Wildcats Position by Position Breakdown: Linebackers

joenewby4040 — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 06:30:09 -0000

LINEBACKERS

Arizona’s backers will be Sterling Lewis (Sam), Vuna Tuihalamaka (Mike), and Xavier Kelley. The Cats lost senior, Ronnie Palmer, to graduation. All Palmer did was have 85 tackles last year, 13 for a loss and 3 sacks.

(Sterling Lewis should have a huge year)

Tuihalamaka will have to step up big time and fill the void in the middle. Senior Sterling Lewis is coming off of an impressive 2008 in which he had 58 tackles in 10 games. Xavier Kelly, another senior for the Cats, started 8 games in 2008 and had 51 tackles on the year. This is a solid core of starters, with a ton of competent backups. Look for Corey Hall to step in on the nickel package while R.J. Young, and Orlando Vargas backup the middle and will linebacker spots.

(Xavier Kelly returns to the Cats in 2009)

(Fischer has had a great August)

With the departure of Lewis, Kelley, and Hall next year due to graduation, the Cats went big on defensive and even bigger on their linebacking core for recruiting purposes. The Cats picked up C.J. Parish, Cordarius Golston, Jake Fischer, and four star recruit, Trevor Erno. Unfortunately, it seems as if Erno is struggling this August and will likely redshirt. However, Stoops thinks that Jake Fischer will play on special teams immediately and could rotate in when needed at linebacker. Let’s hope Mark Stoops can get some good reps with his backups and freshman so the Cats don’t miss a beat when an injury arises and also for next year with the departure of three of our linebackers.

Recruiting Spotlight: Trevor Erno

Smooty — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 15:34:00 -0000

VITALS

Name: Trevor Erno

Position: Linebacker

Height: 6'1''

Weight: 230 lbs.

Speed: 4.75

High School: Lakewood High School (CA)

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars (Scouts, Inc.); 4 out of 5 stars (Rivals); 3 out of 5 stars (Scout.com)

Recruited by: Mike Tuiasosopo

STRENGTHS

Power. Erno hits hard at the point of attack. He does not have to gain a ton of weight, as he already weighs 230 lbs. This will enable him to deal with the rigors of college football, compared to the high school level. Erno is a self-described "hard nosed" player who loves to hit. Here is what ESPN/Scouts, Inc. had to say about Erno's strengths:

Erno definitely passes the eyeball test at his middle linebacker position and is very productive cleaning up between the tackles. He is tall, thick and well-proportioned. Plays with a wide, solid base at the point of attack and shows good power through his hips and lower-body. Fills hard and quickly downhill with square shoulder pads; rarely gets turned out of his run gap and forces blockers and ball carriers upright on contact. This kid will blow up the fullback iso and excels against two-back power-running schemes. Shows good short-range speed and sharp lateral pursuit angles in traffic. Closes fast on his final steps before contact and is a strong tackler. Not overly reactive but takes very few false steps and can deceptively redirect. Gets to his drop quickly while reading the quarterback and underneath routes. Hips, turns and overall fluidity in coverage will surprise you for a thicker linebacker, and he will close hard and quickly on the pass.

WEAKNESSES

Erno's speed will not remind anyone of Lance Briggs, or Ronnie Palmer for that matter. What he has in size and strength, he lacks in top-flight sideline-to-sideline speed. This may limit his playing time in the nickel and dime packages until his speed and quickness improve. Here is what ESPN/Scouts, Inc. had to say about Erno's weaknesses:

Our main concern when projecting for the next level is his lack of sideline-to-sideline speed and range. Good football speed but could struggle against offenses that spread the field and create matchups in space. Excels when he has a clear read to the ball carrier but can struggle sifting through the wash and slipping the cutoff block when linemen reach him. Hand and shedding technique for a linebacker with his measurables is not as strong and polished as you would like.

Verdict

Before Adam Hall's signing, Erno was the cream of Arizona's recruiting crop this season. His size and physicality should give him the opportunity to compete for playing time this fall. His ability to stuff the run and create high-impact collisions could endear him to Arizona fans. Expect him to be more of a factor against non-spread teams, such as Cal, Stanford, UCLA, USC, and Washington.

SB Nation - Ronnie Palmer

Wildcats Position by Position Breakdown: Linebackers

Recruiting Spotlight: Trevor Erno

VITALS

STRENGTHS

WEAKNESSES