GAME 1 • SEPTEMBER 2, 2023 • 11:00 AM • OKLAHOMA MEMORIAL STADIUM • NORMAN, OKLA.

PDF: https://astateredwolves.com/documents/20...tes_OU.pdf

A-State Depth Chart

OFFENSE
QB 5 J.T. Shrout 6-3 215 rSr. 15 Jaxon Dailey 6-2 212 rFr. 1 Jaylen Raynor 6-0 204 Fr.
RB 2 Ja'Quez Cross 5-9 189 rSo. -or- 21 Zak Wallace 6-0 229 rJr. -or- 4 Brian Snead 6-0 211 rSr.
TE 12 Emmanual Stevenson 6-3 233 Jr. 13 Miller McCrumby 6-3 225 So. 18 Kevin Diaz 6-4 250 Jr. 87 Tyler Little 6-4 245 Fr.
WR 7 Corey Rucker 6-0 210 rSo. 11 Adam Jones 6-2 188 rJr.
WR 9 Courtney Jackson 5-11 186 rJr. 28 Reagan Ealy 5-9 172 Jr. 6 Wyatt Begeal 5-11 204 rSo.
WR 14 Jeff Foreman 6-0 186 Sr. 8 Khmari Thompson 6-1 207 Jr.
LT 78 Hamilton Hall 6-5 311 rSr. 55 Aleric Watson 6-4 302 rFr.
LG 71 Mehki Butler 6-3 330 rJr. 74 Elijah Zollicoffer 6-5 330 So.
C 73 Jacob Bayer 6-3 315 Jr. 58 Cameron Ambrose 6-4 293 rFr.
RG 51 Jalen Cunningham 6-5 350 rSr. 50 Austin Woods 6-5 300 rSo.
RT 77 Makilan Thomas 6-3 302 rSo. 65 Noah Smith 6-7 311 rSo.

DEFENSE
DE 32 Ethan Hassler 6-2 248 Jr. 92 Thurman Geathers 6-2 215 rSr.
DT 55 Micah Bland 6-1 318 rSr. 45 Nate Martey 6-1 288 Jr.
DT 90 Tim Hardiman 5-11 273 rSo. 7 Terion Sugick 6-1 293 rSo.
DE 25 Keyron Crawford 6-4 243 So. 18 Dennard Flowers 6-2 248 rSo.
LB 36 Charles Willekes 6-1 228 rJr. 13 Gavin Potter 6-2 225 rJr.
LB 24 Javante Mackey 6-2 228 rFr. 23 Dane Motley 5-11 221 rJr.
STAR 21 Melique Straker 5-10 210 Sr. 22 Sam Graham 6-0 209 rSo.
CB 1 Samy Johnson 5-10 190 Sr. 6 Dontay Joyner 6-0 163 Fr.
S 9 Trevian Thomas 5-11 192 Jr. 4 Taylon Doss 5-10 194 Jr.
S 8 Eddie Smith 6-0 212 rSr. 29 Justin Parks 6-0 192 Jr.
CB 0 Justin Hodges 6-2 175 Sr. 2 Leon Jones 6-1 195 Sr.

SPECIALISTS
P 92 William Przystup 6-4 247 rSr. 42 Magnus Haines 5-11 194 rSo.
FG 33 Dominic Zvada 6-3 174 So. 32 Aidan Ellison 5-11 198 rSo.
KO 32 Aidan Ellison 5-11 198 rSo. -or- 33 Dominic Zvada 6-3 174 So. 47 Noah Grant 6-2 204 Jr.
LS 38 Jack Bullard 5-11 205 Jr. 48 Lucas Ott 6-3 232 Fr.
H 92 William Przystup 6-4 247 rSr.
PR 9 Courtney Jackson 5-11 186 rJr. 28 Reagan Ealy 5-9 172 Jr.
KR 2 Ja'Quez Cross 5-9 189 rSo. 10 Tennel Bryant 5-7 157 Fr.

Did not see it posted on the thread on the Conference forum, so post it here.

Some surprises, but as expected a lot of youngsters, and Butch Jones said they will get younger as the year progresses as some talented freshmen work their way onto the depth chart. Not a bad team at all as is.

