Discover more from CFBDepth’s Substack

Everything college football depth charts and the insights that come from them.

Already have an account? Sign in

CFB DeptHITS: Sunday, August 18

More news from camps as we are under a week away from kickoff. Mostly depth chart movement and injury updates from this version.

Aug 18, 2024

We make so many little tweaks to our depth charts throughout every day, these are the ones that you (may) want to know more about and a little context for each.

Louisville ::: WR Caullin Lacy broke his collarbone in the scrimmage and will miss 6-8 weeks. Looks like a best case scenario of week five return (at best).

Further: This was the one that sent X/Twitter into a tailspin early on Saturday. Lacy, a prized Portal addition from South Alabama, broke his collarbone in camp and will miss a good chunk of time. The thing to track here is who actually takes on that slot position for Jeff Brohm’s high-powered offense. That is a coveted role and an important one at that. Based on what we see from the slot snaps of the other guys in this room; nobody stands out as an obvious choice. Likely, they will move them in-and-out of the slot. Ja’Corey Brooks (26% slot snaps) and Jimmy Calloway (31%) show an ability to move around and that may be what’s expected of them.

Washington State ::: The running back room in coming more into focus according to HC Jake Dickert. True freshman Wayshawn Parker was mentioned first in the separation. Leo Pulalasi is also mentioned and is likely going to split carries. The running back depth chart and carry shares have been updated.

Further: This is a bit of a sea change as we didn’t quite expect Parker to come in and immediately impact the rotation as a true freshman. He has impressed to the point that he was actually the first guy mentioned - even in the two-man separation. The source of this information is Jamey Vinnick of CougFan.com (247Sports) in this article. Here is an excerpt to consume:

“…But carrying the ball, Wayshawn and Leo have been really different. Just their vision and their ability to make cuts and it's hard to see who can win past contact. And I think that's Djouvensky's strength. DP is just an ultimate guy that you just rely on in every crutch moment. All four of them will factor into something during the season."

-Jake Dickert, WSU head coach

So, while we think Pulalasi will have an equal share, it’s just even more praise for the true freshman. Also, don’t think that Djouvensky Schlenbaker and/or Dylan Paine are going away. They will both have smaller roles and be able to jump in if/when injuries strike. We still need to wait for Dickert to name his starting quarterback, but there is some running back depth chart goodness coming out of Pullman to tide you over. Here is a look at the snap shot of the current room for the Cougars:

East Carolina ::: Jake Garcia named the starting quarterback for the Pirates heading into 2024. He beat out Katin Houser, a Michigan State transfer in. Garcia has been many places, most recently Mizzou, and will now get a chance to show what he can do.

Further: Garcia will finally get the chance to show what he can do. Unfortunately, it will be a challenging offense to get revved up. They rank 126th in our overall AIR rankings and 131st in passing. Partially because of Garcia’s own rating of 8.0. His main competition in this battle, Houser, is an 8.3. We just don’t have the data on Garcia to warrant a higher rating. He was a 4-star recruit (so was Houser), but he has not been able to crack the lineup at Miami or Mizzou. Now, both are solid programs as we know, so it’s not a big indictment on Garcia. We’d like to see him come out against Norfolk State in week one and dominate. They then get Old Dominion in week two, before things tighten up with a date against Appalachian State in week three.

Player Ratings Explained >>

Southern Miss ::: Florida State transfer Tate Rodemaker appears to have won the starting job for the Golden Eagles. While this is not surprising news; there was a "battle" going on with incumbent Ethan Crawford. Source: Andrew Abadie (HubCitySpokes.com).

Further: Another unsurprising quarterback “battle” winner here in Hattiesburg. Rodemacher was brought in from Florida State to do just this. Win the job and solidify, what has been a revolving door at this position under Will Hall. This is a critical year for Hall and hitting on the signal-caller will prove very important to his proving to be the guy for the job.

More on Rodemaker, he was a three-star recruit and actually saw decent playing time last year with the Seminoles and looked really good — 32/56, 510 yards, 5 TD, 0 INT — across seven appearances. Sure, mainly in mop-up duty, but still nothing to sneeze at. The challenge is going to be overcoming a just ‘okay’ group of pass catchers and a poor offensive line ahead of him. So, it’s an uphill climb, but at least it’s a climb. We’ll keep an eye on early progress, which does not set up well, starting with a road date in the SEC against Kentucky.

Baylor ::: Added WR Ketron Jackson Jr. and LB Matt Jones to the Injury and Status (I&S) report after Dave Aranda said they were monitoring both players for injuries and that they missed the scrimmage on 8/17. Source: Foster Nicholas.

