Tre Bryant

Tre had a good game for sure.  However, if he has a 'ify' knee, it may have been smarter to avoid risking a month of knew rehab over a dozen carries that could easily have been handled by Wilbon and Ozigbo.  Tre appears to be a good all purpose RB but as his 31 carries did not produce even one 'take it to the house' run.  If he doesn't produce one in a game vs Ark State where the run game was actually working fairly well, then it suggests he may not be the home run back we can use.  Wilbon appears to be the quickest/fastest of the trio while Ozigbo is the most powerful.   Obviously, Tre must offer the preferred pass protection and or pass receiving abilities in my view.  However, not sure if he actually caught many balls.  

 
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Bumping this thread after today's press conference.  It seems like Bryant has a chronic knee issue, and it has been that way since he arrived on campus last year.  I understand that Bryant is the best RB on the roster, and is the most versatile in terms of running the ball, catching the ball, and pass protection.

Still, using him for 51 carries through 2 games is concerning, especially with other RB's getting very few.  From the press conference today, they are going to burn Jaylin Bradley's redshirt.  I am in full support of this.  They need to get Bradley action at RB in the next few games, so he's ready for the October and November slate of Big Ten games.  Getting Bradley some extra PT would also enable Bryant to get some rest for his knee, and get him ready for the last half of the season.

 
ColoradoHusk said:
Bumping this thread after today's press conference.  It seems like Bryant has a chronic knee issue, and it has been that way since he arrived on campus last year.  I understand that Bryant is the best RB on the roster, and is the most versatile in terms of running the ball, catching the ball, and pass protection.

Still, using him for 51 carries through 2 games is concerning, especially with other RB's getting very few.  From the press conference today, they are going to burn Jaylin Bradley's redshirt.  I am in full support of this.  They need to get Bradley action at RB in the next few games, so he's ready for the October and November slate of Big Ten games.  Getting Bradley some extra PT would also enable Bryant to get some rest for his knee, and get him ready for the last half of the season.
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I was thinking game 1 we def could have spread the carries out knowing this issue. Did they mention anything about Ozigbo? That has to be the obvious question now 

 
ColoradoHusk said:
Bumping this thread after today's press conference.  It seems like Bryant has a chronic knee issue, and it has been that way since he arrived on campus last year.  I understand that Bryant is the best RB on the roster, and is the most versatile in terms of running the ball, catching the ball, and pass protection.

Still, using him for 51 carries through 2 games is concerning, especially with other RB's getting very few.  From the press conference today, they are going to burn Jaylin Bradley's redshirt.  I am in full support of this.  They need to get Bradley action at RB in the next few games, so he's ready for the October and November slate of Big Ten games.  Getting Bradley some extra PT would also enable Bryant to get some rest for his knee, and get him ready for the last half of the season.
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Wow, Ziggy must really stink for them to burn Bradley's shirt.  Shocking.  

 
BIG ERN said:
I was thinking game 1 we def could have spread the carries out knowing this issue. Did they mention anything about Ozigbo? That has to be the obvious question now 
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Riley commented that they weren't rotating backs like they had in previous years, so that's why Ozigbo isn't seeing any action.  The situation could change with Bryant's health though.

 
Ozigbo is either clearly behind Bryant/Wilbon in some facet(s) of the game or he's being internally disciplined for something.

It is interesting to see their reluctance to use anybody but Bryant, though. It's quite clear to me that he is the best player at that position, but if his knee problems are this continuous, I have to imagine it'd be a good idea to limit him.

 
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Enhance said:
Ozigbo is either clearly behind Bryant/Wilbon in some facet(s) of the game or he's being internally disciplined for something.

It is interesting to see their reluctance to use anybody but Bryant, though. It's quite clear to me that he is the best player at that position, but if his knee problems are this continuous, I have to imagine it'd be a good idea to limit him.
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I don't think Ozigbo has the explosiveness and chunk yardage ability that the coaches want at RB.  That's my only guess, other than some type of team discipline issue, which has been rumored elsewhere on the board.

I do think it's concerning to overuse a RB with a chronic knee issue.

 
ColoradoHusk said:
I don't think Ozigbo has the explosiveness and chunk yardage ability that the coaches want at RB.  That's my only guess, other than some type of team discipline issue, which has been rumored elsewhere on the board.

I do think it's concerning to overuse a RB with a chronic knee issue.
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I think you're right about Ozigbo's running style. His skill set seems more situational, but even then, both Bryant/Wilbon have looked good in short yardage situations.

After week 1, I was reluctant to worry about overusing Bryant like Hunter was in this thread. But, Bryant then basically fell on his knee and had to be helped off the field. Freak injuries can happen, no question, but to see that after hearing he had been held out in practice the week prior? That's a tough situation. We the fans can only go off what we presume are conversations between the coaches, player and athletic training staff. If they all agree he can play then we're at that mercy. But, I think there are enough red flags at this point to at least keep the carry total down, so I'm with you there.

 
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OK.  Sorry if this is  dedhoarse  but ....

Ozigbo is simply not that good.  Look at his stats from last year.  His best game is worse than Newby's worst game.  

No idea why they tried to force him out there all the time but I think they finally figured out it wasn't going to work.

 
Mavric said:
OK.  Sorry if this is  dedhoarse  but ....

Ozigbo is simply not that good.  Look at his stats from last year.  His best game is worse than Newby's worst game.  

No idea why they tried to force him out there all the time but I think they finally figured out it wasn't going to work.
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I think that some fans really enjoy the "big back" who has a bruising running style.  Personally, I don't really care, but since the fullback is rarely used anymore, people have gravitated to rooting for the 'big back".

I agree with you regarding Ozigbo though.  He's just not all that good.

 
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Mavric said:
OK.  Sorry if this is  dedhoarse  but ....

Ozigbo is simply not that good.  Look at his stats from last year.  His best game is worse than Newby's worst game.  

No idea why they tried to force him out there all the time but I think they finally figured out it wasn't going to work.
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Agree.  But I think people only remember his Illinois TD run in 2015 as to what he brings to the table

 
Zig runs hard and has a bruising style. I'd like to see them find a place for this really. Sometimes it feels like we're trying any which way to get a ground game, especially without Tre. Zig and Wilbon seem like they'd complement each other nicely. And if Zig needs to be called upon -- he's the #3, right, so this is not at all unlikely -- he'll be ready.

 
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