Offense:

QB: Reed
RB: Owens
WR: Horton ; Craver ; ABR
OL: Bourdon ; Ivy ; Nabou ; Baugh ; Formby
TE: Anderson

Defense:

Safety: Brooks ; Ratcliffe
Corner: Ricks ; Gibson
Nickel: Shaw
LB: Coney ; Sanford
DL: Jones ; Hicks ; Mims ; Saka

Let me know what y'all think!

I am least confident in my predictions for the trenches… excited to see how those position battles shake out. Definitely expecting depth to be a BIG factor, even if they aren't technically starters (Bussey, Byard, Lockhart, Morrow, Adams, Searcy, Humphrey, Mikhail, Echols, Rink to name a few).

Searcy will start at the 5-tech as Jones and Saka play the same position.

Also, I don't think Adams and Echols came here to sit the bench. I think they start on the left side. Bourdon and Ivy compete with Baugh for the RG spot.

Otherwise, it looks good, but I think Mikhail pushes Sanford at the Will.

I also think Byard will see the field somewhere whether that is at nickel or Ratcliffe's spot

Lamont Rogers? Where do you see this big fella fitting in?

Anderson or did you mean Armstrong at TE?

Richie Anderson (Fresno State transfer)

I think he'll get some reps at tackle here and there as Cushing has shown that he likes to rotate guys in and out, however I have Tyree Adams as the first tackle off the bench. I do expect Rogers to start on the line next year for sure, though!

Thanks for the clarification on Searcy. I definitely could see Echols and Adams starting. I'm just not too convinced given the performance of the LSU line last year.

I also have a feeling that Cushing trains Echols to be used at center so that he can take over from Nabou next year. I think he projects to the pros better at center. (Also worth noting that Bourdon is a tackle).

On Adams, I still expect him to get significant reps as Cushing likes to rotate his linemen.

I'd like to see Morrow grow enough to supplant Owens at RB

i am excited about the side line to sideline abilities of our linebackers

Thanks. Forgot about him. Hard to keep track.

Adams and Echols were not LSU's problem. Adams got hurt half way through the year. Go back and watch highlights against us: Echols moved Regis with ease on multiple plays. There will be lots of competition, but my guess is these two are above Baugh, Ivy, and Bourdon right now.

eaggies said:

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Thanks for the clarification on Searcy. I definitely could see Echols and Adams starting. I'm just not too convinced given the performance of the LSU line last year.

I also have a feeling that Cushing trains Echols to be used at center so that he can take over from Nabou next year. I think he projects to the pros better at center. (Also worth noting that Bourdon is a tackle).

On Adams, I still expect him to get significant reps as Cushing likes to rotate his linemen.

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Pretty much any tackle can also play guard. Not as easy to go the other direction.

We certainly need a quarterback that's SEC and not junior college quality

fightinag said:

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We certainly need a quarterback that's SEC and not junior college quality

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Not sure what you mean by this above post?

We have 3 SEC quality level QB's now for our QB room going into the 2026 season:

1. Marcel Reed 6'1'' 175 - Junior (RS) - Starting QB for 2026

2. Brady Hart 6'4" 195 - Freshman (RS) - Wil be QB #2 in 2026 - Starting QB in 2027 / 2028

3. Helman Casuga 6'1" 220 - True Freshman - Will RS as a QB in 2026
- Will become QB #3 in 2026 & QB #2 in 2027 / 2028
- Possible starting QB in 2028 / 2029

fightinag said:

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We certainly need a quarterback that's SEC and not junior college quality

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THANK YOU!!!!!! AGREE!!! Reed is a decent second string backup quarterback.

SouthCollegeStation said:

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fightinag said:

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We certainly need a quarterback that's SEC and not junior college quality

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Not sure what you mean by this above post?

We have 3 SEC quality level QB's now for our QB room going into the 2026 season:

1. Marcel Reed 6'1'' 175 - Junior (RS) - Starting QB for 2026

2. Brady Hart 6'4" 195 - Freshman (RS) - Wil be QB #2 in 2026 - Starting QB in 2027 / 2028

3. Helman Casuga 6'1" 220 - True Freshman - Will RS as a QB in 2026
- Will become QB #3 in 2026 & QB #2 in 2027 / 2028
- Possible starting QB in 2028 / 2029

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Marcel Reed should be competing for starting QB at Blinn JC .....not for a starting QB position in the SEC
I certainly hope the starting QB position is a true competition this spring and not a given by Elko

lol

You need to go back and look at Jayden Daniels progression from his junior year to his Heisman senior year. Not saying Reed is a Heisman guy, but their skill sets are very similar.

drink32 said:

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Also, I don't think Adams and Echols came here to sit the bench. I think they start on the left side. Bourdon and Ivy compete with Baugh for the RG spot.

