Post by Lawdog on Jul 15, 2012 15:20:55 GMT -5
Now we flip to defense, and we’re starting at the line; again with the big boys up front. The run stoppers and the pass rushers will be key to back up the young linebacker corps, replacing Danny Trevathan and Winston Guy. The d-line is packed with returning starters that should make this the strong point of the defense.
12. Kentucky: The Wildcats won’t be hurting in the experience department. They just don’t have a lot of proven depth. The junior tackle tandem of Mister Cobble and Donte Rumph gives Kentucky more than 600 pounds of muscle in the middle. Senior end Collins Ukwu was slowed during the spring, but has all the tools to be a big-time pass-rusher in this league.
The defensive line is as dynamic as they are experienced, and the four big men should complement each other well. The defensive ends have the “SEC speed” factor that Joker Phillips has focused his team on improving, while the tackles have the girth to plug running lanes up the middle.
Collins Ukwu has top-notch speed off the end and will continue to be a great pass rusher now that he is recovered from his knee injury that forced him to miss four games last season. Even in nine games as a junior, he logged more tackles and more sacks than he did in his 13 games as a sophomore. Taylor Wyndham seems to step up in big moments, exactly at the right time – We’ll never forget the Tebow concussion. Expect more big-time plays from Wyndham this year.
Donte Rumph and Mister Cobble at tackle combine for 630 pounds, to be exact, and will be called upon to penetrate the backfield and stop the run. Both have been improving their quickness and footwork on the offseason, to break away from those future-NFL pro offensive linemen in the SEC. Rumph and Cobble each recorded three tackles for loss in 2011, so there is lots of room for improvement.
With Ukwu and Wyndham on the ends, and Rumph and Cobble on the inside, the speed and size is there to have a successful defensive front to compete in the SEC. The experience that these guys have will be invaluable for allowing the rest of the defense to catch up, namely the young linebackers.
12. Kentucky: The Wildcats won’t be hurting in the experience department. They just don’t have a lot of proven depth. The junior tackle tandem of Mister Cobble and Donte Rumph gives Kentucky more than 600 pounds of muscle in the middle. Senior end Collins Ukwu was slowed during the spring, but has all the tools to be a big-time pass-rusher in this league.
The defensive line is as dynamic as they are experienced, and the four big men should complement each other well. The defensive ends have the “SEC speed” factor that Joker Phillips has focused his team on improving, while the tackles have the girth to plug running lanes up the middle.
Collins Ukwu has top-notch speed off the end and will continue to be a great pass rusher now that he is recovered from his knee injury that forced him to miss four games last season. Even in nine games as a junior, he logged more tackles and more sacks than he did in his 13 games as a sophomore. Taylor Wyndham seems to step up in big moments, exactly at the right time – We’ll never forget the Tebow concussion. Expect more big-time plays from Wyndham this year.
Donte Rumph and Mister Cobble at tackle combine for 630 pounds, to be exact, and will be called upon to penetrate the backfield and stop the run. Both have been improving their quickness and footwork on the offseason, to break away from those future-NFL pro offensive linemen in the SEC. Rumph and Cobble each recorded three tackles for loss in 2011, so there is lots of room for improvement.
With Ukwu and Wyndham on the ends, and Rumph and Cobble on the inside, the speed and size is there to have a successful defensive front to compete in the SEC. The experience that these guys have will be invaluable for allowing the rest of the defense to catch up, namely the young linebackers.