Locked On Jayhawks - Daily Podcast On Kansas Jayhawks Football & Basketball - Kansas Jayhawks Football Defensive Depth Chart Prediction: Hatcher or Booker, Brown or Berryhill?

Starting point is 00:00:00 On today's Locked On Jayhawks, we're a week away from KU football's season opener against Missouri State. We're going to predict, preview what to expect from the defensive side of the depth chart heading into week one. You are Locked On Jayhawks, your daily podcast on the Kansas Jayhawks. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. I'm Derek Johnson. You can hear me as well, Monday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. on KLWN in Lawrence with Rock Chalk Sports Talk. You can also

Starting point is 00:00:37 tune in to all the KU football games there on KLWN and 105.9 KISS. Thanks for making Locked on Jayhawks your first listen every day. We're free and available wherever you get any of your podcasts. Shout out to all the everydayers out there. And you can also find us on our YouTube page where you can like and subscribe to the show or on our new Locked on College or just Locked on in general website where you can check

Starting point is 00:00:59 out all sorts of shows that are going on. We just had a fun show talking the entirety of the Big 12 earlier this week. Before we get into today's show, which is going to be talking the KU defense and projecting the depth chart for the defensive side of the ball, this episode is brought to you by GameTime. Download the GameTime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. I mean, that's a great deal.

Starting point is 00:01:23 You get ready to go to the KU football game, go to the Missouri State game, you can probably get a ticket for like $30, $40. You get $20 off your first purchase. And that's a great deal. You get ready to go to the KU football game, go to the Missouri State game. You can probably get a ticket for like 30, 40 bucks. You get 20 bucks off right there. Why would you not do that? Really get a pretty good ticket too. Okay. So we're going to get through our defensive depth chart. Let's start at the defensive line and specifically at the defensive end.

Starting point is 00:01:40 So the defensive end spot, this has been one of the more open positions and competitions of any of the spots on the team, I think, through fall. Jeremy Robinson came into the year after being a guy who was not a starter last year. That was Malcolm Lee, but he basically played the same amount of snaps. It was very close between the two of them that you fully expected him to be a starter coming into the year. None of that has wavered. There have been some comments that we've talked about, about, you know, is he going to be the breakout candidate? Is he going to be that guy that takes that next step? Or is he just going to be the same guy was last year,

Starting point is 00:02:12 but either way, it never really wavered of him being a starter or not. He was the backup strong defensive end last season, which is just based on like strong side, weak side of the ball. So you're just lining up on different sides. So I think that he would just assume that's the defensive end spot he's going to play this year because that's where he was last year. The bigger competition was at the other defensive end spot and maybe throughout the other, you know, the two deep and the three deep on this roster. I've talked about on the offensive one, how realistically there's going to be a lot of oars on the depth chart. That's a college football thing.

Starting point is 00:02:50 That'll be a Kansas thing that you'll see this player or this player for a spot on the depth chart, whether it's as a starter or on the two deep. Wouldn't shock me if that's what ends up happening at the, the other defensive end spot, but I'm just going to pick one. I'm going to go with Hayden Hatcher right now, who gets the opening day nod. I think it's very close probably between Hatcher and Booker, and maybe even Brooks and Joyner are pretty close to this too.

Starting point is 00:03:14 The reason I'm leaning Hatcher, especially in week one, you're talking about an older player, a veteran player. He's in the last year of school, and yes, of course, that's the case for Patrick Joyner too. But with Hatcher, he's a veteran player. He's in the last year of school. And yes, of course, that's the case for Patrick Joyner too. But with Hatcher, he's a program guy. He's been around it for a long time. I've heard a ton from Hayden Hatcher over the course of the offseason, how hard he's worked, how much he's done to try to shape his body.

Starting point is 00:03:36 And we've heard from different coaches about him being a guy who puts so much effort in and has really done a lot just from a try perspective to get to this point. So from a certain standpoint, I think it would go well if you're like, hey, we don't know which of these two we're going to end up starting. Let's go with the guy who's been a program guy. Let's see if he can earn it on the field when the game officially starts. And I think it sends a good message to the locker room of like, look, if you work hard and you do this or that, you're going to get a job in the starting spot. Not to say that the other guys aren't working hard or doing this or that, but there is something that Hayden Hatcher kind of embodies as being a player who, yeah, maybe has been a little bit undersized in the past or maybe hasn't produced at an extremely high level in the past. And for him to put in that work and for it to show out to something, I think would be pretty cool for him.

Starting point is 00:04:25 A cool story for, you know, other players in the locker room that they could look up to. So because of that, I'm going with Hayden Hatcher in the starting lineup with Jeremy Robinson. I've got Austin Booker as the backup. Still, I would expect, regardless of which one of those starts between Hatcher and Booker, you're probably looking at pretty equal snaps for both, similar to how it was with Robinson and Lee a year ago. Honestly, if KU didn't have Lonnie Phelps, probably all the defensive ends, the top four would have got similar snaps, but Phelps was just another level. He was another kind of dude out there, right?

