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Tulsa's Defense Looks to be Improved in 2005
8/7/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 7, 2005
Tulsa, Oklahoma -
THE DEFENSE
Defensively, the Hurricane lost five starters but returns three of the top-five tacklers from the 2004 season.
Tulsa has two starters each returning to the front line, linebacker corps and the secondary. In addition, five junior college transfers are expected to make an immediate impact on the defensive side of the ball.
"We have continued to address the needs that we felt like existed over the course of our last two seasons. We want to be a bigger and more physical defense and have recruited to that philosophy, said Head Coach Steve Kragthorpe.
"As we have addressed our needs from a physical standpoint, I'm also encouraged by the fact that we have bolstered our defense with athleticism and speed at all positions," added Kragthorpe. "We've recruited junior college players to play, and expect that they'll compete for significant playing time."
The Defensive Line
If one word can be used to describe the difference between the Tulsa defensive front in 2005 as compared to Kragthorpe's first two seasons at Tulsa it would be "bulk". Among the three front line positions, Tulsa has only one of its 10 players listed under 250 pounds, while five players push the scales to 295 or above.
"We wanted to be a bigger and more physical defense and it starts up front, so we've recruited to that philosophy," said Kragthorpe.
Four letterwinners return to the defensive line for the Hurricane in 2005, including three ends and one nose guard.
Senior Brandon Lohr (6-0, 250) and junior Robert Latu (6-2, 265) return as projected starters at defensive end. Lohr was fourth on the team last year in tackles with 69 stops, while Latu tallied 21 tackles a year ago as he started eight games.
With Tulsa's depth on the line this year, Lohr is expected to stay at end and not move between that position and nose guard as he did a year ago.
Another returner who saw playing time at both end and nose guard is sophomore Walter Boyd (6-2, 305), who is expected to stay out at end this year. Boyd played in six games and had just two tackles.
Making an impact at defensive end during spring drills was Colorado transfer Chadd Evans (6-4, 265). He proved to have the ability to put pressure on the opposing quarterback.
Newcomer William Washington (6-6, 300) is expected to make an immediate impact on the defensive front as well. He brings his big frame from Bakersfield Junior College, where he earned all-conference honors with 42 stops and 11 quarterback sacks.
True freshman Moton Hopkins (6-3, 255) brings solid prep credentials from Texas as he earned Class 2A all-state accolades his senior season. Hopkins totaled 117 stops and 17 for lost yardage as a senior on his way to 356 career tackles and 41 stops for lost yardage.
Sophomore Alex Detwiler (6-1, 210) adds depth to the defensive end position for the Hurricane.
The nose guard position consisting of one sophomore and two freshmen averages 319 pounds. The Hurricane may be young on the interior, but the three youngsters -- sophomore Brandon Jones (6-2, 295), freshmen Tommy Daniels (6-2, 338) and Terrel Nemons (6-4, 325) -- are a talented group that will push each other for playing time.
Jones was forced into action last year as a true freshman and started four games while collecting eight tackles on the year.
Daniels came to Tulsa at mid-semester 2005 as a gray-shirt, after completing his high school career in the fall of 2003. As a prep senior, Daniels was rated as the 51st best senior prospect in the Dallas-area as he tallied 64 tackles in his final prep season. Nemons was rated as one of the top-30 defensive linemen in the country by various recruiting publications. He had 58 tackles and five sacks as a prep senior at Cedar Hill High School
The Linebackers
Despite losing leading tackler Michael LeDet, the Tulsa linebacker corps return five lettermen in 2005 including three players who have starting experience.
When discussing Tulsa's linebackers the first name on the list is junior Nick Bunting (6-1, 230), a preseason candidate for the 2005 Chuck Bednarik Award, an award that goes to the nation's top defensive player.
Bunting, who can play either in the middle or at outside linebacker, was the 2003 Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year and has earned all-conference accolades in each of his first two seasons.
He was second on the team last year in tackles with 88 stops and also had five tackles for -22 yards. Over Bunting's final two seasons, if he could just double his two-year total of 167 tackles, he would rank fifth on the school's career tackles chart.
Sophomores Chris Chamberlain (6-2, 220) and Nelson Coleman (6-2, 230) bring considerable playing experience from a year ago to the linebacker corps. Coleman started six games at middle linebacker as a red-shirt freshman, while Chamberlain was impressive in his rookie season after playing quarterback and defensive back in high school. Chamberlain started five games as a true freshman in 2004 and compiled 48 tackles and six stops for -41 yards, while Coleman was the seventh-leading tackler on the team with 50 tackles.
