Previewing the Tulsa Offense for 2015

8/2/2015 5:51:00 PM | Football

By: Don Tomkalski

"Fun… Fast…Physical Football" were some of the first words spoken by Philip Montgomery upon being named the new Tulsa football coach last December.

Montgomery brings his high-powered, up-tempo mentality to the offensive side of the ball for the Hurricane. His offensive philosophy was one that helped put Baylor football at the top of the national offensive statistics nearly every year.

Tulsa returns 10 starters to the offensive side of the ball, where Montgomery's spread-style offense will utilize the speed, quickness and length of the Tulsa players. If spring was any indication, Tulsa fans better get to your seats with enough concession items to keep you going until halftime. There's no telling, if you get out of your seat what you're liable to miss.

On offense, the Hurricane returns 100-percent of its rushing and passing totals and 94-percent of the teams' receiving total to an offense that put up 412.5 total yards to rank fourth in the American Athletic Conference last year.

Here's a look at the position breakdown for the Hurricane Offense in 2015:

QUARTERBACK
"In the spring, the quarterback spot was one that we felt like we had to put a lot of emphasis on," said Montgomery. "The whole group did a good job of taking the coaching, implementing what we were doing offensively and trying to improve each day."

Dane Evans (6-1, 218) brings the most experience to the quarterback position for the Hurricane in 2015. The junior threw for 3,102 yards and 23 touchdowns a year ago, while hitting the 4,000-yard plateau in 20 career games in his first two seasons. Evans began the 2014 season with a career-best 438 yards and four passing touchdowns in a opening win over Tulane.

Joseph Calcagni (6-1, 212) brings a maturity level to the quarterbacking position as a fifth-year senior. He has seen action in just nine career contests, while throwing for 179 yards and one touchdown.

Newcomer Chad President (6-3, 205), a true freshman from Temple High School, enrolled in January at Tulsa and participated in spring drills. President led his prep team to 13-2 record and the Texas Class 5A state championship game, while passing for 2,391 yards and rushing for 868 yards as a senior.

Sophomore Ryan Rubley (6-3, 220) and red-shirt freshman Jabe Burgess (6-2, 217) add depth to the quarterback position, as does another true freshman, Will Hefley (6-5, 205). As a Parade Magazine honorable mention All-American in 2014, Hefley passed for 4,897 yards and 62 touchdowns in leading his Pulaski Academy (Ark.) team to a 13-1 record and the Class 5A state title in 2014.

"We won't name a starter until we get closer to our first game, but between Dane, Joe and Chad, and I thought Ryan picked up things later in the spring – those four guys will be battling," said Montgomery. "I thought all of them did a good job of improving."

"I thought Dane looked dramatically different from day one to the last day of spring. Joe got better and better, and both Chad and Ryan are so young, it will take time and we'll see how fast they progress," added Montgomery.

RUNNING BACK
The running back position has the potential to be dynamic in the Tulsa offense and may once again be 'running back by committee'. Five returning players combined for 1,519 rushing yards last season.

Senior Zack Langer (6-0, 218), who has had an injury-plagued career, had a breakout year in 2014 as he gained 80.1 yards per game, which ranked second in the American Athletic Conference. Langer missed two games with injury, but totaled four 100+ rushing games. Junior James Flanders (5-10, 203) gained 456 yards on the ground in his first real playing time in the backfield for the Hurricane.

Langer and Flanders are listed at the up-back position in the backfield, and are joined by newcomer Javon Thomas (6-2, 215) and sophomore Daelen McClendon (5-10, 229). A back with great size, Thomas totaled 1,784 yards on the ground and 511 receiving yards in his career at Texas High School

A youngster who saw valuable playing time in 2014 as a true freshman, D'Angelo Brewer (5-9, 185) came out of the spring listed first on the depth chart at the running back slot. A former high school quarterback, Brewer adjusted well to the running back position in his first season, gaining 128 yards on 39 carries.

Ramadi Warren (5-9, 205) and Tavarreon Dickerson (5-9, 185) bring some elusiveness to the backfield as well. Warren had a solid spring as the red-shirt freshman brought terrific prep numbers to campus a year ago, rushing for over 1,400 yards and scoring 25 TDs for Memphis Whitehaven High School in 2013. Dickerson, a transfer from Trinity Valley College a year ago, gained 132 yards in an injury-plagued season that limited him to nine games and just 34 carries.

"As we got into spring ball, I thought our running back position could potentially be one of our more dynamic spots," said Montgomery. "D'Angelo, TD and Ramadi bring a little something different, while Zack and James can really provide a lot of power."

Sophomore Rowdy Simon (5-8, 201), who saw playing time in 2014 mostly on special teams, adds depth to the position.

RECEIVER
Tulsa returns two receivers that, by the end of the season, should be among the top-10 receivers in school history.

Junior Keevan Lucas (5-10, 198) and senior Keyarris Garrett (6-4, 221) totaled nearly 2,000 yards and 16 touchdowns last year, while combining for 3,282 yards and 26 touchdowns in their careers.

Lucas had team-leading totals of 1,219 yards and 11 touchdowns on 101 receptions, while ranking among NCAA leaders in those categories. Garrett, coming back from a leg injury that sidelined him for all but two games in the 2013 season, caught 47 passes for 698 yards and five TDs a year ago.

Experience in the Tulsa receiving corps doesn't stop with Garrett and Lucas, as there were four more players who earned starting assignments a season ago. In all, Tulsa returns receivers who have caught 349 passes for 4,376 yards and 31 touchdowns in their careers for the Hurricane.

