2012 SMU Mustangs

[Leonardfan]

Here is the preview for the 2012 SMU Mustangs. They are projected to have 9 white starters. Southern Methodist has started 8, 8, 11, 10, 10,10 and 10 Whites since '05.

Oddly enough SMU has 25 WR's listed on the website on the team roster. A few WR's to keep an eye on are Indiana Player of the Year Gehrig Dieter, Va Tech transfer Austin Fuller and Dartmouth Transfer Steve McCormack. On the D-Line some key reserve players are DE's Zach Wood and Beau Barnes and DT Aaron Davis. Some back-up LB's to keep an eye on are Lincoln Schick, Jordan Miller and John Bordano. At CB John Tavarez and Blake Poston could get some playing time. Poston was an All-State CB. Brett Hannes and Cody Worthen are two safeties on the depth chart that could get playing time.


Offense:
QB - Garrett Gilbert - Texas transfer
RB - Zach Line
C - Taylor Lasecki
RG - Jordan Free
LG - Blake McJunkin
RT - Taylor Reich
LT - Ben Gottschalk

Defense:
DE - Margus Hunt - world class athlete - should be a first round pick
LB - Cameron Rodgers

 

[dwid]

With the lack of White receivers hopefully they are planning on using more of the run in the run and shoot. You usually need at least one White guy to run 4 wide sets very effectively 2 makes it even better, which is why Leach always had at least one White receiver. June Jones has shown adaptability with Line running more traditional running plays, sometimes out of the pistol, closer to the i or singleback runs. Before it was mostly stuff like draws. Now he gets more traditional plays although of course they are still heavy on the draws being a passing offense. Sometimes they use him a little different, like modified pistol with him closer to 2 yards behind the qb instead of 3.

Like I said in other posts, Line needs to learn when to use his power in the open field a little better. Sometimes he thinks he is Barry Sanders, and he does have incredible agility for someone his size, I haven't seen many 220+ pound backs that light on their feet and he weighs 230. If he can combine that agility with his power then there will be a 2k season and could be the best back in the draft. If you look at someone like Richardson who is supposed to be fast, got most of his big runs by being physical, even though he is supposed to be fast, he was stiff arming guys to pick up extra yardage. Line is doing it all on quickness so no comparisons to someone like Ron Dayne who just ran through gaping holes in college and you can see that Line still has the power on goal line situations and short yardage, something not seen with Dayne, he just needs to use that power more in the open field. Its ironic because most White backs regardless of ability are coached to be downhill guys, one cut and thats it and we have a 230 pound guy that was a downhill goal line back that was coached to make people miss.

Its not that bad but if he balances it out then it would be that much harder for the msm to ignore him. Basically I am just nitpicking at minor flaws that guys like Line and Burkhead have, without changing they are still elite, but changing a few things would make them even that much better. Besides the countless other problems White backs face, they also don't get the coaching that many black backs get. Ray Rice was given many tips by Marshall Faulk. It would be nice if our guys could get tips like that. I mean they have their position coaches but sometimes those guys aren't the greatest. Running is mostly natural but there are minor things you can do to become better, always room for improvement.

Hopefully we see at least 1500 yards, and Gilbert lights it up. Winning would get Line more exposure. Gilbert looked fine in the national championship as a freshman (of course a few freshman mistakes), but he also had a White guy to go to, Shipley. So hopefully one of these guys gets to play. Someone to fill the shoes of Cole Beasley.

Even though they aren't majority White I wil be paying close attention to this team because of Line, the same with LA Tech with Hunter Lee.

 

[white defensive back]

Here is the preview for the 2012 SMU Mustangs. They are projected to have 9 white starters. Southern Methodist has started 8, 8, 11, 10, 10,10 and 10 Whites since '05.

Oddly enough SMU has 25 WR's listed on the website on the team roster. A few WR's to keep an eye on are Indiana Player of the Year Gehrig Dieter, Va Tech transfer Austin Fuller and Dartmouth Transfer Steve McCormack. On the D-Line some key reserve players are DE's Zach Wood and Beau Barnes and DT Aaron Davis. Some back-up LB's to keep an eye on are Lincoln Schick, Jordan Miller and John Bordano. At CB John Tavarez and Blake Poston could get some playing time. Poston was an All-State CB. Brett Hannes and Cody Worthen are two safeties on the depth chart that could get playing time.


Offense:
QB - Garrett Gilbert - Texas transfer
RB - Zach Line
C - Taylor Lasecki
RG - Jordan Free
LG - Blake McJunkin
RT - Taylor Reich
LT - Ben Gottschalk

Defense:
DE - Margus Hunt - world class athlete - should be a first round pick
LB - Cameron Rodgers

Excellent job Leonardfan. I did not know about Blake Poston at all. He had 9 interceptions in his last 5 games in high school when they moved him to corner from safety. He runs a 4.5 forty and supposedly has a 40 inch vertical. I still am high on corner Mike Sparling from California but he may not pan out.

