In our first article of the 2024 Looking Forward series, we looked at departing seniors and returning players from the defensive line. In this article, we move back one level to the heart of the defense, the linebackers. In the Woody defense, the linebackers are listed in two general categories: the Inside Linebackers (listed as LBs on the roster), and the Outside Linebackers (OLBs on the roster).

The inside linebackers, WILL and MIKE are the primary run stoppers, and invariably, one of the two leads the team in tackles every year. The OLBs consist of the DOG, who is the principal edge rusher, and the APACHE who is a hybrid, LB/DB sometimes acting as a 5th DB in coverage as well as playing a pass rusher and containment role.

There were a total of 765 defensive snaps in 2023, a total of 773 total tackles made, 53 of which were TFLs and 21 of which were Sacks. Below is a list of senior LBs along with their 2023 stats.

The recently published 2024 Roster lists 10 OLBs, 3 of whom are rising seniors, two of whom are rising juniors and the remaining 5 are rising sophomores.

The roster also lists 10 LBs (inside), 3 of whom are rising seniors, 2 of whom are rising juniors and the remaining 5 are rising sophomores.

Below are some statistics and comments on the most promising of the returning linebackers.

Rising Senior Trey Sofia played in every game last season (226 snaps, 13 Tackles, 1.5 Sacks and 1 Kick Blocked). He’s long and fast with experience at both Dog and defensive end.

Rising Sophomore Elo Modozie (5 games, 47 snaps, 9.0 Tackles with 1 Sack) is explosive with tremendous pass-rush potential and exceptional coverage skills. He moved from Apache to Dog mid-season and made some big plays including a TD after a blocked punt.

Rising Junior Eric Ford (6 games, 54 snaps, 5.0 Tackles, 0.5 TFLs) is a fast edge rusher who will continue to improve as he develops in the weight room.

Rising Senior Chance Keith, (79 snaps, 5.0 Tackles), Rising Senior Hamilton Baker (8 defensive snaps), and Rising Senior Josiah Banks will battle it out to see who replaces Ciarlo for the 2024 season.

Rising Junior Kalib Fortner (496 snaps, 68 tackles, including 3.5 TFLs, and 2.5 Sacks, plus 1 FF and 1 FR) worked his way from the scout team as a freshman to the top of the depth chart at Mike as a sophomore. Tough hard-nosed player with great potential who finished strong, especially in the Navy game as we all witnessed.

Rising Junior Andon Thomas started out in the two deep until an ankle injury set him back. He played only 5 snaps with no stats in 2023 but the staff thinks he has great promise.

Rising Sophomore Noah Nixon is another young player that the staff thinks will add depth to this position in 2024.

Rising Senior Brett Gerena (102 snaps, 19 tackles, 0.5 TFLs, 1 FF, and a blocked kick) has made plays for the last two years in the team’s third-down package. He produced a big turnover vs Air Force.

Rising Senior Adam Cash (4.0 Tackles) moved from safety to linebacker similar to Lowin and has showed a lot of promise there. Gerena and Cash were valuable members of special teams.

With two of the 4 team captains, Lowin and Ciarlo departing, this unit looks to be in a rebuilding year, especially at the Apache position, where three relatively inexperienced seniors will be vying to replace the talented Ciarlo. The team suffered from lack of a solid MIKE for the first half of the 2023 season, but Fortner came on strong in mid season and promises to be the backbone of this unit in 2024. Gerena has already shown us a lot of promise, and we expect him to backfill in nicely for Lowin at WILL but he needs a little additional seasoning and some additional backup. The DOG position should be in good hands with Sofia and Mendozie returning with a fair amount of experience and solid talent.

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