NFL season is officially over, so time to shift back to college football. One big addition and one big loss since the last update. A few new offers out there, and with it already being mid-February it’s pretty clear how this transfer portal class will end up.

Portal additions/targets

Carter Glassmyer – The freshman All-American linebacker from St. Francis is officially on board, a huge recruiting pickup for the Spiders. In 2023, Glassmyer tallied 90 total tackles, 6.5 TFLs, and 2.5 sacks, on his way to earning multiple defensive rookie of the year awards. He’s easily comparable to Tristan Wheeler, who he’s likely to take over for, but that’s a slippery slope. I won’t come on here and say we’ve got a equal replacement for our 5-time All-CAA and All-American team captain, however Glassmyer feels as close as you can get to a plug-and-play replacement. Very excited to see what impact he has on the Spiders in 2024.

Liam Johnson – Linebacker from Princeton with 1-year of eligibility recieved an offer from Richmond earlier this month. He’s also got Buffalo, UNH, and Delaware offers, so he’d be a strong addition. 

Connor Henderson – Another Ivy League linebacker getting an offer from the Spiders, Henderson is transferring from Cornell with 2 years remaining. He’s got multiple CAA offers as well, and it’s clear the staff is prioritizing upgrading at linebacker.

I’m surprised we’re looking to add two transfer LBs in this class, especially with Glassmyer having three years of eligibility. I know Galloway, Joseph, and Morris-Walker are seniors now but the younger group seemed solid. If we do add another linebacker it will be interesting to see how they compare against guys with multiple years of eligibility (Hoilette, Zach Chambers, etc.)

Treyvon Hobbs – Defensive back from Brown with two years remaining. Currently hold an offer from Furman as well, and with Glassmyer already committed I feel a secondary addition is the biggest missing piece. Would love for another DB to come in a compete against some of the younger guys for some playing time.

Rumored interest: Hearing the names Anthony Chideme-Alfaro (corner from Cornell) and Aubrey Parker (safety from Brown) thrown around. No official offers posted yet but we’re definitely looking to capitalize on solid Ivy League programs that can’t offer more than four years to their students. I don’t know how this plays out but we’re going to get a secondary addition from somewhere.

Staff Changes

Adam Ross – Coach Ross has accepted the Assistant Head Coach/Co-Offensive Coordinator position at Murray State. Obviously a tough loss for the Spiders and it won’t be easy to fill his void in mid-February. Saying he was vital to building this strong UR offensive line is an understatement, so although Coach October makes a fairly seamless shift to sole offensive coordinator, the O-line position coach won’t be as easy to fill. Hoping Coach Huesman can move quickly on a strong candidate.

That makes two straight seasons of losing an OC from our staff, which is the nature of being a successful FCS program. It’s been a while since UR fans experienced this but it isn’t unfamiliar territory. Danny Rocco (five years at UR from 2012-2016) lost offensive coordinators after the 2014 and 2015 seasons. After making the 2nd round of the playoffs in 2014, Brandon Streeter left UR for Clemson and Rocco went with an internal promotion for Charlie Fisher. After leading a record breaking offense in 2015 to a CAA title and FCS semifinal appearance, Fisher then departed to be the head coach at Western Illinois. In stepped John Garrett, who beat UVA in his Richmond OC debut in route to an FCS quarterfinal appearance in 2016.

The takeaway is that well built FCS programs can (and should) survive coordinators leaving. I’m not diminishing their impact, however if we keep competing for CAA titles and making playoff appearances we shouldn’t expect coordinators to stay for their entire careers. This year is different in that we’ll still have Coach October calling plays, but the culture Coach Huesman has built becomes even more paramount during significant staff changes. It’s what allows top tier FCS programs to maintain their success and ensure the standard remains high. This group had no problem rallying from a 2-3 start last season so a little adversity shouldn’t phase them. Fully expecting this team to be locked in entering the spring.

Roster

No Spring 2024 roster yet on the website but it looks like we’re on target for 90+ players come the fall. That would be one of our largest rosters in recent memory, and while that’s somewhat inflated by guys having an extra COVID year it’s encouraging we’re maintaining solid numbers.

Next Post

Ideally we’ll get an official Spring 2024 roster before spring practice starts. If so I’ll do an overview of where things stand, as hopefully we’ll have added our final transfers at that point. After that will be offensive and defensive previews/what to watch for during the spring practices.