Outside linebackers: Rising star Houston leads Grantham’s group
(Eighth in a summer series looking at Georgia’s football team by position.)
TODAY: OUTSIDE LINEBACKERS
- Returning starters: In last season’s 4-3 alignment, Justin Houston started 10 games at defensive end and Darryl Gamble 11 games at middle linebacker.
- Depth chart: In the new 3-4 defense, there are two outside-linebacker positions — the “Will” and “Sam” linebackers. Houston, a junior, and Cornelius Washington, a redshirt sophomore, will enter preseason practice as the first-teamers. Reuben Faloughi, a former walk-on who was put on scholarship this spring, is No. 2 behind Houston at “Will.” Gamble, a senior who moved from inside linebacker to outside late in spring practice, is No. 2 and Chase Vasser No. 3 behind Washington at “Sam.”
- Key facts: Houston has the credentials of an ascendant star –- second-team All-SEC last season; the SEC’s top returning player in tackles for loss (15 last season) and sacks (7.5); on the watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy, which goes to the nation’s best defensive player each season; Georgia’s defensive MVP in spring practice. You get the idea.
- Key questions: Will Houston be the dominant player the Dogs expect him to be in new defensive coordinator (and OLB coach) Todd Grantham’s pressure-the-QB 3-4 scheme? Will Washington, who seems to be a good fit for the 3-4, thrive in his first shot as a starter? And will lack of experienced depth at the position prove problematic?
- Recent developments: The move of Gamble from ILB was a response to the OLB depth concerns, which were exacerbated when Montez Robinson was kicked off the team during the spring. Three incoming freshmen who arrived this summer –- Brandon Burrows, Dexter Morant and T.J. Stripling –- eventually will help. “Those guys are the body types we think will fit into that role,” said Mark Richt, adding: “I hope we don’t have to rely on [them] as they’re trying to figure it out. Some of them have to grow a little bit physically.”
- Outlook: Promising … provided Houston, Washington and Gamble stay healthy.
- Your turn: What say you about the outside linebackers?
————
Links to previous entries in this series:
Tomorrow: Defensive backs.
———-
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125 comments Add your comment
gdawginkalamazoo
June 23rd, 2010
11:03 am
I can’t believe Morant would be placed at LB. 6′7″ LB. I don’t recall seeing one that tall. Might want to nickname him Jaws. Reminds of the “You’re going to need a bigger boat” line from the movie. Hopefully he will also eat up a few QB’s too.
Lars
June 23rd, 2010
11:25 am
Newnan went 37-4, 3 seasons, Ogletree brothers leading the defense.
HOUDAWG
June 23rd, 2010
11:38 am
Valley Forge …… think that will be true. Flying around is great …… but won’t mean beans if a guy busts a 50-yd run. It will take some time to gain experience in this D …… hopefully it proves to give more T/O’s early on. Do believe we have the right coaches to get this done & ( finally ) have teams fearing this D again.
fan
June 23rd, 2010
11:47 am
mark it down, Washington and Houston will be our MVP’s of the Defense.
POAD
June 23rd, 2010
12:20 pm
in the 3-4 it is all about the line freeing up the LBs to make plays. Speed is a key but reading the line play to fight off blocks is the most important thing the ILB will have to do. Shed off the bump block of follow the TE cutting in the middle. That is a hard read if you are not looking in the backfeild. UGA has some great speed and power inside. they just have to make the reads.
1eyedJack
June 23rd, 2010
12:20 pm
gdawginkalamazoo
Do you remember Ted “The Stork” Hendricks?
dawgfan
June 23rd, 2010
12:35 pm
I am still trying to pick my jaw up off of the floor over Washington’s 4.3 forty. That’s something I would probably prefer not to know. If our defense gets burned this season, things like that make it all the more painful.
Help is on the way
June 23rd, 2010
12:49 pm
Just to let you all know, Zander will be a FB, not a LB.
gdawginkalamazoo
June 23rd, 2010
12:57 pm
1eyedjack, with the Raiders? I do. I didn’t realize he was that tall.
