Hans Olsen spoke on the linebacker situation at the U going into spring; things are sounding rather bleak. Donovan Thompson is in the transfer portal, and Francis Bernard is “injured”, but I have inside sources who report he’s in academic trouble. Not good.
Utah has two starting LB spots (in most sets) and a massive front line with a two year starter At LB coming in from Penn State and Francis Bernard who was the leading tackler in multiple games last year. Utah has depth enough for two spots. D. Thompson was playing as a freshman but couldn’t break into the starting rotation unless there was an injury. Pirtle is a 4 star JC guy and Jakob Poeltl is in the NBA playing well, which is nice.
Don’t forget also that former 4-star LB/Stanford transfer Sione Lund sat out last year, and will be eligible for the 2019 season.
Personally, I hope that Thompson doesn’t transfer, but since Utah moved to the base nickel defense (only 2 LBs on the field), we should have fairly decent depth at that position by the time Fall Camp rolls around.
I’m curious about Bryant Pirtle…he’s not on the roster. Covey, Rising, Benard and Moss are not playing Spring ball but still listed on the roster. I guess the good news is Pirtle wasn’t mentioned in the Spring Camp Notes as leaving the program.