Starting point is 00:04:55 So it wouldn't shock me if Patrick Joyner, Dylan Brooks, or Davion Westmoreland, if any of them were the number two behind Jeremy Robinson at that strong defensive end. At that spot specifically, you maybe want somebody who's going to be a little more stout against the run, whereas on the weak side, maybe that's more of your lighter guy because he might be going up against a lighter box. But right now I've got Patrick Joyner as the backup to Jeremy Robinson. Dylan Brooks, I think because he is a little bit more undersized, makes more sense to have him as kind of the weak side defensive end. And then Davion Westmoreland is a little bigger,

Starting point is 00:05:28 so it makes sense to have him more on the strong defensive end side. So I'm going with Hatcher starting at one defensive end spot, backed up by Austin Booker and Dylan Brooks, but all guys I think will play. And then Jeremy Robinson, backed up by Patrick Joyner, Davion Westmoreland, I think all of them will play too. Not just in terms of, of course, you would expect all to play if things are going well, which you hope they are against an FCS opponent in week one,

Starting point is 00:05:48 but moving forward. And that's something Lance Leipold talked about the other day at his media availability that one of the things he's been really impressed with and that he's learned over the course of fall camp has been the depth that they actually ended up having a defensive line and that they feel good with some of the rotations they're going to be able to have. So I think you're going to be playing five or six defensive ends this year pretty consistently from game to game. What about the inside of the defensive line, the defensive tackle position for KU football? Well, I think Devin Phillips has certainly emerged himself as the best defensive tackle of the group. He's an older player in his sixth year. He's got broad shoulders. He's a wide-bodied dude. Physically, he's there. He's ready to go at the Power 5 level.

Starting point is 00:06:30 And athletically, we've heard a lot of good things about him too in terms of maybe chasing down runners laterally, even as a big defensive tackle. So Devin Phillips clearly raises this room and should be a starter in week one. I do think that DJ Withers has kind of closed the gap maybe a little bit here and has certainly worked his way toward being in real conversation to start here. I am going to still go with Tommy Dunn because he's still been kind of a riser too, and he's been somebody who we've heard so much about really ever since the bye week of last year, about guys who stood out in the bye week when you get a chance to maybe throw some of these more younger guys into the fire and he was someone who heard about

Starting point is 00:07:08 heard more about during the bowl game heard more in the spring heard some in the fall withers we heard about in some of those areas too but done it was even more prevalent now even though it's this late push from withers i think it's going to be done and i feel good about really either of those guys breaking out this year's a redshirt sophomore and what you could do now because I don't have withers in the starting lineup I'm projecting him to be a second string defensive tackle here behind Phillips and Dunn obviously that puts you in a good spot to possibly be a starter next season when Devin Phillips is is gone and has graduated out of the program but also you're going to rotate in going back to the comment about the defensive line depth and you're happy with it you're going to utilize that depth you are going

Starting point is 00:07:47 to rotate guys it's not the quarterback position where it's like well if he's healthy all year we're just going to stick with the one guy outside of maybe a trick play here or there a formation where both Jalen Daniels and Jason Bean are out there no like defensive tackle you're going to rotate throughout the year so both of them will get a lot of run and the same goes for your other uh defensive tackle tackle on the second string, which I have to be Gage Keys. He's also a redshirt sophomore. The transfer from Minnesota has added some weight to his body.

Starting point is 00:08:11 Good athlete coming from the Power 5 level, looking to kind of break out at the Power 5 level. And I think you feel good about those really top four guys. I even go further than that. Caleb Taylor on the third string I have right now, it wouldn't shock me if he was on the two deep either. I think it's probably close to him being there. Somebody that had a pretty good season in 2021. He showed a lot of good flashes. And then in 2022, you maybe didn't see as much of them. I thought coming into 2022, he could have been a

Starting point is 00:08:41 breakout player in all big 12 level defensive linemen. Didn't end up happening. Maybe that breakout is just a year later because he's added even more weight and is in an even better spot from a strength perspective this year than he was a season ago. So maybe he can move into that two deep and he shows flashes and he works into even more snaps over the course of the season. And then you have Keenan Caldwell, who also provides size for you on the inside. I feel good about rotating any of those six. And specifically, I think those top five for me, like you could argue any of them could be a starter at some point in time this season to where that's a good thing to show you the type of depth you have a defensive tackle,

Starting point is 00:09:18 even after the Ron McGee injury that unfortunately ended his season, that you should still be okay here at the position. We still got to get to the linebacker position. We got to get to the defensive back with corner and safety. And we'll do all that coming up in a moment here with Locked on Jayhawks. First, though, this episode of the show is brought to you by Game Time. Have you ever been like stressed out trying to get tickets? I know typically when I have like friends in town or family, I'm the one who's counted on to get the tickets. They're

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Starting point is 00:10:59 Create an account and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Again, create an account and redeem code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off. Download GameTime today. Last minute tickets. Lowest price guaranteed. Let's move on to the linebackers on the projected depth chart here. This is one that I am going to go a little bit out on a limb.

