'FREE' GBK Spring Preview - Army Black Knights Defense
With a little less than a month to go before the start of spring practice, GoBlackKnights.com looks at the players who are most likely to be featured in the depth chart at each position. Needless to say, we went directly to the source and in this case it means defensive coordinator, Jay Bateman. The 4th year DC added his perspective on some of the key players and where he sees them fitting into his defensive scheme.
With only 4 starters lost to graduation this year, our readers can, no doubt, identify the top prospects at most positions, but there are likely to be a few surprises as well. We start with a piece of good advice:
IF IT’S NOT BROKE, DON’T FIX IT
The Linebackers
With the loss of Andrew King and Jeremy Timpf, the JAAK Attack is history, and one of the big questions in our mind was what configuration of players will take its place in the Bateman 3-4 scheme.
Alex Aukerman proved to be a very versatile part of Bateman’s defensive scheme last season; so we asked if he had plans to move Aukerman inside. As it stands right now, senior to be Alex Aukerman is approximately 250 pounds, and he does a lot of things for and in Army’s 3-4 defense. Aukerman was third in total tackles and led the team in TFLs and Sacks last season. Bateman doesn’t plan to change that, and Aukerman will remain as the SAM.
“I think that he causes so many problems at the point of attack and I just feel that he is just better off right there being a pass rusher.” Aukerman was third in total tackles last season and led the team in TFLs and Sacks.
“The outside backers in this defense have to be able to make plays for you,” Bateman shared with GoBlackKnights.com. “He (Aukerman) is such a multiple kid, with so many different skills and he’s been doing it for two years now ... he’s really coming into his own.”
One indication of the depth that Bateman has to work with this spring is the talent at backup. Bayle Wolf will be the backup to Aukerman at SAM. Wolf had some injuries that limited his time last season, but he has appeared in 20 games including 5 starts, and has 35 career tackles and 2 Sacks.
Former Rivals 3-star prospect Kenneth Brinson is the other returning member of the JAAK Attack and it will come as no surprise to any of our readers that he will enter spring practice at the top of the depth chart at RUSH END, the other OLB in Bateman’s 3-4 configuration. Brinson came in direct as a plebe, and despite missing out on the opportunity to transition through USMAPS, he has appeared in all 25 games with 19 starts in his first two years. He has 64 career tackles, 11 TFLs, 4.5 Sacks; he has intercepted 2 passes, and he returned a blocked punt for a 21 yard TD.
When asked who is the likely backup for Brinson, Bateman told us “There are a lot of young kids that will push him. I am really interested to see how that position shakes out. I think Jacob Ellington & Haden Haupt.” So we have a couple of faces to learn.
Army Fans who follow the team fairly closely will not be surprised to hear who Bateman identified as the leading candidate to fill the job at MLB formerly held by graduating senior and 2016 co-captain Andrew King. “You have [Scott] Washle, who has done a good job when asked to fill in for Andrew.” Bateman’s second candidate was a little less obvious. “Cole Christiansen, who is really talented and who as a freshman, we had to find ways to get him on the field,” stated the defensive coordinator. “He probably played 35-40 snaps in a couple different packages for us as a freshman.” Washle was the backup to King for 3 years and has appeared in 26 games with one start. He has registered 32 total tackles, an interception, and 2 passes defended.
The candidates Bateman identified to fill the 4th position at linebacker was more of a revelation. The WILL linebacker position has been monopolized by two-time co-captain Jeremy Timpf, who has led the team in tackles the past three years. We believe James Nachitgal and Ryan Parker will be the two players focused on initially. “Yes, I expect both those guys to be really good players for us,” stated Bateman. Nachtigal impressed us as the primary backup for Brinson last season, and we’ll be interested to see how he performs in his new role. As Timpf’s statistics suggest, the WILL is a key element in the defense.
Defensive Linemen
John Voit has been a mainstay of defensive line for the past two seasons with 25 straight starts and appearances in 36 games in his three years. He has been selected for several All-Independent teams in the past, and barring injuries, we fully expect to see him at the top of the depth chart at Defensive End.
“Obviously, John Voit is a pretty good player for us there and Amadeo [West] is going to be a very good player,” shared Bateman, although don’t be surprised to see the 6-foot-2, 230 pound sophomore-to-be to moved around in Bateman’s fluid scheme. “He’s probably the next closest to bringing the things that Aukerman brings as an outside backer. I can see him doing that role ... we did it last year in nickel and dime.” Fans may recall that Aukerman started as a defensive tackle in 4 games last season in the nickel and dime configurations. “I think one of the questions for our defensive staff in the spring is to really have a plan for Amadeo moving forward, because I think he’s a good player,” added the DC.
