The number of returning srarters?
- Thread starter KYCAT78
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I checked the 2 deep I have and it looks like you could say either 6 or 7 starters return on offense. The seven if you think as I do that Boom Williams was the starting RB at the end of the season. UK is also returning two WR off the injured list that very well could have been starters last year if not for their injuries. The real good news is that most of the back ups return.
It is difficult to determine just who was starters on the defense since they are multiple and use packages for the different defenses. I am going to go with that they return 7 on defense losing both DEs, A DT and a SS. Further good news is that they return almost all of the backups and have a lot of redshirt Freshmen added to the defense.
I actually think the Cats will be stronger at most of the position where they lost players to graduation. The lone exception being at the DE positions on defense and maybe OLT on offense. I do not see TE and the WR positions being any weaker and likely will be stronger.
Losing Dupree and Smith on defense hurts but the Cats seem to have replacements and I do not see the loss of the starting DT and SS as being great losses.
It is difficult to determine just who was starters on the defense since they are multiple and use packages for the different defenses. I am going to go with that they return 7 on defense losing both DEs, A DT and a SS. Further good news is that they return almost all of the backups and have a lot of redshirt Freshmen added to the defense.
I actually think the Cats will be stronger at most of the position where they lost players to graduation. The lone exception being at the DE positions on defense and maybe OLT on offense. I do not see TE and the WR positions being any weaker and likely will be stronger.
Losing Dupree and Smith on defense hurts but the Cats seem to have replacements and I do not see the loss of the starting DT and SS as being great losses.
Is that accurate? If so I think that would be a rarity in history and shocking two teams in the same division would accomplish that in the same season.
absolutely. I look for Auburn to roll in that opening game. Gus Malzhon with an offseason to prepare against Todd Grantham is such a mismatch as to be a joke. Plus on offense UL still has no idea if they have even 1 QB to depend on, and whoever they chose ain't gonna have the luxury of chucking it up in the air and letting Devonte Parker save them.
FWIW, when discussing returning "starters" I find it more useful to discuss returning "starts" rather than starters. Starters change during the year due to injuries, development or regression and sometime due to opponent. But you start 11 guys 12 times a year on each side of the line. That's 132 "starts" on each side of the line; how many of those 132 are returning? This approach "accounts" for a guy who may have received only 2 or 3 starts in a season.
Naturally, not all positions are created equal. It is probably better to return your QB than your LG. Phil Steele always offers an interesting "Experience Chart" that is probably as deep of an overall returnees" evaluation as anyone. FWIW, for 2014, Steele had UK as 6th most experienced team in the SEC and 56th overall.
Peace
Naturally, not all positions are created equal. It is probably better to return your QB than your LG. Phil Steele always offers an interesting "Experience Chart" that is probably as deep of an overall returnees" evaluation as anyone. FWIW, for 2014, Steele had UK as 6th most experienced team in the SEC and 56th overall.
Peace
UL lost 24 of the top 44 players and only return 9 total players of the starting 22....that was just last year....the full roster has turned over the past 2 years....and the depth is not quality....they will be PRAYING the Jail transfers work out...if not its gonna be a long season...but hey bobby has 7 QB's on the roster so they are good!!
A pretty good way to evaluate Wildcard. A flaw I see however is there is no provision in the evaluation on why a player might have had a few starts. Was it because he beat out the starter or was he just starting because the better player was injured or some other reason like say a suspension of the starter. If he beat out the starter than I would give him starter status but if he was only starting because of an injury to a better player, a suspension, or some other reason other than beating out the starter. I would not place too much value in that type start.
Another thing is with teams like UK that play multiple front defenses and have different packages with different players just who do you class as the starter. The same could be said of offenses that have a lot of 4 and 5 wide formations and also sometimes line up with a FB or a HBack. Who is the starters?
IMO teams have evolved to where it is hard to name just 22 starters.
Well, it is certainly not a perfect measure but it dispenses with the argument of "who is a starter or "how many games must you start" to be called the "starter". Realistically, teams usually don't get better when a "starter" goes down (or does not return) but they don't necessarily get worse.
We are not really talking about "who is best" but rather who is best available or best right now. You have to assume that the guy that steps in for an injured "starter" is the next best player at that position. Maybe he was not the better of the 2 in head to head competition but he was good enough to get the call when the first guy went down. And sometimes that injury to the "starter" is what puts a more talented but less experienced player on the field.
If you lose a "starter" in game 3 and another guy comes in and plays the next 9 games, who was the de facto "starter"? Somebody gets the opportunity to play and develop while someone else is going through rehab. If both guys return the following year you get back all 12 starts and if only 1 returns you get back either 3 or 9. And, yes, you could be better off with the guy who only had 3 starts the previous year IF he is really that much better than the guy who is gone.
Peace
i agree with you. what i like about our returning starters is that all their backups are still here as well. i dont know if steele breaks down the 2 deep returners but i would have to think that outside of ut and vandy, UK would be about tops in the league in returning 2 deep players... well maybe lsu too, they were really young as well.
Yeah I heard they actually had to get rid of starters to make way for more starters at UT, they couldn't stop recruiting. Now if I was Dandy, it would be good news and bad news. Good news they are all back, bad news, they are all back. Only 3 wins.
I hesitate to post this because it is going to sound like some of the UofL fans that I am always giving it to for posting such but here goes. I am not too worried about any starters that UK lost other than Dupree and maybe Smith because I feel that young players are there to fill the void. Heck I even think that some of the starting positions of some of the returning starters very well might be up for grabs. On offense they lost TE Shields or Borden that had kid of alternated as the TE starter, and truthfully IMO neither was of SEC starter quality, at WR Blue and Robinson both were decent but were being pushed by a lot of young WRs and Badet and Montgomery return from a year off because of injury. The lone loss on offense that gives me some worry is the loss of LOT Miller but there seems to be a lot of young talent to fill the void.
On defense they lost DE/LB Dupree, DE Smith, DT/DE Douglas and SS Lowery. I am not worried about replacing any of those with the exception of Dupree and to a lesser degree Smith. IMO UK has 4 or 5 players that can replace Douglas and about the same number of safeties that can replace Lowery. Heck I am not sure that Wilson hadn't already replaced him at the end of the year. I liked Smith as a player but though he was out of position in the 3-4 portion of UKs multiple defense. IMO one of the quick DT tackle types like Cory Johnson or Reggie Meant might be more suited at the position.
UK returns on the two deep that was listed for the UofL game 15 on offense and 16 on defense.
