Questions That I Hope Are Answered During Spring Ball

1. Will Vinston Painter step up?

Tackle Vinston Painter is 6-6 303. He was a 4-star recruit. He benches 430, cleans 336, front squats 500 and runs a 4.8 40. Physically, I don't think you could want anything more in an offensive lineman. However, the senior has yet to earn meaningful playing time. If Painter can get it together to have a Cris Hill like final season, it would go a long way to solidifying the depth along the o-line.

2. How will the abundance of D-line talent be used?

Defensive line is arguably the deepest position on the roster. Tackles Derrick Hopkins, Luther Maddy, Corey Marshall and Antoine Hopkins along with ends James Gayle, J.R. Collins, Tyrel Wilson and Zack McCray round out an athletic and battle tested two-deep. The coaches are also very high on Dadi Nicolas and Kris Harley who redshirted at end and tackle respectively in 2011. However, they all can't be on the field at once.

Will Antoine Hopkins regain his starting job? Will Corey Marshall play inside and out and be that hybrid player that moves around the field causing mismatches? J.R. Collins moved inside to tackle against Georgia Tech, does that become a thing against other teams? Do the coaches think some personel packages work better than others? Who will the starters be?

3. Where will Kyle Fuller play?

Field corner, boundary corner, Whip/Nickel and safety are all possibilities for Tech's do it all defensive back.

4. What tweaks is Bud making to better defend "spread" teams such as Clemson and UNC?

The defensive coaches met with Missouri's staff a couple weeks ago in Jacksonville to exchange ideas.

"Obviously we're going to be playing Clemson again. I think at times we played the spread pretty well. We did in the bowl game, with the exception of a couple plays, but it's getting different people's thoughts. It looks like the ACC is kind of going that way with Larry Fedora coming in and instead of North Carolina being a two-back offense, it looks like they'll be an up-tempo offense. That's what Missouri is. So I'm curious to talk to them, how they defend their people too. Because their offense is all no-huddle, empty a guy out, motion a guy back in and different things that make you change your calls, even in mid-stream, or the kids have a lot of check-with-me calls. So I'm just curious to see how they game manage and things of that nature."

If Bud is going to fiddle with his scheme, it's likely the seeds of change will be planted in the spring. I'm keeping my ears open for any mention of new defensive drills, personal groups or packages.

5. Whip?

Can either Alonzo Tweedy or Nick Dew supplant G-W while he recovers from his Lisfranc sprain?

6. Once the Maroon-White Game is over, what remains to be sorted out in August?

I don't think the coaches will be settled on a tailback, kicker or punter until the end of summer camp. J.C. Coleman and Michael Holmes are the leading candidates to replace David Wilson and Josh Oglesby. They will have the advantage of practicing during spring, but Trey Edmunds, Drew Harris (if healthy), Chris Mangus and other potential backs won't be on campus until summer. It'll be a fantastic competition to follow.

If not for his legal issues, Cody Journell would have been the kicker. We'll know more about his status with the team once his court case is continued on May 10th. If Journell doesn't return, Conor Goulding and newcomers Brooks Abbott and Andrew Murray will have a chance to win the job. Punter could come down to a two man duel between incumbent Michael Branthover and walk-on Hunter Windmuller. No matter what, expect the Frankinator to take his time and really work all the guys out before making his decisions.

I'm ready for practice to start, and to learn more about this team.