Halfback depth

[uofmman1122]

I mean, he's really good, so maybe, but another running back is close to the bottom of the list of things this team needs going forward.

Yeah extra RB depth would not have come in handy this year.

Well damn, we should have gotten him back in August, or are you anticipating losing 2 RBs to injury for the entirety of 2022 again? We're just as likely to lose our top 2 Safeties for the year, so why not go get a dropdown Safety to cover our bases?

Seems weird to me to allocate another of our limited scholarships to a RB when we have 5 capable RBs (including one all-american) on the team and multiple bigger holes at OL, QB, DB, and DE.

Would love to have Dotson here, but not at the expense of an impact player at any of those positions.

 

[kemajic]

Yeah extra RB depth would not have come in handy this year.

Well damn, we should have gotten him back in August, or are you anticipating losing 2 RBs to injury for the entirety of 2022 again? We're just as likely to lose our top 2 Safeties for the year, so why not go get a dropdown Safety to cover our bases?

Seems weird to me to allocate another of our limited scholarships to a RB when we have 5 capable RBs (including one all-american) on the team and multiple bigger holes at OL, QB, DB, and DE.

Would love to have Dotson here, but not at the expense of an impact player at any of those positions.

You may not want to take for granted that all you mention will be RBs for Montana next year. E.g.:

They may RS Harris to help him develop more physically if we have other options.
Some may not make the team (at RB) in the spring if we have upgrades (Turner, Childs).
We will not escape without injuries at the RB position.
Yes, Bergen is better suited elsewhere (slot, with Sulser such high risk).
There is risk in how well Knight and Ostmo return.
Gillman looks to be a great get, but I'm sure the staff would prefer to red shirt him.

That said, I'm not sure Dotson would be a target as there is rumor that he was far more concerned about Dotson that he was about his team. Not BH type of chemistry. And I agree we could really use another Gavin Robertson.

 

[uofmman1122]

Well damn, we should have gotten him back in August, or are you anticipating losing 2 RBs to injury for the entirety of 2022 again? We're just as likely to lose our top 2 Safeties for the year, so why not go get a dropdown Safety to cover our bases?

Seems weird to me to allocate another of our limited scholarships to a RB when we have 5 capable RBs (including one all-american) on the team and multiple bigger holes at OL, QB, DB, and DE.

Would love to have Dotson here, but not at the expense of an impact player at any of those positions.

You may not want to take for granted that all you mention will be RBs for Montana next year. E.g.:

They may RS Harris to help him develop more physically if we have other options.
Some may not make the team (at RB) in the spring if we have upgrades (Turner, Childs).
We will not escape without injuries at the RB position.
Yes, Bergen is better suited elsewhere (slot, with Sulser such high risk).
There is risk in how well Knight and Ostmo return.
Gillman looks to be a great get, but I'm sure the staff would prefer to red shirt him.

That said, I'm not sure Dotson would be a target as there is rumor that he was far more concerned about Dotson that he was about his team. Not BH type of chemistry. And I agree we could really use another Gavin Robertson.

Yeah, I don't disagree here, I just see it as potential depth problems if things go bad at RB vs. absolute depth and starter problems at other positions with only a handful of scholarships available. Rolling the dice with the RBs we have seems like a better idea than rolling the dice with our OL, for example.

And if that's true about chemistry, I'm sure Bobby would probably avoid him. He seems to respect Troy Taylor a lot, and I'm sure would ask him about him first.

 

[mtgrizfankb]

Wouldn’t be shocked to see someone leave. Knight will be the 1. O and Harris are probably both getting #2 reps. Bergen will go to Slot as he originally was designed. Child’s is also a good back. I just don’t know if he’ll find the reps he wants with this crew. I think he’s got good power when health. But the 4th back or a specialty back is tough. Maybe he will switch to another position but RB is why he came to Montana. Plus we just brought in the Minnesota POTY at RB (assuming a RS year) So it will be tough to see where he fits in

 

[kyle_sample]

How will our HB depth be used next season? We're absolutely loaded here, assuming everyone is healthy. Also Knight, Harris, and Bergen are all versatile as running and receiving threats, with big play abilities. Meanwhile WR depth and experience is much more questionable. If I could put together an offense next season, I'd utilize hb depth to the fullest. I'd have a lot of hb and slot motions. 2 and even some 3 back sets. Mixing up the sets with 2 backs from the backfield, and 1 in the slot.

I'd use Bergen as a slot and Halfback. I'd couple 1 smaller back with a bigger back. Hell, with an improved run blocking scheme, if needed, go smash mouth, like Hauck likes. I wouldn't hesitate to use all the depth.

Then again, this all may not be needed. If our WRs develop well and we find consistent qb play. Right now, hb is by far our deepest position group. Be prepared to utilize them.

Thoughts?

I don’t think our offensive staff is imaginative to figure out the best way to use the talent at their disposal.