In addition, sophomores Cody Madison (6-3, 243), Corey McMurrian (6-1, 215) and junior Kinny Spotwood (6-1, 235) will compete for more playing time at linebacker after spending last year mainly on special teams. Madison also saw playing time last year at defensive end. He and McMurrian will utilize their athletic abilities from the outside linebacker position, while Spotwood moved from outside to middle linebacker during spring drills.
Tulsa has added five newcomers to the linebacker corps, including junior college transfers Alain Karatepeyan (6-1, 250)and Steve Craver (6-1, 225). Both will jump into the mix and compete right from the get-go for a valuable playing time, and even a starataing role.
Craver originally signed with Nebraska out of high school, comes to Tulsa from Kilgore Junior College. He played linebacker the last two years, and may even be tested at safety for the Hurricane this year.
The three true freshmen also bring tremendous credentials to the Hurricane roster. Cedar Hill High School teammates George Clinkscale (6-0, 225) and Cedric Godfrey (6-1, 235) combined for 209 tackles as seniors last year. Local product Popsie Floyd (6-1, 218), rated as the 25th best linebacker in the nation by Rivals.com, had 120 tackles and ranked second in the state of Oklahoma in all classifications last year for quarterback sacks with 22. He will join Clinkscale and Godfrey as a solid group of freshmen linebackers.
The Defensive Secondary
Even though three starters have departed through graduation, the Tulsa secondary still appears to be a talented group with nine players who have earned letters and six of which have been in a starting role for the Hurricane.
Nine freshmen or sophomores will be looking to compete for valuable playing time, while four juniors come out of spring drills with the upper hand on a starting role.
Junior safeties Bobby Blackshire (6-3, 205), Kedrick Alexander (6-2, 220) and Shannon Carter (6-0, 201) have the most playing experience in the secondary. Blackshire started all 12 games last year, while Carter has started 17 of 19 games since giving up his professional baseball career and returning to college in 2003.
Blackshire was third on the team last year in tackles with 77 stops and ranked second with seven pass break-ups. Alexander started all 13 games in 2003 and was the leading tackler with 121 stops, but missed all of the 2004 campaign.
Carter, who only played in seven games last year due to an injury, tallied 45 tackles after compiling 76 tackles in his first season.
A trio of sophomores -- Jonathan Penelton (6-0, 213), Burnell Smith (6-1, 201) and Anthony Germany (6-1, 205) -- will compete for playing time at the safety positions. Each of the three saw some time in the secondary but had valuable playing time on special teams last year, and are expected to do so again. Penelton had eight tackles, Smith seven and Germany had two stops on the year.
True freshman James Lockett (5-11, 183) brings solid prep credentials and will add depth at safety.
At free safety, Carter will see competition from senior Bobby Klinck (5-11, 195) for playing time. Klinck played in six games last year after having to miss the first five games due to his transfer from the University of Oklahoma.
In addition, true freshman Josh Burris (5-10, 175), who was ranked as the 51st top prospect in the Dallas-area as a prep senior at South Garland High School, and red-shirt freshman Andrew Armstrong (6-2, 210) adds depth at free safety.
Both starting cornerbacks from last year, Jermaine Hope and Oliver Fletcher, have departed, but a pair of players, Nick Graham (5-11, 185) and Jeff Thibodeaux (6-0, 180) have starting experience.
Graham started five games at cornerback last year, while Thibodeaux has 19 starts in his career but only two at cornerback. Graham tallied 40 tackles and four pass break-ups a year ago. Thibodeaux has 122 career stops, and had 19 stops last year while playing in just seven games.
Graham will get competition from red-shirt freshman Roy Roberts (5-11, 205), who turned in a solid spring, while true freshman Rodney Harrison (5-10, 170) adds depth.
At the other cornerback slot, Thibodeaux will compete with Terrance Thomas (5-10, 170) for the starting spot, while junior college transfers Marchon Tatmon (6-1, 197) and Julian McGowan (6-0, 185) are expected to compete as well. Thomas sat out last year, while Tatmon and McGowan bring solid credentials from the JC ranks. Tatmon was an all-conference selection after tallying 110 tackles and seven interceptions at Chabot College in 2004. McGowan was a two-year starter at Pearl River (Miss.) College.
