Offensive Line Outlook

The offensive line was improved this year over last year and has some young talent as well. The offensive line will lose two starters to graduation, Rodger Saffold and Pete Saxon. The returning starters are Justin Pagan (LG), Will Matte (C), James Brewer (RT).

Justin Pagan- probably has the most potential out of all of our offensive lineman. He played as a true freshman and almost every single position on the line. He bulked up a lot in the off season and plays physical with a mean streak in him.

Will Matte- started as a red shirt freshman this past season. He is a bit undersized but will get bigger as time goes on. His biggest asset is his nasty streak. He should be a solid center for the hoosiers over the next 3 years.

James Brewer- last year was his first year as a starter. He is a huge player listed around 6'8 331 lbs. He needs to improve on his quickness a bit but will should be very much improved now that he has a year of playing time under his belt. He will be a senior next season.

Now we need to replace the left tackle position and the right guard position. One of the possible replacements at the left tackle is red shirt freshman Charlie Chapman. He is listed at 6'6 304 lbs. He bulked up a good deal during his red shirt year and he has pretty good feet. Another player who will be competing for it is Andrew McDonald. He has some experience and will be in the mix. One of the other possibilities is moving Justin Pagan over from guard to tackle. The last player to throw into the mix is red shirt freshman Colin Rodkey. He had offers from West Virginia and Pitt coming out of high school.

A young player in the mix for the right guard is red shirt freshman Pat McShane. He was one of the lineman who was most ready to play as a freshman. Along with him will be red shirt freshman Aaron Price competing for the job. He had a pretty good camp showing and will be a good player for the hoosiers. One of the veterans who will probably practice with the starting unit in the spring will be Alex Perry. He has some good experience but was banged up during the year. The last player to consider is Cody Faulkner. Like Alex, he was banged up most of the year as well. He was the probably the most heavily recruited out of high school. Walk on Mike Reiter has also seen some extended time on the line the last two years as well.

We should have some decent depth on the line next year. Red shirt freshman Mark Damisch saw some good playing time this year behind Justin Pagan. JUCO transfer Jordan Marquette will likely be Will Matte's back up at center.