Quarterbacks
Morris should and will be the starter. Williams is a serviceable back-up, but Morris is ready to take the next step. He has been in this offense for more than a year and a half now and obviously has the physical tools to be special. He should be solid at the very least. As we saw last year, Fisch's offense is designed to take a lot of the risky downfield throws out of the QBs hands. Hopefully the playbook is open up a little more this season because Morris can make a lot of the throws that Jacory couldn't. The two freshmen have struggled, which is disappointing, but nobody expected them to be ready this year.
Running Backs
Four running backs will play this year. Mike James expects to get the majority of the carries, with Duke Johnson getting major touches as well. Eduardo Clements should have a role, and he might be the most well-rounded of the backs right now. He is a great option as a 3rd down back. The wild card here is Dallas Crawford. I've been very surprised with him I'm practice. After working as a slot man in the spring, he has been with the running backs in fall practice. He could get a good amount of touches and will be used similarly to Duke. This group should be solid, not spectacular as a whole.
Wide Receivers
This was a unit that I was extremely concerned about after spring practic, but after the first couple weeks of fall, I'm confident this will be a very good group that I think will be better than last year's as a whole. We know what Hurns will do, but Rashawn Scott and Phillip Dorsett have taken huge steps. Scott is built well physically and has strong hands.mhe will be a weapon in the short to intermediate passing game. Dorsett will be the one that gives defenses the most trouble. He is too quick and fast for almost any corner, and he has bulked up a lot , which should help him in a major way. As far as the freshmen, Malcolm Lewis honestly does not have any flaws in his game. He is extremely polished as a freshman already. Robert Lockhart has been impressive, making acrobatic catches in practice and making defenders miss after the catch. The wild card here is Herb Waters. It may be tough for him to get on the field right away, but he came in bigger than expected and might have a role in the return game. Carter and Jones need redshirts.
Offensive Line
The headline is camp so far has been the Seantrel Henderson saga. He should be ready to fully practice at some point within the next week, but will need to battle to get his starting spot back from freshman Ereck Flowers, who is so much more advanced than the normal freshman lineman. The rest of the line is shaping up as Bunche-Feliciano-McDermott-Linder-Flowers. I like what I've seen from Malcolm Bunche, he seems ready to take the next step. This unit could be the strength of the team. Danny Isidora and Taylor Gadbois would benefit from redshirts.
Defensive Line
Depth at DE might be an issue, but the DT situation is looking better than I expected. Darius Smith should be solid like last year, Olsen Pierre has made major gains in the weight room, and Luther Robinson has made major strides. DeQuan Ivery has turned heads and could have a role in the goal line sets. At DE, Chickillo and Green have pretty much locked up the starting spots. Kelvin Cain hasn't been overly impressive in practice, but he s expected to be one of the back-ups and have a pass-rushing role. Freshmen Dwayne Hoilett and Tyriq McCord could also have puss-rushing opportunities. Jake O'Donnell and Jacoby Briscoe should redshirt, but I'm concerned an injury or two might thrust them into playing time.
Linebackers
I was the biggest Sean Spence fan there was, but Denzel Perryman will make people forget about Spence. He has been absolutely dominant in practice, following a great freshman year. He has bulked about to about 230 without losing any speed and his instincts are top notch. I have some concerns about how Buchanon will respond this year after recovering from knee surgery and Thurston Armbrister has gained a lot of first team reps in practice. Eddie Johnson will start by at least the middle of the season, maybe earlier. His size/speed combo is deadly. Freshmen Raphael Kirby and Jawand Blue will also see the field a lot. Kirby is so far ahead of the game mentally, and Blue came in looking bigger than what most people expected he would look like by his senior year. He looks really fast and physical. These two should be monsters in special teams. Gabriel Terry ideally needs a redshirt year, but he's been seeing the field a lot. Tyrone Cornileus has a role in 3rd down coverage.
Defensive Backs
This has arguably been the most talked about group in practice due to all of the freshmen making impacts. Tracy Howard has already supplanted Brandon McGee for the starting spot alongside Ladarius Gunter, who has looked like a great find by Golden and staff. The corners will be LIGHT YEARS ahead of last season with Mike Williams, Lee Chambers, and McGee. Thomas Finnie is an ideal nickelback with his speed. He can be lined up in a variety of ways. Antonio Crawford and Vernon Davis have a good chance of seeing the field this season. Davis would benefit more from a redshirt year, but has shown incredible cover skills, as well as Crawford. At safety, the starters will be Telemaque and Rodgers. Rodgers should surprised people this season, I think he's ready. AJ Highsmith is a player who doesn't have incredible athleticism, but has a great understanding for the game. Deon Bush is ahead of Rayshawn Jenkins right now. Jenkins needs work cover-wise and needs a RS in my opinion.
Special Teams
This might be one of the top ST units in the country. Dalton Botts was the only 1st team ACC player on the team, and Jake Wieclaw is very reliable as well. The return game looks really good with Dorsett, Duke, Lewis, Waters, Crawford all in the mix.
As it is right now, my target for this team is 8 wins. A lot of fans don't realize how difficult this schedule is. There are only 2 gimme games with Duke and Bethune-Cookman. Traveling to Manhattan for Kansas State and Chicago for ND are both difficult games. The two hardest conference games, VT and FSU are at home so those should balance out. This team will show flashes of brilliance and also inexperience. They will probably win a couple games they shouldn't on paper, and lose a couple that they shouldn't. Overall, it will be fun to see a lot of these young guys develop and make plays.
