Florida, Vanderbilt like their sophomore defensive linemen
One cycle of college football is renewed each spring, when the dearly departed — former starters, key reserves, perhaps an All-America selection or two — are replaced by a slew of untested and unproven new contributors. For the latter, spring drills also marks an opportunity: There are holes to fill for each team in the Football Bowl Subdivision, on offense and defense, and the competition for each open spot will be intense.
With spring drills complete, here are a few breakout players from the Southeastern Conference to keep an eye on come September.
1. Florida DT Taven Bryan. Florida was able to pull the four-star prospect out of Wyoming during the 2014 recruiting cycle. After wearing a redshirt as a rookie, Bryan has impressed the Gators' new coaching staff to the point where he could see significant snaps along the interior of the defensive line. While he's young, Bryan possesses the strength and intelligence needed to make an early impact in 2015 and develop into a multiple-year starter in the middle.
2. Texas A&M RB James White. If his performance during the spring speaks to White's potential come September, Texas A&M has found a bigger back to team with juniors Tra Carson and Brandon Williams. This is a needed development: A&M is already down would-be senior Trey Williams, who entered the NFL draft, and could use a back of White's size and physicality to churn out those hard-to-reach yards against conference competition.
3. Vanderbilt DT Jay Woods. He played a bit as a redshirt freshman last fall, participating in all 12 of the Commodores' games and making five starts — chipping in 31 tackles altogether as one of the key pieces in coach Derek Mason's 3-4 defensive scheme. But after adding enough bulk to slide from end to tackle, Woods flourished during spring drills. He'll begin fall camp as the likely replacement for former starter Vince Taylor.
4. South Carolina WR Deebo Samuel. Samuel won't be the only young wide receiver in the SEC asked to log substantial snaps as a redshirt freshman. Unlike most, however, he won't have to go it alone: Samuel can run second fiddle to junior Pharoh Cooper, one of the SEC's best at the position, and develop the skills that made him one of the top recruits coming out of South Carolina in the winter of 2014.
5. Mississippi State LB Gerri Green. In a perfect world, Green would have spent his redshirt freshman season in a reserve role. That changed shortly after the end of last season, when would-be senior Benardrick McKinney opted to forego his final year of eligibility and enter the NFL draft. That loss will continue to sting, but the Bulldogs have been very happy with Green's performance thus far as McKinney's replacement. The staff knew he'd be good; they just didn't think he'd be needed in such a significant role as a redshirt freshman.
SPRING FOOTBALL HIGHLIGHTS