Best Replacement in 2010

[ESPY]

A couple days ago, someone posted a poll focused on who would be the hardest to replace (Dillard, Asante, etc). So, let's focus on the other side of that discussion - the guys who will be filling the shoes of exiting '09 seniors.

PJ Smith is my pick. He's set to replace Asante at strong safety, and based on what we saw from him as a redshirt frosh, I think the Pelini bros have another gem who will only add to the dynamic secondary already in place. He may not hit as hard as Asante (yet), but he's an athletic ballhawk with size and speed. Even better, he's already shown signs of noted improvement in Pelini's system.

Keep in mind that there is still the possibility of Thenarse coming back next season. If he gets to return I am going to be even more excited about the defense! Another player that redshirted this year is Dijon Washington. He was a monster safety coming out of high school!

Any updates from either Pelini about this kid's progress as a redshirt? I know we've heard things about Ankrah and Randle on the D-line, but what about this guy?

 

[NHuskers]

Eric Martin will be on sportscenters top 10 hits of the year after the year is over. He is a total beast with a hunger and passion i just love.

I decided to go a little different wat then most and say Baker. He wont replace Suh, no one can do that, but i think with him and crick getting some reps together they will be very good.

agreed.....also, your sig is sick. GO VIKES! GBR!

 

[huskernation20]

A couple days ago, someone posted a poll focused on who would be the hardest to replace (Dillard, Asante, etc). So, let's focus on the other side of that discussion - the guys who will be filling the shoes of exiting '09 seniors.

PJ Smith is my pick. He's set to replace Asante at strong safety, and based on what we saw from him as a redshirt frosh, I think the Pelini bros have another gem who will only add to the dynamic secondary already in place. He may not hit as hard as Asante (yet), but he's an athletic ballhawk with size and speed. Even better, he's already shown signs of noted improvement in Pelini's system.

Keep in mind that there is still the possibility of Thenarse coming back next season. If he gets to return I am going to be even more excited about the defense! Another player that redshirted this year is Dijon Washington. He was a monster safety coming out of high school!

Any updates from either Pelini about this kid's progress as a redshirt? I know we've heard things about Ankrah and Randle on the D-line, but what about this guy?

I'm not 100% percent on this but I think I remember reading somewhere that Carl Pelini said Thenarse would be back for sure. I hope that is true, but don't hold me to that.

 

[ESPY]

A couple days ago, someone posted a poll focused on who would be the hardest to replace (Dillard, Asante, etc). So, let's focus on the other side of that discussion - the guys who will be filling the shoes of exiting '09 seniors.

PJ Smith is my pick. He's set to replace Asante at strong safety, and based on what we saw from him as a redshirt frosh, I think the Pelini bros have another gem who will only add to the dynamic secondary already in place. He may not hit as hard as Asante (yet), but he's an athletic ballhawk with size and speed. Even better, he's already shown signs of noted improvement in Pelini's system.

Keep in mind that there is still the possibility of Thenarse coming back next season. If he gets to return I am going to be even more excited about the defense! Another player that redshirted this year is Dijon Washington. He was a monster safety coming out of high school!

Any updates from either Pelini about this kid's progress as a redshirt? I know we've heard things about Ankrah and Randle on the D-line, but what about this guy?

I'm not 100% percent on this but I think I remember reading somewhere that Carl Pelini said Thenarse would be back for sure. I hope that is true, but don't hold me to that.

My bad. I was asking about Dijon Washington's progress. I've also heard Thenarse will be healthy and in playing shape come fall 2010.

 

[HuskerGBR]

A couple days ago, someone posted a poll focused on who would be the hardest to replace (Dillard, Asante, etc). So, let's focus on the other side of that discussion - the guys who will be filling the shoes of exiting '09 seniors.

PJ Smith is my pick. He's set to replace Asante at strong safety, and based on what we saw from him as a redshirt frosh, I think the Pelini bros have another gem who will only add to the dynamic secondary already in place. He may not hit as hard as Asante (yet), but he's an athletic ballhawk with size and speed. Even better, he's already shown signs of noted improvement in Pelini's system.

Keep in mind that there is still the possibility of Thenarse coming back next season. If he gets to return I am going to be even more excited about the defense! Another player that redshirted this year is Dijon Washington. He was a monster safety coming out of high school!

Any updates from either Pelini about this kid's progress as a redshirt? I know we've heard things about Ankrah and Randle on the D-line, but what about this guy?

I'm not 100% percent on this but I think I remember reading somewhere that Carl Pelini said Thenarse would be back for sure. I hope that is true, but don't hold me to that.

My bad. I was asking about Dijon Washington's progress. I've also heard Thenarse will be healthy and in playing shape come fall 2010.

Hmm...I was at the Big Red breakfast when Carl spoke before the Texas game and I think all I heard was a quick mention of Washington. I think he mentioned Smith and Cassidy first. He also mentioned Hagg might be in the mix for the safety spot. My mind is really fuzzy so he might have mentioned more about Washington...not sure. Other then that I haven't heard much on Washington, but Carl did say the secondary is stacked for years to come. I bet Washington will make a strong push for a spot IMO.

 

[Drowning_in_the_Sea_of_Red]

What? No Cody Green for Zac Lee?

I'm shocked. SHOCKED!

Sorry. Caputo for Hickman was my choice, but I was beaten to it.

 

[chamrocck]

I think we'll see a lot of guys emerge next year, as Bo gets his program kicked into high gear. The best new starter at the beginning of the season will probably be P.J. Smith. He played the most this year and looked at least as good as the departed seniors. However, by the end of the year we'll be talking about Eric Martin. He'll be the WLB, but I think by the end of the year he'll be the nickle and dime backer as well. He has the look of a big-time playmaker.

