Fishes and Loaves: Offense

[sutomcat]

Somewhere deep in the bowels of the football complex at Manley, there is a recruiting board that breaks down the roster by position, so the coaches know what they need for coming years. This is an attempt to recreate that board, and to determine what the shopping list is that DM has for the class of 2013.

There are by my count 81 scholarships accounted for going into the summer. I am assuming Garrick will not get a scholarship, because we are in good shape with DEs and he really isn't needed. I think Dom Anene might well get one, but he will be a senior next year, and for the purposes of this analysis, we are looking at how things will look in 2013, when the seniors will all be gone, so let's ignore them all, which drops us to 67 scholarship players going into preseason camp for 2013.

That gives us at least 17 scholarships to work with for the class of 2013. As always, there will be attrition, and the true number of recruits we will take in the class will likely be in the range of 20 or 21 players. For the purposes of this post though, let's assume we only have 17 scholarships to use. Given our roster, how are they likely going to be assigned by position?

What follows is a breakdown of the scholarship athletes by position. I will list the scholarship players expected in the roster in 2013, along with their current eligibility (don't want to speculate on whether players get red-shirted or not).

This post looks only at offense. Will make another one shortly that will look at defense.

Center

MacPherson JR
Phillips JR/SR
Barrett FR

I think the ideal number of scholarships tied up at center is 2, with a guard who is capable of playing it as well in a pinch. We have that player right now in Trudo. But MacPherson is a junior, so he will be gone after 2013. The JR/SR after Phillips name means he will be a senior academically, but he has another year of eligibility if the staff wants him back. I think that is up in the air right now. Barrett was not highly recruited, was not well regarded in local circles when he played in HS and I think he is, at bet, a long shot to ever see playing time. I expect Trudo will play guard in 2012 and move over at C in 2013, and that we need to take another player here to get to 3, in part because we lose Trudo at OG as the backup plan, and in part because Barrett is unlikely to develop as a starter. Expect us to take a center in the 2013 class.

Offensive Guard

Alexander JR
Trudo RF
Foy RF
Knapp FR
Palmer FR

Again, I expect Trudo is going to end up at center, so when looking at guard, you almost have to consider him a junior now, who will only play OG through 2013. The ideal number of OGs on scholarship is 7. That means we need to take at least 1 OG in this class. Would prefer to take 2 but given we only have 17 to work with, we can only take 1.

Our top target here might be Alex Officer.

Offensive Tackle

Pugh JR
Hickey SO
Curtis RF
Robinson RF
Emerich RF

It should be noted that Robinson played OG some in the spring and Alexander played some OT. They might end up flopping positions, though I think Alexander ends up at OG because he is better suited to play there and provides some badly needed experience at that position. For the purposes of numbers, it really doesn't matter. We would ideally have 7 OTs on scholarship. We have some imbalances elsewhere on the roster that prevent us from getting there completely, so I project we will take one OT in the 2013 class.

Tight End

Wales JR
Beaulieu SO
Addazio RF
Thompson FR
Parris FR

The ideal number of scholarship TEs on a normal roster is 4. Given the staff's love of double TE sets and use of two types of TEs, I think the number is 5 for Syracuse. We are in good shape here, especially if one considers the situation with Ashton Broyld, who might end up playing some minutes at TE down the road. I think we only take a TE in this class if someone leaves or if a recruit is just too good to pass up. Like for instance, Tyler Provo.

Wide Receiver

Flemming JR
Kobena SO
Foster SO
West SO
Hale RF
Cornelius FR
Lewis FR
Broyld FR

The ideal number of scholarship WRs on the roster is 8. Given we have 8 and 4 will be freshman in 2012, there really is not a strong need to take another in the class of 2013 unless someone leaves. Broyld could end up at QB, TE, RB, somewhere on defense...but there isn't room to take another WR right now.

