CryptoMiner
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TCU Spring Football 2025
Frogs begin spring practices March 26th
The Horned Frogs had a strong finish to the 2024 season with a record of 9-4, after a dismal start of 3-3 which included losses to two teams that finished 4-8.
The way the team rallied has made this spring one of the more anticipated in a while.
Last spring with a new defensive coordinator and some cohesiveness issues, the staff never seemed to get the team settled in and it showed at the start of the season.
This spring those issues appear to be well in the past.
Changes and what to look for this spring:
Offense:
Major losses:
The WR position lost the top three receivers to graduation/NFL: Savion Williams, Jack Bech and JP Richardson and at RB TCU lost its top 2 rushers in Williams and Cam Cook (portal). Starting TE Drake Dabney graduated.
The OL lost two starters in OT Bless Harris (grad) and C James Brockermeyer.
Backup QB Hauss Hejny left for Okie St.
Major new faces:
At WR transfers Jordan Dwyer from Idaho and Joseph Manjack from Houston look to fill some of the void from the losses. Also, three highly recruited freshmen: Terry Shelton (6-4/205), Dane Jones (6-0/180) and Ed Small (6-0/205) will push to have an early impact.
On the OL, 6-7/320 Rasheed Jackson (portal) along with a talented group of freshmen should add depth at that position.
Scheme: Expect more work on tempo and extra time on the running attack.
Positions:
Quarterback: keeping Josh Hoover healthy while giving him time with some of the new talent will be the focus. Ken Seals should see a lot of time in the spring along with incoming freshman Adam Schobel. Solid at QB
Running back: UTSA transfer Kervorian Barnes will hope to get back to his form in 2022 while at UTSA and returners Nate Palmer and Jeremy Payne should continue to build on the experience they gained during their true freshman year in 2024. Senior Trent Battle has been a solid contributor for TCU. Want to say this will be a solid group but a lot will depend on Palmer and Payne along with the OL.
TE: SRs DJ Rogers and Chase Curtis will lead the group into spring, but LSU transfer Ka’Morreun Pimpton and true freshman Mason Peterson will be ones to watch. Also, hoping to see soph Lafayette Kaiuway make some progress. Solid group.
Wide Receivers: Eric McAlister will lock down one position and hopefully Dwyer will show why he was highly recruited in the portal. A lot of talent at this position and having Major Everhart and Dozie Ezukanma healthy should make this group one of the more competitive positions in the spring. Along with the freshmen and transfers, Jordan Bailey, Braylon James and Geykle Baker add tremendous depth to the position. Very solid group and should be fun to watch. Freshman Ed Small has already impressed Hoover.
Offensive Line: Last but not least…improving run blocking will be the focus. Returning starters Colton Deery, Ben Taylor and Carson Bruno along with a healthy Cade Bennett will provide the core. Transfer Jackson should slip into the remaining tackle spot, but Ryan Hughes came on strong at the end of the season could fill the spot. Recruiting at the OL has stepped up greatly and one or two of the incoming freshmen who will be here this spring could impress, I am betting on Witten Van Hoy (6-6/300 from Benton LA). Quinton Harris who had plenty of PT in 2024 though mostly on ST, SR Remington Strickland and RSFr Tobias Steppes will add solid depth. Not solid on this group but hopeful.
Defense:
Major losses:
Leading tackler LB Johnny Hodges (Grad), DE Cooper McDonald Grad), DE Nana Osafo-Mensah (Grad), and S Abe Camara (Grad).
Major new faces:
DT Perry Cole Jr (JUCO), DT Kelton Mickell (JUCO), S Kylin Jackson (LSU), S Kollin Collier (JUCO), DT Ansel Din-Mbuh, CB Elijah Jackson (Wash), CB Jonah Martinez (JUCO) and FR DE Chad Woodfork.
Scheme: Run defense will be a focus and the incoming transfers should get a lot of work.
Positions:
Defensive line: The competition at DT should be the best it has been in years with returning late starter Markis Deal leading the pack along with 3 impressive newcomers in Washington State transfer and PAC 12 DL Top Performer, Ansel-Din Mbuh, and two of the top JUCU DTs last season: Perry Cole Jr and Kelton Mickell. RSFr Sterlin Brooks at 6-3/335 and true freshman Flooyd Guidy (6-2/295) will add depth to this improved group.
On the end a healthy Paul Oyewale, along with returning starter Devean Deal will lead a strong group. Zachary Chapman was 2nd team freshman All-American with 25 tackles and 3 sacks. True freshman Chad Woodfork along with sophomore Travis Jackson and junior Michael Ibukun-Okeyode add very good depth. Jonathan Bax is my break-out player.