MaconKnight
June 23rd, 2010
12:57 pm
Chip,
Is Akeem Dent in the mix to start? I really think this kid can be a star..Played extremely well aganist Tech and A&M
MaconKnight
June 23rd, 2010
1:00 pm
Chip one more question whatever happen to The kid from Bainbridge, Nick Williams didnt he get moved to LB
OEJ
June 23rd, 2010
1:01 pm
MaconKnight..Dent is listed #1 on the depth chart right now at ILB
Physicality is a must in Big Boy ball
June 23rd, 2010
1:07 pm
With some of the 6′6″ heights that I am seeing and 6′7″ stuff ……….maybe last year’s comments from Kevin Butler on his Bulldog past game radio show that “when I walk on the field with an Alabama or a UT or a Florida or a LSU …………UGA has smaller guys. The other teams look bulky and beefyier” he said.
Now, when these young men add some bulk and dine on some fine vittles in Athens, maybe we will be bigger. Do not want to lose speed, however.
With the D names posted here, I am very impressed as I know severalof these guys can run and they are very athletic. We have lacked this excellent physicality for some time now.
Go Dogs.
Delusions of granduer
June 23rd, 2010
1:16 pm
How2fish,
I remember that game. Pat Dye called out Georgia as not being man enough to beat Bama and as you put it the dawgs “blew up” the Bammers. Beat em by a whole 2 pts with a last minute field goal. Typical of dawg fans where you think a 2 pt win is a blowout but a 49-10 loss was somehow a close game.
SEC lunchtime links | Hog Country Online
June 23rd, 2010
1:21 pm
[...] A facilities upgrade should help Georgia recruiting. A look at the Bulldogs outside linebackers. [...]
Top Dawg
June 23rd, 2010
1:23 pm
Are you guys literally copying and pasting the articles you find on Rivals?
DawginLex
June 23rd, 2010
1:26 pm
delusions of being a moron,(which you are)
Considering that no UGA team had ever gone to tuscaloosa and won, it required a lot of “manning up” to pull it off.
PowerDawg
June 23rd, 2010
1:52 pm
Don’t think CTG’s defenses require big, beefy DE’s like you would need in the 4-3. The OLB’s are the pass rushers. That’s why you see more 6-4 to 6-6 guys playing there. In the old system, 6-2 would have been tall for a backer. Not anymore.
Stripling will need to bulk up, no doubt. He is up to almost 225, now. But if he plays DE, he only needs to add 25 lbs or so. And with his frame, he could easily carry another 60 lbs and be an absolute monster.
With no major injuries, he could probably red-shirt. But don’t count on it. He is too gifted athletically to sit. He’ll at least play on special teams. Don’t know his VJ numbers but I could see him on the PAT block team for sure.
SEC lunchtime links | theSPORTSpage Arkansas
June 23rd, 2010
1:52 pm
[...] A facilities upgrade should help Georgia recruiting. A look at the Bulldogs outside linebackers. [...]
BurningRedBleedingBlack
June 23rd, 2010
2:04 pm
Outside LB’s will really get at it this year. I see this part of the defense really getting some turnovers. I think who we have really fits coach Granthams mold. Houston has alot of speed and is smart, washington and faloughi seem to be stars on the Rise!!!! Go DAWGS!!!!!
KeithB
June 23rd, 2010
2:07 pm
Houston is a beast. If he makes a smooth transition, that LB group will be just fine. Look for teams to run away from him and test Washington. They may also run a lot of play action to test both of their cover skills.
Moss
June 23rd, 2010
2:15 pm
Burrows is stout. Gators and Tide went after him. 6′ 3”, 240. He’s a flash on the edge.
AltamahaDawg
June 23rd, 2010
2:39 pm
delusions, I take it you were not pulling for UGA that night. You need to learn a little about modern day sports lingo before you go popping off. “blowing up” is not even close to “blow out”. Ask your buddies who follow sports what the difference is.
Dye said what he said becasue Alabama was a very good team defending the run in 2002. Evidenced by only giving up 80 yrd/game on the ground, by far the best in the SEC that year. UGA had not been particularly impressing going into that game. Hince, not “man enough to line it up and run the ball”. Musa Smith had 126 yrd, and UGA gained almost 200 against them that night. That’s what we call “blowing somebody up”.
And I would be willing to bet you that if I polled 10 of my UGA buddies, not a single one would call a 2 pt victory a “blow-out” or claim that 49-10 is a close game. Are you sure your didn’t mean to say imaginary rather that typical?
gdawginkalamazoo
June 23rd, 2010
2:42 pm
Hopefully the days of redshirting the talent are behind us. Get the kids on the field who can make a difference. BTW, where does Branden Smith play on this defense?
B Ville' Dog
June 23rd, 2010
2:56 pm
How bout’ dat strength & conditioning program? I’d put the Spring numbers against anybody in the SEC. Anybody know why both Florida & Alabama didn’t release their Spring combine numbers? Bet I know why. Georgia put up some NFL type numbers.
