July 29, 2005

The following is the fourth installment of a look inside the Texas State football program position by position. The linebackers will be featured next week.

SAN MARCOS - While every player on the Texas State football team relies on one another to make the Bobcats successful, it is a distinct proposition for linemen who have to work together either on defense wrecking havoc on opposing offenses; or offensive linemen who team to make the block to free a back or protect a quarterback.

With that in mind, no unit of the Texas State football team matches the advantage the defensive line has in 2005 as the Bobcats return a front four which started all 11 games together last year.

Second-year defensive line coach Kyle Tietz says it is a matter of the group becoming familiar with each other's play and operating together to become more efficient as a unit - something he says that happened as the 2004 season went on as well as through the off-season.

"They have learned to hunt together as a defensive line," he said. "During the past year they became better at understanding each other's responsibilities as well as each other's strengths and weaknesses. They have learned to play off of and with each other."

The Bobcats' front four is anchored by three-year letter winner Travis Upshaw at nose guard while 2004 Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year Fred Evans returns at defensive tackle. Last year the `Cats relied on true freshmen Nick Clark and Nate Langford to start at defensive end and now that tandem returns with a year of experience as starters.

For Clark and Langford, the learning curve was steep.

"With the youth we had last year at defensive end, there were a lot of freshman mistakes made," Tietz said. "But they were mistakes that as a coach you couldn't really get mad and yell and scream about. Our pass rush integrity was not good. All four guys have a responsibility within the pocket and there were a lot of times we missed sacks because we made a poor decision, most of the time at end, when we would try to come under a block and allow for a big scramble lane for the quarterback."

Tietz said that a year of game experience and a year of the front four working together should allow for the Bobcats' pass rush to dramatically improve.

Clark is coming off a 29-tackle rookie year which ranked him just outside the team's top 10 in tackles. Among his stops were nine tackles for loss and he ranked second on the team with 3.5 quarterback sacks. Langford, a San Marcos native, had 17.5 total tackles as a true freshman.

"They have learned to hunt together as a defensive line. During the past year they became better at understanding each other's responsibilities as well as each other's strengths and weaknesses. They have learned to play off of and with each other." Kyle Tietz, Defensive Line Coach

Larry Hayden, who last year played in the secondary, has added weight and has been moved to right end. Hayden headed into last season listed at 198 pounds but added 35 pounds over the past year. During his career he has registered 60.5 tackles, including 12 tackles for loss and five quarterback sacks. Last year he was among the team's top 10 in tackles with 32.5 stops.

While both Upshaw and Evans return as starters for the interior of the defensive line, the Bobcats actually have a three-man senior rotation at the two positions as Teddy Jones also returns. Also returning with extensive experience is Ramel Borner who saw plenty of time last year as a true freshman.

Evans led the team in tackles for loss (17.5) and quarterback sacks last season (6.5). And while the three technique is a position that is usually hard to double team, the First-Team All-SLC pick will likely draw more attention from opposing offensive lines.

"What we saw later in the season was offenses would change their protection so they could get two guys on him," Tietz said. "There will be some things in pass protection where people will try to compensate for him. Fred just has to understand. Last year he did a good job of picking up protection schemes."

Upshaw is a seasoned veteran who brings a lot of passion to the Bobcat squad. Last year he recorded 24.0 tackles, including four for losses and a quarterback sack. Jones, who is one of the strongest players on the team, was in on 14.5 tackles, including 2.5 for loss and a sack last season while Borner registered 11 total tackles, including two for lost yards.

Additional depth should come from sophomore John Gilley as well as transfer Troy Ebensberger.

"I think we have a really good chemistry with each other," Tietz said. "You don't always have that. Our guys really get along with each other. They know how to push each other and make each other work harder without offending each other."