The Blue Board

We return 9 of 11 starters on D. Only lost Terrance Parks and Nigel Bradham, but it is probably a good thing that Parks is gone bc he was not very good. We also lost Mike Harris though who could also be considered a starter and that will hurt the secondary some because that guy was a ball hawk and could tackle. Secondary should be fine though.

Offense should also improve. It has to. That OLINE last year was abysmal. They can't get any worse.

Oh yeah our front seven should be strength of our defense, and the offense improvement all depends on the Offensive line.

This, and Ill just add that Karlos will be an amazing upgrade from Parks and so would Brooks

But I think Brooks will take over the Harris role and we won't skip a beat there

And Christian Jones should be an upgrade over Bradham

I'm just looking forward to some Trickett threads.

Always good for some lulz

Might get one on saturday, I fully expect the OL to look terrible

game is on espnu, OL, rbs specifically Pender, KB, Coker, and moody is who I will be watching

9 of 11 starters return.

We lose a decent Safety (Parks), a Solid but not irreplaceable LB (Bradham), and a very good nickel CB (Harris).

Our DL looks like it will be on par with LSU as one of the best. Jernigan recently hurt his knee but should be OK well before the season starts so hopefully he recovers and plays better than last year. As far as DT goes, we have a superstar in Tim Jernigan but the strength really is in the depth. We go about 7 deep with guys who could step in and play at a VERY high level. Having said that, other than Jernigan, we don't have any DT's that are SUPER stars, just a ton of very very good guys. DE is the opposite, we are 3 deep with superstars at DE with Jenkins/Werner/Tank, all of whom should be drafted in the first 3 rounds IMO. They also fit together perfectly with Jenkins being an amazing pass rusher, Werner being a gigantic wall, and Tank being a perfect blend of the 2. Behind those 3 there is a question as to depth, Mario Williams is coming in and Giorgio Newberry has been impressing but i believe there is a drop off after our top 3 unlike out DT's.

LB's depth could be a question. I think they are the weakest part of the D but thats not to say they are weak compared to other teams. CHristian Jones is a stud and will play in the NFL barring injury, Telvin Smith is a superstar but needs to add weight. Luc looks like he will transfer. We should be solid but beatable at LB IMO.

DB is pretty good. Reid is a superstar but is the same old Reid...Risk/Reward. He's small and takes chances. Rhodes is what he is IMO; the Vanilla Ice cream of the DB world (Good flavor, but doesn't make the flashy plays). Our strength is at Safety here with Joyner, Karlos Williams, and Terrence Brooks, all of whom are certified playmakers. Williams is the most talented but has the least consistency due to lack of playbook grasp. Joyner is the best of the bunch but is a tad short.

So thats my take on the defense. Overall, if they take a step forward you're looking at a 2011 LSU type of defense, if they don't you're looking at the same as last year (A few games we will give up 30-40 points).

The offense:

Our offense would have been REALLY good if our OL was worth a damn last year. Im expecting our OL to take a step forward but that could be a bit homerish. We will see...we have the talent at OL.

Our WR's will be a nightmare if our OL can block, and our RB's are great but not deep. EJ Manuel is a legit Heisman contender if his OL plays well, but will look bad if he is running for his life all year again.

Good post, T-Noles.

I think Nick Moody will thrive as a LB.

Appreciate it Noles.

yeah left some off, nick o, Mcallister jimbo said he has his weight under control is much quicker and has gotten stronger

Terrible because they are still terrible or because our DL should just be that good? From what little I know about practice this spring I hear they are showing improvement (the Oline).

Karlos Williams is the Xavier Lee of defense, without the obsession to be the most popular white girl slayer in Tallahassee.

Don't hold your breath on seeing him live up to his hype this season.