Fullback

Davis FR

The ideal number of scholarship fullbacks for this team is probably 2, with the idea that a TE could fill in if someone got hurt. So even though Davis is a frosh, I expect we will probably take another FB in the class of 2013. Ideally someone who is tall enough to also be able to play TE and LB.

Running Back

Gulley JR
Smith SO
Ameen-Moore SO
Morris FR
McFarlane FR

The ideal number of scholarship athletes at RB is 4. A couple of notes here: I broke Rene out as a return specialist so he doesn't appear here. Don't see him playing RB per se here, though at some point he might see some time as a slot receiver or as a receiver out of the backfield in passing situations. There is, I think, a distinct possibility Ameen-Moore ends up at FB if he can't get his weight under control. Our OL just doesn't hold blocks well enough for him to be successful at RB if he is going to play at 245. I think McFarlane might well end up at one of the safety positions. He would be a contributor for us at RB, WR, SS, FS, WILL or Okie. It will be interesting to see where he ends up. And then there is the Ashton Broyld situation. He played more at RB than at any other position in the spring and one has to think he will play there some in the fall as well.

I think a big reason McFarlane and Broyld are slotted at RB is because of the injury situation with Smith, who is a fine prospect but he had a couple of concussions and is, I think, one concussion away from having his career ended early, much as just happened to Adam Harris. Even Gulley has had some injury problems.

Anyway, even with excessive numbers at RB, I think we are going to take one in the class of 2013, with the idea that if we get one, we will probably be moving McFarland somewhere else (and maybe Moore too). That staff would like that player to be Laray Smith or Augustus Edwards. Given how heavily recruited each of these players are, they might have to go with a fall back plan like promising Devan Carter.

Quarterback

Loeb JR
Kinder SO
Hunt RF

The ideal number of scholarship QBs on the roster is 4. Given the importance of the position and the lack of strong progress made by the QBs on the roster right now, and the recent decision that Broyld is probably not going to play QB at Syracuse, look for the staff to take 2 QBs in this class.

A couple of players like Tim Boyle and Austin Wilson would be nice gets.

Will make a similar post for the defensive side of the ball, and for special teams sometime later this weekend.

 

[Symphony Steve]

I wondered whether Barrett was a legacy pick, especially with his dad being a well-connected politico and, I think, alum.

I think you answered my question. What he is not, it appears, is a legit D-1 football player. Which means we shouldn't have offered him, IMHO.

 

[orangenauburn]

His dad is on BOT

 

[Whitey23]

His he really taking up a scholarship if his dad is on BOT? Seems like a waste of a scholarship.

 

[Symphony Steve]

I think he might've been our first commit, other than the Milford guys. Something tells me that the scholy may have been offered by Marrone, but was dictated elsewhere in the university hierarchy.

Maybe we'll get a weight room out of it, or something.

 

[orangenauburn]

I think he might've been our first commit, other than the Milford guys. Something tells me that the scholy may have been offered by Marrone, but was dictated elsewhere in the university hierarchy.

Maybe we'll get a weight room out of it, or something.

well since his commit, the flow of money for football projects has opened up (conspiracy)

 

[rrlbees]

That's a lot of work Tom. Thanks for doing it.

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

 

[JoeSU]

I think he might've been our first commit, other than the Milford guys. Something tells me that the scholy may have been offered by Marrone, but was dictated elsewhere in the university hierarchy.

Maybe we'll get a weight room out of it, or something.

Barrett committed last year at the end of January; Palmer at the end of March. Other than that, they were the only new recruits to commit prior to summer camp.

 

[upperdeck]

I think you cant not go after a WR.. if we really are limited in taking one then you at worst have to try and shoot for someone who if they come are a difference maker. do we really think we have one on the roster in this set of players and even so not try to get another? game changers at that position have not been on the roster for years, i dont think you can throw away a year and not try to find one no matter how the roster shakes out.
what if this is the year a really good one wants to come here..

