Here are USU's probable starting 5's dimensions:

LT: 6'3 275 (RS Fr.)
LG: 6'5 318 (Jr.)
OC: 6'4 305 (Sr.) or 6'3 310 (Sr.)
RG: 6'2 299 (Sr.)
RT: 6'9 300 (So.) or 6'4 290 (So.)

Avg: 6'4-1/2" 299-1/2 lbs.

The younger guys are a bit rangier and faster than the guys who've been in our program the last while (when our former coach tried to out-New Mexico New Mexico in its fatboys on parade). No more bellies hanging over da belts of our big guys under Brent Guy. He wants rangy kids who can run a bit rather than behemoths who DLs have to run a long way to get around.

What are your coaching staffs' thoughts/practices on Offensive Linemen? Lean and Mean and Run all Day? or Humongous and can't make a downfield block and lose 15 lbs. of sweat weight each game anyway?

i think techs coach likes tall guys, but he is getting away from the 350+ guys. we had a 6-11 365 pound guy in the mid 90s , chris crudup and we have almost always hada giant lt since then. damiane lavegrne was 6-6 330+, and now we have marcus lindsey at 6-7 386. big snack has to play guard because he isnt quick enough for tackle. kavin bagot is 6-7 342 and we just got alex reyes from san mateo jc in california, 6-4 350. snack is a sr while reyes should redshirt as a jr and bagot is a jr.

but............

i think he is starting to see that maybe we need to be quicker, our most recent signees:

jason lewis 6-4, 309 so
bill jones 6-6, 307 so
cudahay harmon 6-8, 315 fr
dwight alexander 6-5, 300 fr
will taylor 6-6, 292 fr
greg greathouse 6-5 245, fr center
dave accardo 6-5, 316 so
ryan snell 6-5 282, so
ben harris 6-4 281, fr
lon roberts, 6-3 260 fr center

still tall, but not near as heavy.

plus our other vets arent as big as we have had:

jason gooch 6-6 278, jr
ryan considine 6-5 297, jr
tyler miller 6-7, 309 jr

Good sizes, they are not too big but not small neither. Wyoming O-line's av. is around 300lbs. It will be a good game in Laramie.

Size is good, but athleticism is great. Hawaii's old o-line coach Mike Cav, only went after certain type of Lineman. He wanted them to have quick feet, so they can move around when pass protecting. He didn't want those BigTen Lineman that are huge, but pretty slow. Hey it worked, he was able to get a couple of them drafted. Sadly Oregon St lured him away. It's too bad he will be on the losing sidelines on Dec.2

Long arms are also a plus. But their size is good.

How's the "almost" 7 footer? Has he played yet?

Last year's SJSU Spartans O-line wasn't too bad. They gave up very few sacks, and really stepped it up in the running game as the season wore on. The 2006 O-line is expected to be even better, with 4 of 5 starters returning, and the newcomer possibly being the best of the group.

My projected starters:

Center - Justin Paysinger JR 6-1, 290 (returning 2005 starter)
Guard - Marcel Burrough SR 6-6, 352 (returning 2005 starter)
Guard - John Booker JR 6-4, 300 (returning starter)
Tackle - Matt Cantu SR 6-3, 317 (returning starter, possible All-WAC)
Tackle - Bradis McGriff SO 6-5, 327 (transfer from Ariz. St, sat out 2005)

Hopefully the key back-up at the tackle spot will be Ta'ase Jennings JR 6-3, 350, a transfer from San Francisco CC. He dominated at the JC level in 2004 (sat-out 2005).

in the 90's, Nevada had one tackle at 6'11" and the other at 7'0"....both went on to play in the NFL (for a time at least), but wow, did our line dwarf any line that we played. It was funny to play a team like Oregon or Wisconsin and see their lineman next to ours. It wasn't often that they would be dwarfed at all, let along against a team that was I-AA the year before.

When looking for a lineman, I like to see good (quick) feet and a strong upper body. Wrestlers, with their strong trunks make great linemen. Insert tree or elephant joke here.

Quote:in the 90's, Nevada had one tackle at 6'11" and the other at 7'0"....both went on to play in the NFL (for a time at least), but wow, did our line dwarf any line that we played. It was funny to play a team like Oregon or Wisconsin and see their lineman next to ours. It wasn't often that they would be dwarfed at all, let along against a team that was I-AA the year before.

I remember those two tackles!. They looked like two giant sequoias, bookending the Nevada O-line. What a sight.

Mike Rockwood was the name of the seven footer and Thorpe was the other guy's name. I remember being at a UNLV game in Vegas, tailgating in their grassy area, when this big truck drives in. It wasn't a lifted monster truck type, but it was a big dually that was slammed with tinted windows and all that, but it had a "Nevada" sticker on it and as it drove through, people were booing and heckling him and when it stopped, this giant dude steps out (and the whole crowd went quiet. He should have his own theme music.

