NU Releases Depth Chart; Defensive Preview

It is game week in Evanston and on every campus around the country.  Everyone is feeling the anticipation of a new season; and EVR is ready for a busy week of posting.  So get ready to cram as there will be a lot of knowledge in the next few days.

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NU released its depth chart on Friday.  And there were a few surprises.  First, at tailback, the starters were listed as Mike Trumpy OR Jacob Schmidt.  Anyone who has been following this post knows that by mid-August, the assumption that Trumpy would simply step into the starter role was gone and that there was true competition at the position.  The other “OR” on offense is at the fourth receiver spot where Rashad Lawrence will share time with true freshman Christian Jones.  Jones was the biggest catch in the 2011 recruiting class and must have impressed the coaches to rise so fast in the depth charts.  The only other true freshman on the two-deep is Jack Konopka, who is a converted offensive lineman, who will back up Drake Dunsmore at superback.  Also of note on offense, Venric Mark is listed as the backup to Jeremy Ebert, meaning he moved up the charts pretty quickly too.

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Defensively, sophomore Tyler Scott will get the starting nod at left defensive tackle over senior Kevin Watt.  This is a move that had been discussed throughout the month.  The linebackers will be experienced as the Cats will go with Ben Johnson, David Nwabuisi, and Bryce McNaul.  Redshirt Freshman Collin Ellis was expected to get a starting nod, but is injured and will miss at least two games with his broken thumb.  Also missing because of an injury is Hunter Bates, who suffered a concussion, although he was not expected to be a true starter.  David Arnold, who has been nursing an ankle injury, is the starter at safety, but if he cannot go, Ibraheim Campbell will play in his place.  On special teams, Jeff Budzien won the place-kicking battle; although Steve Flaherty will handle kickoffs.  Campbell will be back returning kicks opposite Mark.

NU also named its 2011 Captains – and no surprises here: Dan Persa, Al Netter, Brian Peters and Jordan Mabin.  Captains are voted on by the players.

And after a quiet few weeks on the recruiting front, NU scored a pair of new Wildcats over the weekend.  First it was defensive lineman Greg Kuhar (Concord Township, Ohio), a three-star player who chose NU over BC, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State and West Virginia.  While Kuhar is not the highest rated among NU’s commitments, the caliber of program that offered him scholarships speaks for itself.  NU then went back to Ohio with Jaylen Prater, a linebacker from Wellston, Ohio.  Prater has not yet been rated by Rivals, but had competing offers from Cincinnati and Indiana.  Welcome Greg and Jaylen!

Defensive Line

The Cat defensive line was a relatively silent bunch in 2010.  Vince Browne quietly put together a very strong season, and will return as an All-America candidate.  But in both the wins and the losses, the D-Line was just a bunch of quiet workmen.  But this is a unit that continues to improve and should be able to make more noise in 2011.

The newcomer to the line is end Tyler Scott.  Tyler earned the spot in Kenosha from senior Kevin Watt, who the starter last year.  With Vince Browne seeing a great deal of double-teams, this will be a crucial position for the Cats.  Even though Scott and Watt are the exact same build, Scott (a high school linebacker) shows more strength and speed and will demonstrate a better ability to cause problems for opposing offensive lines.  He appeared in all 13 games last season as a reserve.  Watt recorded 29 tackles last season, six for losses – and had a blocked punt against Indiana.

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The middle will once again be filled by seniors Niko Mufali and Jack DiNardo.  Mufali has lost 30 pounds and is more athletic than he has been in the past.  He had a decent season after getting injured early in the Vanderbilt game.  DiNardo played very well in the first half of 2010 but will need to play at that level for the whole season.  DiNardo is one of the most explosive players on the offensive line, recording seven tackles for loss in 2010 and had two blocked kicks in the Central Michigan game.  These two will also need to stay healthy as there is little experience behind them in redshirt freshman Chance Carter and sophomore Will Hampton.

But the anchor on this unit is Vince Browne.  Vince has great speed around the corner and will be someone that the opposing defenses will have to observe at all times.  His strength has set records in the NU weight room.  Vince finds himself on a number of pre-season award watch lists, based on his 2010 statistics, which included seven sacks, 16 tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.  He will also generally take up two-blockers, which should allow the linebackers to make some plays, as well as Scott on the other side.  Vince is backed up by Quentin Williams, who also has seen the field a great deal.  Quentin recently gave up baseball to focus on football and is on the 10-man leadership counsel.  With Williams and Watt backing up the ends, it is one of the deepest positions on the team.