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I doesn't matter what they came here for, it matters if they are better than who we have on campus. Echols was mediocre I could easily see him losing a position battle. Adams has a better chance imo. If Baugh is starting I think we have problems. Formby was arguably better as a guard than a tackle but I think Elko made it clear we intend to play him at tackle.

MattyMcCoo said:

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Lamont Rogers? Where do you see this big fella fitting in?

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Hopefully a rotational piece at minimum groomed to be our 2027 LT.

Peter Piper said:

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Reed might not be the best QB in the SEC but for whatever faults he got, he did lead us to the playoffs last season. He's already proven that he's an SEC-level QB.

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Said the t sip who is glad to see him be the starter

Reed is the season this year.

Reed was 11-1 as a starter losing only by 10 at tu and 7 in the playoffs vs #2 Miami. Reed led us right down the field for the win against Miami but a no call PI on Miami stopped him. He performed better vs P4 teams than Archy. 9 TD 5 int vs 7 TD 5 int for Archy. Better completion percentage. He will out perform Archy in 2026.

LincolnBorglum79 said:

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Reed was 11-1 as a starter losing only by 10 at tu and 7 in the playoffs vs #2 Miami. Reed led us right down the field for the win against Miami but a no call PI on Miami stopped him. He performed better vs P4 teams than Archy. 9 TD 5 int vs 7 TD 5 int for Archy. Better completion percentage. He will out perform Archy in 2026.

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Go back and look at the video of the last pass he threw in the Miami game. The pass was four feet behind his intended receiver in the end zone. His receiver was wide open and Reed threw it behind him in desperation!

LincolnBorglum79 said:

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Reed was 11-1 as a starter losing only by 10 at tu and 7 in the playoffs vs #2 Miami. Reed led us right down the field for the win against Miami but a no call PI on Miami stopped him. He performed better vs P4 teams than Archy. 9 TD 5 int vs 7 TD 5 int for Archy. Better completion percentage. He will out perform Archy in 2026.

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Interesting spin on Reed. A competent QB beats Miami by 21. We had guys open all day but Reed had happy feet, panic brain, and his normal inaccuracy. We improved OC with Wiggins. Hopefully Reed can take a much needed step forward in decision making, mechanics, and accuracy.
I hope we see some more speed at safety in place of Radcliffe, maybe he can move down to a rover closer to the box

eaggies said:

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Offense:

QB: Reed
RB: Owens
WR: Horton ; Craver ; ABR
OL: Bourdon ; Ivy ; Nabou ; Baugh ; Formby
TE: Anderson

Defense:

Safety: Brooks ; Ratcliffe
Corner: Ricks ; Gibson
Nickel: Shaw
LB: Coney ; Sanford
DL: Jones ; Hicks ; Mims ; Saka

Let me know what y'all think!

I am least confident in my predictions for the trenches… excited to see how those position battles shake out. Definitely expecting depth to be a BIG factor, even if they aren't technically starters (Bussey, Byard, Lockhart, Morrow, Adams, Searcy, Humphrey, Mikhail, Echols, Rink to name a few).

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I will preface it with: I think there's multiple positions where being the starter doesn't matter. Multiple guys will play depending on the down/distance/situation/scheme.

Offense:

QB: Reed
RB: Owens
WR: Horton ; Craver ; ABR
OL: Bourdon ; Ivy ; Nabou ; Rogers ; Formby
TE: Anderson/Thomas as receiving TE & Riley as blocking TE

Defense:

Safety: Brooks ; Ratcliffe
Corner: Ricks ; Gibson
Nickel: Shaw
LB: Coney/Mikhail will split ; Sanford
DL: Jones ; Hicks ; Mims/McCollum ; Searcy (Saka for pass situations)

How are the fullbacks looking?

LincolnBorglum79 said:

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Reed was 11-1 as a starter losing only by 10 at tu and 7 in the playoffs vs #2 Miami. Reed led us right down the field for the win against Miami but a no call PI on Miami stopped him. He performed better vs P4 teams than Archy. 9 TD 5 int vs 7 TD 5 int for Archy. Better completion percentage. He will out perform Archy in 2026.

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losing to tu !

Dimond1968 said:

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How are the fullbacks looking?

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Don't have one as far as I know. Klein used them at Kansas state then came here and changed up his offense (sounds familiar looking at you, Jimbo) to a more single back scheme. Maybe Wiggins wants one, feels like we could convert a linebacker without any trouble.