Spring football practice is almost here. Coming off a 3-9 season (2-9 in the FBS), Tulane has a lot of questions to be answered going into next season. Some could be answered in the spring.
My first question is simple. Will CJ conduct practices open to the media so people like Guerry can see for themselves what is going on? Will they be open to the public? I really enjoy the insights of knowledgeable observers like Winwave, Buck2481 and others when they have the chance to attend. Receiving information from post-practice interviews dominated by "coach speak" is better than nothing, but it's nice to hear from someone with "fresh eyes" what's going on.
As for the team, much of the fan and media interest for the spring workouts will probably focus on the QB position. So I'll start there.
1. Can Tanner Lee do the job at QB? Frankly, I doubt this can be answered in the spring. CJ continuously raves about all of our QB's in practice, and none have performed to that level in the game. The question of who will be first off the bench if Lee stumbles or is injured might be answered. Powell or Cuiellette? Still, observers can provide opinions on how Lee looks.
2. Can our placekicker do the job? Will he consistently make 40 yard field goals in the spring? That's the minimum required in my view. Even that means going for it or punting outside the 23 yard line. That's not what "good teams" do. We need a significant upgrade, and with Block not arriving until the fall, we may not know this spring.
3. What about the rest of special teams? How does Picerelli look? How does Lizanich look? Is anyone else practicing at "deep snapper?" How do they look? We probably can't tell much about returners, but who is being looked at? It's been a weakness for a long time.
4. Who will replace Gilbert at the DE opposite LaFrance? Aruna, Carroll, and Daren Williams were unable to "grab the job" when given the opportunity this year. Can Luke Jackson return from his illness? Can a redshirt freshmen, Peter Woullard or Robert Kennedy, step up? Could Bell or Washington move back outside? The spring should give us some insight, but we need at least three competent DE's to join LeFrance in next year's rotation. We've got nothing coming in the new class.
5. After Smart and Wilson, who will join the rotation in the interior defensive line? Can Braynton Edwards show up in good enough shape to compete? Is Calvin Thomas healthy enough to contribute as he did in his freshman year? What's happening with Eldrick Washington and Eric Bell? Are we going to have to wait to the fall and incoming freshmen to find an answer?
6. In the defensive backfield, where we play primarily six men, who will replace Scofield, Doss, Nixon and LeBeau? Leonard Davis didn't play that well at safety and, though Townsend had a good game against Georgia Tech, he didn't make another tackle all year after that second game; and, he didn't play at all the last few contests. Jarod Franklin (if he doesn't move permanently to linebacker) and Richard Allen appear likely to join the six man rotation if they recover from injuries. How do they look? Additionally, Cooper got some special teams experience and Carthon has become a star on coverage teams but hasn't moved up the depth chart at safety. Moreover, he'll be playing baseball for the next couple of months. Finally, we have three redshirt freshmen ready to show what they can do in the spring. Are they ready? Of course, with seven defensive backs coming in as "true" freshmen, we may have to wait until fall to resolve the defensive backfield rotation. Right now, it's a big question, at least to me.
7. Who will be our five man front on the offensive line? And who will be the next two or three off the bench? Uzvadinis, Hanson, Shienle, and Taylor seem to be entrenched, having started virtually every play for more than a year. Can anyone unseat them? Is Santa Marina ready to take the right tackle spot? Is Devon Johnson, whom some have "guaranteed" to be a starter next year, ready to take that position? What about Dias? Can he move in at center and move Shienle and others around to make our "best" starting five? Can Jason Stewart get in the playing shape to contribute significantly? Is relatively unheralded redshirt freshman, John Legue, ready to make a statement? Will Todd Jaquet, Bobby Bradley, Anthony Taylor or Brandon Godfrey make any move on the depth chart? The unit this past year, though improved, was still well below average in my view. We finished #90 in rushing as an example, despite gaining a lot of yards after contact. Will we see someone step up in the spring? Or, will they leave the door open to a freshman in the fall? Gosh, I hope not.
