Fall Previews 5 of 63: Louisiana Monroe

Louisiana Monroe:

Head Coach: Todd Berry
2014 Record: (4-8, 3-5 Sun Belt)
Basic Offense: Multiple
Basic Defense: 3-3-5 Multiple

Offense: 

The Warhawks head into the 2015 season with a bit of a question mark at the quarterback position due to the graduation of Pete Thomas. Brayle Brown (14-24/172/1TD) heads into fall camp as the projected starter after assuming the backup role in 2014. Brown saw even more playing time in 2013 with over 600 yards passing and should be able to step in and do at least a reasonable job behind center. The backup spot is an interesting competition between redshirt freshman Garrett Smith and the curious case of Earnest Carrington. Smith redshirted in 2014 and is a highly regarded quarterback of the future for the Warhawks and is best suited to learn as the backup this fall. Carrington is in his final year of eligibility after starting his career at ULM but transferring to Texas Southern for family reasons before rejoining the Warhawks again for the 2014 season. This fall is his last chance to earn time at quarterback so expect the coaching staff to give Carrington every chance to earn playing time this fall.

Rashon Ceaser

ULM was one of the poorest rushing offenses in the nation in 2014 and bring back little on field experience to the upcoming season. The Warhawks only have four players on the depth chart listed as running backs with a combined 56 yards rushing between them. Currently, sophomore Kaylon Watson (9/31/0TD) and graduate Devontae McNeal are battling to head up the first team offense. Both has the size to be bruising backs with Watson having the coveted combination of youth and skill that will earn him significant carries this fall. Whoever starts, both running backs should see playing time and lots of carries with junior Nathan Meadors (6/25/0TD) finding a spot as a third down back with the ability to give a rest to McNeal and Watson. Not much is expected from the ULM rushing attack so anything positive will be greatly appreciated.

The Warhawks have the ability to run out two tight ends that are experienced and able to make plays in the passing game in 2015. Junior Alec Osborne (17/116/1TD) and graduate Harley Scioneaux (5/22/0TD) have yet to settle the starting position although Osborne's ability to be a bigger threat in the passing game does give him an advantage. Scioneaux is more of a small tackle playing tight end and how well he blocks could be the key to a renewed rushing attacks from the Warhawks.

With so little able to be predicted from the rest of ULM's skill positions, wide receiver is the one spot that is in excellent condition. The Warhawks return two Biletnikoff Award watch list members in senior Rashan Ceaser (77/872/3TD) and junior Ajalen Holley (57/863/7TD). Ceaser was a 1st team All-Sun Belt honoree in 2014 and is on the preseason 1st team All-Sun Belt team. He has the ability to open several NFL eyes this fall with his play. Sophomore Brian Williams and redshirt freshman Brennan Bradley back up Ceaser but have no combined playing time for the Warhawks. One the other side of the formation is Holley and his 2nd team All-Sun Belt honors last fall while earning preseason 2nd team All-Sun Belt honors for the upcoming season as well. Redshirt junior Jared Mapps and redshirt freshman D’Marius Gillespie back up Holley and in similar fashion to the backups for Ceaser, have no career catches for ULM. Making up the third of an experienced starting wide receiver group is senior Tyler Cain (45/273/0TD). Cain is a do it all player that made 45 catches, carried the ball 63 times and returned 36 kickoffs as a running back last fall. He makes the full time move to wide receiver this fall but will still probably get a few carries as well. Redshirt freshman Marcus Green and junior Tre' Perrier look to battle for the backup position while getting plenty of experience on special teams.

Monroe's offensive line was a combination of the old guard and a ridiculously young group in 2014 with two freshmen making a combined 18 starts in the trenches. Center Colby Mitchell is the senior statesman, having played in 33 career games with 11 career starts. Backing up Mitchell in the middle is junior Jeff Savage (2 GP). At right tackle, the Warhawks are experienced with redshirt sophomore Chase Regain making 11 starts in 2014. Regain is backed up by redshirt freshman Keaton Baggs. In the first big battle of the offensive line, redshirt freshman Jake Snyder is the projected starter heading into the fall over junior Jimmy Chung (4GP). Snyder has the higher upside and has the ability to turn into a special offensive lineman for ULM if he gets the chance to play early and develop. Chung is virtually the same size as Snyder but will have to work very hard to earn a starting role this fall. At left guard is the other returning starter for ULM in redshirt sophomore Frank Sutton Jr. The massive guard was able to force himself into the starting lineup midway through the 2014 season and seems to be a fixture heading into this season. Redshirt freshman Brain Thlang is the backup but will have quite the challenge in unseating Sutton Jr. Unless an injury occurs, Thlang will be looking at backup and special teams duty this fall. The most interesting battle on the offensive side of the ball for ULM will be between Rey Baltazar and redshirt sophomore Brandon Bridgers. Baltazar, a JUCO transfer, is the current leader for the all important left tackle spot but after seeing his first playing time in the 2014 season finale, Bridgers is hungry to steal that starting spot. It is truly a spot that I would not be surprised to see either player earn.

