A few thoughts on receivers/TEs:
1. For much of the last 20 years, Furman really hasn't had an intimidating receiver corps. We've had a few slot guys that put up a lot of catches, but the unit as a whole has never really been one that makes headline news.
2. Recently, you've seen Furman really go after bigger pass catchers. Josh Harris, Ethan Harris, Kyndel Dean, and Luke Shiflett are all 6'1/'6'2. You see a lot of size in the guys they are targeting this season.
3. TE has been a difficult position for us to develop, but you see the concerted effort to focus on that position in recruiting under Roper. We used two TEs more this season than perhaps the last 20 years combined with the exception of the few years with Larry Hedden and Chris Truss. Miller was never really a prototype at the position - essentially a wide receiver in a running back's body. You can tell that Roper wants to run multiple TEs and we really need to start filling out that depth chart. Behind Miller and Gissinger this year was a grab bag of converted WRs and linebackers.
4. I like what I saw out of Ben Ferguson this year. Ferguson already looked pretty physical for a freshman, and may end up filling in some of the Ryan Miller snaps as a slot receiver working underneath the coverage.
5. I really like signing a guy like Holbrook. If the Herres comps are remotely close, then that's a huge weapon for the offense - a guy that can just out muscle defenders over the middle. You can cover guys like that, but they can frequently just out jump you.
6. Our recruiting early in Hendrix's tenure for pass catchers has been hit or miss.
1. For much of the last 20 years, Furman really hasn't had an intimidating receiver corps. We've had a few slot guys that put up a lot of catches, but the unit as a whole has never really been one that makes headline news.
2. Recently, you've seen Furman really go after bigger pass catchers. Josh Harris, Ethan Harris, Kyndel Dean, and Luke Shiflett are all 6'1/'6'2. You see a lot of size in the guys they are targeting this season.
3. TE has been a difficult position for us to develop, but you see the concerted effort to focus on that position in recruiting under Roper. We used two TEs more this season than perhaps the last 20 years combined with the exception of the few years with Larry Hedden and Chris Truss. Miller was never really a prototype at the position - essentially a wide receiver in a running back's body. You can tell that Roper wants to run multiple TEs and we really need to start filling out that depth chart. Behind Miller and Gissinger this year was a grab bag of converted WRs and linebackers.
4. I like what I saw out of Ben Ferguson this year. Ferguson already looked pretty physical for a freshman, and may end up filling in some of the Ryan Miller snaps as a slot receiver working underneath the coverage.
5. I really like signing a guy like Holbrook. If the Herres comps are remotely close, then that's a huge weapon for the offense - a guy that can just out muscle defenders over the middle. You can cover guys like that, but they can frequently just out jump you.
6. Our recruiting early in Hendrix's tenure for pass catchers has been hit or miss.
- Class of 2017: 1 WR - Cam Burnette - who later transferred
- Class of 2018: Zach Peterson (transferred), Louis Hall (never or rarely played), and Dejuan Bell (showed promise, but never really made an impact). The 2018 class also had Ryan Miller, who definitely was a hit
- Class of 2019: Jake Kimmelman (transferred, I guess) and Wayne Anderson (RB until this year)
- Class of 2020: Noah Henderson (transfer who is now a backup TE), Kelton Gunn (rarely seen beyond special teams), and Bailor Hughes (rarely seen beyond special teams)
- Class of 2021: Josh Harris (stud), Jack Healey at TE (no longer on roster), Landon Whittemore at TE (no longer on roster),
