Nate Sandell: Linebacker remains 'biggest unknown' for Gophers defense

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BleedGopher

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"I feel disappointed in some aspects," Claeys said. "I thought we could have played more consistent at times and maybe kept a few more points off the board. But at the same time we made a lot of strides."

"I'm not displeased. I guess I'm just a little selfish in the fact that I think we had an opportunity to get two or three more wins had we made just a few more plays on defense."

http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/...ns_biggest_unknown_for_Gophers_defense_020213

Go Gophers!!
 

Pretty solid writeup. Main thing I took from it is that he mentioned shifting Wells to corner which typically if something like that is mentioned by the DC it means it is probably going to happen.

The defense next year will give us a really good indication of Kill's recruiting ability because most of the key starters on D next season will be his guys. There will still be a few holdovers like Hageman, Vereen, and Hill but the majority of the other starters should be guys that were recruited by this staff I believe.
 

MNVCGUY said:
Pretty solid writeup. Main thing I took from it is that he mentioned shifting Wells to corner which typically if something like that is mentioned by the DC it means it is probably going to happen.
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And he's mentioned it to pretty much everyone who has asked. They've been very open about position changes in the past, so I take it at face value here.
 

BleedGopher said:
"I feel disappointed in some aspects," Claeys said. "I thought we could have played more consistent at times and maybe kept a few more points off the board. But at the same time we made a lot of strides."

"I'm not displeased. I guess I'm just a little selfish in the fact that I think we had an opportunity to get two or three more wins had we made just a few more plays on defense."

http://www.1500espn.com/sportswire/...ns_biggest_unknown_for_Gophers_defense_020213

Go Gophers!!
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Good read, I like Claeys a lot!
 

Who was the last great linebacker? It has been a sore spot for a long time. I am not talking about a player who can make the tackle 7 yards beyond the line of scrimage, rather steps in the hole and drives the player back or drops him in the hole. I know there have been backers who lead the team in tackles, but were they a force in the middle. Who was the last Gopher Linebacker who was first team All Big 10 or All American?
 


Jon Levrenz and he's probably in his mid 40's. great player.
 

Yeah, we're mighty thin at LB:

17 Rallis, Nick Linebacker 5-11 220 RS FR
57 Hill, Aaron Linebacker 6-2 228 RS SR
34 Matilus, Jephte Linebacker 6-1 232 RS SO
59 Balthazor, Joey Linebacker 6-3 233 RS SR
18 Westerhaus, Peter Linebacker 6-3 230 RS SO
9 Manuel, James Linebacker 6-2 210 SR
35 Schultz, Dominic Linebacker 6-1 225 RS SO
50 Lynn, Jack Linebacker 6-3 210 RS FR
32 Edwards, Lamonte Linebacker 6-2 212 RS JR

plus newcomers Rayfield Dixon, De'Niro Laster, Damien Wilson, and Chris Wipson. I think there's no chance Edwards gets moved away from LB at this point. Does Hendrick Ekpe go to LB or do they keep him at DE? Does one of our current DEs go to LB?

I have to believe they go after one more LB, maybe even a CC guy.
 

highwayman said:
Yeah, we're mighty thin at LB:

17 Rallis, Nick Linebacker 5-11 220 RS FR
57 Hill, Aaron Linebacker 6-2 228 RS SR
34 Matilus, Jephte Linebacker 6-1 232 RS SO
59 Balthazor, Joey Linebacker 6-3 233 RS SR
18 Westerhaus, Peter Linebacker 6-3 230 RS SO
9 Manuel, James Linebacker 6-2 210 SR
35 Schultz, Dominic Linebacker 6-1 225 RS SO
50 Lynn, Jack Linebacker 6-3 210 RS FR
32 Edwards, Lamonte Linebacker 6-2 212 RS JR

plus newcomers Rayfield Dixon, De'Niro Laster, Damien Wilson, and Chris Wipson. I think there's no chance Edwards gets moved away from LB at this point. Does Hendrick Ekpe go to LB or do they keep him at DE? Does one of our current DEs go to LB?

I have to believe they go after one more LB, maybe even a CC guy.
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I am not sure which way to interpret this response, but if I were writing it, I would be implying that we have a lot of guys who will probably never play much, at least if we are any good? How should I interpet it?
 

corcoran1 said:
I am not sure which way to interpret this response, but if I were writing it, I would be implying that we have a lot of guys who will probably never play much, at least if we are any good? How should I interpet it?
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I agree there is no proven depth.
 



highwayman said:
Yeah, we're mighty thin at LB:

17 Rallis, Nick Linebacker 5-11 220 RS FR
57 Hill, Aaron Linebacker 6-2 228 RS SR
34 Matilus, Jephte Linebacker 6-1 232 RS SO
59 Balthazor, Joey Linebacker 6-3 233 RS SR
18 Westerhaus, Peter Linebacker 6-3 230 RS SO
9 Manuel, James Linebacker 6-2 210 SR
35 Schultz, Dominic Linebacker 6-1 225 RS SO
50 Lynn, Jack Linebacker 6-3 210 RS FR
32 Edwards, Lamonte Linebacker 6-2 212 RS JR

plus newcomers Rayfield Dixon, De'Niro Laster, Damien Wilson, and Chris Wipson. I think there's no chance Edwards gets moved away from LB at this point. Does Hendrick Ekpe go to LB or do they keep him at DE? Does one of our current DEs go to LB?