8. The first question at wide receiver is fairly simple in my mind. Do we have enough of them to even have a spring practice? We only have four on scholarship, though six more walk-ons can fill in. But, I don't think QB's gain much experience or establish necessary timing by throwing to walk-ons. The same with defensive backs covering them. The early departures of Banks, Boutte, Van Houser, and Edwards and the failure to recruit enough WR's have left us very short. Will any of our DB's be moved to the offensive side? Will our young receivers show necessary improvement?
9. At Linebacker, it will be interesting to see if Zach Harris is back at full strength and how Rene Fleury, Rae Juan Marbley and Eric Bowie are looking. One of them at least needs to step up to join Marley, Edward Williams, and Eric Thomas in the rotation or when we go to a true 4-3 lineup.
10. Running back is a team strength and the health of Badie and Thompson is important. Also, how does Rounds look after a redshirt year? Can he/will he join the rotation with Badie, Thompson, and Hilliard? And how is the transition of Sergio Medina to fullback looking? Is he a viable replacement for Butler or will he continue to be primarily a special teams player? What about Kelley? He's apparently in school and listed on the roster. Is he even a possibility at this point?
11. I don't have a lot of questions regarding tight end. Marfisi, our best blocker is gone and Sydie London didn't play the final five games last year. Who will be our blocking tight end? Jones is obviously not the answer due to his size, but how is he catching the ball? Last season he dropped almost half the balls thrown to him-caught ten of 25 passes, with most of the incompletes due to "drops." And what about Ardoin? He was probably the more heralded of our freshmen tight ends last year, yet didn't play. Is he ready?
12. My final question is regarding the post spring roster. How many of our "redshirt juniors will be listed as seniors for the coming year. That's usually a "give away" as to their future in the program. Right now, only Bradley is listed as a senior on the roster posted on the official site, but, by my count, there are seven others now that Paul is apparently through with football due to injuries.
Regardless, it should be interesting.
Roll Wave!!!!
My first question is simple. Will CJ conduct practices open to the media so people like Guerry can see for themselves what is going on? Will they be open to the public? I really enjoy the insights of knowledgeable observers like Winwave, Buck2481 and others when they have the chance to attend. Receiving information from post-practice interviews dominated by "coach speak" is better than nothing, but it's nice to hear from someone with "fresh eyes" what's going on.
As for the team, much of the fan and media interest for the spring workouts will probably focus on the QB position. So I'll start there.
1. Can Tanner Lee do the job at QB? Frankly, I doubt this can be answered in the spring. CJ continuously raves about all of our QB's in practice, and none have performed to that level in the game. The question of who will be first off the bench if Lee stumbles or is injured might be answered. Powell or Cuiellette? Still, observers can provide opinions on how Lee looks.
2. Can our placekicker do the job? Will he consistently make 40 yard field goals in the spring? That's the minimum required in my view. Even that means going for it or punting outside the 23 yard line. That's not what "good teams" do. We need a significant upgrade, and with Block not arriving until the fall, we may not know this spring.
3. What about the rest of special teams? How does Picerelli look? How does Lizanich look? Is anyone else practicing at "deep snapper?" How do they look? We probably can't tell much about returners, but who is being looked at? It's been a weakness for a long time.
4. Who will replace Gilbert at the DE opposite LaFrance? Aruna, Carroll, and Daren Williams were unable to "grab the job" when given the opportunity this year. Can Luke Jackson return from his illness? Can a redshirt freshmen, Peter Woullard or Robert Kennedy, step up? Could Bell or Washington move back outside? The spring should give us some insight, but we need at least three competent DE's to join LeFrance in next year's rotation. We've got nothing coming in the new class.
