Reason for optimism

[Catsrgrood]

It’s been said a lot here lately, this was a very good year and there are a lot of reasons to be happy with the progress that’s been made and to be optimistic going into next year.

This team was by and large a young team again. Next year I think will be the first time in Choate’s tenure that the team will be considered an older team, with more Jr’s and Sr’s starting than freshmen and sophomores. Next year no more “we’re young” excuses.

There will no doubt be some freshman in next years class that have an immediate role, there has been in all 3 years of Choates teams so far, but I think we’ll be seeing less and less of that as Choate builds the depth of the program.

Offense:
O-Line-4 of 5 starters return, along with the next 2-3 guys in line that played some meaningful snaps this season. They’re only going to be better next year as this was a fairly young group this year.

TE’s- it’s hard to say here as the top 3 graduate, but there are some young guys here ready to step in

WR’s- Kassis, Jonsen, McCutcheon, Patterson, Steel all played big roles at times and all return. Add in some guys that have been putting in time (James Campbell, Duru, Metcalf, Tullis, Hanser) and there is a lot to like with this group, there is a lot of talent returning here.

RB’s- Ifanse, Logan Jones, Tyrel Burgess, Lane Sumner, Karl Tucker, Maleek Barkley, and Andersen in limited snaps, there is a lot of talent coming back to this position too.

QB- yes, the biggest unknown right now and will be discussed at length for the next few months. Whether it’s Rovig, Bauman, Beltran, Murray, or a transfer, I fully believe the qb play will be better next year and the offense will be more balanced and effective because if it. Although we don’t know the answer here yet, I’m excited to see what happens because I believe it’ll be a step in the right direction.

Defense:
D-Line- the position group hit hardest by graduation and it’ll be very important to see how this pans out. But with Sterk, Finch, Sparaco, Benson, Williams, and some other young guys that got some playing time this year, I think this position group will be alright. There is some definite talent there.

LB’s- probably the weakest link to this years team. Played solid at times, but very suspect at times. The thing is, there is talent on the team at this position, but they were pretty banged up all year.
Kanow will be a stud, just need to stay healthy. Hill will be back and as others have said, probably our best LB right now, Chapman will be back, Jobman got better throughout the year and will be back, Daniel Hardy will be back (and I still think he could turn into a great LB, he’s still learning the position), Andersen could and should be an immediate upgrade to this group. There are some young guys that should probably crack the two deep next year and it sounds like the new UW transfer may end up in this group. Whether it’s at LB or D-line for him, he could have an immediate impact.

DB’s- everyone that played meaningful snaps this year returns. Could and should be the strongest position group on the team next year.

The point of the post is to show just how much talent there is returning next year. There were some great seniors on this years team, and they’ll be missed, but I don’t think there is enough of a loss for this team to go backwards next year. This team will be better next season, and I’m definitely looking forward to it already.

[Norsky19]

It’s been said a lot here lately, this was a very good year and there are a lot of reasons to be happy with the progress that’s been made and to be optimistic going into next year.

This team was by and large a young team again. Next year I think will be the first time in Choate’s tenure that the team will be considered an older team, with more Jr’s and Sr’s starting than freshmen and sophomores. Next year no more “we’re young” excuses.

There will no doubt be some freshman in next years class that have an immediate role, there has been in all 3 years of Choates teams so far, but I think we’ll be seeing less and less of that as Choate builds the depth of the program.

Offense:
O-Line-4 of 5 starters return, along with the next 2-3 guys in line that played some meaningful snaps this season. They’re only going to be better next year as this was a fairly young group this year.

TE’s- it’s hard to say here as the top 3 graduate, but there are some young guys here ready to step in

WR’s- Kassis, Jonsen, McCutcheon, Patterson, Steel all played big roles at times and all return. Add in some guys that have been putting in time (James Campbell, Duru, Metcalf, Tullis, Hanser) and there is a lot to like with this group, there is a lot of talent returning here.

RB’s- Ifanse, Logan Jones, Tyrel Burgess, Lane Sumner, Karl Tucker, Maleek Barkley, and Andersen in limited snaps, there is a lot of talent coming back to this position too.

QB- yes, the biggest unknown right now and will be discussed at length for the next few months. Whether it’s Rovig, Bauman, Beltran, Murray, or a transfer, I fully believe the qb play will be better next year and the offense will be more balanced and effective because if it. Although we don’t know the answer here yet, I’m excited to see what happens because I believe it’ll be a step in the right direction.

Defense:
D-Line- the position group hit hardest by graduation and it’ll be very important to see how this pans out. But with Sterk, Finch, Sparaco, Benson, Williams, and some other young guys that got some playing time this year, I think this position group will be alright. There is some definite talent there.

LB’s- probably the weakest link to this years team. Played solid at times, but very suspect at times. The thing is, there is talent on the team at this position, but they were pretty banged up all year.
Kanow will be a stud, just need to stay healthy. Hill will be back and as others have said, probably our best LB right now, Chapman will be back, Jobman got better throughout the year and will be back, Daniel Hardy will be back (and I still think he could turn into a great LB, he’s still learning the position), Andersen could and should be an immediate upgrade to this group. There are some young guys that should probably crack the two deep next year and it sounds like the new UW transfer may end up in this group. Whether it’s at LB or D-line for him, he could have an immediate impact.

DB’s- everyone that played meaningful snaps this year returns. Could and should be the strongest position group on the team next year.

The point of the post is to show just how much talent there is returning next year. There were some great seniors on this years team, and they’ll be missed, but I don’t think there is enough of a loss for this team to go backwards next year. This team will be better next season, and I’m definitely looking forward to it already.

[gtapp]

I would expect us to be better at every position except DL. We need O-line depth also. Didn't have it this year but didn't need it. DL will be a drop off barring good transfers but it will still be talented.