Linebackers

There seems to be sort of a general perception that while there are questions at running back, that they will at least be as adequate as 2010.  This leaves the linebackers as the biggest concern on the team.  While the unit is experienced, last year’s experience was horrid, especially in the last three games.  The backers were constantly over-committing and finding themselves out of position.  And then when they found themselves in the right place, they were missing tackles.  For the Cats to have any level of success in 2011, this unit needs to improve.

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Problem is, while there is experience up top, there is not a great deal of depth below.  As mentioned above the starting line of Johnson, Nwabuisi, and McNaul all felt the sting of the last three games and the media pressure that came with it.  These are three fast athletic guys, especially Nwabuisi, but they are going to need to reel it in a bit and focus on covering the run.  Johnson is one of the best athletes on the defense, but he needs to control his movement.  Cut backs were their nemesis as opposing backs would change the direction of their run and the NU backers would immediately be out of the play, which put a great deal of pressure on the secondary to act as run stoppers.  Now, there was a lot of blame to go around in those games – especially the turnovers against Wisconsin.  But these guys have a lot of personal pride on the line in 2011.

Behind them is youth and the future of the NU defense.  Collin Ellis is hurt, and was expected to steal a starting role from either Johnson or McNaul – and may still once he returns from injury.  McNaul also has a history of injuries, and so the younger guys will need to be ready.  Chi Chi Ariguzo, Damien Proby and Tim Riley are all guys who have not really seen the field for the Cats – Proby has seen the most action with 20 tackles and a sack in 2010.  But they will be called upon to play major roles both in case of injury and to provide depth.  The three starters, despite their criticism, are all pretty adept at pass coverage and blitzing – but that means that the younger backup unit will need to be ready to spell the starters at any time.

Secondary

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On the other hand, the Cats are strong and deep in the secondary and may have the best back line that they have had since the 1995 team.  The corners have impressed everyone the most and are led by Jordan Mabin and former offensive player, Jeravin Matthews.  Mabin is a true shutdown corner and was among the nation’s leaders in passes defended.  He is a three-year starter and has fantastic speed.  Matthews will see more balls his way as a result – he is a strong corner, who will use his athleticism to fight for balls with the larger receivers.  Ricky Weina will back up Mabin.  The former walk-on is now a senior and got some great experience on the 2009 squad when the defensive secondary was decimated with injuries.  Demetrius Dugar will backup Matthews.

The safety position will be manned by co-captain Brian Peters and hard-hitting David Arnold.  Arnold is listed as the starter but is nursing an ankle injury.  He is a hard hitter who can be a game-changer with his speed.  Backing up Arnold, and potentially starting against BC, is Ibraheim Campbell, who is a speedy safety who will also see time returning kicks.  His speed and hitting ability was one of the big surprises coming out of spring and fall camp.  Brian Peters is a Thorpe Award candidate and for good reason.  He has seven career interceptions, including one of the best catches of the last few years in the Outback Bowl.  He had 107 tackles last year, which is a lot for a safety, but has a great deal to do with the poor play at LB.  He stands tall at 6’4” 220, making him an imposing body for receivers over the middle.  Behind Peters is hometown hero Mike Bolden, an ETHS grad.

Special Teams

NU enters the 2011 season with one of the best special teams groups that they have had in years.  The placekicking battle was won by Jeff Budzien, over Steve Flaherty.  Flaherty instead will kickoff for the Cats, suggesting that he is the distance guy, while Budzien’s strength is accuracy.  Do not be surprised to see Flaherty walk in for a long distance kick at the end of a half or to win or tie at the last second of a game.  Apparently the composition for this job was pretty legit, so the Cats have two solid guys for at least the next two years. 

The cats Punter will again be Brandon Williams, who did an excellent job in 2010 after taking the place of Stephan Demos in this role.  The former walk-on averaged 40 yards per punt in 2010, and will continue to turn the field around for the Cats in 2011.

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The return game is as strong as it has been since 2004, when the Cats were among the nation’s leaders behind Jason Wright and Jeff Backes.  Venric Mark is a game-changer and will return both punts and kicks.  His speed and vision make him someone to watch every time he touches the ball.  Teams will try to kick away from him when they can.  Ibraheim Campbell will assist Mark on kickoffs.

EVR will post the Minnesota and MSU previews later tonight.