The AAC
has built itself up to be somewhere between a P5 conference and a G5
Conference. They’ve had a string of multiple Boise State level teams a year.
They have a legitimately good middle, and to keep them from really competing
with the P5 across the board, an abysmal bottom that’s smaller than the other
G5 conferences. The balance of the conference has been off and again looks to
be UCF/USF from the East and Memphis/SMU/Houston/Navy in the West.
The average
power rating for the AAC squads is -2.39.
The average
power rating for the AAC East squads is -5.28.
The average
power rating for the AAC West squads is .49.
Team
|
Adj.
2017
W/L
|
%
Yards
Ret.
|
%
Touches
Ret.
|
%
Line
Starts
Ret.
|
%
Tackles
Ret.
|
%
Passes
Def.
Ret.
|
247
Sports
Score
|
Total
Points
|
East Division
|
||||||||
UCF
|
14.76
|
79.86%
|
85.58%
|
47.59%
|
61.79%
|
62.00%
|
169
|
18.33
|
USF
|
6.49
|
23.05%
|
20.67%
|
47.47%
|
55.75%
|
59.62%
|
159.85
|
0.54
|
Temple
|
-1.55
|
61.39%
|
66.49%
|
32.26%
|
68.32%
|
72.34%
|
142.46
|
-2.99
|
Cincinnati
|
-7.89
|
78.19%
|
75.46%
|
27.50%
|
58.38%
|
48.57%
|
164.82
|
-9.95
|
Connecticut
|
-9.63
|
57.17%
|
63.93%
|
51.97%
|
35.10%
|
35.29%
|
122.08
|
-18.21
|
East Carolina
|
-9.66
|
30.15%
|
32.75%
|
37.74%
|
50.54%
|
51.61%
|
142.02
|
-19.42
|
West Division
|
||||||||
Memphis
|
11.1
|
41.40%
|
43.20%
|
68.32%
|
68.54%
|
67.65%
|
160.1
|
9.9
|
SMU
|
2.91
|
76.15%
|
77.34%
|
52.46%
|
68.96%
|
82.93%
|
144.65
|
5.71
|
Houston
|
4.84
|
41.24%
|
39.43%
|
67.14%
|
51.47%
|
51.11%
|
166.15
|
0.25
|
Navy
|
5.42
|
71.03%
|
69.84%
|
42.57%
|
44.25%
|
31.43%
|
129.06
|
0.27
|
Tulane
|
-4.07
|
72.19%
|
65.82%
|
68.09%
|
50.04%
|
53.49%
|
132.28
|
-6.24
|
Tulsa
|
-9.3
|
74.87%
|
71.24%
|
64.74%
|
66.81%
|
86.84%
|
126.4
|
-6.95
|
As said
above the imbalance is there again only three teams from the East look to be
truly better than any team from the west, although every team, except SMU and
Tulane, has at least one production category with less than 50% returning. To
wit, on my previous point rating teams compared to Boise,
UCF/USF/Memphis/Houston all recruit on par with the Broncos. SMU has Sonny
Dykes taking over for Chad Morris who left for Arkansas. Dykes runs an offense
that’s similar to Morris which should help the transition and help them take
advantage of what they have coming back. UCF is in a similar situation, with
Frost leaving for Nebraska, Josh Heupel is taking over. Heupel was on last
year’s staff and has all the tools in the world to work with on offense but
will need to replace key players on defense. USF has to replace almost all of
its offense as do, to a lesser extent, Houston and Memphis. So, there are holes
to fill on every squad and the rash of good hires have started to be replaced
as they get poached away. If the conference can sustain through this, they may
just be able to get to a level that would make them a real contender to make it
the P6.