Momentum has shifted from Florida to Georgia in the SEC East, gonna be a long time before Gators make noise again.
You can see it in recruiting, Spring combine numbers, and even experts like Steele picking the Dogs to go all the way as a surprise team.
Florida doesn’t have any stars anymore. They all went to Georgia.
Can’t wait to sic the 3-4 on the Gators and let the dogs loose.
See these combine results:
http://ugadogsblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/georgia-spring-combine-results.html
Florida won’t be putting their combine numbersd up anytime soon, they don’t want any of that.
B Ville' Dog
June 23rd, 2010
3:00 pm
PS. Gonna be fun watching Meyer meltdown for a few years, trying to explain why his team keeps losing so many games. Meyer’s about to expeosed now that his superstars and Charlie Strong is gone. Get ready for the meltdown of all meltdowns after Oct. 30. Can’t wait!
B Ville' Dog
June 23rd, 2010
3:08 pm
Like to watch the Georgia end zone celebration after dominating Florida in the 1st quarter?
Meyer had nightmares about this for 12 months.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xj_yqJtmE2w
Pago Pago Dawg
June 23rd, 2010
3:16 pm
With all these “dream” recruits…we’re looking at a 2011 pre-season #1 ranking. Not so sure charlie strong was the reason UF won all their games?
Tuck Fech
June 23rd, 2010
3:22 pm
Pago pago Dawg…..I have to give Charlie Strong credit for running Fabris off his staff in Louisville the first week. It took us a few years to figure out he couldn’t coach!
Man Up
June 23rd, 2010
3:35 pm
Meyer hasn’t won a National Championship without Strong. Well see this year if it was Meyer or Strong. Let’s put it this way, Florida ain’t #1 on anybody’s pre-season list in 2010, know what I’m sayin’?
Hunker Down
June 23rd, 2010
3:41 pm
Like the article reads, we should be good at outside lb if we stay healthy. If I am a top hs lb recruit I would be licking my chops to commit to the dawgs right now. Good opportunity to come on board and get playing time.
Phins
June 23rd, 2010
3:45 pm
Oscar Meyer usually has a marshmellow “FOR WIMPS ONLY” schedule, he’s still scheduling cream puffs for the 1st 3 games to try and build his boys confidence up, still scheduling Georgia on his 2 week bye, still refuses to play Georgia in Athens. This year Oscar Meyer gets a SEMI-MANWICH schedule we’ll call ‘Almost Mark Richt Like’. Oscar Meyer gets Alabama, LSU, & Georgia. Yippeee. Let’s see what Oscar Meyer can do against the big boys without his blanket and pacifier (aka Tebow & Strong).
#1 BAMA FAN
June 23rd, 2010
3:53 pm
B’ville Dawg….BAMA released pictures of their three diamond encrusted Championship rings.RTR
Big Boy Ball and NCs
June 23rd, 2010
3:53 pm
UGA in my mind needs to handle Florida, if only by one point per game, with 3 wins over the next 5 years to be on par with the best in the SEC. I would consider 3 wins over 6 years as very decent. With LSU and Alabama, we have taken care of biz about 50% of the time and that is fabulous. We need to get on the Gators over the next two or three years.
Frankly, UGA has won two or three now over Florida in 7 years and that may not seem great and it really is nothing to be proud of, but what SEC school as done better vs Florida over the same period? This is not a trick question ………….. is there anybody doing better in this same period?
Mark Richt would have been ( coulda, woulda, shoulda ) about even with Meyer but the Dogs laid down in 08 vs. Florida with Stafford’s DUMB THROWS and No Shows DUMB FUMBLE in the back field and one or two other goofy things. They jumped us in 09 and we laid down again. Also, should have won one or two others lately in the last 4 – 6 years. We did not and congrats to the Gators. I am a Dog but father’s side are all sad Gators.
UGA has done deecently enough to be the ONLY TEAM to win 8 or more games over 13 years in a row. At the end of the day ………………. 100% of all schools would love to be in that company. They are not and UGA is there alone and admittedly w.o. a NC but we are doing fairly well and when 10-11-12 go by, UGA will also have that NC.
Go Dogs
Go Post
June 23rd, 2010
3:58 pm
Woof! Looked this team up and down looking for a weak unit. Can’t find one. Offense, check. Special teams, check. Defense, check. Coaching staff best in the country–offense & defense. Best team & coaches Richt’s come up with at Georgia. This year, and next year too, is going to be real fun to watch.
