Jay, here.
A couple of weeks ago, a thread (”DuckD’s In-Depth Pre-Spring Depth Chart”) from one of the eDuck message boards came across my desk here at Duck Sports News and caught my attention.
So, I decided to shoot an email to DuckD to see I could share his analysis with other Duck fans through Duck Sports News. Upon completing his preview, he was more than happy to email his entire entry (Thank you, DuckD).
Instead of publishing the entire entry here, I’ve decided to break it up into more bite-size parts over the course of several days. Here’s a look at the schedule:
Offense
Friday, March 21st: Quarterback
Saturday, March 22nd: Running Back
Sunday, March 23rd: Wide Receiver
Monday, March 24th: Tight End, Half Back
Tuesday, March 25th: Offensive Line
Defense
Wednesday, March 26th: Defensive End
Today: Defensive Tackle
Friday, March 28th: Linebacker
Saturday, March 29th: Cornerback
Sunday, March 30th: Safety
Here’s DuckD’s preview of Defensive Tackles:
DuckD’s Spring Preview: DEFENSIVE TACKLE
Probable Starter: Cole Linehan sr., Ra’Shon Harris sr.
Depth: Tonio Celotto so., Simi Toeaina jr.
Incoming: Justin Thompson jr., Blake Ferras jr.
Analysis: Cole Linehan will step into one of the starting tackle spots this year. Cole has been a solid contributor the past 3 years, really seeming ready to take a starting spot in his sophomore year before breaking his foot against ASU. In his senior year he should continue to be his consistent self and help hold the middle for the Ducks.
The other starting spot will go to Sonny Harris, though I have a feeling that both starters will be pushed by the reserves this year. Sonny has shown flashes of being a terrific player, and finally started to show some consistency toward the end of last year sharing defensive player of the game for his performance against UCLA (45 snaps, 4 tackles, 3 unassisted, 2 tackles for loss). Sonny has the size (6′5″ 321) to really be a force in the middle if he can improve upon last years performance.
Tonio Celotto was terrific as a true freshman last year, when not slowed by nagging injuries. He collected 16 tackles, including 4.5 for loss, and we all know DTs don’t tend to get a lot of tackles in our system. He is very strong, and if he can keep bulking up while maintaining his speed, he will be a stud on the line. I expect him to push for a lot of playing time and should be nipping at the starters heels.
Simi Toeaina needs to get a fire lit under his ***. He has good size at 6′4″ 308, and reportedly when properly motivated has made plays in practice. He really needs to figure out how to start translating that to game time and to do it with more consistency.
Justin Thompson has all the credentials to make a serious impact this fall. Unfortunately he won’t be here for spring ball, which would really help give him a jump start on cracking the starting line up, but I would be very surprised if he isn’t a major part of the rotation this fall. He kind of reminds me of a bigger Jeremy Gibbs (hopefully minus the occasional brain-farts resulting in stupid penalties) but with more skills. Gibbs had a pretty good impact his first fall, and I expect a little more out of JT. He has even mentioned that he might play some DE. From Thompson’s bio (I particularly like the TFL, sacks,forced fumbles, and batted down passes numbers): Thompson missed two games last year due to injury, but still ended up with 52 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, six sacks, blocked field goal, safety, five forced fumbles, three recoveries and eight batted down passes. Thompson earned unanimous conference honors, was first team all-California and earned some all-American consideration.
Blake Ferras will reportedly be here for spring ball, and I’m excited to see what we’ve got with him. He has very good measurables (6′5″ 285) and listed as having great speed for a DT (4.8). I haven’t seen any video of him, but he almost signed with Wisconsin which bodes well of his abilities. I would expect him to help provide some decent depth this fall.
Tomorrow: LINEBACKER
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