| Defensive Ends | |
| Ross Ruth - SO * | 41/60 |
| Jackie Elliott - JR * | 24/57 |
| Brenden Tanner - SO | 23/45 |
| Leon Marsh - FR | 15/59 |
| Riddick Alicea - SO | 22/31 |
| Adam Fernandes - SR | 1/1 |
| Defensive Tackles | |
| BJ Fields - SR * | 41/53 |
| Will Dragon - SO | 21/52 |
| Tyrell Poteet - JR | 17/52 |
| Phillip Hill - FR | 12/32 |
| Inside Linebackers | |
| OJ O'Neill - SR * | 33/47 |
| Dixon Bennett - FR | 20/42 |
| Claude Thompson - SR | 14/33 |
| Randall Riley - FR | 17/52 |
| Eugene Arceo - SO | 14/29 |
| Earl McCutcheon - JR | 14/27 |
| Outside Linebackers | |
| Claude Holliday - SR * | 29/43 |
| Carl Dibble - JR * | 20/50 |
| Alvin Huntley - JR | 17/35 |
| Grady Floyd - SO | 12/29 |
| Harvey McNeil - FR | 11/63 |
| Peter Buckner - SO | 4/34 |
| Cornerbacks | |
| Alex Andrews - JR * | 42/75 |
| RJ Deighton - SR | 40/40 |
| Burt Logan - FR | 26/49 |
| Randall Coghill - JR | 7/51 |
| Gene Rocco - JR | 16/19 |
| Safeties | |
| BJ Schaefer - JR * | 34/34 |
| Darrin Flynn - FR | 14/36 |
| Eugene Brown - JR | 14/29 |
| Aaron Bashir - FR | 7/28 |
| Kennedy Murray - FR | 7/42 |
Ross Ruth was not tabbed as more than a part time player last season, but he grabbed the starting job midway through and was the most consistent player among our front 7 due to a non-stop motor that saw him place second on the team in tackles. Elliott is adequate on the opposite side and Fields and Dragon should both be capable in the middle.
Linebacker is where I am worried as the lack of talent here is as much a reason we went to a 4-3 as the decent talent we have up front. OJ O'Neill would not start at Mike on a lot of teams, but he is the best we have and if he goes down we are in big trouble. So much so that I may pull Riley's red shirt if that happens. On the outside it is even worse as Holliday and Dibble (who didn't even have a schollie at this time last year) are barely passable as starters and after that there is a cliff. I am determined to keep McNeil's red shirt intact as he has to start next season and we need to score a big time recruit here as well.
I am actually happy at corner, where Ales Andrews worked hard and was a +19 in skill from last year. He will line up against the opponents top guy every week and Deighton will be fine on the other side. True freshman Burt Logan will get plenty of reps on Deighton's side so he is ready to step in next season. Safety is a complete mess and we are going to have to play a lot of zone to cover up the weakness' back here. I am really going to miss Lamar Oglivie from this position!