Morris should and will be the starter. Williams is a serviceable back-up, but Morris is ready to take the next step. He has been in this offense for more than a year and a half now and obviously has the physical tools to be special. He should be solid at the very least. As we saw last year, Fisch's offense is designed to take a lot of the risky downfield throws out of the QBs hands. Hopefully the playbook is open up a little more this season because Morris can make a lot of the throws that Jacory couldn't. The two freshmen have struggled, which is disappointing, but nobody expected them to be ready this year.
Running Backs
Four running backs will play this year. Mike James expects to get the majority of the carries, with Duke Johnson getting major touches as well. Eduardo Clements should have a role, and he might be the most well-rounded of the backs right now. He is a great option as a 3rd down back. The wild card here is Dallas Crawford. I've been very surprised with him I'm practice. After working as a slot man in the spring, he has been with the running backs in fall practice. He could get a good amount of touches and will be used similarly to Duke. This group should be solid, not spectacular as a whole.
Wide Receivers
This was a unit that I was extremely concerned about after spring practic, but after the first couple weeks of fall, I'm confident this will be a very good group that I think will be better than last year's as a whole. We know what Hurns will do, but Rashawn Scott and Phillip Dorsett have taken huge steps. Scott is built well physically and has strong hands.mhe will be a weapon in the short to intermediate passing game. Dorsett will be the one that gives defenses the most trouble. He is too quick and fast for almost any corner, and he has bulked up a lot , which should help him in a major way. As far as the freshmen, Malcolm Lewis honestly does not have any flaws in his game. He is extremely polished as a freshman already. Robert Lockhart has been impressive, making acrobatic catches in practice and making defenders miss after the catch. The wild card here is Herb Waters. It may be tough for him to get on the field right away, but he came in bigger than expected and might have a role in the return game. Carter and Jones need redshirts.
Offensive Line
The headline is camp so far has been the Seantrel Henderson saga. He should be ready to fully practice at some point within the next week, but will need to battle to get his starting spot back from freshman Ereck Flowers, who is so much more advanced than the normal freshman lineman. The rest of the line is shaping up as Bunche-Feliciano-McDermott-Linder-Flowers. I like what I've seen from Malcolm Bunche, he seems ready to take the next step. This unit could be the strength of the team. Danny Isidora and Taylor Gadbois would benefit from redshirts.
Defensive Line
Depth at DE might be an issue, but the DT situation is looking better than I expected. Darius Smith should be solid like last year, Olsen Pierre has made major gains in the weight room, and Luther Robinson has made major strides. DeQuan Ivery has turned heads and could have a role in the goal line sets. At DE, Chickillo and Green have pretty much locked up the starting spots. Kelvin Cain hasn't been overly impressive in practice, but he s expected to be one of the back-ups and have a pass-rushing role. Freshmen Dwayne Hoilett and Tyriq McCord could also have puss-rushing opportunities. Jake O'Donnell and Jacoby Briscoe should redshirt, but I'm concerned an injury or two might thrust them into playing time.
Linebackers
I was the biggest Sean Spence fan there was, but Denzel Perryman will make people forget about Spence. He has been absolutely dominant in practice, following a great freshman year. He has bulked about to about 230 without losing any speed and his instincts are top notch. I have some concerns about how Buchanon will respond this year after recovering from knee surgery and Thurston Armbrister has gained a lot of first team reps in practice. Eddie Johnson will start by at least the middle of the season, maybe earlier. His size/speed combo is deadly. Freshmen Raphael Kirby and Jawand Blue will also see the field a lot. Kirby is so far ahead of the game mentally, and Blue came in looking bigger than what most people expected he would look like by his senior year. He looks really fast and physical. These two should be monsters in special teams. Gabriel Terry ideally needs a redshirt year, but he's been seeing the field a lot. Tyrone Cornileus has a role in 3rd down coverage.
Defensive Backs
This has arguably been the most talked about group in practice due to all of the freshmen making impacts. Tracy Howard has already supplanted Brandon McGee for the starting spot alongside Ladarius Gunter, who has looked like a great find by Golden and staff. The corners will be LIGHT YEARS ahead of last season with Mike Williams, Lee Chambers, and McGee. Thomas Finnie is an ideal nickelback with his speed. He can be lined up in a variety of ways. Antonio Crawford and Vernon Davis have a good chance of seeing the field this season. Davis would benefit more from a redshirt year, but has shown incredible cover skills, as well as Crawford. At safety, the starters will be Telemaque and Rodgers. Rodgers should surprised people this season, I think he's ready. AJ Highsmith is a player who doesn't have incredible athleticism, but has a great understanding for the game. Deon Bush is ahead of Rayshawn Jenkins right now. Jenkins needs work cover-wise and needs a RS in my opinion.
Special Teams
This might be one of the top ST units in the country. Dalton Botts was the only 1st team ACC player on the team, and Jake Wieclaw is very reliable as well. The return game looks really good with Dorsett, Duke, Lewis, Waters, Crawford all in the mix.
As it is right now, my target for this team is 8 wins. A lot of fans don't realize how difficult this schedule is. There are only 2 gimme games with Duke and Bethune-Cookman. Traveling to Manhattan for Kansas State and Chicago for ND are both difficult games. The two hardest conference games, VT and FSU are at home so those should balance out. This team will show flashes of brilliance and also inexperience. They will probably win a couple games they shouldn't on paper, and lose a couple that they shouldn't. Overall, it will be fun to see a lot of these young guys develop and make plays.
