Spring football kicks off for Raiders

3/12/2019 6:19:00 PM | Football

By: Josh Vardaman

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The 105^th season of Middle Tennessee football and its 21^st at the FBS level may be a half year away, but preparation has already begun. An important step in the process started Tuesday with the kickoff of spring practice.

Lasting from March 12-April 13, the Blue Raiders will begin their Conference USA East Division title defense by working on areas they've identified as having deficiencies.

"I thought their energy was excellent, their effort was outstanding and they flew around," head coach Rick Stockstill said. "For the first day, I thought they looked pretty good."

Here are some key storylines to watch as spring practice amps up:

Who's at QB?

The main item of interest this spring will be the Blue Raider under center.

Brent Stockstill finished his Middle Tennessee career in 2018 as the program's all-time leading passer, holding every major career and single-season throwing record. He's also among the top 10 in several career C-USA statistics and ended 20^th in NCAA history in TD tosses.

The 2018 C-USA MVP won 26 games as MT's starting QB, the fourth most for a quarterback in school history and the most since his father took over in 2006.

In order for Middle Tennessee to avoid a dip following the departure of an all-time great, it'll need a good couple of weeks of practice this spring from three guys competing for the starting job.

Redshirt sophomore Asher O'Hara, redshirt sophomore Chase Cunningham and redshirt freshman Chance Nolan will compete this spring until junior college transfer Randall Johnson arrives on campus over the summer to add to the mix.

"I thought all three had their moments today," Rick Stockstill said. "We'll be patient with them. Brent gave you that feeling that you knew what you were going to get, and we have to work with these guys to get them to that point."

Plenty returning despite one less Stockstill

Barring something unforeseen, Middle Tennessee will return 11 starters in 2019, five on offensive and six on defense. That includes its 2018 leaders in rushing, receiving, tackles, tackles for loss and sacks.

Some key returners include:

Sr. Ty Lee: Team's leading receiver the last two seasons, earning All-C-USA second team and honorable mention honors in 2017 and 2018, respectively. He ranks third all-time at MT in receptions, fifth in receiving yards and third in touchdown receptions.

Jr. Reed Blankenship: A first team All-C-USA selection in 2018, he led the team in tackles (107) and picked off four passes, returning one 100 yards for a touchdown. Also, was a 2017 All-C-USA freshman team pick and honorable mention all-conference.

R-So. Chaton Mobley: Team's leading rusher in 2018, finishing with 613 yards and four TDs and making the all-conference freshman team.

R-Sr. Khalil Brooks: Named to the All-C-USA second team for the second straight year, sharing the team lead with 14.5 tackles for loss to go with 6.5 sacks and 68 tackles.

Jr. DQ Thomas: Led the team with eight sacks and shared the team high with 14.5 tackles for loss to go with 70 tackles, earning All-C-USA honorable mention.

R-Sr. Josh Fannin: Started all 14 games at center in 2018, earning All-C-USA honorable mention.

Sr. Amir Luckett: Started all 14 games in 2018 at right tackle.

R-Sr. Malik Manciel: Earned All-C-USA honorable mention, racking up 31 tackles, four TFLs and two sacks in 14 starts at defensive tackle.

So. Zack Dobson: Averaged 55 all-purpose yards per outing the last seven games of 2018, scoring five touchdowns.

R-Jr. Crews Holt: Tied the MT single-season field goal mark with 18 makes on 24 attempts in 2018, his first year as a full-time starter.

Starting positions needing filled

Along with the aforementioned need to find a quarterback, the Blue Raiders will be tasked this offseason at finding 10 other new starters, including three on the offensive line, three receivers, two defensive linemen, a middle linebacker and two cornerbacks.

Some of the holes could be filled by guys already on the roster, including Zack Dobson and Jocquez Bruce at receiver; Tyshun Render, Rakavian Poydras, Jordan Ferguson and a healthy Ty Nix on the defensive line; and Chris Stamps at corner.

A class of 23 – likely soon to be 24 – incoming freshmen and junior college recruits will surely add plenty of competition to every position battle, though.

"We have plenty of time," Rick Stockstill said. "We'll be patient and take our time, but as long as our guys keep a good attitude and come to work every day, we'll be alright."

Healthy safety returns

One position not mentioned that needs to find a new starter is free safety.

Despite losing 10-game starter Wesley Bush (team-leading six INTs in 2018) to graduation, the Blue Raiders already have their man in place for 2019, granted he has a healthy offseason.

Senior Jovante Moffatt only played in four games last season before taking a redshirt to help heal offseason shoulder surgery. He led the team in 2017 with 101 tackles in an All-C-USA honorable mention campaign.

Moffatt is entering spring drills with no restrictions, but the same can't be said for some other Blue Raiders. His safety mate, junior Reed Blankenship, won't practice this spring along with Brad Anderson, Josh Fannin, Jahlil Ryles, Dalton Frantz, Rakavian Poydras, Ty Nix, Wayne Parks, Chris Melton and Chris Stamps.

"We have a handful of guys who aren't going through spring," Rick Stockstill said. "We need to get them healthy and ready to go for the summer and heading into August."

Excitement brewing

With spring practices underway, football is in the air around Middle Tennessee.

To help fuel the excitement, there will be some upcoming announcements surrounding the football team and MT Athletics. Stay tuned for more!

Dates to keep in mind

March 12: Spring practice begins
April 13: Spring practice finale
Aug. 1: Report to camp
Aug. 31: Season opener at Michigan

Josh Vardaman is the staff writer for goblueraiders.com. Follow him on Twitter @J_Vardaman and also follow @MTAthletics for more on the Blue Raiders.