Top Returning Offensive Producers
(Above Average Production)
Quarterbacks (Minimum 120 Attempts)
|
||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
AY/A
|
AY/R
|
Comp%
|
Sack%
|
McKenzie Milton
|
3
|
UCF
|
71
|
185
|
11
|
8.56
|
67.09%
|
2.70%
|
D'Eriq King
|
3
|
HOU
|
71
|
190
|
9.39
|
8.96
|
64.75%
|
6.10%
|
Jonathan Banks
|
4
|
TULA
|
75
|
220
|
8.24
|
6.7
|
56.62%
|
8.40%
|
Ben Hicks
|
3
|
SMU
|
73
|
203
|
7.77
|
6.1
|
58.47%
|
4.30%
|
Frank Nutile
|
4
|
TEM
|
76
|
225
|
7.62
|
5.53
|
61.31%
|
3.40%
|
Luke Skipper
|
2
|
TULS
|
74
|
208
|
8.02
|
6.8
|
55.91%
|
11.80%
|
Gardner Minshew
|
4
|
ECU
|
74
|
216
|
7.02
|
1.8
|
57.24%
|
2.60%
|
Hayden Moore
|
4
|
CIN
|
75
|
215
|
6
|
6.66
|
56.37%
|
3.40%
|
Chad President
|
3
|
TULS
|
74
|
226
|
5.66
|
10.41
|
52.87%
|
4.30%
|
Logan Marchi
|
3
|
TEM
|
72
|
205
|
6.01
|
4.27
|
55.51%
|
4.30%
|
David Pindell
|
4
|
CONN
|
72
|
192
|
4.68
|
6.05
|
52.83%
|
4.80%
|
Running Backs (Minimum 12 Touches)
|
||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tou.
|
AY/R
|
AY/T
|
RBP>12
|
Malcolm Perry
|
3
|
Navy
|
69
|
185
|
150
|
10.19
|
14.23
|
19.6
|
Darrell Henderson
|
3
|
MEM
|
69
|
200
|
154
|
10.15
|
7.35
|
16.98
|
Xavier Jones
|
3
|
SMU
|
70
|
203
|
196
|
6.82
|
4.42
|
14.22
|
Patrick Taylor Jr
|
3
|
MEM
|
75
|
223
|
176
|
7.04
|
6.2
|
14.03
|
Adrian Killins Jr
|
3
|
UCF
|
68
|
158
|
149
|
7.9
|
5.88
|
12.85
|
David Hood
|
4
|
TEM
|
69
|
190
|
157
|
5.53
|
6.6
|
10.62
|
Duke Catalon
|
4
|
HOU
|
72
|
215
|
164
|
5.26
|
4.58
|
9.75
|
Braeden West
|
4
|
SMU
|
70
|
170
|
91
|
8.28
|
7.71
|
8.65
|
Ryquell Armstead
|
4
|
TEM
|
71
|
205
|
170
|
4.46
|
3.95
|
8.6
|
Shamari Brooks
|
2
|
TULS
|
69
|
185
|
120
|
7.32
|
2
|
8.39
|
Kevin Mensah
|
2
|
CONN
|
69
|
200
|
140
|
5.04
|
5.42
|
8.39
|
Gerrid Doaks
|
2
|
CIN
|
72
|
222
|
101
|
6.32
|
7.35
|
7.75
|
Ke'Mon Freeman
|
3
|
SMU
|
71
|
207
|
140
|
5.69
|
1.75
|
7.69
|
Hussein Howe
|
3
|
ECU
|
69
|
183
|
125
|
4.99
|
5.48
|
7.46
|
Wide Receivers (Minimum 18 Targets)
|
||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tar.