Over a very solid group
Linebacker: Seniors Kaleb Elarms-Orr and Namdi Obiazor return bringing tremendous talent and experience to the position. But there are some big questions behind them and expect some possible position movement. Soph Max Carroll and true freshmen: Keylan Abrams, Sam Haley and Dillon Arkansas will need to step up. For the first time in a while depth at linebacker is questionable.
Safety: There was a huge sigh of relief when Jamel Johnson (6-1/200) withdrew his name from the portal. With Johnson, Bud Clark (6-2/185) anchor a strong group here. Also returning with experience are Austin Jordan (6-0/200), Devyn Hidrogo (6-0/210) and Jordan Lester (6-2/180). The additions of Kylin Jackson (6-3/200), a former 4-star recruit, via the portal from LSU and Kollin Collier (6-1/180) from Hutchinson Community College add tremendous depth to the position. Incoming freshmen include 4-star recruit Micah Strickland (6-1/185), Joseph Albright (5-11/175), Julius Simms (6-2/195) and Rohon Kazadi (6-2/185), who had 114 tackles last year for Plano and the son of Coach Kaz. Very solid group.
Corner: gone are LaMareon James, JaTravis Broughton and Abe Camara who had all but 3 starts last season at the cornerback positions: Field, Boundary and Nickel. Good news is Avery Helm (6-1/185) returns from injury and is slotted to take over the Nickel spot. Channing Canada (6-1/185), who had the 3 other starts last season is projected at Boundary and Jevon McIver, Jr (6-1/185) saw plenty of action last year. Also back from injury is Vernon Glover (6-1/205) who looked good his freshman season, playing in 10 games. Portal transfer Elijah Jackson (6-1/196) from Washington and JUCO transfer Jonah Martinez (6-0/180) will push to fill one of the slots as starter. Also in the mix are Sophomore Devondre McGee (6-2/180) and true freshmen, Gil Jackson (6-3/185) and Cam Jamerson (6-1/170). Health has been an issue at this position and hopefully that will not be the case this spring.
Special Teams: Returning are kicker Kyle Lemmermann and punter Ethan Craw. Former Northwestern long-snapper Will Halkyard will look to replace one of the best last season, Brent Matiscik. Lemmermann had a rough start to his freshman season, but showed much improvement in the final games.
Frogs begin spring practices March 26th
The Horned Frogs had a strong finish to the 2024 season with a record of 9-4, after a dismal start of 3-3 which included losses to two teams that finished 4-8.
The way the team rallied has made this spring one of the more anticipated in a while.
Last spring with a new defensive coordinator and some cohesiveness issues, the staff never seemed to get the team settled in and it showed at the start of the season.
This spring those issues appear to be well in the past.
Changes and what to look for this spring:
Offense:
Major losses:
The WR position lost the top three receivers to graduation/NFL: Savion Williams, Jack Bech and JP Richardson and at RB TCU lost its top 2 rushers in Williams and Cam Cook (portal). Starting TE Drake Dabney graduated.
The OL lost two starters in OT Bless Harris (grad) and C James Brockermeyer.
Backup QB Hauss Hejny left for Okie St.
Major new faces:
At WR transfers Jordan Dwyer from Idaho and Joseph Manjack from Houston look to fill some of the void from the losses. Also, three highly recruited freshmen: Terry Shelton (6-4/205), Dane Jones (6-0/180) and Ed Small (6-0/205) will push to have an early impact.
On the OL, 6-7/320 Rasheed Jackson (portal) along with a talented group of freshmen should add depth at that position.
Scheme: Expect more work on tempo and extra time on the running attack.
Positions:
Quarterback: keeping Josh Hoover healthy while giving him time with some of the new talent will be the focus. Ken Seals should see a lot of time in the spring along with incoming freshman Adam Schobel. Solid at QB
Running back: UTSA transfer Kervorian Barnes will hope to get back to his form in 2022 while at UTSA and returners Nate Palmer and Jeremy Payne should continue to build on the experience they gained during their true freshman year in 2024. Senior Trent Battle has been a solid contributor for TCU. Want to say this will be a solid group but a lot will depend on Palmer and Payne along with the OL.
TE: SRs DJ Rogers and Chase Curtis will lead the group into spring, but LSU transfer Ka’Morreun Pimpton and true freshman Mason Peterson will be ones to watch. Also, hoping to see soph Lafayette Kaiuway make some progress. Solid group.
