It's about to get real for the freshmen
It’s go-time for about 10-15 true and redshirt freshmen who will see their first snaps of college football on Saturday against Marshall.
Kickoff: Noon.
They are likely to show up on defense and special teams the most, and how many play will be dictated by the game situation.
When they do play, their playing time will be dictated by how they handle the excitement of the stage.
“Who knows what is going on through 18-year old kids’ heads?,” said Coach Dana Holgorsen. “You have to keep that in the back of your head. You need to be aware of how they are; you got to look at their eyes on the sidelines if they come off. If they’re wide-eyed and looking up in the stands, you have to slap them around a little bit, get their attention and get them focused on what really counts.”
“Redshirt-freshmen are the same way. You talk about redshirt-freshmen guys who haven’t taken a snap; we need to monitor their progress as well. Guys like Cody Clay and Kyle Rose come to mind. Isaiah Bruce is going to start at linebacker, and he has never taken a snap. I don’t think there is a whole lot of difference from a redshirt-freshman and a true freshman, maybe from a maturity standpoint.
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Here is a list of expected starters and true and redshirt freshmen on the depth chart who could see playing time.
True freshmen who will start:
WR Jordan Thompson, 5-7, 174 pounds
FS Karl Joseph, 5-10, 197 pounds
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True freshmen on the depth chart:
BS K.J. Dillon, 6-1, 202 pounds (No. 2 behind Darwin Cook)
NT Christian Brown, 6-3, 300 pounds (No. 2 behind Shaq Rowell)
DE Korey Harris, 6-4, 240 pounds (No. 2 behind Jorge Wright)
FCB Nana Kyrehmeh, 5-10, 176 pounds (No. 3 behind Brodrick Jenkins and Cecil Level)
BCB Ricky Rumph, 5-10, 172 pounds (No. 3 behind Pat Miller and Avery Williams)
Star LB Sean Walters, 6-1, 205, (No. 3 at Star LB behind Terence Garvin and Wes Tonkery)
LSN John DePalma, 6-6, 235 (Listed as an “or” underneath Jerry Cooper)
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Redshirt freshmen expected to start:
SLB: Isaiah Bruce, 61, 225 (Listed No. 2 at Sam behind Doug Rigg, but called a starter by Holgorsen)
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Redshirt freshmen on the depth chart:
IR (Y) Cody Clay, 6-3, 256 (No. 2 behind Tavon Austin)
DT Kyle Rose, 6-4, 276 (No. 3 behind Will Clarke and J.B. Lageman)
WR (X) Dante Campbell, 6-4, 213 (No. 2 behind Jordan Thompson)
WR (Y) K.J. Myers, 6-2, 197 (No. 2 behind Stedman Bailey)
WLB Nick Kwiatkoski, 6-2, 224, (No. 3 at Will behind Jared Barber and Shaq Petteway)
LG Brandon Jackson, 6-3, 328, (No. 2 behind Josh Jenkins)
RG Russell Haughton-James, 6-5, 311 (No. 2 behind Jeff Braun)