DeptHITS: Tuesday, August 19
We are just days away from meaningful college football and the news is coming in. We're here to sift through it and give you what you need to know with some added context in the HITS.
It’s depth chart season, as they say. We are starting to see ‘official’ two-deeps coming out from those teams participating in our week zero kickoff. With five games and nine FBS teams playing, we are officially close to actual football. Now is the time to make sure you are all caught up on what’s going on with so much news coming in from camps, impact injuries, depth chart changes, starting quarterback news and more.
If you want to be the best prepared for this upcoming season, we recommend picking up the most comprehensive and data-informed preview magazine in all the land. The State of the Chart™ digital magazine is here, and it’s available to you for just $9.99…
We will continue to bring you in-season coverage as injuries occur, storylines develop, and the craziness of the season comes at us in full force. We will continue providing a lot of baseline information for free, but if you’d like to get full access to everything we produce, you should consider signing up for our Depth+ membership. It includes featured insights articles, “Game Cards”, access to a complete weekly player and team projections suite, advanced stats, and more…
And, now, the HITS…
[The number in brackets is our data-driven player rating on a scale of 12. To learn more about our player ratings, check out this article » ]
*Click on the school names (links) to be taken to the full depth chart.
IMPACT INJURY UPDATES ::::::
Texas Tech ::: The Red Raiders will be without their starting running back Quinten Joyner [15.1] as he suffered a season-ending injury in fall camp. They currently have just three other players listed at running back. J'Koby Williams [13.5] and Cameron Dickey [13.1] will see their carry shares grow and will need to fill in for the loss of Joyner. Williams is believed to have the highest upside and could really break onto the scene with this increased opportunity. We do expect that the staff moves a player or two to the running back room to help with depth.
Alabama ::: The Crimson Tide's run of health fortune has hit a speed bump as starting running back Jam Miller [14.9] is expected to miss multiple games with an upper-body injury. He was hurt in Saturday's scrimmage, and the early prognosis has him back 9/27 after the bye for the Georgia game. That means Richard Young [13.2] and Daniel Hill [12.1] are 'next up' and we're calling for a likely split of carries in Miller's absence. They will likely go with the ‘hot hand’ in games as they progress. A setback for the Tide, but not a crippling one with so much talent on that roster.
Michigan ::: True freshman OT Andrew Babalola [13.6], an incoming 5-star recruit, is believed to have suffered a season-ending injury in camp. He was expected to see some playing time and is widely considered a ‘can't-miss’ prospect on the offensive line. He will need to overcome this setback to reach that potential. We did not have him starting or even receiving a lot of playing time right out of the gate, so the impact is minimal in our numbers, but it does impact depth on the all-important offensive line.
Memphis ::: The Tigers lose a really good one in the secondary as news breaks that safety Kortlan Marsh [13.9] suffered a serious injury that will sideline him all of 2025. This type of injury would crush most group of five schools, but Memphis is better equipped than most to keep things afloat. A loss nonetheless. Continuity may be an issue for this defensive back group as nine of their top players in the projected rotation are transfers. That is something to keep an eye on.
Washington ::: Jedd Fisch informs us that starting DT Jayvon Parker [14.2] will likely miss the opener and possibly return week two or three. This is a relatively significant hit to the defensive line for the Huskies.
Kentucky ::: A couple of Wildcats running backs at the top of the depth chart were forced to sit out the final scrimmage with injuries. Dante Dowdell [15.8] and Seth McGowan [15.2] were both absent from the "Fan Day" scrimmage. Both are expected back for the regular season and will form a committee with Jason Patterson [10.9].
Vanderbilt ::: QB Diego Pavia has been limited at practice with calf tightness. He missed the team's Saturday scrimmage as a precaution. It is not a serious injury, and he'll be ready for the opener. Plus, he’s a gamer. No chance he misses time unless it is a significant ailment.
Oregon State ::: WR Darrius Clemons [13.3] is second on the depth chart for the Beavers behind only Trent Walker [14.9]. Now, the Beavers may need somebody else to step into that role, as Clemons was observed in a boot and using a scooter at Saturday's scrimmage. Taz Reddicks [12.5], David Wells Jr. [10.8], and hard-charging Eddie Freauff [9.0] all will see a bump if he is sidelined in the regular season. Here is a snapshot of that Beavers WR room as it stands:
Virginia ::: Starting LB Kam Robinson [12.4] will miss a couple of games into the season, according to head coach Tony Elliott. He is nursing an injury, and that's a decent blow to the Cavs' second-level on defense.
Coastal Carolina ::: One of the competitors for the starting quarterback job is out with an injury. Emmett Brown [13.8], the San Jose State (via Washington State) transfer, will miss the season with that ailment. That leaves MJ Morris [13.1] and Tad Hudson [11.2] as the primary candidates for the job, with the other serving as the primary backup.
