It’s tough to replace players like Khaseem Greene and Steve Beauharnais.
The two linebackers have been the heart and soul of Rutgers’ defense the last
three years, making plays all over the field and providing important leadership
and communication to the rest of the defense. Those two were a big part of
Rutgers defense which was amongst the best in the nation the last couple years,
and Rutgers defense won’t be the same without them. The current group of
linebackers, however, is still very talented, and should be able to provide
leadership to the rest of the defense.
Senior Jamal Merrell leads this current pack of linebackers,
starting on the strong side. Merrell is a long, athletic player who can do a
lot of different things for a defense. He can make plays outside in space, and
take on the tight end one on one in coverage. He plays a lot up on the line of scrimmage,
and he can hold the edge as well. As a three year starter, Merell must step up
and take a leadership role on this defense. He is the most experienced player on
this defense by far, and he was named a team captain.
Starting at weak side linebacker is junior Kevin Snyder.
This is Snyder’s first crack at being a starter, but he has played a lot of
football for the Scarlet Knights the last two years, backing up all three linebacking
positions. He is a tough player who can stop the run on the interior, and he is
also pretty athletic on the outside and in coverage. Playing on the weakisde,
he should be freed up to make a ton of plays and be the unit’s top playmaker.
Taking over in the middle is red shirt freshman Steve Longa.
Longa is interestingly enough from the same high school as Beauharnais (Saddle
Brook), and he will have to make the majority of the defense’s calls despite
seeing the field at the collegiate level for the first time. Longa is a very
fast and athletic player, and he should be able to make plays all over the
field. He is a bit smaller than a traditional inside backer, so it will be
interesting to see how he handles blockers and fighting through trash.
Quentin Gause will back up on the strong side. He doesn’t
have the length you usually see from Rutgers strong side backers, but he makes
up for it with his burst and speed. He has some experience, but that has mostly
come on special teams. True freshman LJ Liston makes up in the middle, and he
is a big backer who can lay the wood on ball carriers inside. Davon Jacobs
moves down from safety to back up the weak side, and he should be a very good
player in coverage who can also make plays in space.
Rutgers linebacking corps lost two very special players, but
this unit should still be very solid this year. Merrell should be able to take
on a lot of that vacated leadership role, and Snyder will make a lot of plays
on the weakside. Longa I very talented player who has a lot of potential, but
he is a question mark right now since he hasn’t played at this level yet. He
has to prove himself not only as a player at a new position, but as a signal
caller as well. I believe in him, but it may take some time. Gause, Liston and
Jacobs are youngsters at the position who should provide some quality depth
behind these solid three starters.
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