Where will Jabari Johnson line up?

[23jumpboy]

He took Hatchers spot later in the season and had a great hit against UofL. Where does he fit in at, down lineman or standup de/outside linebacker?

 

[anon_7tbtqcx308nxh]

Likely stays at OLB. He made a comment last season that 3-4 OLB is the perfect position for him because he doesn't really fit in on the DL or inside LB. I suspect Hatcher aligns as the strong-side OLB and Johnson will compete with Ware for the weak-side OLB.

Agree he came on late last year, and I expect him to be a solid contributor this season.

 

[TBCat]

Best guess is that he stays at the Jack LB and alternates with Hatcher. I'm not 100% on what Stoops was doing with Hatcher/Johnson but to me it looked like Hatcher is the better pass rusher and played more in pass situations and Johnson is the better run defender and played in run situations. We saw more run oriented teams in power sets during the second half of the season. Most people seem to believe that Hatcher was demoted but I feel they were sharing the spot and Johnson played more because he matched up better against the style of the opponent.

I believe Ware will take Bud's Sam backer spot. Not sure right now who will be 2nd team at the spot though.

 

[anon_7tbtqcx308nxh]

Originally posted by TBCat:
Best guess is that he stays at the Jack LB and alternates with Hatcher. I'm not 100% on what Stoops was doing with Hatcher/Johnson but to me it looked like Hatcher is the better pass rusher and played more in pass situations and Johnson is the better run defender and played in run situations. We saw more run oriented teams in power sets during the second half of the season. Most people seem to believe that Hatcher was demoted but I feel they were sharing the spot and Johnson played more because he matched up better against the style of the opponent.

I believe Ware will take Bud's Sam backer spot. Not sure right now who will be 2nd team at the spot though.

Back-ups subbed-in every third series with the exception of Stamps, Bud, and Forrest IIRC (arguably, they didn't have real back-ups). I agree Hatcher is very likely the better pass rusher, but both were usually off the field in obvious passing situations last year (when UK went nickel those guys were the ones replaced by McClain or Randolph). That's a reason I shake my head when people complain about Hatcher's sack totals. A better representation last season of his production should come from TFL while keeping in mind he was only a sophomore, IMO.

 

[mrschwump]

I see him filling in on the strong side until one of the younger guys, Daniel, Dubose, etc, are ready which will probably be mid-season. Johnson has had his career hijacked by injuries. He's now a blowout patch, stick him here or there. Anything Stoops can get from him will be a plus but he's not a long term answer in this his final year.