Starting point is 00:11:24 I don't know this is going to be right, but we're going to put J.B. Brown in there. Let's start with the easier ones. Craig Young in the Hawk position, obviously starting Hawk last year, was a good player, very good athlete. You expect that to be the case. We did see Jason Gilliam come on late after coming off the injury and emerge to go from being safety to linebacker

Starting point is 00:11:43 over the course of some of the offseason work. For to be the the hawk too I guess it's possible like Donovan Gaines could win out on that role but I'm gonna go with Jason Gilliam in that position for the second hawk position then at the Mike linebacker position I've got Rich Miller he is one of the leaders on your team he has been one of your better linebackers, even though that's been a position that has at times struggled. And, you know, maybe another year in the system, you get to know everything a little bit more. Another year in Power 5 football, getting your body right.

Starting point is 00:12:16 Maybe this is the year that everything does come together fully for Rich Miller, and I have him starting at the mic. And having that good leader in the middle who knows where everybody's supposed to be, you're kind of the quarterback of the defense. I think that's a good spot for Rich Miller to be in. He was the mic last year too. The second mic, I have Cornell Wheeler. Cornell Wheeler, we've heard a lot about lately over the last week or two from the coaching staff about him really starting to break out. Things are clicking for him. A light switch kind of went off in his head and he's been getting more time because of some injuries at the linebacker position I think Rich Miller had to deal with an injury uh to to

Starting point is 00:12:49 something with his arm um I know Tywin Berryhill's been dealing with uh some sort of like leg injury or hamstring or something like that um that has kept some of them out and so it's allowed some of these other guys to get playing time and get real reps against the ones and Cornell Wheeler I think he's taking advantage of some of those that you feel good about him being at that secondary Mike position. Now, you could argue, because I actually am going shot in the dark. I'm going to stay J.B. Brown gets the starting nod at the Will linebacker position.

Starting point is 00:13:17 You could argue Tywon Berryhill at that point if he's the second string. He could be the second string Mike, or he could be the second string Will, and Cornell Wheeler would be the other. You could also argue in the same vein as with the offensive line where it's like, well, even though this guy's listed as the backup, it would actually be this other offensive lineman who's the backup for this different position,, they're just going to be the first backup. So if you need a replacement for Rich Miller at Mike, it would be that guy. If you need a replacement for whoever's the will, it would be that guy. Even if Cornell Wheeler or one of these other guys

Starting point is 00:13:55 is listed as the backup, it would really be, you know, JB Brown or Taiwan Berryhill. But the reason I'm going with JB Brown over Berryhill, I know Berryhill was a starter last year. He's earned the trust. I think some of that injury stuff, maybe that plays into it a little bit for me. Like, are you going to be fully healthy for the first game?

Starting point is 00:14:10 But beyond that, it's given J.B. Brown an extra opportunity. And I can't help but wonder if he's not going to seize this momentum with the opportunity he's had. We've heard so much from a physicality standpoint about what he brings. Rick Miller's mentioned him. Some other players have mentioned him as being the hardest hitter on the entire team. We've heard from Matt Gildersleeve just oogling and awing

Starting point is 00:14:30 about his strength numbers and some of his weightlifting ability and some of his speed ability and athleticism overall. This is a guy that as you look to change the presence of your defense, as you look to become a better run-stopping defense, you're looking to get better overall on defense, but at the least can you be better against the run? J.B. Brown, to me, is somebody who fits that to a tee. So maybe this is more of a depth chart where Tywon Berryhill gets the nod

Starting point is 00:14:54 in week one because it's like, hey, we're honoring what you have done as a former starter and giving you another chance here. Maybe this is more of like a week four depth chart where eventually J.B. Brown cracks into the lineup, but I'm just going of like a week four depth chart where eventually J.B. Brown cracks into the lineup, but I'm just going to go out on a limb now and put J.B. Brown in there, even though it would not be shocking at all if it were indeed Tywin Berryhill in the end. We're going to finish up here with Locked on Jayhawks, get to the defensive backs with

Starting point is 00:15:17 the corner room and the safety room projected depth chart here with Locked on Jayhawks. Finishing things up with Locked on Jayhawks, the rest of the JEP chart here for the defensive backs. It's going to be tough because you have three big returning corners and three big returning safeties. So it's like, can anyone unseat the kind of big six returning DBs? Probably not. Maybe it happens over the course of the season. Maybe somebody breaks out over the course of the year and somebody's having a tough time. Let's start with the corners though.

