thirdgenhoosier Posted November 25, 2018 Report Share Posted November 25, 2018 IU loses three starters in Knight, Martin, Linder as well as Knight's back up at right tackle I think (Baker?). Does anyone have a sense of who has the leg up to start at LG, C, and RT? I'm assuming the kid from Columbus (Crider) has the inside track at center? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobSaccamanno Posted November 25, 2018 Report Share Posted November 25, 2018 Good question. I’m admittedly guessing since I’m not at practice but I’d guess as of now something like: LT Cronk/ Rafferty LG Nworah/ Ryan Smith C Crider/ Littlejohn RG Stepaniak/Marozas RT Caleb Jones/ Davondre Love Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thirdgenhoosier Posted November 25, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2018 I was wondering about Nworah. Appreciate the input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobSaccamanno Posted November 25, 2018 Report Share Posted November 25, 2018 Thanks. A few of my impressions (hardly the gospel): 1. Some of these guys were pretty solid recruits so hopefully they have been developing. 2. Caleb Jones came in for Cronk in at least one game that I remember. He’s obviously very large and sticks out. I’d say his feet are below average but his wingspan is so massive that he may be able to negate the slower feet. He may need help against speed rushers, though. You could have a TE over there or get your back to chip. 3. Aidan Rafferty was a true freshman this year and Coach Allen mentioned him as a scout team star recently. At 6’6 he’s got ideal height for a tackle. If Jones turns out to be too slow, Rafferty may get a look. He was one of our higher ranked recruits coming in this year. I’d say as a redshirt freshman he may not have the power yet in the run game which Jones should provide. 4. Britt Beery was a defensive player at Carmel but at 6’6 300 they moved him to offensive tackle. I have no idea how he’s progessing but he may be in the mix at tackle. 5. Marozas was another offensive lineman in last year’s class. Again, I’m not sure how he’s doing but his ranking was good. He’s listed at 6’5. I penciled him in at guard where it seems like we need more bodies. But he could be in the tackle mix too. 6. McKenzie Nworah has gotten snaps here and there. He was another solid recruit out of Texas IIRC. He’s been groomed for a guard spot and he’s been in the pipeline for plenty of time. Let’s hope he’s up to the task of starting. 7. I like Crider at center. I think he can be solid. The coaches have always given plenty of time to Hunter Littlejohn so he may play too. 8. I wonder if we go for a juco or senior transfer somewhere in the mix in here. 9. Offensive linemen who can start as true freshmen tend to be pretty special because the physical build is normally an issue as they build bulk. So, I don’t know how our freshmen recruits will do but I’m expecting them to redshirt. 10. This is a huge position. We have Penix and an amazing set of backs. Our receivers should be fine. We have some young TE’s coming along. We really need the O line to take care of business. I thought it would be a strength of the team (on paper, it was) but they didn’t gel until late. I wonder about the position coach, Hiller. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thirdgenhoosier Posted November 25, 2018 Author Report Share Posted November 25, 2018 Good stuff. I saw Jones play a couple of times in high school and thought he leaned on people rather than had great footwork. Was hoping a couple of years in a training program might fix that a little. Here’s to hoping Allen has recruited the OL better than Wilson did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leathernecks Posted November 26, 2018 Report Share Posted November 26, 2018 7 hours ago, BobSaccamanno said: Thanks. A few of my impressions (hardly the gospel): 1. Some of these guys were pretty solid recruits so hopefully they have been developing. 2. Caleb Jones came in for Cronk in at least one game that I remember. He’s obviously very large and sticks out. I’d say his feet are below average but his wingspan is so massive that he may be able to negate the slower feet. He may need help against speed rushers, though. You could have a TE over there or get your back to chip. 3. Aidan Rafferty was a true freshman this year and Coach Allen mentioned him as a scout team star recently. At 6’6 he’s got ideal height for a tackle. If Jones turns out to be too slow, Rafferty may get a look. He was one of our higher ranked recruits coming in this year. I’d say as a redshirt freshman he may not have the power yet in the run game which Jones should provide. 4. Britt Beery was a defensive player at Carmel but at 6’6 300 they moved him to offensive tackle. I have no idea how he’s progessing but he may be in the mix at tackle. 5. Marozas was another offensive lineman in last year’s class. Again, I’m not sure how he’s doing but his ranking was good. He’s listed at 6’5. I penciled him in at guard where it seems like we need more bodies. But he could be in the tackle mix too. 6. McKenzie Nworah has gotten snaps here and there. He was another solid recruit out of Texas IIRC. He’s been groomed for a guard spot and he’s been in the pipeline for plenty of time. Let’s hope he’s up to the task of starting. 