We have ten days till the season opened against New Mexico. Unfortunately, a lot of the questions that we had when we started two-a-days have not been answered. At the start of camp everyone wanted to know how Lucas Patterson would progress at LT, who would apply pressure opposite Von Miller, and who was going to step up in our secondary?

 

Witht he move of Patterson back to defense, we can call that experiment a failure. The sad fact of the matter is that Patterson is now more needed on the DL than he was on the OL because Adren Dorsey and  have Rod Davis have not stepped up and become adequate backups to the "Two Eddies." I have a feeling that Davis may step up when it is gametime. He may simply not be a practice player. When Spencer Nealy gets back to 100 percent he will really help on the DL. I have no idea what is going on with Dorsey. 

Evidently Danny Baker has played well enough at LT to satisfy Sherman to some extent. I foresee Hutson Prioleau getting a lot of playing time in Big 12 play when we will need him to help Baker block the opponents best pass rusher. I think if Baker weas really the answer, he would have shown that he was the top choice at LT earlier in camp. I get the feeling we are just settling at the position. I guess an optimist would point out that Sherman would not have made this move if Rhontae Scales and Steve Berrerra had not shown they were capable backups at the tackle position. We will have to see how it all works out but right now I am not sold on our LT spot.

We are still trying to figure out who will start at LB for us. Kyle Mangan seems to have the middle locked down. Garrick Williams seems to have solidified his hold on one OLB spot although Jonathan Stewart is nipping at his heels. Ricky Cavanaugh and true freshman Sean Porter are fighting it out for the other OLB spot. Right now I feel confident in stating that Mangan will start in the middle against UNM, and that is it.   

Sherman keeps mentioning in interviews that we need to find someone to apply pressure from the opposite side of Von Miller. I think Matt Moss will do a workman like job and should get somewhere between 2-5 sacks this year from his DE spot. If Spencer Nealy is healthy I think he will give us a pass rush also from the inside and outside. I think Nealy will soon be a fan favorite because of his high motor. I think we should expect something like 1-3 sacks from Nealy, depending on how often he plays. He has the talent to be a difference maker this year, he just needs to stay healthy and learn the system.

The secondary is clear as mud. Coryell Judie not gaining admittance until this week threw everything out of whack. Justin McQueen has been starting at one CB. I think McQueen may eventually be a good nickel back but I do not think he is a legit Big 12 corner. Terrence Frederick is starting at the other CB spot and has had one of the best camps of anyone. Dustin Harris was making a serious play for a starting spot opposite Frederick until a hit from Steve Campbell caused him to miss a few practices. Judie will have to pick up the defense extremely fast in order to be ready for New Mexico. Right now I expect McQueen and Frederick to start at CB, with Hunter and Pugh starting at safety. Harris, Judie, and Steven Terrell should back up at CB and play in the nickel. I expect one of those three (;ikely Judie) to be starting by Arkansas in place of McQueen. 

Basically, we are in the same situation we were at the beginning of August. We still are wondering if the freshmen will step up and fill the holes on this team. It appears to me that we will not have an answer to those questions until conference play begins. Hopefully, a positive solution can be found at every position. The most concerning spot to me is LT. We cannot afford to have Johnson receive the kind of pressure he got last year. Hopefully an imporved interior OL will result in an improve running game and more play action to keep defenses honest.