[BJWilliams]

At a friend's suggestion I am adding one more part to my 2007 review.

With the new faces being brought in, the question was posed to me how will the new faces contribute? Will they come in and play right away or will they have to wait their turn? Lets take a look at this group by group

1. Offensive Line

Here are the returning players for 2008:

• Britt Stone (starter)
  Mike Godsil (starter)
  Mario Cosby
  Zach Davis
  Tim Hartman
  Bryan Mosier
  Orlandon Perez
  Antonio Tassara
  Justin Vargas
  Josh Weaver
  Chase Harrington (redshirt)
  Spencer Hodges (redshirt)
  Toney White (redshirt)

2008 Signees:

• Aaron Lundy
  DJ Sellman
  Alex Stadler (transfer)

When I wrote my 2007 Line review I stated that the likely starters going into the spring to join Godsil and Stone would be Bryan Mosier, Justin Vargas and Josh Weaver. But with the addition of Alex Stadler from Alabama, chances are he could very well earn himself a spot on the starting O-Line by the end of spring practice. As for Lundy, Sellman and Herring...an interesting point Coach Rocco made in his press conference (and in an interview he did earlier in teh day) was the challenge for big guys on the line coming in. There are going to be 13 other guys competing for spots on the O-line 2 deep. One thing that the high school signees (Sellman and Lundy) have going for them is their versatility along the line. That should help their chances, but with as many guys on the Offensive Line as we have on the roster, I think the only new face I see really contributing right away at this point is Stadler.

2. Defensive Line

Returning Players for 2008:

• Colin Dugan (starter)
  Kevin Richard (starter)
  Trey Jacobs
  Brady Hassell
  Tim Smith
  Soeren Wendland
  Jay Coady
  Josh Musselman
  Jordon Spaeth

2008 Signees:

• Stan Herring
  Ryan Jackson
  Greg Schuster

Looking at the line, the area where I see one of these three most contributing potentially is the defensive end position, particularly Ryan Jackson. The starting nose spot is Colin Dugan's to lose entering the spring. The defensive end position opposite Kevin Richard will probably be the one where most of the battling will take place for the starting job. In my review I listed Tim Smith as the likely starter entering the spring but again, I think Jackson has a legitimate chance to earn that spot this summer.



Wide Receivers

Returning players:

Dominic Bolden
Jonathan Crawford
Eugene Rogers
Matt Lambros
James Forystek
Jason Myers
Cedric Sanderson (Redshirt)
Chris Summers (Redshirt)
Kajuan Lee (Redshirt)


2008 Signees

Steven Crawford Jr.
Jimmy Eden

As far as receiving goes, Look for Dominic Bolden to ascend to the #1 receiver spot with Jon Crawford at #2. Where things get interesting is at the #3 and 4 receiver positions. Last season the big three was Wynton Jackson, Brandon Turner and Dominic Bolden. With jackson and Turner both gone, that opens up the competition a lot more. Crawford is a very big guy at 6'3" and could makea very good possession receiver. Factor in Sanderson and Summers (both 6'5") and you could have a formidable 5 wide set for any defense to contend with. Eden looks like he could be a real scat receiver and if he isnt redshirted he may come in late in games but most of his contribution I think will come on returns.


Tight Ends

Returning Players:

Will Quarles
Corey Rasberry (redshirt)
Ricky Jenkins (redshirt)
Thomas Shaver (redshirt)


2008 Signees:

Steven Wilkes

Tight End (PAMedic's favorite) of the more interesting positions on the team to analyze. Corey Rasberry looks to be the #1 after sitting out 2007 on a redshirt. The big question will come from who will be the #2. Wilkes is a very big tight end at 6'6 and he could definitely contribute right away at the #2 position and he could even come in as a 5th receiver in some situations. Quarles, Jenkins and Shaver will be battling for that 2nd tight end spot for the spring but so not be surprised if Wilkes can really make an impact when he comes in for the summer workouts.



Linebackers


Returning Players:

Nick Hursky (starter)
Patrick Bannon
Pierre Tinsley
Ian Childress
Kyle O'Donnell
Pat Parziale
Chad Brown
Terry Adams
Mark Malvaso
Mike Connolly (redshirt)


2008 signees:

Jamal Giddens
Doncel Bolt (transfer)

Of the two guys brought in, Bolt most likely will be the one who makes an immediate impact. The way I see it, he probably could end up at one of the middle linebacker positions before the end of the spring. Hursky will be the leader in the linebacking corps much like he was for much of 2007 (even after missing a few games with a knee injury)


Quarterback

Returning Players:

Brock Smith (starter)
Spencer Landis
Kyle DeArmon
Mike Brown (redshirt)


2008 Signees:

Tyler Brennan

The QB job is Brock Smith's...bottom line...but the interesting question will come in 2009. Spencer Landis is the #2 QB behind Smith but someone of Brennan's size definitely could work in Liberty's offensive system. He will be battling with Landis and Brown for that #1 spot for certain in the spring of 09.

