Wake Forest Athletics
Open Competition On The O-Line
8/6/2013 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 6, 2013
By Gary Petit, Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeFB)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - It's not too difficult to find second year assistant coach Jonathan Himebauch on the practice field. His voice is one of the loudest and he's usually one of the more excited coaches. This fall, you can't blame him for being excited.
His offensive line unit had a rough season in 2012 as injuries did them no favors and continuity was hard to find. But one upside was that a number of players found the field which now leaves Himebauch with something he rarely enjoyed in his first season, options.
"The first thing we have to do is learn everyone's name," Himebauch said jokingly. "We have so many guys out there right now and last year, we finished with just seven. Last night we had 16 guys at practice and a couple more waiting to get out of the training room."
The Deacs had 11 different offensive linemen see playing time last season and nine of those 11 started at some point. All but three of the 11 return this season and add to the mix three redshirt-freshmen and six true freshmen that all want to get on the field this fall, and you have the makings of a good battle.
"I'm excited about the depth that we have and with depth brings competition and that really brings the best out of guys," Himebauch said. "I'm really excited about the competition we have this camp and if we can stay healthy, I'm looking forward to where we can go from here."
The offensive line took a lot of heat at the end of the 2012 season and it would have been easy for them to hang their heads coming into the spring. But Himebauch reminded his group of the opportunity ahead of them and that nothing was to be taken for granted.
"The first thing I did before spring practice was I told them that I have only been here a year and I really don't care if you're a freshman or a senior. This is a production based business. If you can get the job done and understand the schemes, you're going to get in there and play. We signed a pretty good recruiting class that will add some depth and competition. So I think they all saw an opportunity and really worked hard in the spring and summer to get better. They're all working hard this fall and are anxious to take advantage of that opportunity."
Through the first three practices this fall, it's evident that Himebauch's group heeded his call. At this point, he's not anywhere close to naming a starting five but one thing is for certain, whoever is out there for the first snap against Presbyterian on Aug. 29, will have earned it.