|
AY/T
|
Cat%
|
WRP>18
|
Dredrick Snelson
|
3
|
UCF
|
72
|
206
|
62
|
13.7
|
74.19%
|
13.47
|
James Proche
|
3
|
SMU
|
71
|
185
|
61
|
15.28
|
65.57%
|
13.14
|
Trevon Brown
|
4
|
ECU
|
74
|
211
|
105
|
11.47
|
57.14%
|
12.43
|
Tyre McCants
|
3
|
USF
|
71
|
225
|
56
|
14.66
|
64.29%
|
11.73
|
Terren Encalade
|
4
|
TULA
|
72
|
190
|
64
|
12.61
|
60.94%
|
10.39
|
Kahlil Lewis
|
4
|
CIN
|
72
|
195
|
105
|
7.88
|
59.05%
|
8.82
|
Darnell Mooney
|
3
|
TULA
|
72
|
175
|
58
|
11.66
|
58.62%
|
8.69
|
Justin Hobbs
|
4
|
TULS
|
76
|
218
|
104
|
8.54
|
52.88%
|
8.5
|
Damonte Coxie
|
2
|
MEM
|
75
|
175
|
29
|
13.13
|
72.41%
|
8.42
|
Darnell Salomon
|
2
|
USF
|
75
|
215
|
54
|
11.27
|
59.26%
|
8.14
|
Isaiah Wright
|
3
|
TEM
|
74
|
212
|
82
|
9.09
|
56.10%
|
8.11
|
Aaron McLean
|
4
|
CONN
|
77
|
210
|
47
|
10.86
|
65.96%
|
8.06
|
Otis Anderson
|
2
|
UCF
|
71
|
164
|
40
|
10.22
|
75.00%
|
7.91
|
Tight Ends (Minimum 12 Targets)
|
||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tar.
|
AY/T
|
Cat%
|
TEP>12
|
Sean Dykes
|
3
|
MEM
|
74
|
210
|
25
|
16.16
|
60.00%
|
20.81
|
Joey Magnifico
|
3
|
MEM
|
76
|
235
|
30
|
11.26
|
70.00%
|
17.41
|
Offense
has been the general calling card of the conference from a national level. QB
is strong deep and ready to hit their primes. Lead by McKenzie Milton at UCF. 2018
will be interesting for Milton who loses his HC, and offensive guru, Scott Frost
to Nebraska. As a sophomore last season Milton was exceptionally productive
with 11.00 AY/A and 85.6 AY/R while completing 67% of his passes and only taking
a sack on 2.7% of his drop backs. Milton will need to replace his top target
Tre’Quan Smith, but he does gets RB Adrian Killins Jr and WR Dedrick Snelson.
Snelson wasn’t as explosive as Smith, nearly no one in the country was, but he
did put up a 13.7 AY/T and a 74.19% catch rate. Killins for his part is
undersized but put up an impressive 7.9 AY/R, if he can be more productive in
the pass game (AY/T of just 5.88) in 2018 the offense should evolve but still
be potent. Next up is Houston’s De’Riq King. King only had 139 pass attempts
and 63 rushes (202 touches) but he was extremely efficient with them. If King
is to improve and lead the Houston offense he’s going to have to do it with
only Duke Catalon as a significant part of last year’s offense. Catalon was
disappointing last season after breaking out as a sophomore. Catalon had 164 touches
but was a fairly pedestrian 5.26 AY/R and 4.58 AY/T. If Catalon can regain the
explosiveness from earlier in his career, then it’ll just be a matter of replacing
the receiving production. Let’s skip the Banks, the senior from Tulane for a
moment, and talk about the third junior at the top of the returning producers
in the AAC at QB. That junior is Ben Hicks of SMU. Hicks had a very normal, for
an air raid offense, 472 attempts in 2017. Sonny Dykes also runs the air raid,
so Hicks shouldn’t see too much of a dip, for his part Hicks should be able to
improve on his 7.77 AY/A and his completion percentage of 58.47%. The biggest
piece to help him there should be James Proche (15.28 AY/T and 65.57% catch
rate). Proche only had 61 targets last season because of the 284 targets that
went to Quinn and Sutton, if he can keep 80% of his efficiency with double the
targets he’ll be a more than capable replacement. At RB, junior Xavier Jones
had just shy of 200 touches in 2018 and was efficient on the ground (6.82 AY/R),
but a non-factor in the passing game (4.42 AY/T). He’s joined by Braeden West
who was more efficient in both phases, 8.28 AY/R and 7.71 AY/T, but was only
given 91 touches. West is getting looks at the slot position vacated by Trey Quinn.
