The two-deep for the season opener is out! FOOTBALL!
First, some tweets:
— Teddy Greenstein (@TeddyGreenstein) August 27, 2012
#northwestern depth chart: konopka at RT, Mark at TB, porcelli at RG, vitale at SB, dugar at CB. No surprises.
Where is Kyle Prater, you ask?
Also ... Kyle Prater a backup at X receiver to Tony Jones. Fitz will start presser at 1215.
— Teddy Greenstein (@TeddyGreenstein) August 27, 2012
But we should see him on the field:
Fans will see plenty of Kyle Prater at receiver. Fitz: "We'll see him through the rotation and kind of go from there"
— Chris Emma (@CEmmaFOX) August 27, 2012
I haven't seen an official link yet, but I believe that this is accurate.
My thoughts: The receivers are about as expected. If the rotation is similar to last season's, the H is the first receiver off the field when a superback or second running back is on the field. That would be too bad for Christian Jones, but would also mean that Tony Jones has really impressed. I have been expecting Dan Vitale to start since last week when we heard that he wouldn't redshirt, and that impression was correct. Again, no surprise with the Mark/Trumpy 1-2 at running back. I will be interested to see how the other running backs are used.
On defense, I think that Dean Lowry and Deonte Gibson as the second ends is a good sign both for the future and for our chances of seeing an improved pass rush this year. Demetrius Dugar and Davion Fleming took the open corner and safety positions; I have less hope for the secondary, but we will see. Chi Chi Ariguzo got himself a place at the table and will hopefully Dougie while shouting his name after big plays.
EDIT:
Here is the full two deep:
Offense:
QB: Kain Colter (duh), Trevor Siemian
TB: Venric Mark, Mike Trumpy
Y: Demetrius Fields, Pierre Youngblood-Ary
H: Christian Jones, Mike Jensen
Z: Rashad Lawrence, Cameron Dickerson
X: Tony Jones, Kyle Prater
SB: Dan Vitale, Mark Szott
RT: Jack Konopka, Paul Jorgensen
RG: Churck Porcelli, Matt Frazier
C: Brandon Vitabile, Hayden Baker
LG: Brian Mulroe, Geoff Mogus
LT: Patrick Ward, Paul Jorgensen
Defense:
LDE: Quentin Williams, Dean Lowry
DT: Brian Arnfelt, Sean McEvilly
DT: Will Hampton, Chance Carter
RDE: Tyler Scott, Deonte Gibson
SLB: Chi Chi Ariguzo, Drew Smith
MLB: Damien Proby, Timmy Vernon
WLB: David Nwabuisi, Collin Ellis
CB: Nick VanHoose, Quinn Evans
CB: Demetrius Dugar, Daniel Jones
S: Ibraheim Campbel, Jared Carpenter
S: Davion Fleming, Jimmy Hall
Special Teams
Kicker: Jeff Budzien
Punter:Brandon Williams
Kickoff: Steve Flaherty
Long Snapper: Pat Hickey
Holder: Brandon Williams
KR: Venric Mark, Ibraheim Campbell
PR: Venric Mark, Ibraheim Campbell