Preseason breakdown: Defensive Backs

Part V of the previews. With this the attention shifts to the defense.

Consensus heading into the season
This is the only area not raising concerns among the faithful. Three of the four starters return and there is good depth around them.

Roster Reminders
Returning Starters
Donnie Fletcher
Roderick Rollins
Wes Davis
Backups and Hopefuls
DeLeon Gause
Dan Mulrooney
Stephen Atkinson
Marcellus Bowman
Donte Elliott
Hampton Hughes
Isaac Johnson
Okechukwu Okoroha
Ugo Okpara

Chatter
Everyone around the team is expecting Marcellus Bowman to have a big year. He emerged last year as a big hitter and playmaker with speed. His INT return against FSU was a thing of beauty. Since then, the hype has only grown. Even Spaz has been singing his praises publicly.

The Real Question
What are we going to do with all of these guys? Former DBs Fox and LeGrande have already been moved to other positions and we still don’t have enough snaps for the depth we have. Look for many of these names on special teams since it is a place where they can contribute. This is a depth chart built for the pass happy Pac 10 or Big XII. Unfortunately we play in the ACC.

My Bold Prediction
We will lead the ACC in interceptions again. With the depleted front seven, teams are more likely to run on us and probably won’t give the secondary as many opportunities to pick off passes. Even with that in mind, I think the ball hawking nature of the secondary will be that much more aggressive this year.

What keeps me up at night?
The big play. While these guys are good, I still fear them getting burnt deep (think NC State and UNC last year). While Bowman and some of the younger safeties have speed, we will still be vulnerable on the deep posts...especially if we are not pressuring the QB.

Outlook
This is the one area we don’t have to worry about. Talent is there. Depth is there. Coaching is there (regardless of how I feel about Siravo as a Recruiting Coordinator, the DBs have been well coached on his watch). These guys have benefitted from great fronts the past few years. Now it is there turn to step up and carry the load.

What to do with the surplus of defensive backs?

When practices restart Thursday they will serve two purposes. The primary is bowl preparation. The secondary is preparing for next season. One of the questions for the offseason is what to do with all the defensive backs. BC has a very deep, young and talented group of defensive backs. The drawback of having a deep position is that they cannot all be on the field at the same time. With that in mind, and based on pure speculation, I am going to look at the group and see who might be moved to another position of need.

Assumptions:
1. I am not focusing on safety vs cornerback. Some recent guys have played both (Anam most recently) and some of the current probably could also play both (Gause, Fox)
2. We will probably bring in at least two more DBs (bringing the potential total to 17 on the roster).


Not going anywhere
The following guys are unlikely to move since they’ve established themselves as good contributors and don’t have another position that would make as much sense.
-- Donnie Fletcher
-- DeLeon Gause
-- Roderick Rollins

Linebacker?
The Akins experiment moved him to corner for his senior year. Over his career he showed the advantage of having a fast, coverage LB in Spaz’s scheme. Could these guys also moonlight with McGovern's guys?
-- Dan Mulrooney
-- Wes Davis
-- Stephen Atkinson
-- Marcellus Bowman
-- Okechukwu Okoroha
-- Dominick LeGrande
-- Chris Hayden-Martin

How are his hands?
Although we are deep in the secondary, we are probably going to need some pass catchers shortly. These guys could be good in open space.
-- Donte Elliott
-- Ugo Okpara
-- Chris Fox
-- Isaac Johnson

Running Back?
Running Back might be a tough position sell since many would see Harris and Haden on the depth chart and wonder if they’d ever see the field. Mulrooney and Smith have already had a go around in the backfield and may be used their again.
-- Dan Mulrooney
-- Razzie Smith (assuming he returns for a fifth year)
-- Isaac Johnson

This is all just spitballin' so feel free to leave your own ideas in the comments section.