Now, back to Banks and Tulane. Banks had 219 pass attempts, which he used to
produce 8.24 AY/A, he also took 128 carries for 6.7 AY/R. He and Frank Nutile,
who’ll we’ll get to in a minute are the only seniors in the players who are in the
top tier returning. Banks is joined in Tulane by two efficient, if not highly targeted,
receivers: senior Terren Encalade and junior Darnell Mooney. Encalade, the
larger of the two, had 64 targets which he took for 12.61 AY/T and caught
60.94%. Mooney caught 58.62% of his 58 targets and took them for 11.66 AY/T. The
Tulane offense will be good as long as they can find a manageable rushing
attack. The last QB we’re going to specifically get into is Temple’s Frank
Nutile. Nutile had 225 pass attempts in 2017 for 7.62 AY/T and was reasonably
useful on the ground if not a rushing threat at 5.53 AY/R. Joining him in the Temple
backfield are a pair of perfectly fine senior backs, David Hood (5.53 AY/R and
6.6 AY/T) and Ryquell Armstead (4.46 AY/R and 3.95 AY/T). The last of Nutile’s good, but underwhelming,
supporting cast with receiver Isaiah Wright. Wright a junior had 82 targets but
just 9.09 AY/T. He’ll need to improve in his junior season if the Temple offense
wants to keep up with the top of the conference. Navy has the top returning RB
producer returning in the conference. Malcolm Perry had 150 touches last season
that he took for 10.19 AY/R, of which 24 were targets that he took for an
impressive 14.23 AY/T. He’s joined at the top of the conference by junior Memphis
RBs Darrell Henderson and Patrick Taylor Jr. Henderson had 154 touches last
season which he took for 10.15 AY/R and 7.35 AY/T, where the taller heavier Taylor
had 7.04 AY/R and 6.2 AY/T on 176 touches. As we finalize the WRs, let’s start
with Tyre McCants of USF who took advantage of his 56 targets at an unreal clip
of 14.66 AY/T. McCants will be the focal point of the Bulls offense. Then there’s
ECU’s Trevon Brown who had 105 targets as a junior and took them for 11.47 AY/T
on a 57.14% catch rate. He’s a good deep threat and if he can get better QB
play will be a standout in the conference in 2018. Lastly, let’s touch on the
pair of junior Memphis TEs, Sean Dykes and Joey Magnifico, who combined for 55
targets, 628 yards, and 6 TDs.
Top Returning Defensive Producers
(Above Average Production)
Interior Defensive Linemen (Minimum
12 Points)
|
|||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tkls
|
TFLs
|
Sacks
|
PDs
|
Pts
|
Ed Oliver
|
3
|
HOU
|
75
|
290
|
60
|
16.5
|
5.5
|
3
|
228.63
|
Joey Connors
|
4
|
UCF