Starting point is 00:15:51 Corner one, Kobe Bryant, obviously. Corner one, Melo Dotson. Feels like that's pretty obvious too. Okay, now you go to the second corners. I think this is where it does get more interesting. Kalen Girvin as corner two. He's very trusted by the staff, older player. You know what you're getting out of him. Demarius McGee for me is the other corner two here. Transfer from LSU, former top 300 recruit in the country, former four-star recruit, really talented guy. Heard some good things about him over the course of fall camp. I don't think it's cut and dry, though, that he is that other corner two. I do think, you know, Quinton Lassiter, Brian Dilworth, maybe even a Jameel Croft. Like, I guess it wouldn't shock you if at some point in the season or to begin the year,

Starting point is 00:16:30 somebody else was that other corner, too. But I do think the talent long term of Demarius McGee will get him into that group, and I wouldn't be surprised if it's him right off the bat. I actually went to corner three on this one, too. I do have Brian Dilworth listed as one of the corner threes. Redshirted a year ago after he was your top incoming recruit in the class of 2022. Heard some good things about him in spring ball,

Starting point is 00:16:52 so maybe that carries over to being corner three. I thought about making the other corner three, Jamil Croft, Jacoby Davis, who came in as incoming freshman this year, and Lance Leipold mentioned how competitive they've been and how hard they're fighting in practice as much as they're getting to know the system and scheme and everything but Quentin Lassiter the uh younger brother of Kwame Lassiter and the son of uh all-time great safety at Kansas too um he is a senior veteran player now at this point in time. And it wouldn't shock you if he is kind of your

Starting point is 00:17:27 corner three there that can be a trusted rotational guy at the back end, especially if you want to maintain the red shirt on a guy like Jamil Croft and Corey Davis to where, you know, you don't have to get them in every game. So that's how I view the corner position shaking out. Then to the safety position. KU calls this different things they have like a boundary safety and i forget the name of the other safety i more so view it from like the classical stacy or uh safety uh positions free safety and strong safety um i think i view kenny logan is more of like your strong safety type like he's gonna lack rack up a bunch of tackles he's gonna get in on the run he's's also going to be helpful on the pass. I view OJ Burrows as more of a pass coverage guy, as a free

Starting point is 00:18:09 safety out there. Those two guys are the two starters to me. Marvin Grant that I view as being a starter adjacent. He's going to play starter level snaps, but he's going to be on the second string. It's kind of that backup strong safety. He's more of a box safety. If you're starting in a lineup that features three safeties on the field, then he is a starter in that regard. And he's maybe to a point of the same way where it's like with the linebackers, you know, if he's technically the first guy off the bench, if it is OJ Burrows or Kenny Logan that goes out, like you just put, you move Kenny Logan over to free safety

Starting point is 00:18:44 and put Marvin Grant at strong safety. Or if Kenny Logan's out, you just move Marvin Grant to strong safety. That wouldn't shock me if that's how the rotation works in terms of if there are any injuries or the depth chart type of thing. But Jalen died too. Like somebody who really stepped up over spring ball because of some of the injuries to Kenny Logan and Marvin Grant that kept them out of spring ball. He stepped up, backed it up with a good fall camp to where, you know, maybe, maybe he's your backup free safety and Marvin Grant that kept them out of spring ball. He stepped up, backed it up with a good fall camp to where, you know, maybe he's your backup free safety and Marvin Grant's your backup strong safety. Either way, I think all four of these guys are going to kind of rotate in.

Starting point is 00:19:13 I do think because of the depth that you have at corner, if you're looking at playing formations that have extra defensive backs on the field, maybe it makes more sense to have more corners out there in those positions outside of these top four safeties. But I guess there are certain formations where there are certain reasons you would want more safeties, and maybe that's where somebody like a Taylor Davis or Mason Ellis can kind of make their presence felt and heard into the team.

Starting point is 00:19:40 All right, that's going to do it for this episode of Locked on Jayhawks, our KU depth chart projections. The real depth chart will be out next week, and next week is game week. We're a week away from KU Missouri State. Looking forward to it. It'll be at 7 o'clock next Friday. We've got plenty more KU football coming at you next week. We're going to get to our top ten questions coming into the year.

Starting point is 00:19:58 We're going to pick our schedule, what's going to happen. We've got our KU Missouri State preview, so you're not going to want to miss anything. Make sure you subscribe to Locked on Jayhawks wherever you get any of your podcasts or on our YouTube page. Have a great rest of your day and see you next time. Have a good weekend.

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Locked On Jayhawks - Daily Podcast On Kansas Jayhawks Football & Basketball - Kansas Jayhawks Football Defensive Depth Chart Prediction: Hatcher or Booker, Brown or Berryhill?

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