Projected 2017 Starting Lineup

[ScottsboroAuburnFan 462]

1 hour ago, ellitor said:

Respectfully asking but since when? I have not seen anything stating that.

He made the move full time during bowl practice.  Did not spend one snap at DE. It was hinted that was an early start for spring.

[tigerbrotha12 2,362]

On 1/3/2017 at 5:23 PM, mcgufcm said:

Well, it's a TON of guesswork, but I'd be inclined to say yes. Offense would look something like this:

LT:  James or Ashley
LG:  Horton or James
C:  Golson
RG:  Smith
RT:  Ashley or Tega
TE:  Canella
HB:  Cox
RB:  Pettway/Johnson
WR:  Stove or R. Davis
WR:  K. Davis
WR:  Slayton or Craig-Myers
QB:  Stidham

DE:  Davidson
DT:  Russell
DT:  Brown
DE:  Holland or P. James
OLB:  D. Williams
MLB:  D. Davis
OLB:  T. Williams
NB:  Thomas or Roberts
CB:  C. Davis
S:  Roberts or Ruffin
S:  Matthews
CB:  J. Davis or Dean

That's a pretty solid starting group on both sides of the ball with very good OL and DL talent. It's a fine automobile for any QB.

Don't forget about Cowart. I think he's about prime to have a breakout year 

[ellitor 33,093]

58 minutes ago, ScottsboroAuburnFan said:

He made the move full time during bowl practice.  Did not spend one snap at DE. It was hinted that was an early start for spring.

Again. No offense but where did you see this? A link or reference point would be appreciated. I looked everywhere I could think of and could not find it. I'm not saying you are wrong. Just asking for a link or reference point?

[ScottsboroAuburnFan 462]

Pretty sure it was here. Unless it was 24/7... I don't read anywhere else. 

[ScottsboroAuburnFan 462]

It was in another topic cause I remember reading it during conversation. Might have been a post only subscribers could see on 24/7 but I have no clue the topic. Seems I remember it being about half through bowl practice.

[ScottsboroAuburnFan 462]

Now you got me looking everywhere lol. Must have been 24/7. Somebody else had to have read it. I did see a mention by someone in the post about 2017 defense that said Cowart should get a good push from the inside as a pass rusher, which sounded like maybe they knew about it also but idk. Lol 

[bigbird 60,525]

4 hours ago, cole256 said:

I don't get all the KJ hate lately....he didn't even play most of the year healthy.....usually you get kudos for that....

Or get called soft, fragile, or made of marshmallows.  

 

For me, with the the emergence of KP, I think KJ would/could fit the role the coaches had for Roc. 

[cole256 17,074]

2 hours ago, bigbird said:

Or get called soft, fragile, or made of marshmallows.  

 

For me, with the the emergence of KP, I think KJ would/could fit the role the coaches had for Roc. 

Fragile yes. The other stuff you could TRY to call another guy that but you'd be banned.  And it's still like a group protecting him.  Talking about his courage, will power etc. KJ hasn't really had that....

But I'm confused with the so called evaluation of he doesn't know how to run.......he could be injury prone actually he probably is injury prone but saying he doesn't run with instinct is completely made up. Difference between him and pettway is pertway is bigger. They both were ineffective when hurt. And pettway was fresher. Fact of the matter it's stupid to even want your hb to get 30-40 carries a game

[bigbird 60,525]

1 hour ago, cole256 said:

Fragile yes. The other stuff you could TRY to call another guy that but you'd be banned.  And it's still like a group protecting him.  Talking about his courage, will power etc. KJ hasn't really had that....

But I'm confused with the so called evaluation of he doesn't know how to run.......he could be injury prone actually he probably is injury prone but saying he doesn't run with instinct is completely made up. Difference between him and pettway is pertway is bigger. They both were ineffective when hurt. And pettway was fresher. Fact of the matter it's stupid to even want your hb to get 30-40 carries a game

I agree. KJ is a fine runner with tons of talent and might be a little injury proned, but he runs with great effort.  I also agree they should split reps at about 12-15 a game.

[Eagle Eye 7 2,535]

Those asking about KJ returning kickoffs, probably had more to do with trust about ball security from Gus than if he was the best. Sometime Gus favors ball security over actual ability. Not knocking anyone just stating why the question about Gus's favoritism to some players. I think this is also applied to WR and QB play. TIFWIW. WDE

[lionheartkc 6,150]

10 hours ago, cole256 said:

I don't get all the KJ hate lately....he didn't even play most of the year healthy.....usually you get kudos for that....

I hear you.  I think people are just looking for someone to hate on at this point. 

[lionheartkc 6,150]

5 hours ago, bigbird said:

For me, with the the emergence of KP, I think KJ would/could fit the role the coaches had for Roc. 

I'd go as far as saying he would be even more versatile in that roll than Roc ever could have been. KJs biggest strength is that he can do a little bit of everything, and has no trouble improvising when it's called for.

[bg5 536]

I guess the big questions are where will there be a drop off and where will there be an upgrade. Drop off to me will be (at least right away) LG and RT on Off.. And DT and Buck on Def.. I think we upgrade at QB, WR (Just because the young guys will have more experience) and CB. I don't think it will take the OL to gel and be really good and we also have solid back ups on the DL so they should be solid as well long with another years experience for all of the returning players. I think we look really good going into next year.