7. I like Crider at center. I think he can be solid. The coaches have always given plenty of time to Hunter Littlejohn so he may play too. 8. I wonder if we go for a juco or senior transfer somewhere in the mix in here. 9. Offensive linemen who can start as true freshmen tend to be pretty special because the physical build is normally an issue as they build bulk. So, I don’t know how our freshmen recruits will do but I’m expecting them to redshirt. 10. This is a huge position. We have Penix and an amazing set of backs. Our receivers should be fine. We have some young TE’s coming along. We really need the O line to take care of business. I thought it would be a strength of the team (on paper, it was) but they didn’t gel until late. I wonder about the position coach, Hiller. Love the break down! I'm curious about Hiller too. I don't know if he isn't very good at coaching up the OL or if the line is doomed by DeBord's predictable play calling. You're right though, we need a high quality offensive line. With an excellent young QB and RBs, a good offensive line could set us up to have a great offense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jblaz13 Posted November 26, 2018 Report Share Posted November 26, 2018 11 hours ago, Leathernecks said: Love the break down! I'm curious about Hiller too. I don't know if he isn't very good at coaching up the OL or if the line is doomed by DeBord's predictable play calling. You're right though, we need a high quality offensive line. With an excellent young QB and RBs, a good offensive line could set us up to have a great offense. Probably a bit of both. The folks discussing the team in the FB threads have tossed this around numerous times: If you don't have lines like Wisconsin typically gets, then it's generally necessary diversify the attack, to keep a prepared top level defense on their heels. I thought IU made solid adjustments even later in the year, but counter adjustments often slowed them in the end. I also felt in desperation to get games back within reach, something inadvertently "worked" several times, and then Indiana would immediately revert back to the "play not to lose style" as soon as the score showed IU with an actual chance to win still. I came around slowly on Hiller, which meant I basically blame DeBord for the entirety of the offense failing to convert ,especially off take aways when IU made it's run in several games. I wish I had the numbers on drives that failed in opposing territory. I believe they tell a clearer story. The thing that I think stands out is how much the IU Line improved against Defenses which were more unanimously believed to have them(IU's OL) outmatched(Michigan , and Penn State to name a couple).Early season they were no match for Sparty. By end of that game the Spartan D flew at Ramsey almost unimpeded and IU was never able to regain footing. At least they found a way to push back later in the year.They fought and competed up front whether they were bested or not. I say this ^ above^ assuming (correctly or not) IU was even playing "up" to their respective levels as opposed to those teams' Defenses playing "down" to IU's , but seeing enough of that is where I started to feel I was in haste on Hiller. We ended up with a team that found yards both running and passing as they had flashed the ability to do early in the season .The difference was the increased level of competition it came against. The line was a lot of why.. It doesn't mean Hiller's hands are clean of responsibility, but did enough to sway me further to what most of us believed already. It's debatable really, so hard to pin down all the way, but we can definitely pin plenty of responsibility on DeBord since coordinating an offense is his job. The offense was too predictable and the ball wasn't getting into the hands of guys who proved to be making plays in individual games, often enough. Hitting more of those one on one mismatches in our favor helps takes pressure off the line.IT doesn't always have to work. it just has to be enough to remind the defense "we are willing go over your head every time if you stack the box and play tight on guys like Hale or Westbrook". We would see teams struggle to cover the IU wideouts yet Indiana gets down a score or two and runs the ball 3 straight times. Or throws short into the flat on long downs when the box is stacked without having an established adjustment at the line nor a plan to hit any more favorable option emerging in the progressions. Teams STILL, on several occasions, lined up against them and left openings even after IU completed long plays as if daring them to do it again and Indiana didn't even attempt to prove it foolish. Makes our OC look the most foolish of all in the end, in hindsight . Gutless is a arguably a better word. .I would have much rather saw them keep going predictable with what opponents had the most trouble stopping. I also feel for Westbrook and the notion there was more to be had out of and also Hale.that we might never know amidst the overall feeling way too much was left out on the field that could have changed the bottom line. Sorry I just woke up and had something to comment so forgive if it's not as organized typed out as it was in my thoughts. Lol Excuses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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