Wide Receivers: Eric McAlister will lock down one position and hopefully Dwyer will show why he was highly recruited in the portal. A lot of talent at this position and having Major Everhart and Dozie Ezukanma healthy should make this group one of the more competitive positions in the spring. Along with the freshmen and transfers, Jordan Bailey, Braylon James and Geykle Baker add tremendous depth to the position. Very solid group and should be fun to watch. Freshman Ed Small has already impressed Hoover.
Offensive Line: Last but not least…improving run blocking will be the focus. Returning starters Colton Deery, Ben Taylor and Carson Bruno along with a healthy Cade Bennett will provide the core. Transfer Jackson should slip into the remaining tackle spot, but Ryan Hughes came on strong at the end of the season could fill the spot. Recruiting at the OL has stepped up greatly and one or two of the incoming freshmen who will be here this spring could impress, I am betting on Witten Van Hoy (6-6/300 from Benton LA). Quinton Harris who had plenty of PT in 2024 though mostly on ST, SR Remington Strickland and RSFr Tobias Steppes will add solid depth. Not solid on this group but hopeful.
Defense:
Major losses:
Leading tackler LB Johnny Hodges (Grad), DE Cooper McDonald Grad), DE Nana Osafo-Mensah (Grad), and S Abe Camara (Grad).
Major new faces:
DT Perry Cole Jr (JUCO), DT Kelton Mickell (JUCO), S Kylin Jackson (LSU), S Kollin Collier (JUCO), DT Ansel Din-Mbuh, CB Elijah Jackson (Wash), CB Jonah Martinez (JUCO) and FR DE Chad Woodfork.
Scheme: Run defense will be a focus and the incoming transfers should get a lot of work.
Positions:
Defensive line: The competition at DT should be the best it has been in years with returning late starter Markis Deal leading the pack along with 3 impressive newcomers in Washington State transfer and PAC 12 DL Top Performer, Ansel-Din Mbuh, and two of the top JUCU DTs last season: Perry Cole Jr and Kelton Mickell. RSFr Sterlin Brooks at 6-3/335 and true freshman Flooyd Guidy (6-2/295) will add depth to this improved group.
On the end a healthy Paul Oyewale, along with returning starter Devean Deal will lead a strong group. Zachary Chapman was 2nd team freshman All-American with 25 tackles and 3 sacks. True freshman Chad Woodfork along with sophomore Travis Jackson and junior Michael Ibukun-Okeyode add very good depth. Jonathan Bax is my break-out player.
Over a very solid group
Linebacker: Seniors Kaleb Elarms-Orr and Namdi Obiazor return bringing tremendous talent and experience to the position. But there are some big questions behind them and expect some possible position movement. Soph Max Carroll and true freshmen: Keylan Abrams, Sam Haley and Dillon Arkansas will need to step up. For the first time in a while depth at linebacker is questionable.
Safety: There was a huge sigh of relief when Jamel Johnson (6-1/200) withdrew his name from the portal. With Johnson, Bud Clark (6-2/185) anchor a strong group here. Also returning with experience are Austin Jordan (6-0/200), Devyn Hidrogo (6-0/210) and Jordan Lester (6-2/180). The additions of Kylin Jackson (6-3/200), a former 4-star recruit, via the portal from LSU and Kollin Collier (6-1/180) from Hutchinson Community College add tremendous depth to the position. Incoming freshmen include 4-star recruit Micah Strickland (6-1/185), Joseph Albright (5-11/175), Julius Simms (6-2/195) and Rohon Kazadi (6-2/185), who had 114 tackles last year for Plano and the son of Coach Kaz. Very solid group.
Corner: gone are LaMareon James, JaTravis Broughton and Abe Camara who had all but 3 starts last season at the cornerback positions: Field, Boundary and Nickel. Good news is Avery Helm (6-1/185) returns from injury and is slotted to take over the Nickel spot. Channing Canada (6-1/185), who had the 3 other starts last season is projected at Boundary and Jevon McIver, Jr (6-1/185) saw plenty of action last year. Also back from injury is Vernon Glover (6-1/205) who looked good his freshman season, playing in 10 games. Portal transfer Elijah Jackson (6-1/196) from Washington and JUCO transfer Jonah Martinez (6-0/180) will push to fill one of the slots as starter. Also in the mix are Sophomore Devondre McGee (6-2/180) and true freshmen, Gil Jackson (6-3/185) and Cam Jamerson (6-1/170). Health has been an issue at this position and hopefully that will not be the case this spring.
Special Teams: Returning are kicker Kyle Lemmermann and punter Ethan Craw. Former Northwestern long-snapper Will Halkyard will look to replace one of the best last season, Brent Matiscik. Lemmermann had a rough start to his freshman season, but showed much improvement in the final games.
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