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Fantasy News on Key Offensive Lines
By Chris Pendley | June 22, 2008
It’s easy for fantasy college football enthusiasts to get tied up in the skill positions only. After all, they’re the easiest to quantify, easiest to dissect, easiest to learn about and the easiest to spot on the field.
Still, we don’t give enough love to the guys in the trenches who are blowing holes open for Knowshon Moreno (right, ICON SMI) or keeping Tim Tebow off his back (okay, he’s a bad example – Graham Harrell , then).
The best lines in 1-A / FBS / whatever they’re calling it this year give a boost to their skill position players behind them, while the worst create unintentional headaches; it’s not their fault they suck, right?
Let’s take a look at a few lines in each category (in no particular order).
On the plus side:
Oklahoma – sure, we already knew about RB DeMarco Murray and this time around QB Sam Bradford isn’t going to be sneaking up on anyone. However, Oklahoma also returns all five starters, including 1st Team All Big-XII LG Duke Robinson and 2nd Team All Big-XII LT Phil Loadholt. Murray should enjoy running to the left side of the line this year, and so should backup RB Chris Brown , who could become viable in deeper leagues partly because of the line.
Tennessee – fortunately for new QB Jonathan Crompton , Tennessee’s line returns pretty much intact. LG Anthony Parker and C Josh McNeil anchor the Volunteer line, so Crompton should be safe against rushes from up the middle. In the same vein, RB Arian Foster should have plenty of gaping holes to run in, as should bull-runner Montario Hardesty . Crompton should see the most benefit out of this group due to the returning batch of WRs.
LSU – We’d know more about the Tigers’ offensive line if they could ever settle on a feature back. While they’re trying to figure it out, the line should be blasting open giant holes for whoever ends up with the ball. Like Oklahoma, LSU has a superior left side of the line, with LT Ciron Black making the 1st Team Freshman All-American squad last year. Whichever guy comes out on top in both the RB and QB battles should be in great shape behind this line.
Texas Tech – like you need more of a reason to draft Harrell . These guys average 6’6”, 331, and have strength at both guard positions (RG: Brandon Carter, who weighs in at 374 pounds. LG: Louis Vazquez, who was 1stv Team All Big-XII last year). Heck, these guys would make RB Shannon Woods draftable if he could ever get out of Leach’s doghouse. As for Harrell…well, it’s hard to draft him before the 1st pick. But if you can, do it.
Oregon – Even though Oregon returns only three guys on the line (breaking in a new LG and RT), the guys that return are top-notch. C Max Unger is a 2-year All Pac-10 selection and LT Fenuki Tupou was a 2nd team All Pac-10 selection last year. LG Jordan Holmes is the weak link here, but there’s enough strength across the board to help out RB Jeremiah Johnson. It should also protect whoever emerges from the QB battle, which could run five deep. Justin Roper leads the competition for now, but that may not last.
Tulsa – Tulsa returns four out of their five starting linemen from last year, and these guys have combined for 65 starts. The right side of their line (RG Justin Morsey, RT Rodrick Thomas) is the strength of the team. This will mean RBs Tarrion Adans and Courtney Tenniel should see plenty of opportunities and open holes in C-USA. QB David Johnson could put up solid numbers if he’s given enough time. Bonus points: Tulsa has a pretty weak OOC slate too.
Fresno State – This line can’t be as injured this year as it was last year. 9 out of their top 10 linemen return, and that’s not even counting injury returns from C Adam McDowell, C Joe Bernardi, and LG Cole Popovich. RB Ryan Mathews should have plenty of opportunity to run rampant over WAC competition, as there isn’t one dominant defensive line. This is also good news for QB Tom Brandstater . Of course, since this is Fresno State, they do play at Rutgers and vs. Wisconsin, so you’ve been warned.
Central Michigan – The Chippewas return 4 of their 5 starters, including 2-year All-MAC LT Andrew Hartline. Given that all these guys need to do is keep QB Dan LeFevour ’s jersey clean, it’s a good thing he’s mobile. This line should effectively dominate most of their MAC competition, but be warned: they play at Georgia in Week 2.