 

[sutomcat]

I think you cant not go after a WR.. if we really are limited in taking one then you at worst have to try and shoot for someone who if they come are a difference maker. do we really think we have one on the roster in this set of players and even so not try to get another? game changers at that position have not been on the roster for years, i dont think you can throw away a year and not try to find one no matter how the roster shakes out.
what if this is the year a really good one wants to come here..

Even though the analysis says there is no room, I agree with this. The problem is, we have a bunch of promising possession receiver types, but precious little in the way of deep threats. If we can get a deep threat, do it. That goes for every year. They are too important to pass up.

 

[kcsu]

Even though the analysis says there is no room, I agree with this. The problem is, we have a bunch of promising possession receiver types, but precious little in the way of deep threats. If we can get a deep threat, do it. That goes for every year. They are too important to pass up.

Agreed i would not be surprised to see us take a juco deep threat if one is available

 

[bnoro]

Agreed i would not be surprised to see us take a juco deep threat if one is available

I would be shocked if we took a JUCO receiver.

 

[kcsu]

I would be shocked if we took a JUCO receiver.

I wouldnt if we can find a deep threat. We wanted the kid that went to temple and he would have been a great addition but he couldnt pass the grade

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Even though the analysis says there is no room, I agree with this. The problem is, we have a bunch of promising possession receiver types, but precious little in the way of deep threats. If we can get a deep threat, do it. That goes for every year. They are too important to pass up.

I think sometimes the term possession receiver is overused and becomes code for a wideout that just isn't very good.

That said, I don't think we know yet how good a lot of those guys are, and in the face of that unknown talent upgrades would always be welcome.

 

[CaliCuse]

Somewhere deep in the bowels of the football complex at Manley, there is a recruiting board that breaks down the roster by position, so the coaches know what they need for coming years. This is an attempt to recreate that board, and to determine what the shopping list is that DM has for the class of 2013.

There are by my count 81 scholarships accounted for going into the summer. I am assuming Garrick will not get a scholarship, because we are in good shape with DEs and he really isn't needed. I think Dom Anene might well get one, but he will be a senior next year, and for the purposes of this analysis, we are looking at how things will look in 2013, when the seniors will all be gone, so let's ignore them all, which drops us to 67 scholarship players going into preseason camp for 2013.

That gives us at least 17 scholarships to work with for the class of 2013. As always, there will be attrition, and the true number of recruits we will take in the class will likely be in the range of 20 or 21 players. For the purposes of this post though, let's assume we only have 17 scholarships to use. Given our roster, how are they likely going to be assigned by position?

What follows is a breakdown of the scholarship athletes by position. I will list the scholarship players expected in the roster in 2013, along with their current eligibility (don't want to speculate on whether players get red-shirted or not).

This post looks only at offense. Will make another one shortly that will look at defense.

Center

MacPherson JR
Phillips JR/SR
Barrett FR

I think the ideal number of scholarships tied up at center is 2, with a guard who is capable of playing it as well in a pinch. We have that player right now in Trudo. But MacPherson is a junior, so he will be gone after 2013. The JR/SR after Phillips name means he will be a senior academically, but he has another year of eligibility if the staff wants him back. I think that is up in the air right now. Barrett was not highly recruited, was not well regarded in local circles when he played in HS and I think he is, at bet, a long shot to ever see playing time. I expect Trudo will play guard in 2012 and move over at C in 2013, and that we need to take another player here to get to 3, in part because we lose Trudo at OG as the backup plan, and in part because Barrett is unlikely to develop as a starter. Expect us to take a center in the 2013 class.

Offensive Guard

Alexander JR
Trudo RF
Foy RF
Knapp FR
Palmer FR

Again, I expect Trudo is going to end up at center, so when looking at guard, you almost have to consider him a junior now, who will only play OG through 2013. The ideal number of OGs on scholarship is 7. That means we need to take at least 1 OG in this class. Would prefer to take 2 but given we only have 17 to work with, we can only take 1.

Our top target here might be Alex Officer.