5. After Smart and Wilson, who will join the rotation in the interior defensive line? Can Braynton Edwards show up in good enough shape to compete? Is Calvin Thomas healthy enough to contribute as he did in his freshman year? What's happening with Eldrick Washington and Eric Bell? Are we going to have to wait to the fall and incoming freshmen to find an answer?
6. In the defensive backfield, where we play primarily six men, who will replace Scofield, Doss, Nixon and LeBeau? Leonard Davis didn't play that well at safety and, though Townsend had a good game against Georgia Tech, he didn't make another tackle all year after that second game; and, he didn't play at all the last few contests. Jarod Franklin (if he doesn't move permanently to linebacker) and Richard Allen appear likely to join the six man rotation if they recover from injuries. How do they look? Additionally, Cooper got some special teams experience and Carthon has become a star on coverage teams but hasn't moved up the depth chart at safety. Moreover, he'll be playing baseball for the next couple of months. Finally, we have three redshirt freshmen ready to show what they can do in the spring. Are they ready? Of course, with seven defensive backs coming in as "true" freshmen, we may have to wait until fall to resolve the defensive backfield rotation. Right now, it's a big question, at least to me.
7. Who will be our five man front on the offensive line? And who will be the next two or three off the bench? Uzvadinis, Hanson, Shienle, and Taylor seem to be entrenched, having started virtually every play for more than a year. Can anyone unseat them? Is Santa Marina ready to take the right tackle spot? Is Devon Johnson, whom some have "guaranteed" to be a starter next year, ready to take that position? What about Dias? Can he move in at center and move Shienle and others around to make our "best" starting five? Can Jason Stewart get in the playing shape to contribute significantly? Is relatively unheralded redshirt freshman, John Legue, ready to make a statement? Will Todd Jaquet, Bobby Bradley, Anthony Taylor or Brandon Godfrey make any move on the depth chart? The unit this past year, though improved, was still well below average in my view. We finished #90 in rushing as an example, despite gaining a lot of yards after contact. Will we see someone step up in the spring? Or, will they leave the door open to a freshman in the fall? Gosh, I hope not.
8. The first question at wide receiver is fairly simple in my mind. Do we have enough of them to even have a spring practice? We only have four on scholarship, though six more walk-ons can fill in. But, I don't think QB's gain much experience or establish necessary timing by throwing to walk-ons. The same with defensive backs covering them. The early departures of Banks, Boutte, Van Houser, and Edwards and the failure to recruit enough WR's have left us very short. Will any of our DB's be moved to the offensive side? Will our young receivers show necessary improvement?
9. At Linebacker, it will be interesting to see if Zach Harris is back at full strength and how Rene Fleury, Rae Juan Marbley and Eric Bowie are looking. One of them at least needs to step up to join Marley, Edward Williams, and Eric Thomas in the rotation or when we go to a true 4-3 lineup.
10. Running back is a team strength and the health of Badie and Thompson is important. Also, how does Rounds look after a redshirt year? Can he/will he join the rotation with Badie, Thompson, and Hilliard? And how is the transition of Sergio Medina to fullback looking? Is he a viable replacement for Butler or will he continue to be primarily a special teams player? What about Kelley? He's apparently in school and listed on the roster. Is he even a possibility at this point?
11. I don't have a lot of questions regarding tight end. Marfisi, our best blocker is gone and Sydie London didn't play the final five games last year. Who will be our blocking tight end? Jones is obviously not the answer due to his size, but how is he catching the ball? Last season he dropped almost half the balls thrown to him-caught ten of 25 passes, with most of the incompletes due to "drops." And what about Ardoin? He was probably the more heralded of our freshmen tight ends last year, yet didn't play. Is he ready?
12. My final question is regarding the post spring roster. How many of our "redshirt juniors will be listed as seniors for the coming year. That's usually a "give away" as to their future in the program. Right now, only Bradley is listed as a senior on the roster posted on the official site, but, by my count, there are seven others now that Paul is apparently through with football due to injuries.
Regardless, it should be interesting.
Roll Wave!!!!