#SWARM - The Reboot

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Name in bold denotes starter

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

No drafted players this year. Made Abrams an 89 but he couldn't sneak in there. No transfers, which really surprises me. We have so much PT available.

[SilverBullet19]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Definitely lost the top guys, I'm surprised there are no transfers. The first few years are usually an all you can eat buffet of new guys coming over lol. I know it doesn't impact next season, but they're really useful once they're eligible. My heisman winner was a transfer after all.

Green should be considering himself lucky to even still be on the team, he needs to get a grip and learn some self control

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

National Signing Day, 2014 Offseason

February 6th, 2015

Swarm class comes in at #112

Westlake, OH -- National Signing Day is over, and the dust has settled on the recruiting landscape for a few months. Some teams, like National Champions Stanford, who landed 5 (!) 5 star recruits for the #1 class in the nation, will be ecstatic at how it went. Others, like Westlake State, will be uncertain about what the future holds.

The Swarm's class is ranked 112th in the nation. It could end up being a colossal flop, or this class of players could help make the Swarm into a MAC power.

The Swarm came into Signing Day hoping to get commitments from 3 corners in Mike Powers, Ronald Wright, and JUCO JR Sean Louis. They only got Louis, with Miami OH taking Powers and Wright going to USC, who swooped in late and got him. Of these 3, Louis is the most talented, but he's a headcase who was kicked out of LSU and Nicholls State. I'd give it till Week 4, at the latest, before he clashes with Dion Barkley.

But the 4th guy the Swarm wanted was probably the most important: JUCO QB Marcus Henderson. He opted for Tulane, staying closer to his native Florida, where he played JUCO ball. The Swarm did land 2 quarterbacks, 3 stars Jacourey McKinley and De'Aaron Walker, but McKinley weighs about 180 pounds and isn't ready to take the hits a D1 QB takes. Walker is an incredible athlete with questionable accuracy and decision making.

Henderson, on the other hand is a highly cerebral QB who threw just 5 picks in 21 JUCO games. He'd come in as a junior, and start 1 year at the very least while McKinley and Walker got acclimated to playing college football. Westlake State's only other viable option at QB is Ricardo Marble, a great athlete with a poor arm.

There are clear positives. DE Clayton Thorson is highly underrated and should easily start as a true freshman. 2 star guard James Henderson is an excellent building block for this offensive line that gave up 37 sacks this past season.

The full class can be found below.

These ratings are subject to change before the start of the year, I usually do 1 gem prospect and 2-3 busts. Also change injury ratings, which knocks 0-3 points off the overall.

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Definitely lost the top guys, I'm surprised there are no transfers. The first few years are usually an all you can eat buffet of new guys coming over lol. I know it doesn't impact next season, but they're really useful once they're eligible. My heisman winner was a transfer after all.

Green should be considering himself lucky to even still be on the team, he needs to get a grip and learn some self control

Yeah I'm shocked no one came in. Really hoped I'd get a good defensive guy. Green gets one more chance. He's our most dynamic wideout, so I decided to give him one last shot. We really need him.

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Recruiting Around the Nation

Stanford grabbed the #1 overall class following their title win, with 5 blue chip recruits committing to play for the Cardinal. They also got 9 4 stars, and they look like they could be the team to beat for a while. Boston College is surprisingly high up these rankings, with the Eagles pulling in the 12th ranked class, headlined by the #5 overall prospect in the nation, ATH Derek Mullins.

The top prospect, ATH Corey Howard will play for his home state Georgia, choosing the Bulldogs over Syracuse and Virginia. Howard is 6'0, 2018 and runs a 4.32 40. He's best suited playing wideout, but could see time at tailback.

UTEP, UAB, Syracuse, Navy, FAU, Duke, Colorado State and Ball State all landed a 5 star recruit surprisingly. Ball State landed the #1 corner in the nation, 5 star Adam Burnette. Burnette is a man to man corner with 4.3 speed and should be an instant starter. Despite getting him, their class ranks just 107th in the nation. They went 11-3 and won the MAC last year, but did lose Riley Neal at QB.

Bowling Green (OC Bryson Post) got the #84 class. Post will have 6'7 Devante Walker to play wideout following a likely redshirt year. (I created the coaches when I advanced to preseason, and the game put Walker at LOLB where he's a 66 and buried on the depth chart, rather than WR where he'd be a 78 overall starter) Central Michigan (OC Paul Lees) landed 4 star TE Bobby Nash, along with gem Ray Williams, a 3 star athlete who will play QB. Nash is a 6'7, 233 pound receiving oriented player who runs a very solid 4.62 40. Williams will start at QB next year after the departure of Tony Poljan. He's a 6'5, 225 pound lefty with a big arm, good accuracy and solid mobility.

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Westlake State Football Staff Communications

From: HC Dion Barkley

To: All Coaches

CC: Position changes and cuts

Hi all. The offseason is a wrap, here's the list of guys that are switching positions, as well as my final cuts.

CB Isaac Robinson is moving to FS. He got killed deep a lot last year, he's a smart player who's just a tad bit too slow to play corner.