|
73
|
313
|
10.5
|
3.5
|
2
|
4
|
98.13
|
Dan Archibong
|
2
|
TEM
|
78
|
285
|
13.5
|
2.5
|
2
|
3
|
77.88
|
Demerick Gary
|
3
|
SMU
|
75
|
275
|
12.5
|
5.5
|
0
|
2
|
76.63
|
Delontae Scott
|
3
|
SMU
|
77
|
264
|
16.5
|
6
|
2.5
|
0
|
71.5
|
Josh Webb
|
4
|
Navy
|
77
|
250
|
11
|
4
|
4
|
0
|
65.75
|
Joseph Dorceus
|
2
|
MEM
|
72
|
265
|
13.5
|
5
|
1
|
1
|
64.13
|
Jerard Carter
|
4
|
HOU
|
74
|
285
|
20.5
|
5.5
|
1.5
|
0
|
60.75
|
Jonathan Wilson
|
3
|
MEM
|
75
|
280
|
16.5
|
5
|
2
|
0
|
59.63
|
O'Bryan Goodson
|
2
|
MEM
|
73
|
315
|
23.5
|
4
|
1
|
1
|
58.63
|
Edge Rushers (Minimum 12 Points)
|
|||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tkls
|
TFLs
|
Sacks
|
PDs
|
Points
|
Quincy Roche
|
2
|
TEM
|
76
|
230
|
28.5
|
11.5
|
7
|
0
|
198.31
|
Kevin Mouhon
|
4
|
CIN
|
73
|
244
|
43.5
|
7
|
2
|
2
|
122.47
|
Off-Ball Linebackers (Minimum 12
Points)
|
|||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tkls
|
TFLs
|
Sacks
|
PDs
|
Points
|
Kyran Mitchell
|
4
|
SMU
|
72
|
225
|
64
|
15.5
|
4.5
|
4
|
132.09
|
Greg Reaves
|
3
|
USF
|
74
|
236
|
41.5
|
14
|
4
|
3
|
109.11
|
Perry Young
|
3
|
CIN
|
70
|
215
|
78.5
|
9
|
0
|
3
|
108.16
|
Sam Franklin
|
3
|
TEM
|
75
|
210
|
51
|
9.5
|
4
|
6
|
105.76
|
Pat Jasinki
|
4
|
UCF
|
73
|
233
|
76
|
8.5
|
1
|
3
|
105.55
|
Shaun Bradley
|
3
|
TEM
|
73
|
225
|
68
|
10
|
1
|
2
|
104.61
|
Curtis Akins
|
4
|
MEM
|
74
|
230
|
74
|
4.5
|
0.5
|
2
|
91.47
|
Diamon Cannon
|
3
|
TULS
|
74
|
232
|
44.5
|
4.5
|
0
|
3
|
83.65
|
Chapelle Russell
|
3
|
TEM
|
73
|
225
|
57
|
3.5
|
0.5
|
1
|
73.89
|
Tim Hart
|
2
|
MEM
|
73
|
235
|
39
|
3
|
1
|
2
|
69.41
|
Chris Britton
|
4
|
CONN
|
73
|
225
|
39
|
6.5
|
1
|
2
|
61.35
|
Nico Sawtelle
|
3
|
USF
|
74
|
245
|
44
|
4.5
|
1.5
|
3
|
58.96
|
Bryce Huff
|
3
|
MEM
|
75
|
245
|
26.5
|
5
|
2
|
1
|
57.14
|
Leroy Godfrey
|
3
|
HOU
|
74
|
235
|
26.5
|
8.5
|
2
|
0
|
56.85
|
Emeke Egbule
|
4
|
HOU
|
75
|
245
|
49
|
6.5
|
2
|
0
|
56.16
|
Cooper Edmiston
|
3
|
TULS
|
75
|
239
|
80.5
|
2
|
0
|
1
|
49.69
|
Cornerbacks (Minimum 12 Points)
|
|||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tkls
|
TFLs
|
Sacks
|
PDs
|
Points
|
Terrell Carter
|
2
|
MEM
|
71
|
180
|
61.5
|
1
|
0
|
16
|
106.5
|
Jordan Wyatt
|
4
|
SMU
|
72
|
195
|
44.5
|
4.5
|
1
|
12
|
95.75
|
Donnie Lewis Jr
|
4
|
TULA
|
73
|
190
|
32.5
|
3
|
0
|
14
|
86.5
|
Mazzi Wilkins
|
4
|
USF
|
72
|
176
|
27
|
0.5
|
0.5
|
12
|
73.13
|
Tito Windham
|
4
|
MEM
|
69
|
180
|
32.5
|
3
|
1
|
12
|
62.75
|
Rodney Clemons
|
3
|
SMU
|
72
|
191
|
61.5
|
4
|
1
|
11
|
62.25
|
Ronnie Hoggins
|
4
|
USF
|
68
|
175
|
49
