The writers of Go Joe Bruin came together to project a partial depth chart for the UCLA Football team as they exit spring practice and head into the 2017 season.
The UCLA Football team is going to look completely different in 2017. Not only do they lose several players to the NFL and graduation, but now they have to reload and reshape.
With that, Go Joe Bruin has come together to project a possible 2-deep depth chart as the Bruins transition from spring to the 2017 season.
Spring practice is over which gave us a glimpse of what to expect heading into next season. Along with the actual lineups from spring, analyzing the quality of the freshmen coming in and the overall perception of individual progress, we have laid out what we believe to be the depth chart. Enjoy.
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Offensive Line
OT: Kenny Lacy, Brandon Burton
OG: Najee Toran, Michael Alves
C: Scott Quessenberry, Kanan Ray
OG: Andre James, Josh Wariboko-Alali
OT: Kolton Miller, Alex Akingbulu
We have a feeling that the offensive line depth chart is not going to be set in stone until the first game of the season. And even then it should change.
There are several Bruins that OL coach Hank Fraley has to work with, but he is looking for the guys that can get the job done right now. So far, this is how we see the depth at offensive line playing out.
Having Miller back is going to be important. Him and Quessenberry are going to be the two returning starters from last season. They’re going to have to help bring the rest of the line up to speed as soon as possible so they can play more cohesively next season.
The Bruins also have three freshman coming in the fall, which will really help with depth and skill. We see Ray as one that could get some consideration early.
Receivers and Tight Ends
WR: Darren Andrews, Stephen Johnson III
WR: Eldridge Massington, Theo Howard
WR: Jordan Lesley, Alex Van Dyke
TE: Caleb Wilson, Austin Roberts
This is another group that is a work in progress with the offense. The Bruin coaches have been taking their time to analyze each player and how they fit in the scheme. There were not a lot of highlights in spring, but there was progress with the receivers.
What excites us is how the tight end position is going to be readily used in Jedd Fisch’s new offense, especially Devon Asiasi. Unfortunately he has to sit out a year due to transfer rules, though Wilson and Roberts are also making this look fun.
Running Backs and Quarterbacks
RB: Bolu Olorunfunmi, Soso Jamabo
FB: Jalen Starks
QB: Josh Rosen, Devon Monster/Matt Lynch
You read that right. We think that Olorunfunmi will be the top running back with the Bruins. During spring he showed a lot of progress and he doesn’t look like he’s slowing down.
That doesn’t mean that we don’t think Jamabo will not be productive, on the contrary we think he might be better suited at receiver, but either way he is going to be a huge weapon for UCLA next season.
Full back is another position that seems will be heavily used with Fisch. Starks is currently the only fullback, though the plan for the Bruin coaches is to add more players at this position and occasionally slide Starks over to running back. That would give the Bruins another bulldozer to handle the ball.
As for the quarterback spot, it’s pretty obvious that Rosen remains the starter. The interesting storyline going into fall will be “who is going to be the #2?” Neither Modster nor Lynch pulled away from the other spring but both did show improvement. Hey, we would rather have three reliable quarterbacks then one with no back up, so we do not mind a longer QB battle.
Defensive Line
DE: Keisean Lucier-South, Jealan Phillips
DT: Boss Tagaloa, Nick Terry
DT: Matt Dickerson, Greg Rogers
DE: Jacob tuioti-Mariner, Rick Wade
Now this is going to be a very exciting position group to watch. Angus McClure has done a fantastic job recruiting and developing his guys. Despite the fact that they lost Eili Ankou, Eddie Vanderdoes and Takkarist McKinley, the Bruins have a lot of guys waiting their turn to be the next big DL-man.
Yes, there is a lot of youth, but there is a good amount of talent. From the guys that have been developing like JTM, Wade and Dickerson to freshman like Phillips and Tagaloa, this a very exciting group that we cannot wait to watch in the fall.
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Linebackers
OLB: Josh Woods, Breland Brandt
MLB: Kenny Young, Lokeni Toailoa
OLB: DeChaun Holiday, Krys Barnes
It’s a bit worrisome when you have a lot of players in a certain position group leave, but when a team is able to recruit and develop, that calms the shakes.
In a base defense, we might see three linebackers on the field with Young leading the group. He’s been developing nicely and will hopefully have a breakout season in 2017.
There are a lot of young guys in the linebacking crew but they are all very talented. It will be interesting to see who actually becomes a starter as there are going to be heavy competition between all of the players in this position group.
Defensive Backs
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CB: Denzel Fisher, Darnay Holmes
NB: Darnay Holmes
S: Jaleel Wadood, Will Lockett
S: Adarius Pickett, Octavius Spencer
CB: Nate Meadors, Colin Samuel
The defensive backs have always been good for the Bruins under Jim Mora and next season will be no different. Once again, the Bruins lose key players from last year, but they have done so well recruiting and coaching up these players that the talent pool here is vast.
Wadood is going to be the big man in this position group. He has been incredible since his freshman year and now he has experience to go with it. That’s going to help get the younger guys up to speed.
Meadors is another that we are excited about and should be a shut down corner for the secondary. The big surprise is early enrollee freshman Darnay Holmes who is as good as advertised during the spring and could find time at a few positions.
Special Teams
K: JJ Molson, Andrew Straunch
P: Austin Kent
LS: Johnny Den Bleyker, Koby Walsh
Special teams will have a similar situation to last year, except Molson, Kent and Den Bleyker are no longer freshmen. They will have competition for the starting positions, but should be able to maintain their hold on the starting spot, pending injury or setback in development.
Next: UCLA Football Spring Practice: An Offensive Review
Do you have a different take? Comment below or tweet at us @GoJoeBruinUCLA.