2017 Expectations

[AppSt94]

Schedule next year sets up well as our home games in conference are Coastal Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia Southern and New Mexico State. We do not play Troy or Arkansas State next year. Going 11-1 is very doable. Beat Georgia to open up the year and it could be a very special season!

You can't overlook Wake Forest. Solid defense and this game could set up the same way as the Miami game for different reasons. A lot of hype and buildup could be a distraction. Hopefully we learned a lesson with the Miami game.

[JMappfan5]

Losing: OL- Collins & Collmar (Edge-Campbell will take over at Center; heard that Gillespie, Neuzil, Haskins & Garrison performed well on Scout team); RB- Cox (Moore is a BEAST'; hope Boyd & Upshaw return; heard Williams was "turning heads" until his injury; may have to build depth with true freshmen); TE- Burns & Nunn (Duffield & Cecil are excellent blockers and Reed got better as the season progressed-had a solid outing during Burns' injury; heard McClurg & Vinson will add depth and will be pushing to start); WR- Capel & Lewis (with Meadors, Evans. Hopkins, Barbour, Watkins, Jones, Absher, Letman and Adams back, we should be much improved); QB- Lamb everyone else returns!!!); DL= Fernandez, Norwood & Small (Fuller, Stout, Sims, Godwin and Pappenheim will be a good core group returning; add Willis, Barrett, Baer-Hunter, McClurg & Diarassouba--lots of potential in that group); LB= Law, Gilchrist & Thomas ( Flory, TFuller and EDavis will compete for ILB slot; ADavis, Townes or Fehr will replace Keenan's spot--great to have Boggs and Stringer returning!!!; CB/S= Williams & Gray (Duck and hopefully Gibbs will be formidable Corners with Hayes & Pinckney as 2s; Howard, Thomas, Franklin and Exford are all solid Safetys but heard that one of these 4 Jean-Charles, Level, Chamberlain & Purifoy may crack the line-up as early as next year).

[EastHallApp]

This will be the most turnover we've had in years. We've had mostly the same core group for the past three seasons. With that said, I *think* we've recruited/developed well enough that we may keep going without missing a beat. We'll see.

One thing you can be absolutely certain of is that we will have a weeknight game, likely more than one and likely at least one at home. The Sun Belt has weeknight spots to fill and we're one of its top programs. That's how this works.

As far as schedule, I know the assumption has been that we won't play stAte or Troy next year but I asked a couple of guys from the Yosef Club about that the other night and they didn't know anything about it. Said they were just hoping to get GS on a Saturday this year. Take that FWIW.

[AppSt94]

I think that if Gibbs returns then he and Duck will be able to play outside coverage without assistance. Freeing up the safeties to provide run support.

[/\PP ST/\TE GRAD 09]

I think that if Gibbs returns then he and Duck will be able to play outside coverage without assistance. Freeing up the safeties to provide run support.

Assuming the year off doesn't hurt Gibbs. Also assuming he returns. Haven't heard from Moose on here in awhile. Maybe he has an update?

Also, and not related to this particular post. Don't sleep on Wake next year. I think they return a good bit next season.

[appfanjj]

The young man who caught the game winning TD pass in the Shrine Bowl yesterday (Saturday) for North Carolina is an Appalachian State commit.

[CornCobPipes]

I think that if Gibbs returns then he and Duck will be able to play outside coverage without assistance. Freeing up the safeties to provide run support.

Assuming the year off doesn't hurt Gibbs. Also assuming he returns. Haven't heard from Moose on here in awhile. Maybe he has an update?

Also, and not related to this particular post. Don't sleep on Wake next year. I think they return a good bit next season.

Good points.

Maybe we can get a wakeyleak report pregame.... LOL......Seriously that is not a good thing....See where VA Tech, Army, and Louisville getting in trouble over that.

[bigdave828]

The young man who caught the game winning TD pass in the Shrine Bowl yesterday (Saturday) for North Carolina is an Appalachian State commit.

That's Thomas Hennigan. Dudes a stud. I went to the same school as him for two years before I graduated and even as a freshman he was playing at a very high level. Jack of all trades, if I remember correctly he also played safety, took snaps from the backfield, and a little bit of QB this year.

[firemoose]

I think that if Gibbs returns then he and Duck will be able to play outside coverage without assistance. Freeing up the safeties to provide run support.

Assuming the year off doesn't hurt Gibbs. Also assuming he returns. Haven't heard from Moose on here in awhile. Maybe he has an update?

Also, and not related to this particular post. Don't sleep on Wake next year. I think they return a good bit next season.

Last word from a couple of weeks ago was Gibbs was coming back to school in the spring. If that is still the case we'll know about his status as far as football goes a week after the Feb 1st signing day as we'll be following the same pattern from the last two years in starting spring ball then, so Mike can get the rest of the spring to do his offseason program. It's worked well for us and I expect it will do so again this year.

[hapapp]

Too many question marks to assume we don't miss a beat. We have a lot of talent returning but there are some key performers who will be gone. Reports suggest there are some young ones ready to step in who could be difference makers but until they actually perform in game settings we really don't know. The impact of our recruiting efforts the last several years will be judged by next season's results.