Further: These are not small contributors to this Baylor squad. If these injuries linger into the season, it will impact things:

WR Ketron Jackson Jr. — No. 2 on the depth chart. Last year he caught 28 passes for 489 yards and one score. Currently projected at a 15-19% target share. Rating: 12.6
LB Matt Jones - Projected as the starting middle linebacker. Has great experience and is a leader on the defense. Rating: 11.1 overall / 14.4 pass rush.

So, yeah, let’s hope neither are too serious.

Nebraska ::: LB Javin Wright is announced "out indefinitely" with a "health condition" as we await more information from Matt Rhule. This would be an impactful loss for the Huskers defense.

Further: It’s never a good sign to have something described as a “health condition.” Let’s get that out of the way. We know Wright will be out indefinitely, so the impact will be there and it could linger all season. For context, Wright is the starting middle linebacker (rating: 14.8) and is quite possibly the heart-and-soul of this solid defense. There is going to have to be some shifting around to fill this void. We’ll update when we hear more about his condition and hopefully he has a quick return to the field.

South Alabama ::: The hype train has left the station on freshman RB Fluff Bothwell. QB Gio Lopez had some high praise, as reported by Creg Stephenson. That's enough for us to move him into the rotation; still sitting fourth, but a bright future ahead.

Further: These are always fun to track. It’s one thing to receive praise from the coaching staff when asked about a player. It’s another when teammates are singing praises. They really can tell when players are ready to make an impact, and for Bothwell, that time appears to be right away. We’re tempering expectations to an 8-10% carry share on the season. Here is a look at a snap shot of the RB depth chart over at the site:

Kentucky :::

1.) WR Hardley Gilmore will miss "significant time" - likely half of the season; with an injury suffered in camp. Gilmore is a true freshman, highly touted and may have seen playing time. Now, a redshirt seems most likely.

2.) TE Josh Kattus has been out for all of summer/fall camp and now appears very questionable heading into the season.

Further: From some good true freshman news above with Bothwell, to a more depressing note. Gilmore, a high 3-star prospect out of Florida and a solid “get” by the Wildcats, will miss a good chunk of the season. He was on the edge of the rotation, but now he’ll need to work his way back in. The hope is that this won’t set him back too far. The future remains bright for him.

Kattus is the projected starting tight end. He isn’t expected to heavily influence the passing attack, but he is a starter nonetheless. Something to track heading into the season.

LSU ::: Added Chris Hilton Jr. to the Injury and Status report with a very minor ankle injury. He suffered the set back in practice on 8/17 and had to sit the rest of the session. This is not expected to be a serious injury; but we are tracking in case it lingers. Losing Hilton would be a big blow to the passing attack.

Tennessee ::: RB Cameron Seldon moved to "Questionable" as his shoulder injury does not appear to have fully healed. He is not 100% and it could cause him to miss a game or two into the season. Source: Ryan Schumpert (RockyTopInsider.com).

Rutgers :::
1.) Bumped QB Ajani Sheppard into the backup spot behind Athan Kaliakmanis. He took most of the snaps in the scrimmage (that Kaliakmanis missed) and appears to be in line for that No. 2 role. One step closer to game action.

Source: Bobby Deren (ScarletNation.com)

Excerpt to know:

Rutgers has a new starting quarterback in Athan Kaliakmanis who was more of a spectator today but not because of any injury-related issues. Kaliakmanis, along with most of the starters, were held out of today's scrimmage. That allowed Ajani Sheppard to play most of the day at the quarterback position as he is now No.2 in the pecking order.

"Ajani is the backup quarterback," Schiano said after the scrimmage. "He's done a nice job. He's getting better. I thought today was an excellent opportunity. He played like 80 plays. He played a game. I thought he did well. Anytime you walk away and you don't turn the ball over, it's a great day for the offense.

2.) Thomas Amankwaa moved back to the defensive side of the ball after a quick flirtation with the wide receiver role.

Notre Dame ::: CB Chance Tucker suffered an injury in a scrimmage that could cost him some time. Tracking.

Houston ::: Added QB Holman Edwards to the roster/depth chart. He'll be buried behind four others' but he is coming in from Southern Miss after having seen the field briefly in 2023 amidst an ever-changing quarterback rotation there.

Texas State ::: Michael Boudoin III is moving from defensive back to tight end for the 2024 season. He is came to San Marcos a yaer ago and played in all 12 gamees in the secondary as a reserve. The move appears permanent according to Keff Ciardello (@Keff_C).