Offensive Tackle

Pugh JR
Hickey SO
Curtis RF
Robinson RF
Emerich RF

It should be noted that Robinson played OG some in the spring and Alexander played some OT. They might end up flopping positions, though I think Alexander ends up at OG because he is better suited to play there and provides some badly needed experience at that position. For the purposes of numbers, it really doesn't matter. We would ideally have 7 OTs on scholarship. We have some imbalances elsewhere on the roster that prevent us from getting there completely, so I project we will take one OT in the 2013 class.

Tight End

Wales JR
Beaulieu SO
Addazio RF
Thompson FR
Parris FR

The ideal number of scholarship TEs on a normal roster is 4. Given the staff's love of double TE sets and use of two types of TEs, I think the number is 5 for Syracuse. We are in good shape here, especially if one considers the situation with Ashton Broyld, who might end up playing some minutes at TE down the road. I think we only take a TE in this class if someone leaves or if a recruit is just too good to pass up. Like for instance, Tyler Provo.

Wide Receiver

Flemming JR
Kobena SO
Foster SO
West SO
Hale RF
Cornelius FR
Lewis FR
Broyld FR

The ideal number of scholarship WRs on the roster is 8. Given we have 8 and 4 will be freshman in 2012, there really is not a strong need to take another in the class of 2013 unless someone leaves. Broyld could end up at QB, TE, RB, somewhere on defense...but there isn't room to take another WR right now.

Fullback

Davis FR

The ideal number of scholarship fullbacks for this team is probably 2, with the idea that a TE could fill in if someone got hurt. So even though Davis is a frosh, I expect we will probably take another FB in the class of 2013. Ideally someone who is tall enough to also be able to play TE and LB.

Running Back

Gulley JR
Smith SO
Ameen-Moore SO
Morris FR
McFarlane FR

The ideal number of scholarship athletes at RB is 4. A couple of notes here: I broke Rene out as a return specialist so he doesn't appear here. Don't see him playing RB per se here, though at some point he might see some time as a slot receiver or as a receiver out of the backfield in passing situations. There is, I think, a distinct possibility Ameen-Moore ends up at FB if he can't get his weight under control. Our OL just doesn't hold blocks well enough for him to be successful at RB if he is going to play at 245. I think McFarlane might well end up at one of the safety positions. He would be a contributor for us at RB, WR, SS, FS, WILL or Okie. It will be interesting to see where he ends up. And then there is the Ashton Broyld situation. He played more at RB than at any other position in the spring and one has to think he will play there some in the fall as well.

I think a big reason McFarlane and Broyld are slotted at RB is because of the injury situation with Smith, who is a fine prospect but he had a couple of concussions and is, I think, one concussion away from having his career ended early, much as just happened to Adam Harris. Even Gulley has had some injury problems.


Just hitting the "like category isn't near enough omcat. Love the post and don't fond much to disagree with this evaluation.

Anyway, even with excessive numbers at RB, I think we are going to take one in the class of 2013, with the idea that if we get one, we will probably be moving McFarland somewhere else (and maybe Moore too). That staff would like that player to be Laray Smith or Augustus Edwards. Given how heavily recruited each of these players are, they might have to go with a fall back plan like promising Devan Carter.

Quarterback

Loeb JR
Kinder SO
Hunt RF

The ideal number of scholarship QBs on the roster is 4. Given the importance of the position and the lack of strong progress made by the QBs on the roster right now, and the recent decision that Broyld is probably not going to play QB at Syracuse, look for the staff to take 2 QBs in this class.

A couple of players like Tim Boyle and Austin Wilson would be nice gets.

Will make a similar post for the defensive side of the ball, and for special teams sometime later this weekend.

 

[cusestudent]

Agreed i would not be surprised to see us take a juco deep threat if one is available

Keep your eye on Mykel Traylor-Bennett, he has a very good relationship with Wheatley and is looking for immediate playing time. We will not take a JUCO WR.

 

[orangenauburn]

we need some help on the OL (regarding depth)