular set would be quarters coverage with an invert "robber" safety, so one gets both the Cover 4 Umbrella and Cover 3 Robber effects.

 

[glad2b-ahornet]

yah we'll just wait and see what happens

with reference to the ewu game we had trouble having the nickel come down into the box and play like a lb which is when we made a personnel switch for the most part from a cb type (jeff johnson) to a more ss type (dorian brown) which is why i wouldnt give any predications on the person(s) playing those positions and obviously with ewu when they are in their 11 personnel (one back one tight end) sets we would go with more of a lb/ss type compared to their 4 wide sets (10 personnel) more of a cb type and maybe into our dime like we did last year when it become a 3-5 and having the "nickel/dime" and "will" walked outside the box with the more athletic de type (avery white) walked back playing lb and running blitz packages. my point is that i was told by biaz that it will not be a rover type schematically but more like a db body type playing like a lb walked outside the box to the passing strength and as far as i understand the stuff they have been teaching and coaching this spring has been as i mentioned. no dime yet

 

[SDHornet]

Thanks g2bah, whatever the coaches decide to go with, I hope it works and the defense can show some considerable improvement upon last year. The defense got picked apart every time they dropped back into zone coverage last season so hopefully multiple schemes are implemented this season.

 

[Fajadadu]

yah we'll just wait and see what happens

with reference to the ewu game we had trouble having the nickel come down into the box and play like a lb which is when we made a personnel switch for the most part from a cb type (jeff johnson) to a more ss type (dorian brown) which is why i wouldnt give any predications on the person(s) playing those positions and obviously with ewu when they are in their 11 personnel (one back one tight end) sets we would go with more of a lb/ss type compared to their 4 wide sets (10 personnel) more of a cb type and maybe into our dime like we did last year when it become a 3-5 and having the "nickel/dime" and "will" walked outside the box with the more athletic de type (avery white) walked back playing lb and running blitz packages. my point is that i was told by biaz that it will not be a rover type schematically but more like a db body type playing like a lb walked outside the box to the passing strength and as far as i understand the stuff they have been teaching and coaching this spring has been as i mentioned. no dime yet

You sound like you’ve really paid attention and put some thought into this. Way to be a real Hornet Fan!

 

[glad2b-ahornet]

thanks fajadadu i try to post something that is more than just a rumor as many of these posts are! ill keep u all posted on any new changes