A sliver lining with all the missing players

Obviously the team would be in a lot better position in terms of talent and experience if they were at full strength. However, it might also be easier to let complacency creep in, especially considering UCF isn’t a name brand opponent. It’s up the staff to prevent that, but we’ve seen it go both ways with ours- the team was ready to dominate vs Louisville in 16, but a lot less so last year vs ND.

There is one positive with all of the missing players. The team (at least the defense) can’t help but be more focused because there are so many guys playing bigger roles or any role at all who otherwise wouldn’t have. We all know they aren’t Greedy or Fulton, but you can’t tell me that a guy like Terrance Alexander, who may be playing the last football game of his life, won’t be focused and mentally ready to play.

Will that be enough? That’s harder to say. When an older guys is buried on the depth chart, there’s a reason. If this were a normal game week, I wouldn’t expect much. However, with a couple of weeks to prepare with one of the best DCs around, maybe he steps up and delivers more than we think he’s capable of.

Several of the others guys give me more hope. Alexander didn’t get on the field that much because he just wasn’t at the talent level of the guys around him. Everyone else getting called on outside of Paris is younger and getting their first big shot to play a leading role in the defense. We may not know much about these guys and how they will respond, but you have to think they all see this as a huge opportunity. This is a chance for them to get out of the shadows and make a statement. A big game in the Fiesta would be a perfect way to lead into a great Spring and a move up the depth chart. I’m betting a couple of these guys have really good games.

If I were talking about this many new guys being plugged in on offense, I would have absolutely no optimism. However, if anyone can take this crew and get them ready to play well in a single game against a single opponent over a bowl break, it’s Dave Aranda. Just look back at the 2016 domination of Louisville. It was a defense playing several younger guys in lead roles that set the tone in that game. As with that game, I don’t think we need to worry about the defense being focused coming into this one.

Hopefully the offense will follow their lead, but that’s a whole different story.