Spring Edition: Offensive players to watch for in 2013

What will these guys do in 2013?

I don't know and by listing them here I am not advocating that they will have big years but they are guys that intrigue me. I am interested in seeing if they continue to be solid or will they have all conference or even better seasons.

I started this post about 3 different times but it kept becoming something different than what I wanted it or thought it should be.

In this series I am forcing myself to list five returning guys (offense/defense), three new guys (offense/defense) and a little lagniappe. I will list a couple guys that seem to be established already but I want to mainly focus on guys we have not heard much about or guys that did not have good years last year.

There are so many more guy that intrigue that I want to discuss but here we go:

Offense:

1. The OL. Yes, I am starting this limitation of five off with listing an entire group and cheating the system which I created - my blog, my rules :-) . Frankly I believe that the entire 2013 season outcome lands on these guys backs. No pressure guys. As I started to think about position breakdowns, emerging stars, etc etc etc it all kept coming back to one thing - If this group does not perform better than they did last year (especially in the run game) then it does not matter if Darkwa stays healthy, Badie becomes a star, who wins the QB battle or whether or not the TEs will catch more balls than they drop. None of that other stuff means squat if this group does not get better. In my opinion there are five open spots on the line, a true open race to start if there ever was one in sports. I need to make this very clear, it is not about who emerges as the starters - it is about who gets better. If everyone stays the same as they were last year then does it matter if those guys are listed as the starter? If you are not getting better in sports you are actually getting worse because someone else is getting better and creating a larger gap. Even if the new frosh coming in are really good guess what - they are still true frosh and that comes with growing pains. I expect a couple rookies to make an impact here in year one but in a perfect world they should not be coming in being expected to save the season. We have a large group of guys returning that now have game experience and now they know how much harder it is out there in the trenches so this off season should be an all our grind in the weight room and getting their technique/communication down. Sorry big fellas, to be honest nobody ever notices when you do a great job and nobody outside of that group cares. It is the nature of the position and 2013 will be as great or as bad of a season as this group decides they want to be. I am predicting a 7 win minimum and up to 10 wins as the high so for as much stuff as I just talked, I fully expect these guys to grow up this off season and knowing that major competition is coming in the Fall will help that process. That is what I am hoping for anyways.

2. Staying on this theme how could anyone not list Zach Morgan here. You are bringing back a starter, experience and a pissed off mentality that seemed to be lacking out of this group last year. Even if Morgan is not great and just good, he brings a toughness and confidence to the group that needs to be inflicted. He is one of the more vocal and passionate guys on the team and if healthy he should bring some much needed leadership to this group (fingers crossed). If Morgan is as pissed off and happy to be back as Jordan Sullen looks out there then we are in luck!
Added on edit: Read about Zach Morgan here. Perfect timing!
http://theadvocate.com/sports/stateschools/5267659-123/tulane-football-notebook-morgans-return

3. Can Orleans Darkwa stay healthy? There is some debate out there among fans about who is the best RB or are they even good enough. Well before the 2012 season if there was one position on this team the coaches felt great about it was running back. They felt they had at least 3 guys that could be potential starters for lots of programs in the country and this staff knows that Orleans Darkwa has "it". He may not be flashy, overly powerful or the fastest guy out there but he just seems to have "it" when he is healthy and has the blocking. The staff may me more diplomatic publicly but they know and the veteran players know how valuable Darkwa is to this team. I was able to see up close and personal the practices, games and careers of Mewelde Moore and Matt Forte and Darkwa is every bit as good as those guys in terms of skill. Orleans is good, he is really good but he must stay healthy (to go along with an improved OL). This is even more important with Robert Kelley out this Spring due to academic issues and RS FR Lazedrick Thompson still proving he is 100% back from knee surgery to provide depth at the position behind Dante' Butler.

4. Matt Marfisi. Matt Marfisi. Matt Marfisi. This is a guy that the previous staff thought was an NFL caliber TE in terms of athletic ability and play making ability. He even had scouts asking about him during his RS FR year at a practice because he looked so good in practice. I thought last year he would emerge as a star in this offense but too many drops (by the collective group & him) put a squash to all of that. The staff just about gave up on them in the end. At practices you could hear Coach David Johnson yelling to them "catch the ball, make a play, force them (CJ & E Price) to call plays for you" trying to motivate that group to be more consistent. I am almost as frustrated with Marfisi as I am with the OL and it is not getting any better with him missing most of Spring so far with some (not severe) injury.

5. There were a couple ways I could have gone here but in the end I have to go with my kiss of death - one of my football man-crush players - WR Devon Breaux. The last couple guys I thought had the potential to be absolute studs have not lived up to expectations. I feel more confident in this one because the coaches I have spoken to feel the same way and it was confirmed at practices in the Fall when the defensive coaches were heard saying "who the hell is that guy?" and "he plays for us, - wow" as he made spectacular play after play working on the scout team. I have no doubt our rookie CBs got better last year by competing against this guy in practice. The crazy thing about Devon Breaux is this - he is still raw as can be. He was a QB in high school and is still learning the position of WR in terms of route running, getting out of breaks and how to use your hands/body to create the space you need. All that said, you could not help but to notice him if you were able to attend multiple practices last Fall. Breaux has four years remaining and right now today I would bank on him becoming a very good all conference type of player when all is said and done. After Ryan Grant we have an assortment of emerging WRs but nobody that has cemented their spot, leaving an opening for Breaux (or anyone) to take advantage of that opportunity. To cheat again, it is taking all my power not to list Kedrick Banks here also - ooops, I just did :-)

Stay tuned for defensive returners, offense/defense new comers & lagniappe.