Early look at 2024 FB team

[Little George]

Just a brief look at what we have coming back this coming year.

I will look at the QB spot first.

We are blessed to have Noah Fifita coming back! Noah has not yet reached his potential and should be better next year. I expect him to be in the running for the B12 player of the year and maybe more.

Brayden Dorman will be the key back up guy as he has been on campus and learned the system I expect he will be a very good player if he is called upon to lead the team.

Demond Williams is talented, but I expect him to likely RS his first year in much like what Dorman did. Learn the system and focus on academics the first year up. He has a very high ceiling and will eventually be a star on this campus.

With Noah a returning starter and Brayden having been on campus for a year already, I think this is a solid unit even though we only have three scholarship guys and the plan will be to RS the newest one.

[Little George]

Staying on O and in the backfield.

We lose three RBs this offseason: Wiley, Williams, and Rocker.
Those are three good RBs. Good news though! We have Coleman, Luke, and Johnson coming back.
Coleman is a beast and we all know what he brings. Speedy Luke will likely add a lil more strength during the offseason which will help him see the field more. Johnson will bring some balance of speed and agility with good vision and hands. That is just they type of guy CJF likes.
New this year will be two interesting Freshmen. Adam Mohammed and speedster Jordan Washington. I expect to see some regular rotations lie we did this year, so expect to see these new faces get some PT.

Coleman is a beast and with him leading the RBs we should be in good hands, but we like to rotate the players often to keep them fresh and we do not have a second big back like we did with Williams last year.  Very strong unit.

[Little George]

The WR room is maybe the best in the history of the program. It should be the best Receiver room in the B12. It should be a top 5 Receiver room in the country. Play makers everywhere for sure. The only sure lock to start is McMillan. Looking at the other receivers we will see why the hype is so hot on this unit.

Montana Lemonious-Craig finished the year strong and that bids well on his second year in the program.

Kevin Green Jr is like a bolt of lightning in a small package. The only reason he wasn't already known as a star on this team is because of who was playing in front of him.

AJ Jones is a solid receiver with great size and great hands.

Malachi Riley has already shown his explosive ability in limited action on the field. He may take the starting role over LMC. Hard to believe how talented this kid is.

Jackson Holman is another strong receiver with great size and hands.

Carlos Wilson is quick and fast. I really was surprised to not see him returning the ball this year.

Devin Hyatt is another  guy that is better than most people realize. Looking forward to seeing what he can do for this Offense on the field.

Deric English. He came in as a walk-on guy because of injury issues. When he is back at 100% he will be a very good addition.

New guys coming in: Audric Harris and Brandon Phelps. These two are very good receivers in every aspect. The biggest shame here is that we may not see these guys on the field this coming year.

This is the deepest and strongest position group on the Offense this next year.

[arxpert]

Montana Lemonious-Craig

M L C is the only WR I believe will be impactful.

I also think our TE's are WR's just mislabeled.

I am more concerned with our OL and RB situation. Replacing an Elite Left Tackle isn't easy. Running the Ball is going to be important as a tool to go to in order to control the clock and play the game on our terms.

What is the status of the OL and RB units?

[Little George]

The TE position will give us a new starter this year. I think we are in pretty good shape here either way.

Keyan Burnett would be the first player most think of and most likely that would be the likely starter. I would not put a lot of money on it though. That is not a knock on Burnett, but there are some really decent players behind him.
Tyler Powell has worked hard top be in a position to see the field. His size and ability is there to push Burnett for PT.
I have heard nothing but praise for Dorian Thomas since he has been on campus. He could put himself in the mix this year.
Roberto Miranda has been a solid blocker in limited action, but figures to be buried on the depth chart. I would not be surprised to see him stay and get his degree here, but also would not at all be surprised to see him transfer for PT.
We are bringing in two young guys. First is Charlie Crowell from Oregon who the staff is very high on, and second is a tweener in Dylan Tapley. Dylan is like a hybrid WR  SE/TE that can create some real mismatches when he finally hits the field.

[Little George]

To answer some questions we have already had about perhaps the most important position on the offense.

The OL will return five starters next year, but obviously not Jordan Morgan. Remember that Leif Magnuson started a number of games already this season. We will likely see Joseph Borjon start this week against Oklahoma. Where the players line up will be another story. Big Jonah Savaiinaea could start at RG, RT, or LT. I am hearing that Raymond Pulido could start RG, RT easily, and maybe LT. Robert Borjon could start at either side at OT. Leif Magnuson could start at RG. Bottom line is we think it will be Pulido and Borjon on the right side and Jonah at LT. No surprises here right? Versatility is something this staff cherishes. They place such a high value on the ability to play multiple positions along the O and D lines. So basically we will get a preview of next years starting OL? IDK about that. We have some young guys that are working very hard to be in position to start next year. Both Elijah Payne and Rhino Tapa'atoutai will both be much stronger by next fall with some experience in the system to boot.

Next year could be special for sure. We will likely have three OL guys in the draft. Well, at least two. Baker will be a senior and both Savaiinaea and Moe will be draft eligible. Getting these younger guys in and up to speed will be critical in the long term health of this build.

IF either Elijah or Rhino can take control of the LT position, our right side would be Pulido and Savaiinaea next year. That is some real power right there.

Guys like Stovall, Gonzalez, Hand, Magnuson, and a few others will need to ready to step in at any point. They will also likely be needed the following year IF we loose those three guys I mentioned.

Over all I would say the OL should be a strength next year as we enter the B12 era. I would think we should have the top returning offense in the B12 next year.

[Little George]

https://www.azdesertswarm.com/football/2023/12/30/24019137/arizona-wildcats-football-alamo-bowl-jedd-fisch-oklahoma-sooners-future-fifita-mcmillan-2024-big12

OL addition

Wanted to add that here.

https://247sports.com/Player/Alex-Doost-46100742/

Will have 4 years to play after RS at Northwestern.

[Little George]

https://www.azdesertswarm.com/football/2024/1/1/24020887/arizona-wildcats-football-postmorten-season-review-preview-jedd-fisch-2024-big12-roster-recruiting

Few more updates within the article.


I would not be surprised to see Gonzalez to move over to the DL if we do not land somebody else from the portal.

[arxpert]

The TE position will give us a new starter this yea

Rather than quoting all, I think this line will suffice.

Thanks for the info. It is useful. I think as we enter a new conference we should have a lot of options available in terms of depth. We have to see some teams we haven't played before and it is always important to be 2 to 3 players deep per position.

That is something I cannot believe I am even saying at all about Arizona football. Historically we would be lucky to be 1 deep at any position.

Something I would like to see is a TE3 that is utilized for blocking. Maybe in college that comes in the form of a swing man OL, but if we can develop someone into an end of the line blocking TE that can chip and get off the block and be there for security blanket situations or even for an occasional cheeky TE screen I think it would be a valuable weapon for Jedd to have for Noah.

I say this since Jedd is seemingly trying to bring some pro style approaches.

I like Burnett. McMillan just makes him look bad overall. Losing Cowing and his reliability worries me a lot. McMillan is no surprise to anyone anymore. Can he be stopped though? That's the rub.

I want to see how the show goes on. Continuing to have a stout running game would really help continue the momentum.

[KansasCityCats]

I personally think that Coleman was the best running back on the roster.  Luke will hopefully bulk up and provide some depth, outside of 3rd down.  Plus, there are two solid recruits coming in.  The staff hasn't been afraid to use true freshman on either side of the ball so I'm intrigued to see who gets additional snaps (outside of Jonah).