Preview '08: WR/TE

WR/TE Depth Chart
WR X	WR Z	TE
Co-Eric Riley Sr.	Jamayel Smith RSr.	Brandon Henderson RSo.
Aubrey Bell Sr.	Brandon McRae RJr.	Marcus Green RFr.
Delmon Robinson Fr.		Nelson Hurst Fr.

2007 Stats
Name	Rec.	Yds	TD	Yds/Rec.
Jamayel Smith	33	510	3	15.45
Aubrey Bell	14	186	1	13.28
Co-Eric Riley	8	68	0	8.5
Brandon McRae	2	50	0	25

That isn't much production returning. I suppose that would be the story of this group: heavy with upperclassmen (3 seniors and a fourth year junior) but low on production so far.

Jamayel Smith, a former walk-on, takes Burks' place as the #1 receiver. He's decent but wholly unspectacular. Smith did have one ridiculous game against Arkansas: 10 receptions for 208 yards and 2 TDs. That seems to be an anomaly rather than some indicator of potential. As you can see the bulk of his stats came in that one game. He'll be steady, but Smith won't scare any defenses.

Co-Eric Riley came in very highly rated out of JUCO and as you can see from the stats, didn't live up to his billing. MSU desperately needs that to change this year. Riley has the talent, now we need to see it on the field. He showed some flashes in the very limited playing time he was given last year.

Aubrey Bell is a big 6'3 receiver. He'll be fighting Riley for that second starting spot and could very well win. He seems to have decent hands and uses his body well to beat defenders, but then I've only seen 14 catches. Its hard to know what to expect.

Brandon McRae is another tall receiver at 6'4. He transferred in from Morehead St. two years ago. Last spring the coaches raved about him, but come gametime he never showed up. The coaches have been building him up again during spring and fall practices, but I'm not so easily fooled this time. I need to see something from McRae in a game before I can get excited.

Delmon Robinson has been a surprise freshman in fall practice. He's one of those short, quick slot receivers we've seen more and more of with the proliferation of the spread. MSU will need something from him because having just 4 receivers isn't going to cut it.

The tight end position is completely inexperienced. Nelson Hurst and Marcus Green have never played a down at the college level. Brandon Henderson played only a handful of snaps last year, almost all coming on special teams. What I'm saying is I have no idea what to expect, nobody has seen any of these guys play. Everyone is excited about Marcus Green because of the athleticism he brings as a former running back, but can he block? Can he run routes? I don't know. The coaching staff has said that TE is no longer a concern for them after see them practice, so there is that.

Grade: 5/10

That may be harsh, but it is very hard to give a higher grade due mostly to the fact that this is a complete unknown. Essentially, MSU does not have a TE on the roster that has ever played a down of college football. How am I supposed to evaluate them? Similarly McRae, Riley, and Bell have seen so little playing time up to this point that it is hard to know how they'll do now that they are the ones being counted on to make plays. Smith is about the only player we have seen extensively, and the word you come away with after watching him is . . . meh. Basically, this position is just a big "?". Could be good, could be bad. We have to wait and see.