Most important Senior loss

[LawDawgGA]

Putting aside the best player we've ever had, the only one that looks tough to replace is Taveze Calhoun.

 

[kired]

Anytime you can remember a senior making big plays for all 4 years, he's going to be tough to replace. Didn't he recover an onside kick his freshman year? That's my first on the field memory of him if I'm thinking correctly.

 

[LawDawgGA]

Yep, you are spot on.

 

[engie]

Redmond, Calhoun, Market, and Malone. I would have said Ryan Brown prior to the game yesterday -- but Calvin was wrecking shop. We'll miss Malone for his versatility moreso than pure talent. We can replace him at any one position he plays -- but we can't replace his ability to play all 5 positions. Will miss Market's heart and leadership.

In reality -- on that bowl field -- the real stinging losses are Calhoun and Dak. Calhoun's would be mitigated somewhat if I felt any assurance whatsoever that Cleveland wouldn't just automatically get that spot on seniority alone and crush what could otherwise be a pretty dang good secondary next year. I think Giles has the other spot locked down now. If we're giving that spot on pure merit -- I think it should be Smitherman. I know Mullen isn't going to do that though, so...

 

[121Josey]

We'll miss Malone for his versatility moreso than pure talent. We can replace him at any one position he plays

Malone was by far State's best lineman this year - and that is saying something. So, don't sell him short.

But doesn't Malone have the option to apply for another year? He was injured in the OKST game in 2013.

 

[Augustus McCrae]

Malone was by far State's best lineman this year - and that is saying something. So, don't sell him short.

But doesn't Malone have the option to apply for another year? He was injured in the OKST game in 2013.

Yes, I believe you are correct. I think I read somewhere a few weeks ago that he was planning to apply for another year.

 

[engie]

I thought the same, but someone argued awhile back that you actually had to be injured twice or for multiple seasons to get a 6th year and presented decent supporting evidence. But there also seems to be a lot of successful backtracking supposedly saying the initial redshirts were due to injury as well and as long as there was any documentation of something, the 6th year seems to be granted.

I honestly don't know for sure either way, but I know he has talked some about potentially coming back for year 6.

 

[Lawdawg.sixpack]

Haha - good one!

Malone was by far State's best lineman this year - and that is saying something.

Sometimes it is difficult to tell which one is the tallest:

 

[patdog]

You can only get a 6th year if you missed TWO seasons due to injury. You apply for it AFTER you have used 5 years to play 3. You have to document that BOTH of the seasons you missed were due to injury (you may have already documented the first one if you played in part of the season and took a medical redshirt, but you may not have if you missed the whole season due to injury). The NCAA is usually pretty tough on requiring all of the documentation to be in order before granting the 6th year, but being the NCAA, they can be wildly inconsistent from case to case. I've seen guys that clearly should have gotten a 6th year get rejected and I've seen guys get approved that I never would have thought had a chance (including one for us back in the Jackie Sherrill era).

 

[Go Budaw]

You can only get a 6th year if you missed TWO seasons due to injury. You apply for it AFTER you have used 5 years to play 3. You have to document that BOTH of the seasons you missed were due to injury (you may have already documented the first one if you played in part of the season and took a medical redshirt, but you may not have if you missed the whole season due to injury). The NCAA is usually pretty tough on requiring all of the documentation to be in order before granting the 6th year, but being the NCAA, they can be wildly inconsistent from case to case. I've seen guys that clearly should have gotten a 6th year get rejected and I've seen guys get approved that I never would have thought had a chance (including one for us back in the Jackie Sherrill era).

I can't think of a single player for us that ever didn't get the 6th year if they really wanted it. When you think about it, it's no different than Damien Robinson's case last year. He redshirted a year, then tore his ACL his senior year. Malone redshirted a year then broke his foot in the first quarter of the first game in 2013. Then you have Tobias Smith who was technically eligible in 2012, but was more of an emergency backup only who had the player / coach role. If there was any obscure practice injury from his redshirt year even as small as a sprained pinky or rolled ankle, he should be good.

 

[johnson86-1]

I can't think of a single player for us that ever didn't get the 6th year if they really wanted it. When you think about it, it's no different than Damien Robinson's case last year. He redshirted a year, then tore his ACL his senior year. Malone redshirted a year then broke his foot in the first quarter of the first game in 2013. Then you have Tobias Smith who was technically eligible in 2012, but was more of an emergency backup only who had the player / coach role. If there was any obscure practice injury from his redshirt year even as small as a sprained pinky or rolled ankle, he should be good.

That would be a big deal if he came back. We just have so little on the Oline, being able to add a solid contributor, especially one that we can plug into any of the 5 positions, would be huge. If Malone comes back, that pretty much guarantees that we won't get worse at any OL position this year and should even be able to withstand an injury. If Malone doesn't come back, we will need one of Calhoun, Rankin, and Jenkins to step up to be as good as malone, to avoid a downgrade at one position. And if all three of them aren't solid, we won't be able to afford an injury at guard or tackle.