On the other side of the equation:
Clemson – Good thing RBs James Davis and C.J. Spiller are so talented. They’re going to have headaches running behind a line that’s returning only two starters, one of whom is a redshirt freshman (RG Mason Cloy). While the RB corps should be mostly okay, QB Cullen Harper could run into issues. He won’t get nearly as much time to pass as he did last year.
Georgia – Yes, RB Knowshon Moreno showed up on the scene like a bat out of hell. However, he’s not going to have fun running behind a bunch of guys who are the same year as he is (with the exception of LG Vince Vance, who’s a junior). The good news that two of the sophomores – RG Clint Boling and LT Trinton Sturdivant – made the All-SEC Freshman team last year. But there could be many a play where FB Brannan Southerland is the best blocker for Moreno. QB Matthew Stafford better hope that the WRs bring their stickum.
Northwestern – Now that RB Tyrell Sutton is healthy (hopefully), he’ll spend most of his time trying to have fun running behind a line that graduated three guys last year. C Joel Belding is the strongest guy on the line, but these guys average 6’4”, 289 – or as we like to term it, “small”.
Texas A&M – FB Jovorski Lane is almost as big as some of these guys, which really says more about him than it does about the line. The Aggies only return one starter (6’8”, 290 Travis Scheinder), meaning that while Lane will probably still get his TDs, QB Steven McGee will only break your heart and RB Mike Goodson will spend most of the year frustrated.
Kansas – QB Todd Reesing and RB Jake Sharp were going to have a tough go of it anyway. Baylor, Texas A&M, and Oklahoma St. are replaced by Texas Tech, Oklahoma, and Texas on the schedule, plus they face USF on the road. What really won’t help matters is that two starters are gone from last year’s squad, although there could be four seniors on the line. The fifth guy, Jeff Spikes, is a redshirt freshman. Depth chart alert: there are no other seniors on the two-deep here.
Florida State – QB Drew Weatherford and RB Antoine Smith have been driving fantasy owners nuts for years now. This year, it may not be their fault. There are no upperclassmen in the two-deep and only one in the three-deep, plus the ‘Noles are bringing in three new starters. The good news (on a relative scale) is that the returning starters, C Ryan McMahon and LT Rodney Hudson (both sophomores), were 1st team All-Americans on the freshman squad. Still, that’s scary.
Arizona State – QB Rudy Carpenter and RB Keegan Herring are both very talented players, but they’re also victim to playing behind a porous line that’s only returning two starters. RG Paul Fanaka is the most talented of the group, although that probably qualifies as damning with faint praise.
Pittsburgh – RB LeSean McCoy was fantastic last year, rolling up 1,329 yards and 14 TDs. Enjoy those numbers, because this year Jeff Otah is gone and the Panthers are breaking in three new guys on the line. The good news is that most of the starters are upperclassmen. Although this line could trail downhill in a hurry if a few of these guys go down to injury, especially T Joe Thomas and Jason Pinkston.
SMU – QB Justin Willis did an excellent job last year; this year may not be as easy. First off, with June Jones in as the new head coach, everyone’s learning new schemes. Secondly, three starters from the ’07 squad are gone, leaving C Mitch Enright as the best guy on the line. On the plus side, these guys are mostly upperclassmen, including 6’5”, 252 LG Vincent Chase. Hopefully he’ll put on a few pounds.
Boise State – RB Ian Johnson is one of the most talented players in college football. He’ll have to use all that talent this year, with only one returning starter on the line (RG Andrew Woodruff). Most of the two and three-deep is underclassmen, although there are a few seniors among the group.
Western Michigan – QB Tim Hiller ’s a solid fantasy option. However, of the seven returning starters on offense for the Broncos this year, two of them are on the line. There’s a good amount of upperclassmen across the depth chart so Hiller should be okay, but if the line struggles TE Brandon Ledbetter could be kept in to block more often. Nobody wins when that happens.
Now, just because some teams have plus offensive lines and others don’t, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll be better or worse. It does mean that these situations are worth keeping an eye on, and possible (or likely) fantasy studs may run into more problems than expected if injuries start piling up.
Topics: Chris Pendley, College Football, Positional Analysis, Running Back |
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