Bowling & Burgers, 4th Frame: The D-Line

Fourth frame... 4-3 defense... four-man defensive line.  Okay, I know I'm stretching now.  BACK UP OFFA ME.

The d-line tweet for Nathan:

Stockpiling talent on the d-line, 2012 might be a transition year as the young guys get battle-tested. Pass rush is my biggest concern.

Time to Parker Bohn this bitch...

Strikes

• I believe that the key to winning championships in college football is to build a formidable defensive line.  Mike London appears to agree with me, having brought in a whopping 13 defensive line recruits in his first three recruiting classes, including five 4- or 5-star guys.  Easily, the d-line has been London's most successful recruiting area, headlined by perhaps his best overall recruit since he assumed the Big Whistle at UVA -- Eli Harold.  With three 2011 starters graduated, now is the time for us to start seeing the fruits of that recruiting labor, and I believe the rising tide of that talent influx is going to raise all boats on the defense... despite the relative inexperience of the players on said defensive line.
• But not all of the players are inexperienced.  Jake Snyder is a returning starter, and Will Hill played starter's minutes in 2011.  Snyder is a gritty, blood and guts strongside end who isn't a pass rush threat but is a good enough run-stopper.  Hill is a great penetrator from his tackle spot, and is poised for a big campaign in 2012.  Both guys should be able to provide requisite leadership along the defensive front.
• Leadership presence doesn't end with Snyder and Hill, however.  Bill Schautz was coming on like gangbusters last year before the broken leg he sustained against Florida State.  The way he has rehabbed that horrific injury has been inspiring his teammates, and as a senior I think he's incredibly driven to be a force for the team, especially as a pass rusher as the starting weakside end.  I like the pass rush he generates, and it might be the single most important contribution any individual player is going to make for this defense in 2012.
• The pass rush potential doesn't end with Schautz, as Eli Harold should get on the field plenty as a true freshman this fall (look for him to start out as a nickel pass rush specialist).  Along with those two, I think safety-turned linebacker-turned defensive end Ausar Walcott has the potential to display some decent chops on the edge.  Remember, that path to playing time is the same one Cam Johnson walked during his time with the Hoos.  That's fairly heady company for Walcott.
• My - and many others' - biggest sleeper along the defensive line is sophomore Chris Brathwaite, who is finally healthy and ready to make an impact.  He plays angry, and I love that in my interior linemen.  Brath's brute power should be a nice complement to Hill's nifty moves.
• If you haven't noticed yet, you will once he's on the field in a greatly expanded role this fall: Justin Renfrow is one massive man.  Every good DL has at least one baby huey like this, and Renfrow could be the beached whale-type run plugger we'll need against teams that like to George Welsh it up the gut.
• I also really like David Dean and Vincent Croce at tackle.  Both are really nice talents who have been somewhat forgotten in the mix of sexy young talent being added to the program, but both will have chances to sparkle this fall and earn expanded roles for the remainder of their college careers.
• Overall, depth at defensive tackle looks really good right now.  We run a legit six deep at the two spots, with Buddy Ruff ready to fill in where needed as a junior who has been kicked around the block.  Not many of these guys have much experience on the field, but all six offer good potential for impact.
• Brent Urban is listed as an end, but many think he'll transition to tackle this season.  In either case, he's another big, strong body we'll be able to throw on the defensive front.

Gutters

• There's Schautz, coming back from a gruesome broken leg.  There's Walcott, trying to learn another new position.  And then there's true freshman Eli Harold, who might not be physically or mentally ready for extended playing time this fall.  Beyond those three, there's not much potential for game-changing pass rushers in 2012.  If this troika can't get the job done, opposing quarterbacks will be able to stand strong in the pocket and slice our woefully young secondary to ribbons.  Mediocre pass rush + shaky secondary = 400+ yard passing performances against us and lots of shootouts.  My head is not in the sand on this one, and I have the games against Duke and Louisiana Tech specifically circled on the calendar as occasions where this formula could really bite us in the ass in contests we should otherwise win.
• I've mentioned it a few times before, but beyond Snyder, Hill, Schautz, and Walcott (at linebacker), none of these guys have really gotten on the field, at all.  That could be a problem, and the coaching staff will have to sort out a depth chart on the fly as they observe game action with lots of mixing and matching along the d-line.
• I worry about a general lack of size up front.  Renfrow and Urban give us some girth, and Buddy Ruff is another big body for the rotation, but no other player tips the scales at more than 275-280.  Projected rotation regulars Schautz (250), Walcott (240), Harold (230), and Brathwaite (270) are all really light for their positions.  I could see us being blown off the ball by big, physical offensive lines this fall.
• There's a lot of potential on this line, but it has to be developed, cultivated, and then demonstrated before it matters.  This figures to be a bit of a trial by fire season, which means sustaining some painful burns along the way.

Projected Depth Chart
RDE) #47 Bill Schautz (Sr.), #26 Ausar Walcott (Sr.), #7 Eli Harold (Fr.), #94 Courtnye Wynn, #58 Diamonte Bailey (RS Fr.)
DT) #93 Will Hill (Sr.), #64 David Dean (RS Fr.), #45 Vincent Croce (RS Fr.), #50 Marco Jones (RS Fr.)
DT) #98 Chris Brathwaite (So.), #54 Justin Renfrow (Jr.), #62 Buddy Ruff (Jr.)
LDE) #90 Jake Snyder (Jr.), #99 Brent Urban (Jr.), #92 Rob Burns (RS Fr.), #57 Stephen Lawe (So.), #32 Mike Moore (Fr.)

Burgers...

Pierce: The D-Line is like a dull middle-of-the-road burger waiting for its toppings - what they hand you at Fuddruckers right before you get to the toppings bar. There's potential there, but as of right now, there's not a whole lot to say but "could be okay, but we're going to have to wait and see." Schautz coming back healthy will be a huge boost, plus the influx of new talent. Could Chris Brathwaite be the grilled onions and hot sauce to take this burger into the realm of super delicious? Maybe, but the group could also be pretty darn mediocre.

Mike: The D-Line is one of those stupidly enormous eating challenge burgers. It only tastes okay, but there is so damn much of it that you just have to love it for the American excess. The team is loaded with d-line talent this year, and is gearing up to get even deeper and stronger in the future. We're already potentially rolling nine deep on the D-Line, which makes this burger quite a larger handful. That being said, those burgers, while huge, usually don't taste all that good. The line is deep, but their ability level as a unit is still an unknown. Hell we could get to a super dry overcooked center.

Kendall: To me, this d-line is like a plate of gourmet sliders.  Some are better than others, all are fairly delicious in their own way, but there's not much meat and they don't all fit together and form a cohesive meal.  Mike says nine deep, I say ELEVEN deep.  And yes, I really do think we'll see all of the following eleven players get some snaps in the base defense: Schautz, Hill, Brath, Snyder, Walcott, Dean, Renfrow, Urban, Harold, Croce, and Ruff.  I like the constant rotation approach, and I like the d-line to stay fresh and come at you in waves like hockey line shifts, but it's never as good as a shorter rotation that plays with a lot of chemistry.  Basically, give me six or seven really focused, super-delicious sliders over a pu-pu platter of a million different flavors.


Score for the Frame:
This frame starts out as a dreaded 7-10 split.  But you know what?  Sometimes in college football you just have to ignore conventional wisdom and a seemingly dire situation "on paper," and go with your gut.  Thanks to sheer numbers and the delightful possibility of superior talent bubbling to the surface, I have a certain conviction about this year's defensive line.  The second roll is one made on that faith, and it is a miraculous SPARE!

Score Thru 4 Frames: 40