Football 2011: A Look Ahead - The Offense

LOOKING AHEAD

9-3 with wins over Ole Miss, UTC and a home playoff game. We all wanted an OVC and a national title, but this was still a season to remember. Here is an early look at next year.

QUARTERBACK

Key losses: None.

Outlook for 2011:

There is no position at JSU with more depth. Marques Ivory had a great season. If he could lose 20 pounds and get a little quicker as a runner, the sky is the limit.

Coty Blanchard, the OVC freshman of the year and former Alabama Mr. Football, will certainly push Ivory for the starting job in 2011. It seemed like as the season wore on, other teams knew what plays JSU was going to run with Coty. He is a gifted runner and passer, hopefully with another year under his belt the Gamecocks can open up the playbook for Blanchard.

Insiders say redshirt freshman Steven Coates is a very talented player as well. Finally, Thomas Darrah will be a senior. He might have the strongest arm of the bunch. While it was only limited duty against Austin Peay, Darrah certainly looked impressive.

RUNNING BACK:

Key losses: Jamal Young. Jamal Young was a tremendous player for the Gamecocks. His pass catching ability out of the backfield was missed after he was injured against SEMO.

Outlook for 2011:

Even without Young though, the Gamecocks are loaded at running back in 2011. Calvin Middleton will be back for his senior season. Middleton battled foot problems all year long, but was very effective every time he played. If he stays healthy, he is easily capable of rushing for 1,000 yards.

Middleton will be pushed by Tig Barksdale and Richard Freelon. Tig, who was playing safety at Ole Miss, seemed to get better every single game. If he can start breaking some more tackles, he might rewrite the record books at JSU.

Another promising player is Richard Freelon. Several insiders have told us that Freelon has the talent to do great things at JSU. He showed some glimpses late in the year. Hopefully, the Gamecocks can sign one more player to add some depth to this spot.

While Freelon and Barksdale are gifted runners, both must master the playbook and improve on pass blocking. All in all, the Gamecocks are loaded at running back for 2011; however, it would be nice to sign one more player at a position where injuries frequently occur.

Fullback:

Key losses: Alphonso Freeney. #46 in your program, but #1 in your heart. Freeney was a great fullback and a great leader. I wish we could have gotten the ball more to him this year because other teams had a hard time bringing him down. In addition to his physical skills, Freeney's leadership will be missed.

Outlook for 2011:

There is still reason to be optimistic about the fullback spot though. Lequintez Reynolds will return. He is a smaller, but faster version of Freeney who plays with a lot of heart. Also returning is Jahron Brown who sat out this year to concentrate on academics. Brown, a former Arkansas commitment, put up some big numbers in high school and played a lot as a true freshman. Again, however, this seems to be a position the Gamecocks need to address depth wise in recruiting.


OFFENSIVE LINE.


Key Losses: Curt Porter, Justin Kay and Tyler Ogletree. We said earlier this year "Smouse for President." The reason was that it was amazing how well the offensive line performed after losing All Conference level players in Tyler Chambers and Matt Jones. But, a lot of guys stepped up. Tyler Ogletree went from being a reserve to a real team leader. He pancaked a few guys at Wofford. One bit of good news, we haven't seen the last of Curt Porter. He will be playing on Sundays next year.

Outlook for 2011:

With only Odie Rush and Tori Mobley returning, the Gamecocks have the unenviable task of replacing 3 of 5 starters on the offensive line; however, Matt Jones, a redshirt junior from Hoover is certain to fill one of those spots. Jones brings a wealth of experience after starting his freshman and sophmore seasons and completing spring practice in 2010. Thus, the Gamecocks realistically will be looking to find two new starters. Perhaps the Gamecocks will look for an FBS transfer to fill some immediate needs as no other returning player on the roster has significant experience.

However, there is an amazing stockpile of untested talent on the roster. Candidates to emerge from the pack and grab one of the spots include: Tristan Hardin (3* recruit); Ricky Clemons (2* recruit from Michigan); Tree Johnstone (Georgia Southern Transfer); Preston Hatcher (2* recruit); Colt Kennedy (a mammoth tackle from Douglas, Georgia); Max Holcombe from Tuscaloosa; Chad Hampton; Johnny Ubi, Jr., Ronald Johnson and Terrence Pendleton. Coach Crowe was bragging on Pendleton earlier this year and the coaches were very excited when Johnstone transferred from Ga. Southern. One wildcard, it looked like Monte Ellis had moved to offensive line (where he previously played). If that's the case, The Gamecocks could actually start an offensive line with four upperclassmen.

In sum, on offense, the offensive line is the biggest question mark heading in to the offseason.

Wide Receiver:

Key Losses: John Houston Whiddon, Jeff Cameron and La Ray Williams.

The Gamecocks are losing three talented receivers. Cameron, who had a breakout game against EKU, really emerged as a big play threat as the season progressed. Williams was slowed by injuries, but still contributed. He would have likely had a TD against Wofford but for being held by the defender in an amazing non-call by the referree.

Outlook for 2011: James Shaw, Alan Bonner and Kevyn Cooper are all back. All three of these guys had game winning catches this year: (Cooper- Ole Miss; Shaw- UTC; Bonner- SEMO). GI heard that Rayce Whiddon may move to cornerback.

The name to watch however, is Gabriel (a/k/a "TouchDown" "Country" "G4)Chambers. The cousin of Gamecock legend Maurice Dupree has the ability to do things after the catch that will really help the 2011 Gamecocks. Even counting Chambers, however, this is only four wide receivers unless highly regarded recruit Jeremy Nicholson is going to play wide receiver. One stop gap solution might be to play A.J. Davis some at wide receiver. He is probably the fastest player on the team and played the position in high school.

Tight End:

Key Loss: Cory Freeman

Every offensive coach we've spoken with has great things to say about Cory. He was a tough blocker, in fact, during one game, he even play played at guard because of injuries. While Cory only caught 12 passes for 100 yards, those numbers don't reflect the leadership Cory provided.

Outlook for 2011:

Justin Howard will be a senior. He caught 12 passes on the season. Denzel Cheeks switched to TE after playing defensive end as a freshman and really came on strong. Cheeks, at 6'6", is a big target and he can be a challenge to cover. Coach Crowe intimated that Cheeks might have next level ability. Run blocking is still a key to this position in JSU's offense. The Gamecocks will be looking to add depth to this position before 2011.