It’s been just over three months since we saw the Spiders in action but the wait is over come March 14th. Returning 6 starters (arguably 7 based on playing time), the 2023 offense has plenty of question marks in early March, led by the departure of offensive coordinator Billy Cosh to Western Michigan.

New OCs

“I wanted to keep the same offense, terminology, philosophy that we had this past year.” That was Huesman’s comment to the RTD right after Adam Ross and Winston October were named co-OCs, and it’s hard to fault his logic. In the last four seasons under Jeff Durden the Spiders averaged less than 24 points per game – in one year with Billy Cosh that number jumped to over 31. It was an offense that could go out and win you games through the air while still maintaining a solid run/pass balance. In an effort to keep that momentum in place Russ decided to hire from within and change as few things as possible.

The question all fans have been asking is how does co-OCs work – Who calls the plays during the games, what if they disagree, and what happens when things aren’t working? I’d imagine Russ will clarify the roles a little more as we approach the spring game, but the spring practices should shed some light on just how similar this offense will be. Ross & October will each have their own ideas of new wrinkles to add, but the degree to which this offense changes will be interesting to watch with new personnel. There will definitely be more emphasis on the run game, so watching how they incorporate Wickersham’s strengths while still continuing to push the ball downfield will be a good first indicator of how this “new” offense looks.

One thing we can quickly clear up is people’s concern regarding lack of experience. October called plays in the CFL for a season, while Ross has been run-game coordinator at plenty of stops (however not an OC). I understand why this might make you hesitate, but was Billy Cosh a 20 year vet in the coaching industry with 10+ years of calling plays? Dude was like 27 years old when VMI promoted him to OC and he immediately took them to the FCS playoffs. To me there’s been too much focus on what Ross & October haven’t done and not enough on what they have. Ross consistently has multiple all-conference selections, whether that be at UR or UTC, while October has coached multiple receivers to receiver of the year honors at both the FCS and CFL levels. Having the right guys in place is much more important than how long they’ve been doing it. I’m extremely excited to see how these two put their own twist on Cosh’s playbook and grow as play-callers throughout the season.

Position Groups

So much of each spring practice is development, so it’s unlikely to have an position battles finalized here (especially with transfer scholarship(s) still open). Groups with more new/unproven faces tend to be where my focus is, as we won’t learn much as fans from established position groups just yet. With that, here’s each offensive position group ranked in order of most to watch for/learn about this spring.

Quarterback | Anytime you have a new starting QB it’s hard to not have this as the #1 thing to watch early on. I think we can safely say this is Kyle Wickersham’s team now, so a lot of eyes will be on #16 once things get going. He’ll be surrounded by plenty of weapons and has had a full year in what we are being told should be a somewhat-similar playbook. Between that and a top-tier offensive line the bar will be set higher than you’d typically expect for a first-year starter. It will be easy for everyone to continually use what Udinski did last year as a comparison but that isn’t fair. This offense will lean a little more on Savon Smith and the experienced O-line, as we won’t see Wickersham average nearly 40 attempts per game like Udinski did. From everything I’ve seen and heard there’s plenty of reasons to be uber-optimistic about #16 but let’s not hold him to an unachievable standard early on.

Wide Receiver | There isn’t a question of talent in this WR corps, it’s purely a question of how the talent gets organized. Jasiah Williams and Nick DeGennaro return as the clear cut top-2 guys but after that it feels very much up for grabs. Guys we’ve seen contribute the past few years are Ja’Vion Griffin, Jerry Garcia Jr., Quintarius Jefferies, and Noah Washington. I want to throw Quanye Veney in this group as well as he looks to be special for only a R-Fr. Assuming we play mostly 10 personnel again this year I’m hoping to see two additional WRs separate themselves from the group. Griffin and Garcia Jr. are the early favorites but these 15 practices will give everyone a chance to work their way into the lineup.

Tight End | This group is the most difficult to write about as the injury bug really took its toll on these guys throughout 2022. Every eligible tight end missed at least one game during the season, which makes 2023 feel somewhat unknown. Connor Deveney is the clear #1 entering the spring, followed by Brooks Heagarty, Sean Clarke, and Aiden Mack. Both Clarke and Mack are coming off their redshirt years and were pretty heavily recruited so this group isn’t lacking talent. How this position fits into the “new” offense remains to be seen but the battles for the #2 spot (and maybe even #1) should be interesting.

Running Back | Savon Smith returns as the feature back with Dante Black and Fonnae Webb in supporting roles. We didn’t see much of Black or Webb last year but they both played incredibly well when given the chance. Webb had multiple TDs and Black rattled off some big runs against Maine & Davidson. Smith should have his sights set on All-CAA honors and overall this is a strong trio. No questions about rotations or what guys are capable of, so not much to watch for this spring.

Offensive Line | Few better feelings than when your offensive line has the least number of question marks entering a season. Four starters return from an outstanding 2022 group, lead by All-American & All-CAA left tackle Ryan Coll. The only new starter will likely be at right tackle, as Gavin Lamp (who won the left tackle job entering 2022 before a season-ending injury) likely slides over and takes over Joe More’s spot. If that’s the case the Spiders will essentially return five starters, four of which are seniors. We also have four true freshman O-linemen that won’t be here until the fall, so during the spring there isn’t much to learn. A combined 86 starts for the projected starters will have UR fans excited about the Boss Hawgs once again in 2023.

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2023 Spring Preview – Defense & Special Teams