Defense: 

Gerrand Johnson

Any talk of the Warhawk defensive line starts with the incredibly talented Gerrand Johnson (93 tkl, 12.5 tfl, 6 sacks) in the middle. Johnson is no stranger to awards with 2nd team All-Sun Belt honors in 2013 as a sophomore, 1st team All-Sun Belt honors as a junior in 2014, and preseason 1st team All-Sun Belt honors as a senior for 2015. Johnson was also named to the Lombardi Award watch list, Bronko Nagurski Trophy watch list, as well as the Outland Trophy watch list, and was the first ULM defensive lineman since 1980 to lead the team in tackles. Backing Johnson up in the middle is redshirt sophomore David Elias Jr. (3 tkl) and Jackson Randle. At one defensive end spot, redshirt freshman Ben Banogu holds the lead over former JUCO player Colton Moorehead. Both have yet to step on the field for ULM but should rotate in and out and make plays for the Warhawk defense this fall. At the other defensive end spot is senior Lorenzo Jackson (46 tkl, 12.5 tfl, 2.5 sacks). Between Jackson and Johnson, the Warhawk defensive line returns 25 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks. Jacob Tyson (6 tkl, 2 tfl, 2 sacks) will back Jackson up and has the ability to step in during passing situations and get after the quarterback which would give the ULM secondary a much needed break. Redshirt freshman Shaquille Warren should see limited playing time this fall.

In a 3-3-5 defense, it is important to have at least one linebacker with experience. Luckily for Monroe, all three linebacker spots have a returning starter. Hunter Kissinger (85 tkl, 10.5 tfl, 5 sacks, 2 INT) leads the way in the middle after earning 2nd team All-Sunb Belt honors in 2014. The graduate also earned preseason 2nd team All-Sun Belt honors in 2015 and was named to the Lombardi Award watch list. Backing up Kissinger is junior Braxton Moore (8 tkl, 1.5 tfl) who showed skill in limited duty and should continue to earn playing time this fall. Michael Johnson (83 tkl, 16 tfl, 8 sacks) may be the best hidden secret in the Sun Belt after a sophomore campaign that saw him put up very impressive numbers. Expect the word to be out for Johnson this fall with his size and speed ideal to make the move to the next level. Junior Tevyn Cagins is a quality backup and will be expected to be ready for limited playing time with an eye towards the 2016 season. Rounding out the linebacker corps is starter Cody Robinson (51 tkl, 6 tfl, 3.5 sacks, 1 INT). Robinson is the least accomplished of the trio but is a very solid player that will do a lot of the grunt work that allows Kissinger and Johnson to be successful. Robinson will be backed up by redshirt freshman David Griffith, a redshirt freshman that saw action in one game.

Despite all of the reasons for people to pick against ULM this fall, the Warhawks are a scary team in 2015 due to the return of 4/5ths of the #14 passing defense in the nation last season led by senior Mitch Lane (91 tkl, 4.5 tfl, 3 INT, 1 defensive TD). Lane was named to the 2014 1st team All-Sun Belt squad, is named to the preseason 2015 1st team All-Sun Belt squad, and is on the Thorpe Award watch list for the nation's best defensive back. The safety has started 31 career games and should start every game this fall. Sophomore Marquis McCullum (5 tkl) will back up the talented Lane as the Hawk position. At the cornerback positions, senior Trey Caldwell (42 tkl, 1 tfl, 1 INT) and junior Lenzy Pipkins (32 tkl, 3 tfl, 1 sack, 1 INT) return in 2015 after making a combined 19 starts last fall. Both are experienced and talented with Pipkins holding the size and speed at cornerback that could make him money in the NFL one day. Senior Junior Williams (9 tkl) and sophomore Grant Dotsy (1 tkl) are the backups. At the two safety spots, ULM expects Justin Backus (53 tkl, 1 tfl, 2 INT) and Tre’ Hunter (23 tkl, 1 tfl) to be the starters. Backus made all 12 starts in 2014 and was able to gain some much needed experience in the defensive backfield while holding his own versus a tough schedule last fall. Hunter never started last fall but was one of the first backups to see playing time and should flourish in a bigger role this fall.

Special Teams: 

With no one back with any in game kicking experience, the majority of the kicking and punting duties will fall to redshirt freshman Craig Ford. The 6-2, 166 pound kicker/punter has an impressive leg and every bit of that leg will be needed this fall. Incoming freshman Chris Qualls will also be joining the team this fall.

Overall: 

With a defense that should be one of the stronger units in the Group of Five but an offense that cannot stay on the field, it seems as though a bowl berth for the Warhawks in 2015 is a bit of a stretch. The defense has the ability to keep ULM in games that they do not belong in but without an offense that can score regularly, 2015 will be a repeat of last season last season that saw the Warhawks lose 5 games by seven or fewer points

Looking at the non-conference slate first, the Warhawks have two pretty unwinnable games with trips to SEC powers Georgia and Alabama in the first three weeks of the season. Mixing in between those games is a visit from FCS foe Nicholls State to give ULM an early season win. The start for ULM should be 1-2. The other two non-conference games are coin flip games that the Warhawks could easily win and put their non-conference slate at 3-2. More likely is a split between Tulsa and Hawaii with ULM having a 2-3 non-conference record.

Early season games versus Georgia Southern and Appalachian State will be tough matchups for ULM although they played both games hard and lost by a combined nine points in those two games. The problem for Monroe is that both of those programs got even better in the off season and will be even harder outs in 2015. Idaho, New Mexico State, and Troy are expected wins for ULM with the Troy game being one that could be a sneaky exciting game this fall. Arkansas State, Texas State, and Louisiana will be tough games to win though Louisiana is a huge rival and anything could happen in that game. The problem for ULM is that with a 13 game schedule, six wins will still result in a losing record. The only realistic way for ULM to make a bowl in 2015 is to win two out of three versus that trio and I don't see that happening. I expect ULM to fall just short of .500 with a 6-7 record this fall.