Five impact freshman for Texas Tech Football: Defense

With the start of fall camp just two weeks away, Texas Tech is gearing up for it's first season under head coach Matt Wells.

The Red Raiders return plenty of talented players on both sides of the ball that the casual fan has heard of, Alan Bowman, T.J. Vasher, Jordyn Brooks and Adrian Frye for example.

However, this season will also allow for some younger players, freshman in particular, to step up and shine just the way Bowman and Frye did in 2018. Who are some guys to keep an eye out for? Ben Golan takes a look at five freshman, true freshman and redshirt freshman, on the defensive side of the ball who could make a big impact in 2019.

This list is in no order...

BUT FIRST!

I wanted to touch on what a Keith Patterson defensive formation will look like in a "base" defense. This is from the Utah State at Colorado State game in 2018.

This is essentially a 3-3-5 that looks like a 4-2-5.

- 3 defensive lineman

- 3 linebackers (1 Raider)

- 5 defensive backs (1 Spur)

Circled in red is the "Raider" position. The Raider is a linebacker that acts as a standup defensive end. His main role will be to rush the passer, but he also needs to have good coverage skills in man and zone defense as he will also drop. This isn't a new position to Tech fans, David Gibbs' defense had a similar role which was most recently played by Tony Jones and Kolin Hill.

Circled in purple is the "Spur" position. The Spur is a safety/linebacker hybrid who needs to be quick enough to cover slot receivers and tight ends, while also being physical enough to stick his head in the box and make tackles on run plays.

Now that we have that out of the way, let's begin...

The recruit: Benson, rated a 5.5 3-star, had 22 total offers including from in-state programs such as Rice, UNT, SMU and Texas State. Texas Tech was his only Power 5 offer.

The path to playing time: In Keith Patterson's defense, Xavier Benson projects as a Raider, which as explained above is basically a standup OLB/DE type. Other players who are in this mix at Raider include JUCO signee Kosi Eldridge, Quinton Williams and Evan Rambo who could also play Spur. Lonzell Gilmore could be an option here too.

Projected role: Benson was a starter the last time we got to see Tech on the field, for the Frisco spring scrimmage. Sources around the program are very high on the redshirt freshman from Texarkana, and I don't see how Benson doesn't play a significant amount of snaps right away.

The recruit: Watts, rated a 5.7 3-star prospect, held 30 offers coming out of Maynard Jackson HS in Atlanta, Georgia. Some of Watts' higher profile offers included Georgia Tech, Indiana, Louisville, Ole Miss, Oregon, South Carolina, Virginia Tech and West Virginia among others.

The path to playing time: Watts comes in as a long corner, listed at 6'2", 175 pounds in the latest roster update. Tech does return some experience at corner but they are short at safety, which means guys like Adrian Frye, DeMarcus Fields or Douglas Coleman might have to fill in at safety instead of their usual corner spot. That would allow Watts to jump up the depth chart, and the talented true freshman could have a chance to see early playing time.

Projected role: Reserve defensive back initially, but with strong play could move up the depth chart and see significant playing time for a team in need of defensive backs.

The recruit: Hogan was rated as a 5.7 3-star corner and was one of the most heralded signees in the class of 2019. Hogan held 16 total offers, including from Power 5 programs Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa State, Louisville, Minnesota and Utah.

The path to playing time: Much like Watts, Hogan was a highly rated recruit and has a chance to get on the field early. Whether that's at corner, spur or safety, Hogan is a versatile defensive back and could help the team out as soon as his true freshman season.

Projected role: Reserve defensive back initially, but with strong play could move up the depth chart and see significant playing time for a team in need of defensive backs.

The recruit: Hutchings held a modest five (5) offers coming out of high school, with his other offers being Arkansas State, Kansas State, UNT and SMU.

The path to playing time: Texas Tech is THIN in the defensive interior. They simply need bodies and Hutchings has good size at 6-foot, 295 pounds. Broderick Washington Jr is entrenched as a starter, but the opposite DT spot is up for grabs and Hutchings has a chance to win it with a strong fall camp. Other contenders for snaps include Nick McCann, Noah Jones and Quentin Yontz. Tech is also still going after Highland CC defensive tackle Jahkeem Green, who would be a late addition to the 2019 class.

Projected role: Rotation player with the potential to win a starting job. Even if Hutchings doesn't win a starting job, he looks to be in line for 25-30+ snaps a game at minimum.

The recruit: Ibeneme was Tech's highest rated commit of the 2019 class, the only 4-star and a top 45 player in the state of Texas. He held other offers from Arkansas, Minnesota, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, TCU, Texas A&M and Virginia among others.

The path to playing time: It's always difficult for a true freshman DL to see playing time, but Ibeneme certainly has the talent. Eli Howard is a returning starter at strongside defensive end, and Nelson Mbanasor is an experienced backup as well. However Ibeneme should get a chance to play during the non-conference portion of the schedule, and if he shines the coaches will not be afraid to utilize him more.

Projected role: Depth player with the potential to crack the defensive end rotation with a strong camp/start to the season.