Just to keep up with how the team is developing as the year progresses, and Butch Jones has warned everyone you can't go by their depth chart , so here are the starters against UMASS, and the players that participated (true freshmen BOLD)

OFFENSE
QB 1 Raynor, Jaylen, 15-Dailey, Jaxon
RB 2 Cross, Ja'Quez, 21-Wallace, Zak, 4-Snead, Brian
TE 12 Stevenson, Emmanual, 13-McCrumby, Miller, 18-Diaz, Kevin
WR 28 Ealy, Reagan, 14-Foreman, Jeff
WR 7 Rucker, Corey, 8-Thompson, Khmari,
WR 9 Jackson, Courtney , 11-Jones, Adam
OL 51 Cunningham, Jalen , 50-Woods, Austin
OL 71 Butler, Mekhi, 68-Smith, Tristian
OL 73 Bayer, Jacob , 58-Ambrose, Cameron
OL 74 Zollicoffer, Elijah, N/A
OL 77 Thomas, Makilan, 65-Smith, Noah

DEFENSE
DE 25 Crawford, Keyron, 18-Flowers, Dennard
DE 92 Geathers, Thurman, 17-Toll, Blayne
DL 96 Lewis, Kadan, 91-Rustemeyer, Ashtin
DL 45 Martey, Nate 90-Hardiman, Tim
LB 21 Straker, Melique, 33-Jeffery, Cam
LB 24 Mackey, Javante, 23-Motley, Dane
LB 36 Willekes, Charles, 13-Potter, Gavin
CB 0 Hodges, Justin, 2-Jones, Leon
CB 1 Johnson, Samy, 6-Joyner, Dontay , 19-Reed III, James
S 29 Parks, Justin, 8-Smith, Eddie
S 9 Thomas, Trevian ,12-Etienne, Websley

These players participated on Special teams: 10-Bryant, Tennel 30-Agapos, Andrew, 33-Zvada, Dominic, , 34-Van Andel, Clune, 37-Williams, Tyler, 38-Bullard, Jack, 81-Lipscomb, Takare, 84-Linder, Reed, 85-Burns Jr., DeAndra, , 92-Przystup, William

Starting DE Ethan Hassler and DT Micah Bland were still out against UMASS-although Bland apparently could have played ,and DT Terion Sugick is out for the year.

While the talk has been on the play of freshman QB Jaylen Raynor, their receivers finally joining the party, and defense playing "winning football" even while shorthanded on the DL, the story line for 2023 is the play of their offensive line. Their OL has played well in all five of their games , even against Oklahoma, and is beginning show signs it can dominate the line of scrimmage.

If their OL ,which is probably already a "monster", continues to progress and they get a few of their defensive linemen healthy, Butch Jones' prediction that this team will "win it's fair share of games", is probably a good prediction.

While not seeing it yet , do expect to see more true freshmen earn pt going forward .

Worth mentioning two players that have been in Butch Jones dog house- WR Corey Rucker(dropped passes and poor route running), and RB Brian Snead (catastrophic fumble against Memphis in a game they could have won except for turnovers), and who have been on the back burner since the Memphis game, but who could be huge factors going foreword.

Rucker is probably the teams Alpha Wolf, and is capable of dominating a game, and while he has struggled getting healthy since joining them, Snead -other than being in Butch Jones's dog house since Memphis, when healthy has been their starter, and is more than capable of doing the same. They are both "game changers", and I expect they will change a couple down the stretch.

Again will check back at the end of the season and see how this team came together down the stretch. Regardless, their fans should began to see how talented these youngsters are, and like Raynor there are some really 'dynamic" freshmen on their roster that will get pt even if they keep their red-shirt year, that should really excite their fans, because they will not stay young forever.

Here is the Depth chart listed on their game notes for Troy. Other than the players missing because of injuries it is made up of the players on their first depth chart without a lot of new true freshmen in the mix.

On defense it does not list rFR DT Kdan Lewis- who started last week against UMass, JR LB Cam Jeffery, SO CB James Reed III, and all played. On offense rSO OG Tristian Smith played but is missing from the depth chart this week.

GAME 6 • OCTOBER 7, 2023 • 3:00 PM • VETERANS MEMORIAL STADIUM • TROY, ALA.

PDF: https://astateredwolves.com/documents/20...B_Troy.pdf

A-State Depth Chart

OFFENSE
QB 1 Jaylen Raynor 6-0 204 Fr. 15 Jaxon Dailey 6-2 212 rFr. -or- 5 J.T. Shrout 6-3 215 rSr.
RB 2 Ja'Quez Cross 5-9 189 rSo. -or- 21 Zak Wallace 6-0 229 rJr. -or- 4 Brian Snead 6-0 211 rSr.
TE 12 Emmanual Stevenson 6-3 233 Jr. 13 Miller McCrumby 6-3 225 So. 18 Kevin Diaz 6-4 250 Jr. 87 Tyler Little 6-4 245 Fr.
WR 7 Corey Rucker 6-0 210 rSo. 11 Adam Jones 6-2 188 rJr.
WR 9 Courtney Jackson 5-11 186 rJr. 28 Reagan Ealy 5-9 172 Jr. 6 Wyatt Begeal 5-11 204 rSo.
WR 14 Jeff Foreman 6-0 186 Sr. 8 Khmari Thompson 6-1 207 Jr.
LT 74 Elijah Zollicoffer 6-5 330 So.78 Hamilton Hall 6-5 311 rSr.
LG 71 Mehki Butler 6-3 330 rJr. 55 Aleric Watson 6-4 302 rFr.
C 73 Jacob Bayer 6-3 315 Jr. 58 Cameron Ambrose 6-4 293 rFr.
RG 51 Jalen Cunningham 6-5 350 rSr. 50 Austin Woods 6-5 300 rSo.
RT 77 Makilan Thomas 6-3 302 rSo. 65 Noah Smith 6-7 311 rSo.