QUARTERBACK NEWS AND NOTES ::::::
Ohio State ::: In one of the least surprising camp battle results, the Buckeys have named Julian Sayin [14.2] as their starter for the 2025 season. He beat out Lincoln Kienholz [11.9] for the gig. He will take the reins and all of the pressure that comes with it. All accounts are that he is ready for this.
Tennessee ::: The Volunteers have officially named Joey Aguilar [14.2] their starting quarterback for the 2025 season. He beat out Jake Merklinger [12.3], and as was expected after he signed out of Appalachian State, he will replace Nico Iamaleava, leading this Josh Heupel offense.
Syracuse ::: Steve Angeli [15.4] has been named the Orange starting quarterback for 2025. This was not much of a surprise, but Rickie Collins [11.5] put up a good fight in camp apparently. He will wait in the wings in case Angeli falters or is injured.
California ::: The Bears have named true freshman Jaron Keawe-Sagapolutele [11.9] as their starting quarterback. Word was surfacing that he was beating out Ohio State transfer Devin Brown [13.1], and now that is confirmed. It would not be surprising to see Brown at some point this season as a true freshman is sure to have his struggles. It is concerning that the Ohio State transfer was not able to show enough in camp to win this job.
North Texas ::: Drew Mestemaker [12.7], a former walk-on, has beaten out Miami (FL) transfer Reese Poffenbarger [12.7] for the North Texas starting quarterback job. This was a slight surprise, although Mestemaker did perform well when forced into action and their player ratings are identical at this point.
New Mexico ::: As expected, Jack Layne [11.3] has officially won the New Mexico starting quarterback job. The Idaho transfer came over with new head coach Jason Eck and held off James Laubstein [8.1] for the job.
New Mexico State ::: Logan Fife [12.2] has made his way back as a starter at the FBS level. After starting his career at Fresno State, he spent last seaosn at FCS Montana. He now has been named the starting quarterback for the Aggies in 2025. He beat out Parker Awad [11.3] for that right.
Rice ::: The quarterback battle has ended with the expected outcome as Chase Jenkins [10.3] wins the job. He will lead a new, run-first offense under head coach Scott Abell, who ran a similar, successful attack at Davidson.
Liberty ::: We initially thought that Coastal Carolina transfer Ethan Vasko [16.2] would run away with the job for the Flames this season. He has familiarity with Tim Beck, along with some impressive numbers and experience. However, it has been quite the battle in camp with Ryan Burger [9.0] hanging in there, and word is that they are neck-and-neck as we near a decision.
Kent State ::: We are hearing from Flashes camp that Dru DeShields [7.9] is pushing CJ Montes [10.8] for one of the least coveted jobs in the country. Head coach Mark Carney praised DeShields for his leadership and maturity coming back from an injury, making this a real 'competition'. He provided the biggest play in the teams' second scrimmage, a 55-yard strike to Maurice Stephens.
Auburn ::: When asked if the Tigers could play three quarterbacks in their opener against Baylor, head coach Hugh Freeze answered with a firm, "Yes. Yeah." response. That would be referring to Jackson Arnold [12.7]. Ashton Daniels [14.4] and even true freshman Deuce Knight [13.0] all seeing time. This is most noteworthy as it applies to Arnold, who was expected to come in here and take a hold of this job. He struggled at Oklahoma last year in his first extended playing time, though his offensive line and injuries at wide receiver certainly played a role. It may be that he just doesn’t quite have that ‘it’ factor once thought.
OTHER NOTES OF NOTE ::::::
Texas ::: Running back CJ Baxter [14.8] is said to have progressed further than anybody expected and is being pushed more. It sure sounds like it may be closer to a carry share between Baxter and 1-A Quintrevion Wisner [16.2] this coming season. It's a great situation for the Longhorns to have two backs of that ilk able to keep eachother fresh and contributing.
Michigan State ::: According to Stephen Brooks (247), Omari Kelly [13.8] has emerged as the No. 2 wide receiver for the Spartans. We originally had him third behind Kent State transfer Crishon McCray [14.3] but made that adjustment based on this reporting.
Texas A&M ::: Tony Catalina of the Houston Chronicle informs us that Mario Craver [13.5] has been standing out at Aggies camp and is looking like the No. 2 option behind only KC Concepcion [12.6]. The two transfers are working with QB Marcell Reed, who is also mentioned to have looked better as a passer. We have bumped Craver up ahead of Terry Bussey [14.0] for the No. 2 spot.
Oklahoma State ::: The Cowboys have dismissed Miami (FL) transfer safety Zaquan Patterson [13.2].
That’s our show for today. More HITS coming before kickoff on Saturday and a couple more editions before we get to the full week one slate…almost there!