[lionheartkc 6,150]

16 minutes ago, bg5 said:

I guess the big questions are where will there be a drop off and where will there be an upgrade. Drop off to me will be (at least right away) LG and RT on Off.. And DT and Buck on Def.. I think we upgrade at QB, WR (Just because the young guys will have more experience) and CB. I don't think it will take the OL to gel and be really good and we also have solid back ups on the DL so they should be solid as well long with another years experience for all of the returning players. I think we look really good going into next year.

I'm reserving judgement on LG and RT, since we weren't world beaters there to begin with. You can't help but drop off from Monty, but even so, I think our DTs will be better than most teams. Buck is a concern, but there is always a chance that one of the guys in the wings will really blossom as a sack threat.  We've seen it before with guys like Dee Ford.

My number 1 concern is the O-Line gelling. Even if Stidham is the rock star most expect him to be, he won't be able to do much if he's constantly having to avoid the rush, and as good as Pettway is, he can't make holes by himself. The success of our O rests in Hand's hands. 

[ellitor 33,093]

7 hours ago, ScottsboroAuburnFan said:

Now you got me looking everywhere lol. Must have been 24/7. Somebody else had to have read it. I did see a mention by someone in the post about 2017 defense that said Cowart should get a good push from the inside as a pass rusher, which sounded like maybe they knew about it also but idk. Lol 

No worries. It will play out how ever it plays out and we will know eventually.

[imaolgatiger 523]

3 hours ago, bigbird said:

I agree. KJ is a fine runner with tons of talent and might be a little injury proned, but he runs with great effort.  I also agree they should split reps at about 12-15 a game.

I love KJ as a RB, but I sometimes wonder if he runs too hard and doesn't always setup his blocks.  He has been 1 step from taking it to the house several times.  I am happy to have him as an AU RB! He is our swiss army knife!

[Tiger 8,826]

On 1/4/2017 at 2:21 PM, Butthead said:

I am no football coach, but what baffles, confuses, and aggravates the sh*t out of me is that we recruit these small, blazing fast players and cannot figure out how to get them the f'n ball in space to make plays.  Can someone explain that to me?

1 million likes for you, sir

 

I'm out of legitimate likes at the moment but I have been trying to figure this out for a while now. Quan Bray may have been the best we have had. But also we usually try to give them the ball on screens with 2 defenders in their face with 1 blocker. I think Duke Williams just missed another block

[Tiger 8,826]

I don't get the KJ hate, when he was healthy he was extremely effective and versatile. Think of how Kenny Irons' production dipped when he had a season long nagging injury his senior year. KJ can be one hell of a multi-purpose guy for us when healthy. We just can't give him 20-25 carries in a game -- he isn't built for that. Not sure why our staff did that to him with Pettway back there but I'm done ragging on the coaches decisions for today.

[McLoofus 35,182]

@Tiger, you're on fire. Rag away. Somebody will let you know when you're wrong

[bigbird 60,525]

8 minutes ago, McLoofus said:

@Tiger, you're on fire. Rag away. Somebody will let you know when you're wrong

I know who. 

[McLoofus 35,182]

4 minutes ago, bigbird said:

I know who. 

Hahahahaha

[mcgufcm 4,096]

I thought Cowart didn't practice because he was still recovering from surgery after his appendectomy. That was my impression anyway. I suspect he will move inside the same way Nkemdiche did, but I didn't think he was even available for the bowl game.

Put me in the other camp on Kerryon. I really like him. He played hurt. He absolutely proved he could run between the tackles. He catches the ball well. Before he was injured in the MSU game, he had at least 90+ yards in every game but one (A&M where he only saw 15 carries). That includes games against Clemson (19th against the run nationally) and LSU (13th). That LSU game alone sold me. 26 carries/catches for 161 yards against that defense? I'm in on that guy. He's a perfect RB2 behind Pettway and presents a different skill set. I hope we use him more in the passing game.

I like the roster just as much when you start to dig into the two deep with a few exceptions. On defense, I actually like the depth chart even more than the starting groups. Something like this:

DE - Davidson/Cowart?/Coe
DT - Russell/A. Williams
DT - Brown/Cowart?/Jackson
DE/Buck - James/Holland/Moultry?
OLB - D. Williams/Atkinson
MLB - D. Davis/T. Williams/Britt?
OLB - T. Williams/Moultry
NB - Thomas/Roberts?/Dean (this is a complete mystery heading into next season but we have options)
CB - J. Davis/Dean
S - Matthews/Ruffin
S - Roberts/Boston/Thomas
CB - C. Davis/Dinson?/Character

That's a lot of quality depth. Think about this. That's a legit 9-10 man DL group, and every single guy on the list was a 4 or 5* recruit. That's good.

[AUld fAUx@ 2,584]

2 hours ago, Tiger said:

1 million likes for you, sir

 

I'm out of legitimate likes at the moment but I have been trying to figure this out for a while now. Quan Bray may have been the best we have had. But also we usually try to give them the ball on screens with 2 defenders in their face with 1 blocker. I think Duke Williams just missed another block

Many say this.

For some reason, I seem never to run out of likes. Am I just stingy???

Anyway - have another.

[ellitor 33,093]

7 hours ago, bigbird said:

I know who. 

I know at least 2 Whos in Whoville.

[ellitor 33,093]

4 hours ago, AUinTLoosa said:

Many say this.

For some reason, I seem never to run out of likes. Am I just stingy???

Anyway - have another.

It's 25 every 24 hours. I don't run out much but did today & wanted to like about 5 more.