OSU Football: Four Interesting Position Battles for Spring Ball

There is plenty of place for some healthy competition at the Sherman E. Smith Training Center this spring.

As the Cowboys look to reload and better their 7-6 finish from 2018, here is a look at some spots up for grabs.

Quarterback

Contenders: Spencer Sanders, Dru Brown
Dark Horse: Brendan Costello

Let’s get the most obvious battle out of the way, the battle even casual OSU observers can identify: quarterback.

Spencer Sanders and Dru Brown have seemingly been in a position battle with each other since each arrived on campus last year. With that said, nobody apart from those in OSU’s practices knows exactly how that competition is going. The most the public has seen from the two in an OSU uniform is Brown handing a ball off in the Liberty Bowl.

Sanders is probably the popular pick at this point, but with new offensive coordinator Sean Gleeson’s fresh perspective, it’ll be as interesting as ever to see the race develop. Also of note is true freshman Brendan Costello has been with Gleeson as long as Sanders and Brown, but Costello will undoubtedly have more to learn about the college game. A big knock on Sanders last season was that he didn’t enroll early, a factor Costello won’t have to deal with.

Outside Receiver

Contenders: Patrick McKaufman, Jonathan Shepherd, C.J. Moore, LC Greenwood, Braydon Johnson, Tyrell Alexander
Late Arrival: Langston Anderson

Tylan Wallace, Dillon Stoner, Landon Wolf and … .

The Cowboys have a ton of options to take over the role Tyron Johnson left vacant. Among those options, there is plenty of size whether that be with Patrick McKaufman (6-foot-6), C.J. Moore (6-5), Jonathan Shepherd (6-4) or LC Greenwood (6-3).

The group has a lot of potential that at this point is unproven, as the only player in the contenders list above to have a catch in 2018 was Braydon Johnson, who had only two catches for seven yards. Among that list, Braydon Johnson most resembles Tyron Johnson. Both are 6-1 and weigh about 195 pounds. Both are also blazing quick, as proven when Tyron ran his pro-day 40 sub 4.4. Last season, Stoner said he’d back Braydon in a race against Chuba Hubbard.

No matter who starts and who doesn’t, all will likely find ways to contribute in the fall.

Backup Running Back

Contenders: LD Brown, Dezmon Jackson, Jahmyl Jeter
Late Arrival: Deondrick Glass

As great as Chuba Hubbard was last season, he isn’t going to be able to play every snap in 2019.

Like with the last two battles, the unknown makes this competition even more intriguing. LD Brown is the most known quantity, having gotten 64 carries and 386 rushing yards (6 yards per carry) in the past two seasons. With that said, he has found himself on the bottom end of backup battles the past two years, being behind J.D. King in 2017 and Hubbard in 2018.

Dezmon Jackson’s 1,216 yards and 13 touchdowns last season at Hutchinson is exciting, but it’s yet to be seen how quickly he can get that to translate to the Division-I level. Jahmyl Jeter is considered a power back. He didn’t get any carries in his freshman season, so the scouting report on him also brings a fair amount of question marks.

Star recruit Deondrick Glass will also join the healthy competition after he graduates high school and gets on campus.

Defensive Tackle

Contenders: Israel Antwine, Cameron Murray, Brendon Evers, Sione Asi, Amadou Fofana

We’ll finally step away from the skill positions.

There is plenty of opportunity and suitors on OSU’s defensive line. Although he is only a sophomore, Colorado transfer Israel Antwine comes in with the most in-game Division-I experience, but his experience wasn’t in defensive coordinator Jim Knowles’ scheme.

Sione Asi and Amadou Fofana each bring impressive junior college resumes, and Brendon Evers and Cameron Murray each had seven tackles in OSU’s 2018 season.

“I think we can be dynamic with Brock Martin and Mike Scott kind of taking over for Jordan (Brailford),” Knowles said. “I think those two guys together will be dynamic. A lot of good young players coming up inside, but they’re going to have to prove themselves.”