Terrence Owens will move from FS to CB. Owens showed an aptitude for man coverage in spring ball and with his size and athleticism. Still lost in anything else, but he can tackle and play man at 6'3, 210.

Cuts for this year are FB Brian Matthews, LT Kenny Wilkerson, TE Reuben Crews, and LE Caleb Brown. None of these guys were ever gonna see the field, just not good.

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

2015 Training Camp Preview

July 19th, 2015

Training camp preview 2015

QB Battle -- Emergence of Cox at HB could see him take over #2 role -- Secondary looks good, even with loss of Abrams -- Offensive line still a concern

Football is back! Training camp is kicking off for college teams, and that means the season is just around the corner. Let's take a look at what we can expect from this year's camp.

QB battle in Westlake

Wendell Hearn left for the MLB draft, and he was selected by the Kansas City Royals with the 17th pick in the second round. Let's take a look at who will be competing for the job in camp.

First up, the only non-freshman, redshirt junior Ricardo Marble. He stands at 6'2, 205, and is a run-first kind of QB. He's pretty fast and can slip away from defenders, but all these guys can. His only advantage here is that he's been here a year and knows the playbook better, because he's pretty easily the least talented QB here. (Aside from Dwight Cummings... but we don't talk about him)

The most talented QB on the squad is probably De'Aaron Walker. The freshman stands at 6'2, 218 at just 18 years old, and has NFL ready arm strength and athleticism. Seriously, he can throw some absolute bullets. His issue is that he's extremely inconsistent and his decision making is questionable at best. He runs around a lot and tries to make something out of nothing instead of checking it down, throwing it away, or just taking a hit.

Jacourey McKinley likely won't make a serious play for the job. This guy is very underdeveloped physically. He was listed at 187 in high school, but weighed in at just 174 in his preseason physical. He hates being hit, and will often throw off his back foot. His arm strength is OK, but would benefit if he hit the weights. Accuracy wise, he looks worse than his tape suggested. I doubt he plays a snap this year, he just isn't ready physically.

Tale of The Tape



Tailbacks will have to earn their snaps in suddenly loaded backfield

Tristan Cox redshirted last year, and was dismayed at not getting a chance to play despite the Swarm being paper-thin in the backfield. Sitting on the bench made him hungry, and he worked hard this offseason. He bulked up to 214 pounds and got a bit quicker, but what's made him stand out is his improvement as a pass catcher and blocker. Cox's hands look better than most of the Swarm's receivers, and he will see time split out wide. His emergence will likely see seniors Louis Dowdell and Dionte Norton have to fight for their spot in the rotation behind Cox and sophomore Trent Brantley.

Norton was excellent towards the end of 2014, with his best game being his 140 yard, 4 TD performance in that crazy 50-47 win over Ohio. But he's too small to be a lead back, he's best suited as a change of pace guy. However, with Cox's improvement, he may be phased out.

Louis Dowdell is probably not going to play, barring injuries. He's extremely injury prone, and he's not a guy who creates yards. Probably the best vision of all these guys, but he's slow, not very strong, and can't catch.

Brantley will hope to stay healthy after messing time with ankle and Achilles tendon issues in 2014, playing in just 3 games, scoring 1 touchdown.

O-Line still an issue

Westlake State quarterbacks were sacked 38 times last season, and if it weren't for Wendell Hearn's escapabilty and quick release, that number would likely be in the 60s. Hearn was battered by season's end, and the line doesn't look that good. The only lineman to take a big step forward was senior guard Frank Jacobs, who got in better shape. Other than that, this group is still undersized guys who are fairly weak for the position. With freshman De'Aaron Walker in line to start, this is what could make or break him as a player. His release is pretty slow, and he loves to move around in the pocket and look deep. Confidence pretty much dictates how he plays, and it's tough to be confident when you can't trust your line.

Revamped secondary looks good

Deonte Abrams is gone. As of right now, he's still a free agent who is reportedly receiving some NFL looks. He was the backbone of this defense last year with 105 tackles and 6 interceptions. His safety partner, Donte Oliver is gone as well. The Swarm missed out on 2 of their top 3 corners in recruiting, with Mike Powers going to rival Miami OH and Ronald Wright opting for sunny California, going to USC.

But, they did get Sean Louis. Louis is a freak athlete who has clocked in as fast as 4.28 seconds in the 40. He has a 42 inch vertical, and is a shutdown man to man corner. He can also play receiver and return kicks. Why is he at Westlake State? Well, he has an attitude issue. He thinks he knows better than everyone, and it's why he left LSU and Nicholls State following rocky relationships with coaches. I guarantee he clashes with a coach before the end of camp. He's an NFL player if he can stay on the team for 2 years.

Louis is great, but the corners would still be awful if it weren't for Darnell Woods' improvement. Woods had a horrible true freshman season, and has come back this year stronger, more explosive and above all else smarter. He's making plays on the ball now because he's approaching the game with his mind as opposed to just trying to go as fast as possible. He often got caught overrunning assignments last year and cost his team huge plays a lot. He looks to be much better as a sophomore.