"We have some weapons and some uniqueness to our receiver corps," said Montgomery. "We have some guys with speed, some with length, and some guys that are quicker that can get in and out of things. I think this group will blend together to be one of our more consistent spots," said Montgomery.

Junior Josh Atkinson (6-2, 208) started seven games and was third on the squad in receiving with 416 yards on 35 receptions. Senior Connor Floyd (6-0, 210) had 18 receptions for 139 yards, while a pair of sophomores – Bishop Louie (5-10, 170) and Nigel Carter (6-3, 205) – both from Tulsa's McLain High School, gained valuable playing time as true freshmen in 2014 and started two games apiece.

Louie was Tulsa's fourth-leading receiver with 23 catches for 274 yards and carried the ball seven times for 100 yards last year, while Carter caught three passes for 24 yards.

Red-shirt freshman Justin Hobbs (6-4, 207), who gives the Hurricane receiving corps four receivers over six-feet, two-inches tall, is expected to be integral in Tulsa's passing attack. Hobbs spent most of his prep career at tight end, but after switching to wide receiver as a senior he averaged 21.6 yards per catch.

More receiving depth comes from red-shirt freshman Terrance Ivery (5-8, 180) and
newcomer Jarion Anderson (5-9, 167). Anderson gives the Hurricane another quick receiver who totaled 1,525 yards and 16 touchdowns in his three years as a starter at Texas High School

TIGHT END
Three lettermen and two-highly touted young players are in the mix at the tight end position for the Hurricane.

"We'll move our tight ends around a lot. He's a guy that has to do a great job in our run schemes and from a protection standpoint. We'll also use them as receivers," Montgomery said. "Being able to utilize our tight ends and take advantage of their strengths will be a key for us."

Senior Mandel Dixon Jr. (6-2, 240) started six games in 2014, catching six passes for 62 yards and from the H-back position gained 17 yards and scored one touchdown on seven carries.

While Dixon missed four games with injury last year, junior Tyler Wilson (6-6, 240) played in only the first three games before being sidelined the remainder of the season by injury. A year earlier, Wilson caught nine passes for 79 yards.

Tulsa's third returning letterwinner at the tight end position, Rob Riederer (6-0, 225), moved over from defense last year to help fill a void due to injuries.

Red-shirt freshman Payton Prince (6-4, 252) and true freshman Chris Minter (6-3, 230) will provide stiff competition for playing time. Prince, as a senior at Norman North (Okla.) High School, had 36 receptions for 528 yards and five TDs. Minter caught 21 passes for 332 yards and six touchdowns his senior season at Temple (Texas) High School.

OFFENSIVE LINE
Seven lettermen return to the Tulsa offensive front in 2015, while eight of the remaining 10 offensive linemen are either freshmen red-shirts or true freshmen.

A pair of linemen who teamed together at Guthrie (Okla.) High School came out of spring drills as the starters at tackle for the Hurricane. Blake Belcher (6-5, 300) is expected to start at right tackle for the second straight season, while Evan Plagg (6-3, 279) looks to be the starter on the left side.

Senior Garrett Stafford (6-5, 300), who has made 24 of his 26 starts at left tackle, moved inside to left guard during spring drills, while Chris Wallace (6-5, 305) made the move to right guard after starting all 12 games in 2014 on the left side.

The starting center position has two lettermen returning and a red-shirt freshman pushing for the starting spot. Junior Dylan Foxworth (6-1, 285) battled injuries last year, but still managed to start 10 games and has started 18 career contests. Freshman red-shirt Chandler Miller (6-3, 293) sat out last year after earning first-team all-state honors at Bixby High School a year earlier.

Foxworth and Miller are expected to battle for the starting spot in fall camp, while sophomore Zach Uhles (6-3, 273) brings some more experience to the position as he saw extensive playing time at center in two games last year, including a starting assignment at Memphis, where he played 91 snaps.

True freshman Blake Browning (6-0, 290) adds depth to the center position, but is expected to red-shirt this year.

At left tackle, Plagg is backed up by a pair of red-shirt freshmen in the likes of Isaac Johnson (6-7, 283) and Mildren Montgomery (6-5, 275), while another freshman red-shirt Tyler Bowling (6-6, 324) and true freshman Tristan Wyatt (6-5, 290) are listed as back-ups at left guard.

Junior college transfer Alex Pagonis (6-5, 320) and senior Billy Lafortune (6-0, 283) will compete at the right guard position. Pagonis had an all-conference season at Fort Scott Community College, while Lafortune provides versatility upfront being able to play both guard and center. He started one game at center a year ago, while seeing playing time in four contests.

Behind Belcher at right tackle is red-shirt freshman Willie Wright (6-3, 291), who made significant progress after making the switch from the defensive line before spring drills started in March. Senior Josh Bencke (6-0, 293) and true freshman Christopher Ivy (6-4, 295) provide depth.

"Evan did a good job at left tackle in the spring, and moving Garrett Stafford inside I think will provide more punch for us," said Montgomery. "The center spot is a battle between Dylan and Chandler. That's a good competitive group."
"We moved Chris from left to right guard, and he and Blake working together on that side has been good," Montgomery said. "Tyler Bowling had a good spring and with the addition of Alex Pagonis, I think we'll have a good four-guard rotation with guys that can spell each other and make sure we stay fresh with the tempo we want to play. Moving Willie from defense to offensive tackle fits his skill set right now, and I think he can definitely be in the rotation."