DEFENSE
DE 92 Thurman Geathers 6-2 215 rSr. 17 Blayne Toll 6-6 266 Jr.
DT 55 Micah Bland 6-1 318 rSr. 45 Nate Martey 6-1 288 Jr.
DT 90 Tim Hardiman 5-11 273 rSo. 91 Ashtin Rustemeyer 6-1 300 rFr.
DE 25 Keyron Crawford 6-4 243 So. 18 Dennard Flowers 6-2 248 rSo.
LB 36 Charles Willekes 6-1 228 rJr. 13 Gavin Potter 6-2 225 rJr.
LB 24 Javante Mackey 6-2 228 rFr. 23 Dane Motley 5-11 221 rJr.
STAR 21 Melique Straker 5-10 210 Sr. 22 Sam Graham 6-0 209 rSo.
CB 1 Samy Johnson 5-10 190 Sr. 6 Dontay Joyner 6-0 163 Fr.
S 9 Trevian Thomas 5-11 192 Jr. 4 Taylon Doss 5-10 194 Jr.
S 8 Eddie Smith 6-0 212 rSr. 29 Justin Parks 6-0 192 Jr.
CB 0 Justin Hodges 6-2 175 Sr. 2 Leon Jones 6-1 195 Sr.

SPECIALISTS
P 92 William Przystup 6-4 247 rSr. 42 Magnus Haines 5-11 194 rSo.
FG 33 Dominic Zvada 6-3 174 So. 32 Aidan Ellison 5-11 198 rSo.
KO 32 Aidan Ellison 5-11 198 rSo. -or- 33 Dominic Zvada 6-3 174 So. 47 Noah Grant 6-2 204 Jr. -or- 34 Clune Van Andel 6-0 209 Fr
LS 38 Jack Bullard 5-11 205 Jr. 48 Lucas Ott 6-3 232 Fr.
H 92 William Przystup 6-4 247 rSr.
PR 9 Courtney Jackson 5-11 186 rJr. 28 Reagan Ealy 5-9 172 Jr.
KR 2 Ja'Quez Cross 5-9 189 rSo. 10 Tennel Bryant 5-7 157 Fr.

Again just wanting to follow the development of this team , and still waiting for the expected influx of true freshmen Butch said could be ready by game 4-5.

When and if they do make their appearance their fans see why everyone is looking forward to watching them, because like Jaylen Raynor or even over-looked CB Dontay Joyner ,they are in many cases the most dynamic players in their respective rooms.

As far as getting younger rFR DT Kadan Lewis (6-1 248)- who reported offers from Tulane, Louisiana, Memphis, Ole Miss, ULM, Middle Tennessee and others, started and he was more than effective. He replaced Senior transfer Micah Bland at DT, and had not been on the radar at all prior to that game. He was backed up another rFR Ashtin Rustemeyer who made the depth chart when rSO Terion Sugick was lost for the year. Rustemeyer has been effective too. Most were expecting veteran rJR VJ Bronson(6-3, 293) to play before any of these freshmen. Not sure about his health. Many feel true freshmen Ian Jeffries (6-4, 287)- who got a few snaps in one game, Timothy Gulley (6-1, 300) and Brian Alston (6-3, 263) are their most talented defensive linemen. Butch said he wants to redshirt them they could play in four games.

This is worth noting because it was this position group that struggled to hold up for four quarters last year, and Butch feels was a big reason they lost the lead in so many games in the fourth quarter. They are young overall, but have been effective, and they have a lot of them, with more available if needed as the year progresses.

It does look like Elijah Zollicoffer -who is listed as a Sophomore but Butch Jones says is a rFR, has taken over the LT job over Ole Miss transfer SR Hamilton Hall.

Last thoughts .

While they are a year, probably two ,away from being a team with a depth chart composted of mostly upper classmen, Butch is probably right in his "This team will win their fair share of games" statement. While they will probably get even younger this year and will again be young next year, their underclassmen are probably the most talented group of underclassmen in the SBC, and are playing better as the year goes along, and as a team they are playing "winning" football.

The biggest reason Butch is probably right is their OL. It has given them a chance in all the games this year, and with only one senior starting, unless they lose some, probably even more so next year. They have shown the ability to dominated the other teams DL in spurts in every game thus far, and those spurts are getting longer and longer and longer, every time out, and they are more than physically capable of dominating any SBC DL, including Troys... today.

So no reason to revisit this team later this year, or even next year, because all this team needs is time to grow into a monster. They still have more than enough "tangibles" in place right now to "win their fair share of games", between now and 2025.