Isaac Robinson slid over to free safety after Oliver left it open. He was never quite the athlete that you want in a 5'11 corner, but he's another guy who's very cerebral and knows where to be. His speed is no longer an issue, just average for the position.

Strong safety is the only question. This spot is up for grabs between Khari Anderson and Ray Bentley. Neither of them is close to being what Abrams was last year, not that that's realistic. Neither one of them is all that good. Speed is a question mark, coverage is a question mark for Bentley, hitting is a question mark for Anderson.

Note: I do a manual progression system. So some guys have broken out, others have regressed, or more likely, stagnated. I do the progression/regression in the preseason after training results, most guys just keep their regular training.

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

[moose141]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Fell behind, and had to read up on the whole season 2! Unbelievable season with fantastic recaps. Such a great turn of events getting your first real statement win over Kansas State, and then tough on missing out on a bowl game but that gives your guys some motivation for this season no doubt. Sean Louis looks like he could be a huge puzzle piece for you, and it sounds like Walker is your guy at QB so hopefully he can figure things out quickly so you don't have a regression under center.

Also have to give you props on the new tables, they're looking really clean and the pop of color is nice and easy to read! Keep it up man!

[SilverBullet19]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Heyyyyy picked 5th in division...better than last! lol. I'm excited for this QB battle, it could be a situation like me where it goes back and forth. I can see it being truly between Marble and Walker. It may be worth taking on the growing pains with Walker so he can improve.


Wild to see Chip Kelly is struggling, hopefully it's not foreshadowing of real life...I'm ready to see some more wins at UCLA!

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Fell behind, and had to read up on the whole season 2! Unbelievable season with fantastic recaps. Such a great turn of events getting your first real statement win over Kansas State, and then tough on missing out on a bowl game but that gives your guys some motivation for this season no doubt. Sean Louis looks like he could be a huge puzzle piece for you, and it sounds like Walker is your guy at QB so hopefully he can figure things out quickly so you don't have a regression under center.

Also have to give you props on the new tables, they're looking really clean and the pop of color is nice and easy to read! Keep it up man!

Oh what's up Moose ain't seen you in a while. You still doing the Pitt dynasty?

This 2014 season was one of my favorite seasons of any dynasty I've played, so many ups and downs. Thought we were headed for another 2-10 year after Hearn and the offense struggled out the gate, but then we beat Kansas State and our offense was pretty good from that point on. Really sucked to miss out on a bowl, especially on a missed PAT. I highly recommend using Tuscaloosa's kicking system over in the NCAA forum, it makes kicking exciting. Never missed a PAT before I used that system.

This year I fear we're gonna take a step back. Looking at our season, we got bailed out against Boise by a huge drop, got very lucky against K-State when they just underestimated us, beat Kent cause they missed a 27 yard kick, and the Ohio comeback was pretty much because of Dionte Norton finally putting his speed to use. We overachieved for sure, could have and probably should have been a 3-4 win year. The team looks pretty solid this year honestly, I'll post the roster soon, about halfway done with the season preview. Keeping in mind that my injury edits take a few points off guy's overall ratings, we are actually pretty talented. But we have a freshman QB who's boom or bust, his backup has a noodle arm, we have a fairly weak line, and a couple weak links on the defense. You can cover up a lot with a good QB, but it takes a lot to cover up a bad one.

Glad you like my tables. Got so damn sick of clicking from case to case and not being able to save stuff on the OS tables, so made my own. Now it's much quicker and I actually like doing them, recapping the stats was a chore before.

Thanks for checking in bro, and watch out for the new season in a couple days.

Sent from my SM-A520W using Operation Sports mobile app

[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

CAC signups open. Any signups from now till the end of the year will start their careers in the 2016 season. Fill out this form either here or via PM (credit to Guru for the form), and I'll create your coach at the end of the year. Fields marked in bold are necessary, all the others are optional.

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[young22]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Heyyyyy picked 5th in division...better than last! lol. I'm excited for this QB battle, it could be a situation like me where it goes back and forth. I can see it being truly between Marble and Walker. It may be worth taking on the growing pains with Walker so he can improve.


Wild to see Chip Kelly is struggling, hopefully it's not foreshadowing of real life...I'm ready to see some more wins at UCLA!

I've been running practice so much just to see who's better these last couple days. Walker has so much upside, but with him we're gonna have to take the bad with the good. Marble is just a solid player. Fast, mediocre arm, not gonna get much better. Gonna get in one more session before I do the training camp write up and the preview.

I don't think your CMU team will do that badly. But, if they do, you could get promoted cause I think their HC is on the hot seat already. We play you guys to open MAC play actually, Week 6. One thing you have going for you is a 79 overall freshman QB. Gonna redshirt behind a senior, but he looks like a future pro.

Thanks for checking in as always homie, season starting soon!

Sent from my SM-A520W using Operation Sports mobile app

[moose141]

Re: #SWARM - The Reboot

Oh what's up Moose ain't seen you in a while. You still doing the Pitt dynasty?

Yessir! Just was on vacation for the last week and a half so didn't get a chance to get the Pre-bowl game update in, which should go up tonight and then I can FINALLY get close to getting into the offseason!