 

[Riddlewire]

Honestly, nothing I add could possibly be better than the report itself. So here it is:

According to a report by CBS 11, three SMU football players, including two projected starters, were targets of theft.
...
One player identified as linebacker Uchenna Nwabuike told police that he believed an escort was responsible for stealing the items. Nwabuike explained to authorities that he had ‘made a deal with the suspect to have sex with her for $50’ but later admitted that ‘he did not pay the suspect for the acts that she performed.’

What a fine Methodist this young man is...

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Gehrig Dieter

true freshman wideout Gehrig Dieter isn't getting a lot of balls thrown his way (10 receptions in 6 game appearances), but he makes those opportunities count. he has been the top man for yards-per-catch for the Mustangs all year. he is currently averaging 16.8 yards-per and has 1 touchdown on the season. meanwhile the top two "playmakers" at wideout are averaging a mere 10.1 and 10.5 yards-per-catch, respectively, and both only have 3 touchdown catches.

perhaps SMU will start giving Dieter more playing time before their season is a complete loss ...

here's a good article from a couple of weeks ago that shows how hungry he is: http://articles.southbendtribune.co...ehrig-dieter-national-record-college-football

College football: Transition seamless for Dieter
September 27, 2012|By BOB WIENEKE

Five minutes passed. Then 10. Eventually 15.

Southern Methodist head football coach June Jones had concluded an early-morning practice and conducted a telephone interview before he was set to hand the phone off to former Washington High School star and current Mustang freshman wide receiver Gehrig Dieter.

Problem was Dieter wasn’t ready to stop doing drills.

On this day, post-practice work involved drills designed to help him run with the ball. Some days it’s catching passes from a machine. Others it’s working on releasing from the line of scrimmage.

That hard-working, doesn’t-say-a-lot kid who set records at Washington is now a hard-working, doesn’t-say-a-lot kid at SMU, one who pushed his way into the receiver rotation as a true freshman.

“Every time we were in a scrimmage or every time when we got live, he just made plays,â€￾ Jones said. “That’s a knack that some of the great ones have — they make plays when the game starts. Other guys disappear when the game starts. He’s one of those guys that shows up.â€￾

Dieter’s numbers are showing up quite well on SMU’s stat sheet. Through three games — the Mustangs are 1-2 and host No. 15 TCU Saturday night in the Battle for the Iron Skillet — Dieter has caught seven passes for 134 yards and a touchdown. Those numbers rank him:


- Second on the team in receiving yards.
- Second in Conference USA in yards per reception (19.1).
- Twenty-sixth nationally in yards per reception.

“I’m feeling more comfortable every week. That’s the main thing, just trying to feel comfortable with the offense,â€￾ the 6-foot-3, 215-pound Dieter said.

“Really after that, I can play the game that I’m used to playing, just feeling comfortable and going out and having fun without thinking. Every single week I think I’m getting better with the plays and better with every read.â€￾

Dieter credited the relatively smooth adjustment with the advice he’s sought from his fellow receivers as well as the quarterbacks, particularly starter Garrett Gilbert. Gilbert is a Texas transfer who was thrust into the national spotlight as a true freshman in the 2010 national championship game. He replaced the injured Colt McCoy and played well in the Texas loss.

“The first time I actually talked to him I asked him about how the national championship was,â€￾ Dieter said. “He told me he was a little bit nervous. He told me he got thrown into a game, so all the nerves just went out, and after the first couple of snaps, it just turned into football.â€￾

Which is kind of how Dieter has adapted.

“He’s played in every game we’ve had so far, and he’s done a good job,â€￾ said Jones, who believes Dieter could eventually evolve into an H-back who can block and run routes. “I don’t know how many catches he has but he’s done what he did in high school — he catches the ball. He looks like a gamer. He’s not the vertical speed guy, but he has some skills that he catches the ball, and the game’s not too big for him.â€￾

Dieter is used to coming up big. Last season at Washington he set the national record for receiving yards in a game with 437, and he also established a number of state records. Dieter and Washington also played in the Class 4-A state championship game.

“It doesn’t feel like it was a long time ago. Being in college for almost a whole year now, it’s just a lot different,â€￾ said Dieter, who enrolled for the spring semester and participated in spring practice with the Mustangs. “I try to leave the high school memories behind and just try to start new ones.â€￾

 

[white defensive back]

SMU has a redshirt freshman running back named Luke Seeker. He is 5'11" 200 lbs. out of Texas. He was strictly a rb in high school but was recruited as a wr. This is not saying much but he does have 10 carries in only 2 games for almost a 6 yard average. Maybe he will be the heir apparent when Line goes pro next year. He does have the second most carries of any SMU running back this year.