"Met Jerel Worthy today, he's approximately two Tyler Hoover's wide. Neat trick." was the text I got from Ty back in 2009 when he went to Meet the Spartans. So we've lost our sparkplug in the middle of the line and we start thinking about who will replace Worthy's production next year.
We should start out by defining what position Worthy actually played. Worthy was a defensive tackle and he played alongside White(who was the Nose Tackle). If Worthy played for the Lions, he would be Ndamukong Suh and White would be Corey Williams. As the DT Worthy's responsibility is to rush the passer on passing downs and stuff the run by stopping offensive lineman from getting out to block linebackers. The DT is the more athletic of the two defensive tackles on the field. You obviously want all of your players to be athletic, but it's more expected of the DT than the NT.
So to best replace Worthy, MSU is going to be looking for an athletic defensive tackle who also has some size. MSU has several candidates and their class status for 2012.
Denzel Drone(RS, Jr) - Drone was talked about in the Outback Bowl pre-game as playing some defensive tackle should White and Worthy tire out. Honestly, I see him standing in as Gholston's backup in 2012. He did a nice job in this position in 2011 and at 262 unless he can put on 30 lbs of quality weight I don't see him contributing in a meaningful fashion at this position.
Tyler Hoover(RS, Sr) - Hoover has battled a back thing for the past couple of years. As I always say, it's a miracle that anyone 6'7 and 290 lbs is ever healthy, let alone healthy enough to play football. I think Hoover would be an OK replacement, but Hoover is not as athletic and would be more appropriate in the NT replacement spot. 6'7" is really damn tall for a guy who has the job of engaging and getting leverage underneath Offensive Guards.
James Kittredge(RS,So) - I don't really know enough about Kittredge to say how he'll do in this position. Here's a video of him hammering a tire, he looks sufficiently angry to play the position.
At 6'4 and 270 he needs to put on some weight too, but these are August 2011 weights and not August 2012 weights.
Damon Knox(RS, Fr) - I think Knox might be one of the best candidates. Recruited and listed as a DE, at 6'4 and 274 his future is at the DT position. Great athleticism and great size.
Micajah Reynolds(RS, Jr) - Reynolds has been a man without a country since he joined MSU. DT, NT, LT he's played them all. His raw athleticism might be enough to put him in the conversation here even though at 6'5" and 320 he's a little bigger than you typically see a DT in the 4-3.
Mark Scarpinato(RS, Fr) - Scarpinato has a bit of the Knox and Kittredge need to put on some weight. At 6'4" and 270 he also is a bit small for the position. Scarp is a high motor guy, that's all I remember about his recruitment. Scarp never stops running, etc. In this regard, he reminded me a lot of Kevin Pickelman, who was a fairly low recruited extremely high motor guy.
Of the dudes listed above, Knox and Kittredge share the best shot at filling in as your Boise State Worthy replacement. Knox in particular has been rumored to be impressing in fall camp, so with some luck he can bear that out. Dantonio's record with taking transfers and helping them do good things(Linthicum, Fonoti) has so far been such that I think Kittredge will do just fine here too.
It's important to remember that it's very unlikely that the next dude will be Worthy: Part Two Even Worthier. If Knox, Kittredge and Scarp all develop into Pickelmans that would be a success more than I think a reasonable fan could hope for. We lost a great one today, but we have lots of chances to find another great one right here in the players we already have.
We should start out by defining what position Worthy actually played. Worthy was a defensive tackle and he played alongside White(who was the Nose Tackle). If Worthy played for the Lions, he would be Ndamukong Suh and White would be Corey Williams. As the DT Worthy's responsibility is to rush the passer on passing downs and stuff the run by stopping offensive lineman from getting out to block linebackers. The DT is the more athletic of the two defensive tackles on the field. You obviously want all of your players to be athletic, but it's more expected of the DT than the NT.
So to best replace Worthy, MSU is going to be looking for an athletic defensive tackle who also has some size. MSU has several candidates and their class status for 2012.
Denzel Drone(RS, Jr) - Drone was talked about in the Outback Bowl pre-game as playing some defensive tackle should White and Worthy tire out. Honestly, I see him standing in as Gholston's backup in 2012. He did a nice job in this position in 2011 and at 262 unless he can put on 30 lbs of quality weight I don't see him contributing in a meaningful fashion at this position.
Tyler Hoover(RS, Sr) - Hoover has battled a back thing for the past couple of years. As I always say, it's a miracle that anyone 6'7 and 290 lbs is ever healthy, let alone healthy enough to play football. I think Hoover would be an OK replacement, but Hoover is not as athletic and would be more appropriate in the NT replacement spot. 6'7" is really damn tall for a guy who has the job of engaging and getting leverage underneath Offensive Guards.
James Kittredge(RS,So) - I don't really know enough about Kittredge to say how he'll do in this position. Here's a video of him hammering a tire, he looks sufficiently angry to play the position.
At 6'4 and 270 he needs to put on some weight too, but these are August 2011 weights and not August 2012 weights.
Damon Knox(RS, Fr) - I think Knox might be one of the best candidates. Recruited and listed as a DE, at 6'4 and 274 his future is at the DT position. Great athleticism and great size.
Micajah Reynolds(RS, Jr) - Reynolds has been a man without a country since he joined MSU. DT, NT, LT he's played them all. His raw athleticism might be enough to put him in the conversation here even though at 6'5" and 320 he's a little bigger than you typically see a DT in the 4-3.
Mark Scarpinato(RS, Fr) - Scarpinato has a bit of the Knox and Kittredge need to put on some weight. At 6'4" and 270 he also is a bit small for the position. Scarp is a high motor guy, that's all I remember about his recruitment. Scarp never stops running, etc. In this regard, he reminded me a lot of Kevin Pickelman, who was a fairly low recruited extremely high motor guy.
Of the dudes listed above, Knox and Kittredge share the best shot at filling in as your Boise State Worthy replacement. Knox in particular has been rumored to be impressing in fall camp, so with some luck he can bear that out. Dantonio's record with taking transfers and helping them do good things(Linthicum, Fonoti) has so far been such that I think Kittredge will do just fine here too.
It's important to remember that it's very unlikely that the next dude will be Worthy: Part Two Even Worthier. If Knox, Kittredge and Scarp all develop into Pickelmans that would be a success more than I think a reasonable fan could hope for. We lost a great one today, but we have lots of chances to find another great one right here in the players we already have.
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