Whoah. Losing Prevard really sucks.
I could be wrong, but the vibe I get just from looking around and also at the replies to Prevardās social media posts is that it wasnāt drama related, or anything to do with the suspension. Seems like heās just trying to take advantage of his raised stock and make as much money as possible on the open market.
And to be honest, canāt say that I blame him. Go chase a bag while you can.
15 Likes
Thanks for looking brother! I still have a Love/hate relationship with NIL. Hope we offer a bag to get him to stay.
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Did it ever come out what the suspension was for?
1 Like
Wonder if heās going to play in the bowl or opt out?
1 Like
JF said he wonāt play
3 Likes
I think itās just money. We have a bunch of young DBs that we like, including Costner who competed with Prevard as a true freshman. Are we willing to pay $1M to a Nickel with 1 year left given who we already have and other needs on the roster?
6 Likes
Finally, DBs:
Defensive Backs
Gone:
- Antonio Clary - Graduate
- Devin Neal - Graduate
- Christian Charles - Graduate
- DaāMarcus Crosby - Graduate
- Kenan Johnson - Graduate
- Jaāson Prevard - Transfer
Eligible to Return:
- Jermarian āJamā Jackson - RS Sr (Corner)
- Jordan Robinson - Bonus Sr (Corner) (JuCo Waiver)
- Donavon Platt - RS Sr (Corner)
- JaāMaric Morris - RS Sr (Safety)
- Ethan Minter - Jr (Safety)
- Dre Walker - RS Jr (Corner)
- Emmanuel Karnley - Jr (Corner)
- KeShawn āKeKeā Adams - RS So (Safety)
- Kevon Gray - RS So (Corner)
- Corey Costner - So (Safety)
- Josiah Persinger - So (Corner)
- Montino Williams Jr. - So (Safety)
- Christopher Spence - RS Fr (Corner)
Incoming:
- Alex Dunn - Fr (Corner)
- Jayden Covil - Fr (Corner)
Needs: Depending on waivers and retention, we could return three of five starters as well as a few additional 2-deepers, meaning the baseline is solid even with the disappointing Prevard transfer news. Weāll also be looking to see if guys like Jam Jackson, Dre Walker, and JaāMaric Morris bounce back to P4 form after their respective lost injury seasons. Additionally, a lot of young guys from the 2023 and '24 classes are entering big offseasons with a chance to compete for the rotation. So really this could be a drastic shift from last yearās desperate Portal activity, where we took nine DBās.
The highlight of the Portal strategy is probably looking for a starter at Safety next to Minter, with youngsters like Adams, Costner, and Williams, along with 2025-injured JaāMaric Morris, working in for playable depth. At Cornerback, Portal help will be focused on replacements for Prevard and any other surprising names transferring out. After that, the overall numbers do project a little light (only 15 names on the board right now, likely to drop with some medical retirements and/or additional outbounds) and the staff generally likes to carry around 18 DBs, so weāll still probably be fairly active here to build out depth.
5 Likes
Are we completely sure that Antonio Claryās done done? Thereās no way he can come back for an 8th year? /jk
5 Likes
Mizzou RB in the portal now!
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Iād guess anyone entering the portal now/before the bowl game is opting out. They arenāt trying to risk injury playing in a bowl game for the team they are leaving, possibly screwing up their odds for a bigger bag/different destination in the process
6 Likes
Dude, I got excited because I thought this was Hardy. Itās not. This guy was 3/4 string
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Fudge
Special Teams
Gone
-
P Daniel Sparks
-
LS Bryce Robinson
-
KOR/PR Cam Ross
Eligible To Return
-
K Will Bettridge - Bonus Sr (Tragedy Waiver)
-
K Jorge Diaz Nicolas - RS Fr
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P Elijah Slibeck - RS Jr
-
LS Jacob Tannenbaum - RS Fr
Incoming - None
Needs: At punter, Slibeck looked good when filling in for an injured Sparks, so he probably projects as the starter with a youngster needed for depth and succession planning. At Kicker, weāll have to see if Bettridge utilizes his waiver for a 5th season. If he doesnāt Nicolas was well rated by Kohls in last yearās class, but ideally you want a second for competition and injury insurance. Bryce Robinson was maybe the best LS in the ACC this year, underrated for his reliability, so hopefully the staff is able to backfill him adequately. TBD if the staff goes looking for a dedicated return specialist or if they feel the incumbent skill position guys can compete adequately to fill that role.
6 Likes
Did you at some point mention that Stevie Bracey was working out at LS before his injury? Maybe it was someone else.
4 Likes
We need a kicker regardless of whether Will returnsā¦. Need one that is a now type of kicker not a 1990s range kicker.
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We donāt care about winning as much as we should if Bettridge is our starting kicker next season
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Bettridge is close to automatic inside 45 yards. Lots and lots of teams have it much worse.
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Weāve had it much worse ourselves multiple times in the past 10-15 years. Iād allocate money for a kicker who can make 45-55 yard field goals. All the sudden we have a chance to score when weāre inside the 40 rather than needing to get to the 28 at least.
2 Likes