Defensive Backs


Returning Players:

Kent Hicks (starter)
Ryan Greiser (starter)
Pat Calvary (starter)
Tim Torrence
Chris Rocco
Donald Manns
Chuck Duffey
Champ Dulcio
Al Bailey (redshirt)
Larry Claiborne (redshirt)

2008 Signees:


Brandon Robinson
Reginald Matthews
Brandon Saunders (transfer)

With Pat Dickerson the only graduating starter in this unit, look for Greiser, Calvary and Hicks to be locks to start n 08. The battle will come for the 4th starting spot. Chris Rocco has started in the defensive backfield so he will probably be right there for consideration. Saunders could step into that role as well if he is eligible to play in 2008. Hte real battle will come in 2009 for defensive backfield positions though


Running Backs

Returning Players (Tailback):

Rashad Jennings (Starter)
Wesley Cheek
Terron Lawrence
Terry Williams
Osita Ofuani
Shay Nicholson (Redshirt)
BJ Hayes (Redshirt)


Returning Players (Fullback):

Derek Bishop
Joey Sandvig


Returning Players ("A-Back")

Zach Terrell
Danny Broggin


2008 Signees: None

This is the only position where Liberty did not sign a player in 2008. With a total of 11 players returning at the running back position (7 tailbacks, 2 fullbacks, and 2 "A-backs"), even if the Flames did sign someone, there would not have been much opportunity for them to come in and play in 2008 and possibly even 2009.


Special Teams


Returning Players (Kicker)

David Drake
Ben Shipps (walk-on)

Returning Players (Punter)

Wes Cheek

Returning Players (Kick/Punt Return)

Dominic Bolden
Donald Manns
Eugene Rogers
Will Quarles
Jonathan Crawford
Patrick Calvary
Ryan Greiser
Derek Bishop

2008 Signees
Matt Bevins (Kicker/Punter)
Jimmy Eden (Kick/punt returner)
Steven Crawford Jr. (Kick/punt returner)

This is a position where things could pretty much be wide open. I think that Dominic Bolden and Jonathan Crawford will be the primary returners but look for Ryan Greiser to get some touches there as well if teams kick away from Bolden, but also look for WR signees Steven Crawford and Jimmy Eden to also get some chances to return kicks. Both look like they could conceivably be game breakers in this area if they do not get much time at WR.

As far as for kickers, David Drake is the only returning kicker from 2007, so look for him to battle with Ben Shipps (walk-on) throughout the spring. If Bevins were to see time on the field in my summation, itd be at punter for 2008


This concludes my look to 2008 for the Liberty Flames football team and my complete 2007 review. Spring Practice kicks off for the Flames March 27 at Williams Stadium with the annual spring football game taking place April 19. Libery opens the 2008 season August 30 against North Greenville College.

[Schfourteenteen]

Im assuming because we didnt sign a rb you didnt post the, but stokes is gone, so it would still make sense to have them i think. Also Special Teams may be something to look into

[BJWilliams]

Im assuming because we didnt sign a rb you didnt post the, but stokes is gone, so it would still make sense to have them i think. Also Special Teams may be something to look into

As promised I finally added the Running Backs and Special Teams to my "Looking to 2008" piece.

[BJWilliams]

Well spring practice starts in a couple weeks. Should be interesting to see who steps up at the questionable positions. Im gonna try and check out as many practices as my schedule allows. How bout the rest of you locals?

[madmat]

Can someone provide a schedule of spring practice, asap?

[SuperJon]

Tuesday and Thursday practices at 7:15.
Friday practices at 4:15.
Saturday practices at 11am.

[jmdickens]

you forgot about Matt Blevins on special teams


the #24 kicker in the nation according to scout.com

[BJWilliams]

Thanks for that dickens. I mentioned him in my review of special teams and in my review of the recruiting class, but I;ll fix this and make sure he is mentioned. Im speculating that he will be the punter and maybe compete with Drake and walk-on Ben Shipps for time at kicker