The 2-deep heading into fall

[GoBulls84]

Soooooooo stoked to see the lineup of Robinson, McKenzie, Mompremier at LB.

[smazza]

not playing ray rice will make our defense look better

[Yung Money]

Colby Erskin is back?

[Bullpride08]

Our next big star will be LB - middle McKenzie....he will be phenomenal and win many BE accolades this year.  He was great last year and looks even better this year.

He will remind us of Kawika - mirror image.

He was phenomenal at the spring game, phenomenal.  I love Kawika, a huge fan, but even he didn't quite have the athleticism of McKenzie.  If anyone saw that goalline stance, and wondered why we didn't punch it in the simple answer is MCKENZIE.  On 1st and goal from the 3, Tyrone shot in and blew by blockers with speed and tackled Ford for a five yard loss, on the third down he put QB pressure on a read blitz that was purely instinct and timing.

Watching McKenzie at the spring game I don't know if he's not a BETTER LB in the MLB then on the outside.  Last year on the outside he was brilliant often, but occasionally showed times of being lost in space.  At the spring game, at MLB where the middle is responsible for reads, and more containment, his exceptional speed, athleticism, and strength really stood out.  Now some might say it was due to the splitting of teams but no way because Tyrone's reads were what kept Ford from breaking 1-2 long runs.  Quite frankly, I think McKenzie might have been even better if he had his full compliment of DL in front of him, and furthermore, minus Tyrone McKenzie's menacing presence, Ford would have probably ran for another 15-20 more yards.  Did you realize tyrone accounted for almost 10 yards in losses on two tackles of Ford, take those away and Ford rumbled for nearly 7 ypc.  And it was different this spring because Ford did it mainly against the PTP'ers in the 1st half and 3rd quarter.  Last spring Ford got nearly the same rushing total but it was late in the spring game when many of the top players had shutdown for the night.

BTW, a couple of other guys that looked exceptional that night include Grothe, Robinson (man if this guy can get it back and work hard and stay consistent...), Keith McCaskill (he's going to be a very good DT, maybe better then McClain when it's all said and done), Jamar Taylor (boy did he look quicker than last year), Taurus Johnson (for all those expecting Mitchell to be the 'go to' give it a rest, Taurus showed in the spring game that he is 'da man' at receiver, and plans to exert that dominance, and looks in amazing shape), Schmidt (he dominated at guard and tackle that night), Nate Allen (was all around the ball), Selvie (the first step and his exceptional quickness is amazing), Buie (looks like he's decided to carry the successes he had in the 2nd half of the season forward), Jerome Murphy (rarely picked on)....

Not so good--- Jacob Sims (has some work to do if he wants to start at OT, constantly victimized by Buie both bull rushing and speed rushing-- to his defense he'll probably only see a couple DE's as skilled and cagy as Buie this year), all the back-up tackles-- maybe it was just Buie and Selvie were that good, but when Hampton is tearing you up...., Voss (kid still needs time, great runner, great athlete but the moment the pocket starts tightening he takes his eyes from down field and starts dancing-- a QB no-no), Roberts (a managable corner but he keeps everything in front of him, not exceptional athletically but he's a great tackler, and physical.  He will be the most tested so he needs to be prepared to be more instinctive in cover).

Overall the spring looks great.  Looking at that depth chart the only area that gives me pause, as incredibull had mentioned earlier, is the back-up OL, more so at tackle...if Tolley was healthy no worries but with the torn ACL that's a blow to the team....hopefully Edenfield returns and shapes up, Sims works this summer at getting a touch bigger, stronger, and quicker, and Schmidt gets prepared...that aside I see little weaknesses provide we don't get bit with the injury bug like last year.  I think Murphy is a star in waiting, Taurus is ready for a huge breakout campaign, and ditto for Ford.

[Jake_Ryan]

Bien, thanks I needed that!

Glad to hear about McCaskill's progress at DT, and that Buie is looking good.  With those 2 stepping up, Genus a surprise, and the 2 JUCO's coming, the D Line should be great.  Not worried about LB at all, and hope Robinson is healthy.  I keep remembering those long arms and him just making plays 2 years ago.  Let Roberts keep it all in front of him - as long as he doesn't give up the bomb, and the D makes the opponent earn it, I don't see many teams taking it 80 yards consistently next year.