Lots of good posts here. I picked RunTheBall's post above as one I agree a lot with. P.J. Smith and then Eric Martin by the end of the year. These two guys have playmakers written all over them. Also want to see what Ankrah can give us. O Line has to step up big...Caputo, Qvale, and Yoshi can help. Guys I expect significant progress from on offense...Cody Green, Brandon Kinnie, Kyler Reed.

 

[ESPY]

Here's a 12/28/2009 article about EMart from Mitch Sherman of the OWH.

My link

Apparently he just needs to grow up & get that maturity level to match his ability and fire out on the field. I couldn't find the article, but I also remember reading Carl thinks this cat will be the heart of the D in the near future. Not sure if someone's already made this comparison, but EMart seems like a bonafide replica of Carlos Polk, and we all know what Polk accomplished. The future looks bright indeed.

 

[blackshirts5115]

im gonna have to say Ankrah for Turner. i feel like Ankrah starts over Meredith. i think Dillard is a much bigger loss than people think, and maybe E-Mart can fill the void in the future, but i don't see it next year. PJ Smith is another one but i feel like he's getting the "Sean Fisher" hype from last off season

 

[robsker]

im gonna have to say Ankrah for Turner. i feel like Ankrah starts over Meredith. i think Dillard is a much bigger loss than people think, and maybe E-Mart can fill the void in the future, but i don't see it next year. PJ Smith is another one but i feel like he's getting the "Sean Fisher" hype from last off season

Why would Ankrah start over Meredith? Meredith played very, very well in limited action --- arguably at level near or equal to Turner --- and, statistically speaking in terms of tackles per snap, he performed better than did Turner. Ankrah has not played a D1 snap. On what basis would one predict Ankrah wins out over Meredith?

 

[ESPY]

im gonna have to say Ankrah for Turner. i feel like Ankrah starts over Meredith. i think Dillard is a much bigger loss than people think, and maybe E-Mart can fill the void in the future, but i don't see it next year. PJ Smith is another one but i feel like he's getting the "Sean Fisher" hype from last off season

What exactly do you mean by the "Sean Fisher" hype? For all intensive purposes, PJ Smith has already proven his worth as a strong safety. Both Fisher & Smith were redshirt frosh in '09, and Smith was far more impressive. Sure, he didn't have the same hype as Fisher coming into the season, but it's pretty clear Smith competed & made an impression that should bolster him to 1st team.

 

[RedDenver]

im gonna have to say Ankrah for Turner. i feel like Ankrah starts over Meredith. i think Dillard is a much bigger loss than people think, and maybe E-Mart can fill the void in the future, but i don't see it next year. PJ Smith is another one but i feel like he's getting the "Sean Fisher" hype from last off season

Is the "Sean Fisher" hype anything like saying "i feel like Ankrah starts over Meredith"?

 

[Alex 4.0]

Ankrah is my was my first thought. Keep in mind, Meredith has been thought of as a candidate to move to the interior. I remember hearing that he was playing around 260 before the bowl and has some room to grow. This gives us a great opportunity to get more talent on the field. (Cam, Crick, Allen, Stein - unless he moves to OL - Ankrah... maybe Owa!)

IIRC Josh Williams was injured for the majority of the season, otherwise he would have seen some playing time. Indeed our D-line is going to be nasty for a few years running.

 

[huskerguy]

Ankrah is my was my first thought. Keep in mind, Meredith has been thought of as a candidate to move to the interior. I remember hearing that he was playing around 260 before the bowl and has some room to grow. This gives us a great opportunity to get more talent on the field. (Cam, Crick, Allen, Stein - unless he moves to OL - Ankrah... maybe Owa!)

IIRC Josh Williams was injured for the majority of the season, otherwise he would have seen some playing time. Indeed our D-line is going to be nasty for a few years running.

There were a couple of times this year where Larry Asante got banged up and PJ Smith came in with little to no drop off. PJ will be a different type of safety and not quite the head hunter like Asante was, which I believe is good and bad. I think PJ will look more like a Josh Bullocks at Safety.

Also with Ankrah just remember by the end of last season he was getting reps in practice with the #1 defense. He was definitely brought in to play right away but couldn't get the playbook down at the start of the season so they red shirted him. I believe about mid season he finally got it but the coaches weren't gonna burn a full year for a few games.

We'll see but theres no reason to really down grade these guys on their "hype" we do it every year, we're just being fans...

 

[RedDenver]

Ankrah is my was my first thought. Keep in mind, Meredith has been thought of as a candidate to move to the interior. I remember hearing that he was playing around 260 before the bowl and has some room to grow. This gives us a great opportunity to get more talent on the field. (Cam, Crick, Allen, Stein - unless he moves to OL - Ankrah... maybe Owa!)

IIRC Josh Williams was injured for the majority of the season, otherwise he would have seen some playing time. Indeed our D-line is going to be nasty for a few years running.

There were a couple of times this year where Larry Asante got banged up and PJ Smith came in with little to no drop off. PJ will be a different type of safety and not quite the head hunter like Asante was, which I believe is good and bad. I think PJ will look more like a Josh Bullocks at Safety.

Also with Ankrah just remember by the end of last season he was getting reps in practice with the #1 defense. He was definitely brought in to play right away but couldn't get the playbook down at the start of the season so they red shirted him. I believe about mid season he finally got it but the coaches weren't gonna burn a full year for a few games.

We'll see but theres no reason to really down grade these guys on their "hype" we do it every year, we're just being fans...

I think Ankrah also got dinged up in fall camp which set him back.