I've always thought quick and agile was more important than massive weight for an O lineman. Look at the Denver Broncos line - they are not that big (relatively) but are very effective. Obviously the blocking schemes used need to fit your lineman as well.

A lot of coaches apparently don't follow that philosophy though - lineman are getting bigger all the time. Reportedly NMSU has one guy this year pushing 390 - doesn't sound very quick to me - but maybe he can just fall on people...

I wonder if some coaches try to recruit quick - but settle for big if they can't get the quick guys. I assume most of the BCS types are big AND quick.

USU78 Wrote:Here are USU's probable starting 5's dimensions:

LT: 6'3 275 (RS Fr.)
LG: 6'5 318 (Jr.)
OC: 6'4 305 (Sr.) or 6'3 310 (Sr.)
RG: 6'2 299 (Sr.)
RT: 6'9 300 (So.) or 6'4 290 (So.)

Avg: 6'4-1/2" 299-1/2 lbs.

The younger guys are a bit rangier and faster than the guys who've been in our program the last while (when our former coach tried to out-New Mexico New Mexico in its fatboys on parade). No more bellies hanging over da belts of our big guys under Brent Guy. He wants rangy kids who can run a bit rather than behemoths who DLs have to run a long way to get around.

What are your coaching staffs' thoughts/practices on Offensive Linemen? Lean and Mean and Run all Day? or Humongous and can't make a downfield block and lose 15 lbs. of sweat weight each game anyway?

USU78, look at Air Force.

59 Crump, Thomas OG 6-2 275 Sr. Jenks, OK (Jenks)
61 Dohallow, Tyler OG 6-3 295 Sr. Conyers, GA (Salem)
63 Edwards, Pat OG 6-2 265 Sr. Tallahassee, FL (Lincoln)
62 Grantham, Curtis OG 6-2 280 Sr. Aurora, CO (Overland Park)
64 Guenther, Blaine OT 6-2 270 Jr. Graham, WA (Bethel)
73 Holder, Dan OT 6-6 280 Jr. Tampa, FL (Jesuit)
72 Kraay, Robert OT 6-8 295 Sr. Tucker, GA (Tucker)
69 Morris, Caleb OG 6-2 275 Jr. Houston, TX (Klein)
67 Scott, Bob OT 6-3 270 Sr. St. Louis, MO (John Burroughs)
56 Wilson, Jon OL 6-4 300 Sr. Tampa, FL (Hillsbough)
70 Zeman, Ryan OT 6-4 265 Jr. Parker, CO (Ponderosa)

There's only 1 guy on that entire list that is 300 pounds. Everyone else is well under.

My point is this. Air Force loves to run the football. They've had relatively good success with it. I'd love for Utah St to have had the same kind of success with their running game. I believe that Brent Guy is focusing more on the running game more than we've seen in a coach in about 30 years. In order to do this, we've got to have OL who are mobile enough to run the option. See Air Force for a very good example.

Given that our mentality at Utah St is to run first (often with the QB involved in some kind of option) and pass second, I think this is a good direction to be taking.

Wouldn't USU trade for the success that Air Force has had over the last 15-20 years? I know I would. I think we can exceed what Air Force has done in the coming future.

I remember the good old days of NMSU linemen from a few years ago when Barney Cotton was recruiting the players.

I remember guys like Tony Wragge, Steve Subia, Shalimar Jackson, etc. That offensive line was literally perfect. Especially in 2002 NMSU moved the ball on everybody and I hardly remember any sacks or holding penalties at all.

Recruiting went downhill after Barney Cotton left and it showed in the final 2 years of Tony Samuel. The running game that made NMSU successful was not there anymore and the passing ability of Buck Pierce saved us from a total disaster in 2004.

Mumme has some promising recruits and the current players are doing good and NMSU should be up to WAC standards this year if not by next year at the latest.

aggiefansince83 Wrote:I remember the good old days of NMSU linemen from a few years ago when Barney Cotton was recruiting the players.

I remember guys like Tony Wragge, Steve Subia, Shalimar Jackson, etc. That offensive line was literally perfect. Especially in 2002 NMSU moved the ball on everybody and I hardly remember any sacks or holding penalties at all.

Recruiting went downhill after Barney Cotton left and it showed in the final 2 years of Tony Samuel. The running game that made NMSU successful was not there anymore and the passing ability of Buck Pierce saved us from a total disaster in 2004.

Mumme has some promising recruits and the current players are doing good and NMSU should be up to WAC standards this year if not by next year at the latest.

The Aggies did have some beef up front during the option days.

Size definitely helps, but with the current Aggies running the spread, we need a lot more between the ears of linemen than mass.

As I understand it, the schemes are quite challenging.