2008 Football Season Outlook - Part III
8/2/2008 8:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 2, 2008
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The following is the third installment in a four-part series previewing the 2008 University of Maryland football team.
The Terrapins open fall practice on Monday in preparation for their season opener on Saturday, Aug. 30 (3:45 p.m.) against Delaware at Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium.
Today's portion of the outlook previews the defensive line and linebackers.
Outlook Schedule on umterps.com: Overall Overview/Quarterbacks/Running Backs Thursday, July 31 Wide Receivers/Offensive Line/Tight Ends Friday, Aug. 1 Defensive Line/Linebackers Saturday, Aug. 2 Secondary/Specialists Sunday, Aug. 3
Defensive Line
With the loss of two of the three starters along the defensive line, the Terps have some holes to fill.Dre Moore and Carlos Feliciano combined to start 46 career games in the interior of the line, so the Terps have to replace a pair of talented players.
Moore went on to become a fourth-round choice of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in last spring's NFL Draft, while Feliciano was invited to some off-season camps.
"We're a little untested up front," Cosh said. "This is a group where someone will have to emerge, especially inside."
Senior defensive end Jeremy Navarre is the most experienced returnee, having started a team-high 35 career games. He is the Terps' active career leader in tackles for loss (18.0) and sacks (9.0).
"Jeremy had a tremendous spring," Friedgen said. "Our line had a tough time blocking him."
Navarre slid inside to tackle in the spring and looks to line up there in the fall. Though he has been at end for most of his career, he moved inside quite a bit last season.
Despite missing the spring rehabbing his off-season knee surgery, senior Mack Frost is expected to start at defensive end.
Frost played quite a bit last season before injuring his knee.
He spent time at defensive end with Navarre bumping inside to tackle, especially on pass-rushing downs. Frost has the ability to get around the edge to rush the passer.
There looks to be a battle brewing at nose tackle.
Junior Travis Ivey, a good-sized run-stuffer, was atop the depth chart at nose tackle in the spring, but senior Olugbemi Otulaja and redshirt freshman Dion Armstrong have pushed their way to the top heading into the fall.
Ivey is a veteran who played mostly in goal-line situations last season, though he spelled Feliciano and Moore at times. Ivey is still expected to see extensive time on the line.
Otulaja is under-sized, but one of the strongest players on the team, while Armstrong has raw, yet-to-be tapped skills.
Senior Dean Muhtadi and junior Deege Galt look to provide some depth on the line.
Muhtadi saw limited time last season, but was effective when he was on the field. He served as Navarre's backup in the spring, while Galt and junior Jared Harrell are penciled in as reserves at defensive end.
Some of the youngsters will also get a chance to see time.
Joining Armstrong are redshirt freshman Ian Davidson and true freshmen Joe Vellano and Carl Russell.
Vellano and Russell signed in 2007, but did not matriculate until the spring semester.
Russell enters the fall as a backup at defensive end, while Vellano, who was injured in the spring, is expected to play tackle.
Senior Trey Covington is manning the LEO position, a hybrid defensive end/linebacker spot, for the fourth-consecutive year. Covington provides a veteran presence and a pass rusher off the edge. He played very well in last year's Emerald Bowl, posting nine tackles, including a career-high two sacks.
"Covington and Navarre could be a force in the pass rush," Friedgen. "Trey is playing his best football. He had a very good spring."
Covington will be backed up by senior Rick Costa and redshirt freshman Derek Drummond.
"Drummond is a big, long guy," Cosh said. "We're hoping he can help us at this spot."
Costa has been plagued by injuries in his career, but has shown an ability to rush the passer, so he'll open fall camp at LEO, though he could easily move back to linebacker.
Defensive line could be a spot where some true freshmen could push for time.
The newcomers arriving in the fall include A.J. Francis and Masengo Kabongo.
Francis is a big, highly-touted local player, while Kabongo was one of the top-rated tackles in the country as a high school senior.
Linebacker
The linebacker unit has a chance to be one of the deepest and most talented groups in the ACC even though it lost one of the most productive linebackers in school history.
Erin Henderson led the team in tackles the last two seasons from his Will linebacker spot. He was a two-time All-ACC choice, semifinalist for the 2007 Butkus Award and 2007 All-American. He followed in the footsteps of his brother, E.J, who was a two-time All-American and winner of the Butkus Award. Both are now members of the Minnesota Vikings.
However, there are five linebackers on the roster with extensive playing experience.
Seniors Dave Philistin and Moise Fokou were two of the top linebackers in the ACC last season when they started all 13 games. In addition, Adrian Moten was one of the top freshman defenders in the league a year ago.
Philistin ranked fourth in the ACC in tackles (9.5 pg) as the Mike linebacker and Fokou was 20th (6.4 pg) from his Sam LB position. Moten, who played all three linebacker positions, tied for the team lead in sacks (5.5) and tallied 50 tackles despite not starting a game.
However, off-season surgery to Philistin, Fokou and Rick Costa kept them out of spring practice. All are expected to be healthy for fall camp. Costa, however, is expected to open the preseason at LEO, though could also still play linebacker.
With that trio out, others had a chance to shine.
After an injury-plagued 2007, senior Chase Bullock opened the spring No. 1 on the depth chart at Will linebacker. Bullock was near the top of the depth chart at Mike LB entering last season, but hurt both his ankles early in the year and played sparingly the rest of the way.
He took advantage of his opportunity in the spring, leading the team in tackles. He opens the fall atop the depth chart at Will, along with Philistin.
Fokou and Moten look to battle it out for the Sam linebacker spot.
Moten opened the spring No. 1 on the depth chart at Sam linebacker with Fokou's injury.
Those two will be backed up by Dominique Herald and Femi Akinwande, both of whom were moved from safety to linebacker in the spring.
"Dominique is a little undersized, but we're trying to get some more speed on the field," Cosh said.
The long awaited debut of sophomore Alex Wujciak may not be far off. He enters the fall No. 1 on the depth chart at Mike linebacker. Last summer Wujciak looked like a player who was going to be an integral part of the defense. But a knee injury near the end of preseason camp derailed his year before it even got started.
The Terps hope Wujciak can be a force in the run game. Despite his size, he has the ability to track down ballcarriers.
"Alex is a guy who can affect tempo and effort," Cosh said. "He likes to play the game and that's infectious."
Redshirt freshman Ben Pooler, who nearly played last season, and senior Alex Schulz are the backups to Wujciak.
Freshman Demetrius Hartsfield and junior Hakeem Sule are the backups to Philistin and Bullock at Will.
Hartsfield was one of six true freshman who enrolled in January. He has the speed to be a factor on the outside or on special teams.
"We think our linebackers will give us some toughness on defense," Cosh said. "We also need to find some leaders on defense and hopefully there are a few guys from this group we can look to."
