I don't think most people are saying he is great or anything. But to say he doesn't help the team at all is ridiculous. In the end it doesn't matter, there is no one to replace him.
Well, that was and continues to be my motivation behind my provocations on the subject of Duke, since I've joined the board in the last week.
The resounding answer from posters here is that they believe there truly is no other non-injured, non-true freshman DB on the roster that can replace him.
Can only beat a dead horse for so long ... probably time for me hang up the shovel.
He was brutal vs Michigan and whiffed bad on the Wadley TD in the Iowa game. Overall he is usually solid against the run and probably the most physical safety we have. But he isn’t going to be able to cover someone as quick as Spielman in the slot.
And yet there he stays week after week. Again, seemingly a resounding answer to the question "Is there no one else??"
You may want to research the other options before having this take. Say, for example, the only other options were an injured trFR and a walk-on, would your perception change?
As I've already made clear in multiple threads: I don't want to burn a redshirt.
Looking at the roster, there are 10 guys simply listed as "DB" who are not true freshmen. It doesn't specify who is a corner and who is a safety, and I have no idea how interchangeable those positions are. I also don't know who is not available due to injury, other than Winfield. But the OP provided a lot of nice info, so I include that too.
Duke - senior (starter)
Ayinde - senior (starter)
Williamson - junior (transfer sitting out according to OP)
Huff - junior (starter)
Shenault - junior (starter)
Leius - soph
Craighton - soph (out according to OP)
Winfield - soph (injured)
Durr - soph (out according to OP)
Thomas - R fresh (out according to OP)
Swenson - R fresh
And then there's Handy, whose redshirt is already burned.
I'm assuming Leius is the walk-on you referenced, that still leaves Handy and Swenson who could in theory replace Duke. Yes? Or no, and why not? If you don't know, then you don't know. I don't know. I just know that the coaching staff obviously thinks Duke gives the team a better chance to win than the other two, at this moment.