|
0
|
0
|
10
|
54
|
Isaiah Johnson
|
4
|
HOU
|
75
|
195
|
39.5
|
0
|
0
|
9
|
50.5
|
Brandon Moore
|
2
|
UCF
|
72
|
186
|
28
|
2.5
|
0
|
9
|
48.5
|
Alexander Myres
|
4
|
HOU
|
70
|
192
|
34.5
|
2.5
|
0
|
7
|
41.5
|
Reggie Robinson II
|
3
|
TULS
|
73
|
190
|
35
|
2.5
|
0
|
9
|
39
|
Jeremy Winchester
|
4
|
HOU
|
71
|
203
|
37
|
1
|
1
|
6
|
35.75
|
Derrek Thomas
|
4
|
TEM
|
75
|
193
|
5.5
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
30.5
|
Free Safeties (Minimum 12 Points)
|
|||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tkls
|
TFLs
|
Sacks
|
PDs
|
Points
|
Mikial Onu
|
3
|
SMU
|
71
|
200
|
95
|
1
|
0
|
9
|
126.94
|
Devon Sutton
|
3
|
ECU
|
71
|
198
|
49.5
|
5.5
|
1
|
3
|
115.31
|
Sean Williams
|
4
|
Navy
|
73
|
190
|
66
|
2.5
|
0
|
5
|
107.41
|
Tyrell Gilbert
|
4
|
CIN
|
73
|
205
|
36.5
|
3
|
1
|
2
|
95.97
|
Roderic Teamer Jr
|
4
|
TULA
|
72
|
210
|
41
|
3
|
0
|
2
|
84.25
|
Khalid McGee
|
4
|
USF
|
70
|
198
|
33.5
|
3.5
|
0
|
0
|
75.75
|
Richie Grant
|
2
|
UCF
|
72
|
186
|
28.5
|
1
|
0
|
2
|
55.84
|
Nevelle Clarke
|
3
|
UCF
|
73
|
185
|
23
|
2
|
0
|
4
|
53.56
|
Benny Walls
|
3
|
TEM
|
73
|
208
|
17
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
53.38
|
Strong Safeties (Minimum 12 Points)
|
|||||||||
Player
|
Year
|
Team
|
Height
|
Weight
|
Tkls
|
TFLs
|
Sacks
|
PDs
|
Points
|
Austin Hall
|
3
|
MEM
|
74
|
205
|
75
|
8
|
1
|
8
|
144.35
|
Delvon Randall
|
4
|
TEM
|
73
|
210
|
71
|
6.5
|
1
|
4
|
133.84
|
Kyle Gibson
|
4
|
UCF
|
71
|
182
|
53
|
2
|
0
|
8
|
124.23
|
Garrett Davis
|
4
|
HOU
|
72
|
205
|
44.5
|
2
|
0
|
8
|
121.04
|
McKinley Whitfield
|
4
|
TULS
|
75
|
216
|
90
|
6
|
0
|
9
|
114.8
|
Tre Neal
|
4
|
UCF
|
73
|
215
|
54.5
|
2
|
0
|
6
|
100.91
|
Tyler Coyle
|
2
|
CONN
|
73
|
202
|
55.5
|
3
|
0
|
7
|
94.96
|
Marsh Terry
|
3
|
CONN
|
76
|
212
|
49.5
|
3
|
0
|
4
|
64.46
|
Jaymon Thomas
|
4
|
USF
|
75
|
195
|
37
|
1
|
0
|
4
|
50.93
|
Josh Perry
|
2
|
MEM
|
75
|
192
|
32.5
|
1
|
0
|
4
|
49.24
|
Chase Kuerschen
|
2
|
TULA
|
73
|
205
|
52
|
0.5
|
0
|
2
|
45.59
|
Christian Davis
|
3
|
SMU
|
72
|
184
|
15.5
|
2
|
0
|
3
|
42.91
|
Let’s
just start with the obvious, even in a “down” sophomore season Ed Oliver was
amazing. Oliver had 60 tackles in 2017 with 16.5 TFLs, 5.5 sacks, and 3 passes
defensed. Only 3 conference fellows had 1/3 of the TFls and only undersized Navy
lineman, Josh Webb, had half the sacks. Houston adds low level returning
producers Jerard Carter (INT), Leroy Godfrey (OBLB), and Emeke Egbule (OBLB) to
Oliver in the front seven who combined for 96 tackles, 20.5 TFLs and 5.5 sacks.