Phil Steele’s magazine says the Georgia offense will put up 37 points a game, agree, says the defense will give up 22 a game, disagree, try 16.
Go Post
June 23rd, 2010
4:10 pm
Bet ya’ didn’t know Georgia’s special teams have finished in top 25 2001-2008. With Butler, Walsh & Boykin, Georgia has the best special teams in the country, and if Richt will play some starters on special teams, like Meyer, you might see AJ Green or Vance Cuff returning punts, and Alec Ogletree on special teams.
Phins
June 23rd, 2010
4:23 pm
Oscar Meyer gets a kick off of pulling the wool over ESPN’s eyes. He schedules teams for his 1st 2 games, like Charleston Southern and Troy, then puts up 56-62 points on them, moving him up the polls due to scoring margin. UF = For Wimps Only.
UGADAWG
June 23rd, 2010
5:07 pm
What is the word on Richard Samuels?
shane#1
June 23rd, 2010
5:35 pm
Let me explain the OL posistion in CTG’s offense to you guys. The OLB plays like a DE in that he is the key pass rusher, except when they blitz an ILB or safety or somebody else. So you have a DE that plays like a LB, except when he lines up as a DE in a three point stance. Then the 3-4 becomes a 4-3, except not really, because it is a 3-4. Got it?
AltamahaDawg
June 23rd, 2010
5:37 pm
Thes words is thats Samuel is doings goods.
shane#1
June 23rd, 2010
5:38 pm
Oh, CTG likes tall OLBs because they are the main pass rushers and, unlike Willie, he thinks batting down a pass could be a good idea.
Tim Tucker
June 23rd, 2010
6:05 pm
MaconKnight: Akeem Dent is a starter at inside linebacker. Nick Williams currently is No. 1 on the depth chart at strong safety. Williams has moved back and forth between LB and safety, but seems settled at safety now.
Tim Tucker
June 23rd, 2010
6:05 pm
gdawginkalamazoo: Branden Smith is in competition for a starting job at cornerback.
Tim Tucker
June 23rd, 2010
6:08 pm
UGADAWG: Samuel is at inside linebacker. There’s at least a possibility of him redshirting this year, but that will depend on the progress he makes in preseason practice.
SEC lunchtime links | GameDay Weekly
June 23rd, 2010
7:42 pm
[...] A facilities upgrade should help Georgia recruiting. A look at the Bulldogs outside linebackers. [...]
BobDog
June 23rd, 2010
8:07 pm
MaconKnight, they moved Nick Williams back to Safety this year. He’s mentioned in the blog.
Big Al
June 23rd, 2010
8:33 pm
President Obama, an amateur on military matters, today relieved embattled Gen. Stanley McChrystal, a professional on military matters, from his position as the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan for his remarks belittling administration officials. I suppose it is true, OBAMA is an acronym for “One Big A$$ Mistake America”.
Willis
June 23rd, 2010
8:39 pm
Key will be having a balanced team, good offense, good defense.
Hutson Mason is at the top of the list for many of the state of Georgia records for QB:
#1, by a mile, for most passing TD’s in a season:
http://ghsfha.org/records.php?gRecID=16
Willis
June 23rd, 2010
8:40 pm
Mason tied for 2nd for most td passes in a game:
http://ghsfha.org/records.php?gRecID=15
This is in the history of Georgia high school football.
Bulldog59
June 23rd, 2010
8:41 pm
Von Van Halanger….clown, actually in 2002 Pat Dye said, “I don’t believe Georgia is man enough to beat Alabama” not once but twice during a radio interview. Of course, UGA beat Alabama 27-25, won the SEC, and finished the season with a Sugar Bowl win. (13-1)
Everyone is counting us out, calling us overrated, etc. in 2010. Again, we have an offense that lead the SEC in scoring (in SEC games) in 2009 with 234 points. With 10 returning starters and the right coaching of a new QB, the O should be fine.
As for the D, we were worst in the SEC (in SEC games) last year surrendering 252 points. CTG and Co. have their work cut out, hopefully it’s not a long learning curve. The keys are (1) the subject of Tim’s series this week – fitting the existing personnel, (2) teaching the system, and (3) re-teaching fundamentals (”who taught you guys how to tackle the last 5 years?”)
We’ll experience some bumps along the road in 2010 but should see a better product on the field each week.