The Nose Guard position was ably shared by three players last season, providing different looks and keeping the defenders fresh up front. The size differential that is a source of frequent commentary is more noticeable at nose guard than any other position. Rising senior, Andrew McLean has brought some needed size to the job and earned the starting assignment in 11 games last season, while Raymond Wright got the nod in the nickel/dime configuration. Cordarell Davis was third man in at NG and all three are back this spring.
With the graduation of Eddy Ruzga and Jordan Smith, the Defensive Tackle position in the lineup is up for grabs. Don’t be surprised to see Raymond Wright getting tons of looks and reps at defensive tackle, where Wunmi Oyetuga is most likely to enter spring ball as the No. 1, with Wright running a very close 2nd if not neck and neck.
Defensive Backs
With 3 of the 4 starters returning, one might expect that the depth chart was pretty stable in that area, but we learned that the situation is likely to be more fluid than we thought, with several players considered capable of filling more than one assignment if necessary. The big question we had for Bateman was who he had in mind to replace Xavier Moss at Strong Safety, and the response we got was one of the surprises.
Rising junior James Gibson is consistently listed between 215-220 pounds, but the staff is looking to get him a little leaner (210 range) as he transitions to the safety spot due to the upcoming graduation of Xavier Moss. Of course, getting Gibby leaner, the hope is to get him faster as well.
“James is going to play a lot for us, it’s just a matter of how it shakes out,” said Bateman, who readily admitted that Gibson versatility to between safety and OLB, allows for the defensive coordinator to be more flexible when it comes to his personnel.
Gibson’s probable back-up: Cameron Jones is the name that stands out and freshman’s has a bright future for the Black Knights.
Rhyan England will be the senior representative in what promises to be a young defensive backfield this coming season and like Voit and Aukerman, he brings a solid three years of starting experience to the job with 31 game appearances and 29 starts. He will most likely return to the Free (Field) Safety position he’s played the past 3 years, but the soon-to-be senior can actually play all four defensive back positions.
As to his backup, Bateman offered, “I think Max Regan is a really good player. He’s big [205 lbs] and he’s going to bring some similar things as James [Gibson] against the run game.
Rising sophomore, Elijah Riley will start out spring season as the Boundary Corner. Riley stepped in after the untimely death of Josh Jackson, and surprised a lot of fans with his performance as a freshman, finishing 6th on the team in total tackles with 47, the team lead in interceptions with 3 and tied for 4th with 3 pass breakups.
The Field Corner position is currently filled by Jaylon McClinton, but that could change. McClinton started out as a nickel back and safety but was pressed into duty as a cornerback after Marcus Hyatt was sidelined with an injury. Hyatt will miss spring practice while recuperating from that injury, but he will be back in the mix once he’s available for duty. In the meantime, we’re advised to keep an eye on rising junior Jalen Sharp. Sharp was recruited as a wide receiver and that’s where he played at USMAPS and was carried as a plebe. He was converted to a DB last year and played on special teams where he contributed 3 tackles.
“McClinton (field, boundary corner & nickel) did a great job as a freshman and Elijah Riley is a really good player. So, I think those two will start off, and Jalen Sharp ... I’m really excited about,” said Bateman. “He’s fast and we need him to get better and with a full year of him playing corner now, where he hadn’t really ever done it. I think Jalen Sharp is a natural field corner.”
Depth Chart a Work in Progress
So, despite the amount of experience returning, the depth chart is far from complete.
“I think Coach [John] Loose and Coach Christian-Young do a great job with those guys and I think that whoever the best four are, they are going to play. If one of the corners steps up ... Jalen Sharp steps up and Jaylon McClinton goes to safety, because those are the best four then that’s the best four. I think that we are at a position now that where if you play one position, you get better at that one position and I think that is kind of where we are now.”
Bateman was referring to the defensive backs but the same may be true for linemen and linebackers under watchful eyes of their position coaches. Spring practice is a time for the unknown to make themselves known and for the already known to prove their worth against the competition.
We counted 22 defensive backs, 13 defensive linemen, and 22 linebackers listed on the spring roster. We’ve discussed 23 of them in this article, but we suspect that there will be others who will work their way into the depth chart and into future articles as Bateman and his staff continue to develop, test, and deploy the talent available to them.
Some players on the roster will drop or be dropped and come R-Day, a new crop of recruits will report to the man in the red sash and join the Army West Point football family. GBK has been scouting the incoming talent, and we will have more to say about that after R-Day, but for now we’re focusing on the players that the coaches will have available to develop this spring.
Stay tuned for further developments as GBK continues with a spring preview of the Offense and Special Teams.
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