[appst89]

As far as schedule, I know the assumption has been that we won't play stAte or Troy next year but I asked a couple of guys from the Yosef Club about that the other night and they didn't know anything about it. Said they were just hoping to get GS on a Saturday this year. Take that FWIW.

I'm pretty sure that I've read something at least semi-official that says we play all the same conference opponents next year, except that we replace Troy with Coastal. I'll look when I have more time and see if I can find it again.

[mtnjax]

PLAYOFFS OR BUST!!!

But in all seriousness, 11-1 or 10-2 is feasible and back to back Belt champs

[EastHallApp]

Too many question marks to assume we don't miss a beat. We have a lot of talent returning but there are some key performers who will be gone. Reports suggest there are some young ones ready to step in who could be difference makers but until they actually perform in game settings we really don't know. The impact of our recruiting efforts the last several years will be judged by next season's results.

Certainly don't assume we won't miss a beat. But I don't assume we will either.

Lots of production to replace, lots of capable athletes anxious for their shot. Time to see what we've got.

Mentioned this on another thread, but we also don't lose much at QB or WR, so even if we have some dropoff on other areas, there's a chance our passing game (and place kicking) will be improved simply by experience.

[Stonewall]

Marcus Cox will be missed for many reasons, some not so obvious. Otherwise , if our back up and redshirt linemen step up on both sides...look out!

[SpeedkingATL]

App graduates a lot of very skilled players as well as leadership. I expect with the depth displayed this year that many of those holes will be filled with excellent talent. I expect App to contend for the Belt championship and if things fall together to have a good shot at 10 or 11 wins. If App upsets UGA then up the expectations a bit.

[Saint3333]

A lot of posters here (myself included) thought oline depth was going to be a big problem going into 2016 and that the backup WRs, while less experienced, wouldn't be much of a drop off due to perceived talent coming in.

I was wrong, in 2016, we saw a noticeable drop off in WR play.

Given the losses at OL, DT, LB, TE, and P and more specifically the leadership at LB and RB there are some big shoes to fill. Going into 2017 my biggest concerns are Dline and LB depth. I think we'll still be a bowl bound team, but too soon to tell for SBC championship discussions.

[EastHallApp]

A lot of posters here (myself included) thought oline depth was going to be a big problem going into 2016 and that the backup WRs, while less experienced, wouldn't be much of a drop off due to perceived talent coming in.

I was wrong, in 2016, we saw a noticeable drop off in WR play.

Given the losses at OL, DT, LB, TE, and P and more specifically the leadership at LB and RB there are some big shoes to fill. Going into 2017 my biggest concerns are Dline and LB depth. I think we'll still be a bowl bound team, but too soon to tell for SBC championship discussions.

To be fair, OL depth wasn't an issue because unlike last year, we stayed mostly healthy (other than Nunn missing a couple games against overmatched opponents. If we'd seen the same kind of injuries there we saw last year, I think depth would have been a problem.

[MtnDevil95]

Football is one of the more difficult sports to predict incoming new talent (and that's pretty much true at any level of the sport). The optimist in me believes App will fill the graduation holes with guys that have the size, speed and raw talent to make an impact. That by the middle of the season, Woody will have the new guys in the D-Line and Linebacking corps humming along shutting down the opposition. I want to believe the dropsies will be left in Montgomery and the returning WRs will prove to be a weapon other teams will have to account for and that opens Moore and company for another season of multiple 1000+ yard running backs. The question mark there lies in the O-Line . . .

Opening in Athens will be tough, but a good trial by fire for the newcomers to the starting lineups. For the down linemen and linebackers, chemistry will be huge in the overall season success. I do not thing 11-1 is out of reach, but I think 9-3 is perhaps more likely.

[EastHallApp]

Football is one of the more difficult sports to predict incoming new talent (and that's pretty much true at any level of the sport). The optimist in me believes App will fill the graduation holes with guys that have the size, speed and raw talent to make an impact. That by the middle of the season, Woody will have the new guys in the D-Line and Linebacking corps humming along shutting down the opposition. I want to believe the dropsies will be left in Montgomery and the returning WRs will prove to be a weapon other teams will have to account for and that opens Moore and company for another season of multiple 1000+ yard running backs. The question mark there lies in the O-Line . . .

Opening in Athens will be tough, but a good trial by fire for the newcomers to the starting lineups. For the down linemen and linebackers, chemistry will be huge in the overall season success. I do not thing 11-1 is out of reach, but I think 9-3 is perhaps more likely.

Remember though, at most positions we're not going to be plugging freshmen in to replace starters (except cases where a freshman is just too good not to play, which we've seen a few times in recent years).

C: Collins out, TEC in
TE: Burns out, Reed in
RB: Cox out, Moore in
DE: Reed/Norwood out, Godwin/Fuller in
ILB: Law out, Flory/Townes in
OLB: Gilchrist out, Davis/Townes in
CB: Williams out, Gibbs(?) in
FS: Gray out, Thomas/Franklin in

Every one of those "new" guys has already played extensively, if not started some games. Basically the only spots where we don't have a proven player ready to step in are guard (Collmar), backup NT (Fernandez/Small), punter and KR/PR (Capel), plus we do need to develop more OL depth for sure.

[eggers76]

Josh Thomas had a heck of a game Saturday. I think he will be hard to keep off the field at safety