UND is officially 9 days away from their season opener at Stony Brook (September 1st – 6pm).
This is typically the time that coaches declare which true freshmen are going to get their redshirt pulled heading into the Week 1.
We have been told there is a darn near 100% chance that the following players will be on the plane headed to New York next week:
- WR Travis Toivonen
- WR Noah Wanzek
- CB Evan Holm
As you would expect, all three of them are at a position of need.
The wid receiver position is slowly becoming a strength after being a major weakness just two years ago. The two proven entities at WR are starters Clive Georges and Luke Stanley. Georges (10-250-3 TD) is the speed guy, Stanley (26-312-5 TD) is the big-bodied possession guy.
Toivonen (6’3″) and Wanzek (6’4″) bring big frames and high-end athleticism to the position group. Toivonen already weighs around 205 and has the overall size to play now. He could be a difference maker when UND needs somebody to go up and make a play and will certainly be a factor blocking smaller defensive backs in the run game.
Wanzek is a bit leaner at 185 but has shown outstanding body control and hands all camp, to the point where the staff has to give him a look. He also has drawn rave reviews for his overall demeanor and competitiveness. Wanzek could use a year in the weight room but UND needs to have it’s best players on the field, no matter the age. They aren’t deep enough yet.
Holm has shown solid technique to go along with good speed and great hips. He is still a true freshman so he inevitably will get twisted around a few times but UND needs depth and he provides it. Holm is currently sitting at #2 on the depth chart.
—A wildcard in the freshman class is TE Alex Cloyd. Cloyd already has the size (6’3″-250) to play but needs to learn the UND offense. Playing tight end in UND’s offense is actually pretty complex from everything we have been told. Learning who to block and the techniques to block with are not easily attained in three weeks. We think he should play in 2016 but are not sure about next week. UND does return senior Luke Mathewson, sophomore Jacob Francis, and sophomore Luke Fiedler.
—A second wildcard, based on need, is safety Jordan Canady. At 6’2″-185, Canady is a bit slight still but has the athleticism to be a good one for UND at safety. The last thing the UND staff wants is a repeat of 2015 when they pulled Tanner Palmborg’s redshirt after he ran scouts for 5 weeks. We think they will keep Canady around the defense most the year to make sure he understands it in case of multiple injuries at the safety position.
