Defensive Line Reset: Patience and Process

May 16, 20242 min read

There's been a ton of changes since our original D-Line position group breakdown a few weeks ago. Here's where things stand today.

Departures Since Last Season: Windmon DE (Draft), Young DE (Portal), Barrow DT (Portal), Harmon DT (Portal), Depaepe DE (Portal), Jobe DE (Portal)
- We essentially lost what would have likely been our two starting DE's and two starting DT's. Along with two younger depth pieces. That was a lot of bodies to backfill.
- Here's a glimpse of what we lost - Tackles (102 total) in the shaded column and sacks (6.5 total) in the right column.

Returning Players: Bogle DE, Thompson DE, Talley DE, Dunn DE, Schott DE, Hansen DT, AVS DT
- This is a very young and inexperienced group. But it has some promise, especially with Thompson who flashed as a True Freshman last year. It's also yet to be seen how well these players fit Joe Rossi's, specifically with the specialized Edge Rush role.
Additions: At Defensive Tackle, we added Douse (Portal), Roberts (Portal), Satchell (Portal), Buckley (Portal), and Beeler (Freshman). At Defensive End we added Dunnigan (Portal), Jones (Portal), Gillison (Portal), and Burnet (Freshman).
- The 9 new bodies add much-needed depth. The staff also didn't want to be in the same position next year, so instead of opting for top-of-the-market one-year rentals, they aimed for players with some experience and multiple years of eligibility.
- Here's a snapshot of the production coming in. As noted above, we are replacing 102 tackles and 6.5 sacks between 3 players. We are essentially making it up between 7 players. It's clear the departing players are better, it's not a 1-to-1 replacement. And that's ok, that wasn't the goal (keep scrolling to understand why).

Summary

It's clear the staff is thinking long-term. Getting a higher-end one-year rental out of the portal would have raised the grade of the room in 2024 from a C+ to a B, resulting in one more win in the 2024 season. Maybe we get 6-8 wins, instead of 5 to 7 wins. But is 1 more win worth it this year, if we are in the same boat next year? The staff obviously didn't want to be in this position again.
Bogle, Douse, and Hansen depart after this season. That's it. Imagine if the backfill players consisted of 3 one-year rentals and we had 6 departing after this season. That's a roster management nightmare.
Instead, the staff set things up for a step up in the D-Line in 2025 and 2026.
- Next season, Roberts, Satchell and Buckley form a solid DT core. And they can swing for a high-end DT to raise the ceiling. I project those three around a B- grade, with a stud DT portal addition raising it to a B+.
- Homegrown products like Dunnigan, Thompson, Dunn, Schott, and Talley will return at DE. Hand-selected portal players in Jones and Gillison will also be back. I project the DE room to be around a B+ grade for next year.
- That's potentially 10 returning rotational players, plus 2 more freshmen that will likely redshirt this year. Of course, some could enter the portal. I project the D-Line to be comfortably in the B grade range, with room to improve, but far from being a weakness of the team in 2025.

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