I saw this mentioned on another thread and I know a few weeks ago, some were chalking 2022 up to a rebuilding year. But I'd like to lay out the position groups and what we KNOW we have back but also what we THINK we may have back too.
QB - We know what we have and Tanner is at the very very least a guy capable of winning more Big Ten games than he loses. Has won 7 and 6 conference games in two of his last three seasons.
RB - Mo is back and we already have two young guys who proved themselves well this year - not even factoring in Potts or Williams.
WR - I still think it's more likely CAB comes back (TBD). Jackson was hurt this year, but has shown upside. MBS had a bit of a breakout year. (EDIT: Forgot about Wright originally!) Boyd played, Brockington redshirted, Emilien may get healthy at some point. Hoskins coming in. Obviously CAB is the big swing piece here, but hard to think we won't see continued development from the young WRs.
TE - BSF is back. Geers has already been talked up PJ. Kallerup should take over the blocking role. Henderson could be a factor.
OL - I think this is where people are most concerned. But I think a lot of assumptions are being made. Sure, we lose Big Dan, Schlueter and Olson for sure. I'm nearly certain Ruschmeyer will be back for an extra year. I also think it's likely we get at least one of JMS or Andries back. Even without them, it's not like we'd be playing redshirt freshmen on the line. Karter Shaw, JJ Guedet, Nathan Boe and Ersery have all played games and have been waiting their turn. Martes Lewis has also been mentioned as a bright spot. That doesn't even factor in any moves PJ makes in the portal this offseason. While it *could* be a lot of turnover, these are not guys who haven't played meaningful snaps.
K - I think Trickett comes back for another year and we still have Kesich for kickoffs.
P - Crawford is only a sophomore next year (if he doesn't count 2020).
DL - We lose Mafe and Nyles, but I think Big O and/or Rush may come back for another year. Behind them, we have Joyner, Logan-Redding, Striggow and Booker coming up at DE. DT has been one of our best recruited positions in recent years. Carter will be back. Richter has played. Schuster has gotten a lot of good buzz. McCoy and Eastern coming up. Plus our two best recruits this year are on the DL. Again, doesn't factor in any moves we make in the portal.
LB - Oliver is back for sure. We lose Gibbens, but I'm calling it now and I think MSM returns too. All that said, still have Burns, Willis, Lindenberg, Finnessy developing. Also Devon Williams has been getting nice buzz for his work this year. Not seeing a huge dropoff at LB.
DB - Durr, Howard and Harris are gone. Smith will be an extra year decision. I think Howden comes back for an extra year. Nubin returns. Walley returns. Dixon returns. Ortiz redshirted. Jalen Glaze, Miles Fleming and Darius Green have also gotten a lot of good buzz from the staff.
So overall, yeah, there are some spots where we will have some potential turnover (OL and DL, maybe DB), but I think with Tanner and Mo returning, we are going to see more seniors (especially the guys who aren't sure NFL guys) taking their extra year. We also have to remember that we have been recruiting some young guys with lots of upside in recent years. Just cause they haven't played behind a very veteran team doesn't mean they aren't going to be good players.
The next week or two will be very interesting with extra year announcements and seeing how we do in the portal, but for people assuming that 2022 is a massive rebuild, I think you may be jumping to conclusions too quickly.
What are your thoughts? What players did I miss calling out on the roster?
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