I have to believe they go after one more LB, maybe even a CC guy.
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Forgot about Edwards and Manuel (which may give some indication on how much they have produced to this point) when mentioning holdovers from Brewster. So I guess the potential is there for all three starters to be Brewster recruits next year.

As to the question about our last great LB....been a long time since we had a great one, Tinsley was probably the last very good LB we had, before him maybe Darrell Reid? For that matter his position title was SS but Tyrone Carter was basically a LB during his Gopher days.
 

corcoran1 said:
I am not sure which way to interpret this response, but if I were writing it, I would be implying that we have a lot of guys who will probably never play much, at least if we are any good? How should I interpet it?
Click to expand...

Sorry, I meant thin experienced-wise. I felt listing our LBs by name would indicate that.

Also their lack of bulk seems to be a liability. Someone always rises to the occasion at LB for us, so I'm not TOTALLY worried. We haven't had a great LB in the recent pass, but plenty of generally good seasons out of guys.
 

I actually was impressed with Manuel at times last year. He's still learning the position, but he's an athlete and isn't afraid to make contact (something that frankly, some guys seem to be)
 

I'm interested in seeing if Matilus can bring something to the table, I was impressed with him coming out of H.S., Manuel and Edwards bring a lot of speed to the table, as does Jack Lynn. Westerhaus with a redshirt year might be able to contribute. There is very little experience, but I think the talent level is at least as good as what we've normally experienced as gopher fans.
 



MNVCGUY said:
Forgot about Edwards and Manuel (which may give some indication on how much they have produced to this point) when mentioning holdovers from Brewster. So I guess the potential is there for all three starters to be Brewster recruits next year.

As to the question about our last great LB....been a long time since we had a great one, Tinsley was probably the last very good LB we had, before him maybe Darrell Reid? For that matter his position title was SS but Tyrone Carter was basically a LB during his Gopher days.
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Reid was a LB coming out of high school and for the first part of his time here, but he eventually moved to DL so I don't think we could call him a great LB for the Gophers. Good move for him, since he had a few good years in the league. I will never forget the hit he put on a guy running down the field on kickoff (was he playing for the Broncos at that point?).
 

Hill is better than he often gets credit for, I think he was probably our best LBer for most of last year. Manuel was ok too, he can hit and run. I'd be really happy if we started hearing about how good Matilus or Wilson were looking in the middle. I think if one of those guys can be adequate, our LBers will be ok next season.

The good thing is that we had an ok defense last year with poor linebacking play and we bring a lot back on the DL and in the secondary. So if we can get merely OK LBer play, our defense should improve.
 

I really hope Lamonte Edwards can step up next year.

I can't believe he's already going to be a RS JR.
 

westcoastgopher11 said:
I really hope Lamonte Edwards can step up next year.

I can't believe he's already going to be a RS JR.
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It is amazing how he only has two seasons left. Everyone on this team needs to step up. Third year in the system and no coaching changes. That excuse has left the barn.
 


The 12th Man said:
Reid was a LB coming out of high school and for the first part of his time here, but he eventually moved to DL so I don't think we could call him a great LB for the Gophers. Good move for him, since he had a few good years in the league. I will never forget the hit he put on a guy running down the field on kickoff (was he playing for the Broncos at that point?).
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Colts

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0YAhpcrCLg

And yeah he was not a great LB for us and he did shift back and forth from LB to the Line just trying to come up with a more recent name in a very slim talent pool. Some solid players over the years but very few stars at the LB position.
 

De'Vondre Campbell ends up being the guy they needed to get from JC to fill a need. 6'-5", 225 lbs. I thought they may pull one out of the hat at LB.
 

highwayman said:
De'Vondre Campbell ends up being the guy they needed to get from JC to fill a need. 6'-5", 225 lbs. I thought they may pull one out of the hat at LB.
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Very good pickup for Kill and co. on signing day. Offers from Texas, Tennessee, and K-State. He must be in the plans for major PT if not a starting spot this fall.
 

All anybody here can do is guess and speculate., we have to wait and see who wants to step up. LB has alot to do with heart and smarts, someone will decide he wants to play. Kills attitude is no pay no play.
 

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