My article on the 2005 Wildcats (link)...

[TVofTroy]

Let me know what you think.

http://usc.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=425728

[Auercat]

Nice write-up Ted.

Bearing Down on Offensive Improvement Being The Major Key

Auercat

[illcat]

Good in depth article.

[aicrag]

Nice article. Depth will be the key this year. Especially on the defensive and offensive lines. If we can get a QB to step up and somewhat resemble a PAC10 player, then we may have a shot at 6 wins. I see us taking some early season lumps and rebounding later in the year as a QB emerges from this mess.

Ciao

[ConnecticutKid]

In your examination of the secondary, you have 2 mistakes. Both BJ Dennard and Michael Johnson MISSED spring practice with injuries. They will be counted on this fall, but not because they had strong spring performances. Each of them was out.

[TVofTroy]

I'll change it. I got the wrong impression from something that I read.

[KrazyCatFan]

awesome article. its good to get some good words fromt he city of troy. hopefully some day our match ups will be as big ans oklahoma/texas. great write up

[Footballjunkie]

My only thing to pick at, in the very well done article, is that there is no mention of Terry Lonbons or Xavier Smith. These two running backs could see significant playing time this year depending on the situatioin. Casey Dunn, the running backs coach said earlier this year on 1290 that they may see some significant time on special teams or in case there are injuries. You don't want someone reading your article three or four games into the season asking where these two very special 4-star players came from. I think that they are going to be significant players when Arizona starts to shock the world. I think that Longbons was on the verge of breaking the state record for yardage before he injured his ankle. Smith lead his team, Tucson Sunnyside, to, I think, the State championship game playing both ways at running back and linebacker.
Terry Longbons
http://media.theinsiders.com/Media/HS_Football/70_LongbonsBig.JPG
Xavier Smith
http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/slideshow/games04/100804fridaynightfootball/100804sunnyside01.jpg

[Gronk4Heisman]

They are deep at RB with Henry, Harris, and of course Bell, So I don't see them seeing much action accept on special teams. I think they would be smart to redshirt.

[davoaz]

Great Article, as far as your BB predictions :flush

[mojoscowboys43]

The Wildcats brought in five true freshmen offensive linemen, and it isn't inconceivable that one or more of them could play, maybe even start. Daniel Borg was the most heavily recruited.

Very excited for this kid, my brother is a coach at Ironwood, so I saw Daniel play alot throughout his high school career. Great athlete, with excellent football instincts. His footwork is amazing. Good guy too. I think he will be a great cornerstone for this O-line, especially when he puts on some more weight.

[BibbysTowelDude]

Antoine Cason may be all conference someday? How about he'll be the best corner in the league next year and will be all conference..

[TVofTroy]

If your prediction is true, then we'll both be right. I said someday. I didn't say when. ;)

[OJ Did It]

Borg will be great, but look for Adam Hawes to lock down that starting tackle spot.

[the real dill]

The Wildcats brought in five true freshmen offensive linemen, and it isn't inconceivable that one or more of them could play, maybe even start. Daniel Borg was the most heavily recruited.

Very excited for this kid, my brother is a coach at Ironwood, so I saw Daniel play alot throughout his high school career. Great athlete, with excellent football instincts. His footwork is amazing. Good guy too. I think he will be a great cornerstone for this O-line, especially when he puts on some more weight.

Starting a freshman on the O-line is a very bad thing. If there is any way to redshirt your freshman O-lineman and QB's you should IMHO. The old adage is the closer you are to the ball, the harder it is start right away. OK, I butchered it, but you get the picture

Borg is a stud

[MackovicIsGod]

Are you mad, Real Dill, about not getting Borg? If Texa$ would have boughten him a E$calade instead of a Excur$ion, I bet he would have been in Au$tin in a heartbeat...

[TVofTroy]

Like at SC, it didn't work out for Travis Claridge, but Tony Boselli and Winston Justice played very well as freshmen. It depends if the guys has a lot of baby fat. Boselli and Justice came in looking like men, not 17 year old boys.

[MRUofA]

Borg is a great lineman who will be all Pac-10 someday, but I would be SHOCKED if he played much at all next year. The guy is about as fundamentally sound as you can get for a prep OL, but he tends to err into the baby fat category, at least he lacks the requisite strength and attitude to keep a guy like Haloti Ngata from jacking his jaw just about every play. I think Borg will be VERY good as a Wildcat, but he is one of the last of the OL recruits from this year's class to likely see time this fall. I think Blake Kerley and Eben Britton would see time before Borg does next year because they both seem to be considerably more "D1 ready", although Borg very well could be the best of the bunch in 3-4 years.

You have to be a big, nasty, grade A badass of an OL to find yourself gametime during your first year on campus, and I don't think Borg and the other incoming frosh OL are quite there yet.

[BibbysTowelDude]

Yeah Eben Britton is probably the most ready... Then Kerley and Baressi, followed by Borg and Im not sure Jordan Lowe will ever be ready..

[Ryan Stevens]

I believe every single OL will redshirt this year. The only one that is even close to physically ready would be Eben Britton and even he is not close to the guys we had redshirt this year.

OL is about strength first and foremost when you arrive in college. Borg and Britton will be ready to be difference makers in one year but not yet. Borg is so fundamentally sound on the line that all he needs is a year in the S&C Program, however, dont look for any OL to play this year besides Hawes.

I also think that despite how talented Longbons and Smith are that they will redshirt due to our depth at running back. If Chris Henry did not perform so well this spring then I would have said for sure that one of the two will play immediately, but the fact that Henry came on so strong I think both will redshirt. However, if they dont then that is so damn good news because it will mean they are dominating in practice.

I cant wait to start covering the team's new kids fairly soon.

[losgatosaz05]

Good write up. It sure would be nice to even sneak into a bowl this year.

[the real dill]

Like at SC, it didn't work out for Travis Claridge, but Tony Boselli and Winston Justice played very well as freshmen. It depends if the guys has a lot of baby fat. Boselli and Justice came in looking like men, not 17 year old boys.

Totally agree. Didn't Byers start right out of the gate for USC also? Another one is the RT for OU that just went in the first round (name is slipping me). Personally, I would like to see all frosh lineman and qb's take a shirt but depth/development don't always lend themselves that opportunity. Can you imagine being 18 years old at left tackle and having a Terrell Suggs or Shaun Cody line up in front of you?

[MRUofA]

Totally agree. Didn't Byers start right out of the gate for USC also?


I can take this one. Byers started a little less than half the games for the Trojans last season @ left guard when Drake got hurt, but nothing early on in the season. I think he actually started the UA game last year, but not certain. I have followed Byers' progression since the freak burst onto the scene a few years back in HS and I was interested in seeing if he could fall into the Anthony Munoz/Winston Justice of great Trojan o-lineman who very nearly start right off the bat.

Had Byers been at the UofA, he would have started every game last year. Borg/Britton would do the same if they had Byer's aggression/ruggedness, although running a low 4.8 at 280 lbs couldn't hurt. When a center from CO wins the Gatorade nat'l HS player of the year award over Adrian Petersen and others, you know he's got legendary potential.