In the defensive backfield three more low-level returning producers at CBs, Isaiah
Johnson (9 PDs), Alexander Myres (7 PDs), and Jeremy Winchester (6 PDs), return
alongside safety Garrett Davis and his 44.5 tackles and 8 PDs. The leading edge
player returning to the AAC is Temple sophomore Quincy Roche who, as a freshman,
had 11.5 TFLs and 7 sacks. Roche is joined by fellow sophomore Dan Archibong
(INT) who had 2.5 TFLs, 2 sacks, and 3 PDs. The pair of sophomores is joined by
a trio of third year Temple tacklers in the form of Sam Franklin, Shawn Bradley,
and Chapelle Russell. Franklin, Bradley, and Russell combined for 176 tackles,
23 TFLs, and 9 PDs last season. Lastly, in the defensive backfield, low-level
returning corner Derrek Thomas had 6 PDs and standout safety Delvon Randall had
71 tackles, 6.5 for loss, and 4 PDs. Roche and Randall are going to need help,
but at least the returning producers are young. The other returning edge is
Kevin Mouhon the senior from Cincinnati. Mouhon had 43.5 tackles last season, 7
TFLs, and 2 PDs. Mouhon is joined in the front seven by junior Perry Young who racked
up 78.5 Tackles and 9 TFLs. There is only one other defensive player who returns
with above average production from last year, safety Tyrell Gilbert. Gilbert
wasn’t particularly productive, but he did end up with 36.5 tackles, 3 TFLs, a
sack and a couple PDs. SMU has some might on defense returning this year in a change
of pace from previous seasons. The headliner here being Kyran Mitchell.
Mitchell had 64 tackles last season but was truly disruptive with 15.5 TFLs and
4.5 sacks, to go with his 4 PDs. SMU also brings back three stand out DBs.
Corners Jordan Wyatt and Rodney Clemons had 12 and 11 PDs respectively and
combined for 8.5 TFls. At Safety, Mikial Onu had 95 tackles and 9 passes
defensed in a breakout sophomore campaign. To round out their returners safety
Christian Davis returns with a pair of TFLs and a trio of PDs, and interior
linemen Demerick Gary and Delontae Scott combined for 11.5 TFLs and 2.5 sacks. Greg
Reaves of USF wasn’t as proficiently productive as Mitchell, but he still
managed 14 TFLs, 4 sacks, and 3 PDs. Reaves like Mitchell is joined by a pair
of corners with double digit PDs: Mazzi Wilkins (12) and Ronnie Hoggins (10). A
trio of low-level returners join them, OBLB Nico Sawtelle returns with 44
tackles and 4.5 TFLs, and safeties Khalid McGee (33.5 tackles and 3.5 TFLs) and
Jaymon Thomas (37 tackles and 4 PDs). Memphis has a trio of DB top returners
headlined by CB Terrell Carter. Carter, who had 61.5 tackles and 16 PDs as a
freshman, is joined by fellow CB Tito Windham, who had 3 TFLs and 12 PDs, and
safety Austin Hall, who racked up 75 tackles, 8 TFLs, and 8 PDs. Memphis also
has a half dozen, or so, low-level returning producers who combined for 202
tackles, 27 TFLs, 6.5 sacks, and 11 PDs. The last trio of “stragglers” come
from ECU (Sutton), Navy (Williams), and Tulsa (Whitfield). Sutton accounted for
5.5 TFLs and 3 PDs, Williams had 66 tackles and 5 PDs, and Whitfield accounted
for an astounding 90 tackles, 6 TFLs, and 9 PDs. There’s talent at each level
of the defense, but it seems that they are very evenly dispersed and not clumped
up very much outside of Memphis.
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