The O Line, particularly tackle, MUST STAY HEALTHY.  This has been my biggest concern.  I pray Edenfield gets it together and Popek is the real deal, although I don't ever count on a true Frosh.  If the OLine holds up, this team will compete for the Big East Title.

[Bullpride08]

Bien, thanks I needed that!

Glad to hear about McCaskill's progress at DT, and that Buie is looking good.  With those 2 stepping up, Genus a surprise, and the 2 JUCO's coming, the D Line should be great.  Not worried about LB at all, and hope Robinson is healthy.  I keep remembering those long arms and him just making plays 2 years ago.  Let Roberts keep it all in front of him - as long as he doesn't give up the bomb, and the D makes the opponent earn it, I don't see many teams taking it 80 yards consistently next year.

The O Line, particularly tackle, MUST STAY HEALTHY.  This has been my biggest concern.  I pray Edenfield gets it together and Popek is the real deal, although I don't ever count on a true Frosh.  If the OLine holds up, this team will compete for the Big East Title.

I don't see how we don't compete for a BE title providing we stay relatively injury free (losing Erskin, and Tolley have already been big blows)...we return more starters than anyone in the BE, and are right there with the number of returning all-conference, and all-freshman team players in the conference.  We should be expected to win the BE since we've got 4 home conference games, and quite frankly I believe two of the three toughest opponents we have at home this year- I think the conference will experience a subtle flip this season.  I think UL is going to be real bad, Cinci will be more average, and WVU is hard to get a read on because they lost 9 defensive starters but only three on offense -they could be the 06 WVU team that was porous as hell on defense and went 9-3/8-4...the two teams I fear are Pitt, and RU, and I think Uconn will be strong too.  I fear WVU too because it's on the road and they have elite talent. 

If we can get on a roll again early this team could win this conference outright, you've hit the keys right on the mark.  I think the interior DL will be a developmental aspect, looking amazing in spurts and shaky other times, until those guys get experienced and on the same page.  Robinson needs to work only on himself.  We need him to be great, and to do that he needs to work hard, dedicate, and commit himself, and he could be awesome.  If he does that this defense could be something because Robinson has the talent, and instincts to be a great OLB.

[Jake_Ryan]

I agree that Pitt are coming, but expect the Bulls to win all their home games.  The big concerns for me are at Cincy and WV.  Cincy is an away Thurs night game on a short week.  That spells trouble, especially if it is cold on Oct 30.  WV will be out for revenge.  Who knows how they will do under Stewart, but I expect them to backslide with all the losses on D.  He says they will throw it more to keep the pressure off White and Devine, so it could be some high scoring games in Morgantown.

[I Bleed Awesomeness]

Interesting to see Tolley and Colby Erskin listed in the 2 deep.  Are they really expected back by fall?

i heard tolley should be back.  considering erskin tore his acl (again), the only way he's back by the fall is if he convinced michael jackson to let him borrow his hyperbaric chamber.  unfortunately, he's done...for good.

[BigShoop]

I'm loving all the optimism, but must we forget that every year, we lose a game(or 2) that we have no business losing. That problem must be solved this year. Period.

[Mama_Bull]

Interesting to see Tolley and Colby Erskin listed in the 2 deep.  Are they really expected back by fall?

i heard tolley should be back.  considering erskin tore his acl (again), the only way he's back by the fall is if he convinced michael jackson to let him borrow his hyperbaric chamber.  unfortunately, he's done...for good.

Although it's not likely Erskin will be back, I wouldnt say he's done and neither does Leavitt:

Erskin tore the same ACL he did last fall while working out at Largo High School during spring break.

"I don’t even know how to say anything to him right now. It just kills me," USF coach Jim Leavitt said. "He’s such a great kid, and he’s done so much work."

Leavitt was hopeful that Erskin could return for the season.

"We’re going to be positive and optimistic that we can get him ready for the fall," Leavitt said. "The only positive about this is that it’s early enough that he has time to get back. So we’re hoping that we can get him back this fall."