The Buffaloes in 2020 return both ILBs and all defensive linemen, although free safety Mikial Onu and STAR backer Davion Taylor are gone.
Of particular interest will be the situation at cornerback, which on paper, should be a crowded field by spring and summer practices. Below is an early look into what we can expect the Buffs' defense to look like next season.
Let's start with the freebies:
ILB 1s: Nate Landman (Sr) and Akil Jones (Sr)
They both had great seasons, with Jones rising to the occasion in terms of steadily contributing from around week three to outright starting and becoming a valuable asset as the season went on.
Landman's campaign speaks for itself — both of these guys seem set to enjoy solid senior years in 2020. Landman essentially is untouchable and as for Jones, he'd have to really regress or otherwise nail himself into his own coffin for me to believe Jon Van Diest or someone else would usurp him atop the depth chart.
ILB 2s: Marvin Ham I think could prove capable of emerging as an understudy ready to contribute by the time Landman and Jones are gone, but of course, ILB is a position that's not and won't getting rotated as the d-line does, so 2020 for Ham here and now seems more likely to be another understudy campaign.
It's Van Diest I find myself concerned about for 2020, especially as Mister Williams gets on campus. Health has long been an issue for the former, and having ended the 2019 season essentially relegated to playing special teams, I think he's got an uphill battle for this upcoming year in terms of seeing reps at ILB.
Again, without injuries, there shouldn't be much of a concern at ILB, and Landman/Jones have proven to be pretty durable and tough guys.
