FPM: Linebackers

As part of TheUConnBlog's 2010 Season Preview Month-ish, we're counting down the days to the UConn football team's opener against Michigan. Today, we're previewing UConn's linebackers. You can read all our Football Preview Month-ish posts here.

Previously on TheUConnBlog: The three of us behind TheUConnBlog like to pride ourselves on three things: High quality, often-hilarious UConn sports-related content; fine coifs; and the ability to predict the future.

If you're one of our regular six readers - up from four a year ago (progress!) - you're well aware of the first part. And since the six of you probably read this site because you know us IRL, then you also know all about that second thing.

The third?

Well, that may not be well known. Not even I knew much about it, really - until now.

It was in this here cyber space (or, a less-snazzy version) a little less than a year ago that I evoked Tom Kiefer, lead singer of the face-melting rock ensemble Cinderella, to preview the linebacking core for the 2009 UConn Huskies.

Join me as we flash back for a moment, won't you?:

But despite [the linebacking core's] elevated status, you don't hear too much about them, mainly because of what I like to call the Tom Brady effect -- i.e. no one wants to constantly hear about things that are good.

So, as Kiefer so astutely points out, you don't know really know how good you have it with this linebacking trio. But when it's gone, my friends, "it ain't easy to get back" ... or something.

DID I REALLY JUST GO ALL MISS CLEO ON YA? YEAH, I THINK I DID.

*Cough*

OK, then.

Well, I'm sure you can fill in the rest. The mightiest of stingers prevented Scott Lutrus from doling out the Lutrusity for five games, forced him into a snazzy set of swishy pants and kept us waiting with baited breath until his return. And Greg Lloyd, the Human Guillotine, also went down in the third-to-last regular-season game and won't even make it back for this year, choosing to redshirt to preserve his final season of eligibility.

Lawrence Wilson, of course, remained quite awesome in their stead, tackling everything in sight, Terry Tate style, en route to an absurd 140 total stops (11 for a loss) and five sacks.

2010 Depth Chart:

2009 High Points:

1. Wilson has a season-high 17 tackles, including one sack, in a 56-31 beatdown of Syracuse.

2. After missing five of the previous six games, and leaving the one in which he played early because of injury, Lutrus returned for good against Rutgers and finished with six tackles and a sack. He wouldn't miss a game for the rest of the season and registered more than nine tackles in each contest.

2009 Low Points:

1. Lutrus suffered a stinger in the season-opener against Ohio. He would eventually miss five of the next six games.

2. Greg Lloyd tore his ACL and MCL in a victory of Syracuse. He hasn't returned since.

New faces: Aside from Lutrus and Wilson, the rest of the linebacking core remains unknown, simply because the duo, as well as Lloyd, have been around for so long. But if Johnson can't return swiftly from an injured wrist true freshman Andrew Opoku has a chance to emerge from their shadow, so says Brian Bennett:

The only true freshman to crack the Huskies' two-deep this spring, Opoku could help out behind current starter Jory Johnson at strongside linebacker or possibly at safety. Coach Randy Edsall rarely plays true freshmen, but the 6-foot-4 Opoku had an extra year of seasoning in prep school before coming to Storrs and got a head start by enrolling at UConn in January.

Bennettt's optimism is mostly speculative, and seems only based upon the depth chart rather than on-field displays, but Opoku at least appears versatile, having started out at safety (see? I can do it, too).

All-time leaders:

CAREER

Tackles: John Dorsey (1980-83), 495

Tackles for loss (for LB): Maurice Lloyd (2001-04), 47.5

SINGLE SEASON

Tackles: John Dorsey, 184 (1983).

Tackles for loss (for LB): Razul Wallace, 19 (2000).

Notable alumni: John Dorsey (Packers fourth-rounder), Alfred Fincher (2005 NFL third-rounder), Danny Lansanah (former NFL walk-on, now with the Hartford Colonials).

Don't take it from us:

Here's what the experts have to say about UConn's LBs:

--Phil Steele: Ranks UConn 27th-best linebacking corps in America, best in the Big East; Wilson ranked No. 6 among outside linebackers, Lutrus ranked No. 10 among inside linebackers

--Blue Ribbon: Wilson named preseason All-Big East First Team; "the heart of the defense beats here."

--Athlon: Wilson named preseason All-Big East First Team; Lutrus on the second team

Our outlook: Despite Wilson's emergence, UConnites were, for the first time in three years, left longing a bit. But unlike the heartbroken Kiefer, all we's got ain't just a song. For we still have his rock odyssey, and much, much more.

Once again, we've got the power of THE LUTRUSITY.

Lutrus and Wilson are two of the best linebackers in college football, and, together, form one of the game's best pairs.

Problem is, linebackers come in groups of three (usually). And the Huskies currently have a giant question mark suiting up on the strong side.

Johnson performed well, statistically, last season filling in for Lutrus and later, Kijuan Dabney (now a safety), but also failed to make any lasting impression, at least on me. And, as of now, his status is up in the air because of an injury that will force him to the sidelines for an undetermined amount of time.

Still, as long as their a living organism draped in UConn blue and white next to Lutrus and Wilson, the Huskies should be OK. But as we found out last season, even that's far from a sure thing.

And with the Huskies counting on its two veteran ‘backers to cover some of the blotches made by a secondary greener than a golf course, losing either player would sting far more than stinger did last year.

Position grade: B+