We're continuing our preseason position reviews. Please, hold your applause until we are finished.
Here's how we do this. We provide three evaluative categories: "Great shape," "Good shape" and "We'll see."
Hint: You'd prefer your team to be in "Great shape."
"We'll see" doesn't mean you're going to stink at said position. It means just what it says -- we'll see because there's no way at present to know.
You can review last year's rankings here.
Up next: Offensive line.
GREAT SHAPE
Oregon: The Ducks welcome back four and a half starters (the departed Mana Greig and returning true sophomore Cameron Hunt split a guard spot), and that crew is led by All-American Hroniss Grasu, who tops the Pac-12 with 40 career starts. In fact, Oregon welcomes back 107 career starts, second most in the conference. One qualifier: Left tackle Tyler Johnstone is trying to come back from a knee injury he suffered in the bowl game. He probably won't be available early in the season, so junior Andre Yruretagoyena is the frontrunner to step in.
Arizona: The Wildcats no-name unit was highly productive last year -- yielding just 17 sacks while leading a running game that averaged 5.3 yards per carry -- and four starters are back. The unit ranks third in the conference with 104 returning starts, with four-year starting tackles Mickey Baucus and Fabbians Ebbele tallying 38 and 37 career starts apiece, respectively. Junior Lene Maiava, the line's top backup at tackle and guard last year, is a good bet to step in for right guard Chris Putton. All the 2013 backups are back as well.
Washington: The Huskies welcome back seven players with starting experience, including five with 20 or more career starts. Not only do they welcome back all five starters from 2013, they welcome back a crew that started every regular-season game together. With four senior starters and one junior, Washington leads the Pac-12 with 124 returning starts. While not a star-studded crew, three 2013 starters -- Dexter Charles, Mike Criste and Micah Hatchie -- earned honorable mention All-Pac-12 honors last season. So why aren't the Huskies No. 1? They yielded 30 sacks last year, which ranked seventh in the conference and both the Ducks and Wildcats averaged more yards per rush.
GOOD SHAPE
UCLA: While UCLA lost first-team All-Pac-12 guard Xavier Su'a-Filo to the NFL, the Bruins should be strong on the offensive line after injuries forced them to start three true freshmen last fall: Alex Redmond, Caleb Benenoch and Scott Quessenberry. Those guys will be older, stronger and more seasoned. The Bruins, who welcome back players with 88 career starts, are led by center Jake Brendel (27 starts), but the wild card is transfer Malcolm Bunche, who made 14 starts at Miami. It's not unrealistic to believe this could turn out to be as good as any O-line in the conference, but yielding 36 sacks a year ago forces one into a wait-and-see approach.
Arizona State: While the Sun Devils lost two starters from 2013, and the O-line was inconsistent last year -- an eye popping 41 sacks yielded and just 4.4 yards per rush -- the general feeling in Tempe is this could be the program's best O-line in more than a decade. Jamil Douglas will be in the Morris Trophy conversation this fall, though he's a more natural guard than left tackle, where he finished spring practice. He leads the Sun Devils' three returning starters with 27 starts. Auburn transfer Christian Westerman was often dominant during spring practices, and Nick Kelly has taken control at center. The depth is pretty solid, too.
USC: The Trojans welcome back three starters: Chad Wheeler, Max Tuerk and Aundrey Walker, though Walker is almost certain to face a preseason challenge from one of the touted youngsters. Sophomores Zach Banner and Jordan Simmons, redshirt freshman Khaliel Rodgers and true freshmen Toa Lobendahn, Damien Mama, Jordan Austin and Viane Talamaivao are names to watch. This unit will be talented, but it might be a year or two away from peaking.
Stanford: Stanford welcomes back just one returning starter, though he's pretty darn good: Sophomore preseason All-American Andrus Peat. So why aren't the Cardinal relegated to the "We'll see" category? Two reasons: Stanford has become an offensive line recruiting and developing factory -- they've earned the benefit of the doubt -- and the guys who are slated to step in aren't entirely anonymous or green, as most saw action last year in "jumbo" packages. It seems likely to stack up like this: Josh Garnett replaces David Yankey at left guard, Graham Shuler steps in for Khalil Wilkes at center, Johnny Caspers replaces Kevin Danser at right guard and Kyle Murphy takes over for Cameron Fleming at right tackle.
Utah: While the Utes rate toward the bottom of the conference when it comes to returning O-line starts at just 46, this unit hints that it could be pretty stout. Two starters are gone, but junior left tackle Jeremiah Poutasi, who had a good spring, guards Junior Salt and Siaosi Aiono are back, as is Isaac Asiata. Of course, the unit was inconsistent last year, often yielding pressure and struggling in run blocking. The stated intention with new offensive coordinator Dave Christensen was to get leaner and quicker. That directive will play into preseason competitions for sure.
Oregon State: Two starters are back: center Isaac Seumalo and right tackle Sean Harlow. Seumalo, who owns 25 of the Beavers 42 returning starts, earned second-team All-Pac-12 honors and could get All-American consideration this fall, while Harlow should be much-improved after taking his lumps as a true freshman. The good news, despite apparent inexperience, is five guys have started at least one game. Sophomore Grant Bays, junior Josh Mitchell, junior Gavin Andrews and juco transfer Luke Hollingsworth are in the mix. While the Beavers didn't run terribly well last year, they improved as the season went on.
WE'LL SEE
Colorado: Offensive guard Daniel Munyer, with 27 career starts, leads a crew of three returning starters. The good news is the Buffaloes only yielded 20 sacks last year. The bad news is the rushing offense averaged 3.4 yards per carry, which ranked 11th in the conference. The Buffaloes have to get better on the O-line in order to take another step up in the Pac-12 after a rough three seasons.
California: The Bears have eight guys coming back with starting experience, including all five who started the Big Game against Stanford, a crew that included three freshmen and one sophomore. Only one of those guys, sophomore Jordan Rigsbee, started the first game, and he had moved from left guard to center. There is plenty of hope for improvement, grounded in some part in improved play late last season. Still, the unit yielded 35 sacks and led an anemic rushing attack.
Washington State: This is a questionable position for Washington State. The Cougars not only lost three starters, most notably center Eliott Bosch, they welcome back the second fewest starts in the conference at 33, though Gunnar Eklund and Joe Dahl started every game last season. Last year, the Cougars didn't even really try to run the ball and they gave up 32 sacks. There is, however, some optimism over improved size and athleticism. Still, this is going to be an inexperienced unit.
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