Wednesday Answer: One of Youth

This season, we're trying a new feature called "Wednesday Answer" where I will give an in-depth answer to the Tuesday Question. I've always been hesitant to answer my own question in the comment thread because in some small way that could remove from the scientificy-ness of the question. So after everyone has already given their two cents, this is my chance.

In case you've forgotten, the Tuesday Question was, "which newcomer had the best game against Boise?"

I think there were significant contributions from many. Marquis Haynes' sack and Fahn Cooper's general alright-itude come to mind. I've heard Freeze also liked Demarquis Gates, though I must admit to not having watched him at all.

If we're counting a redshirt freshman who was on campus all last season, it has to be Will Gleeson. He was named National Punter of the Week and did some wonderful things with placement. When Ole Miss signed Gleeson, I watched his tape, and I remember thinking he was pretty good with significant hang time. I did not, however, expect him to be dominant in game one. He made a huge, huge difference.

If we're only counting actual newcomers though, I think we must select Kendarius Webster. Webster had to play a good bit and could have been easily exploited in his first game. He finished with two tackles and a pass broken up. One tackle came as the result of a running play (and therefore should not be counted as a statement of Webster's coverage skills) while the other was after a significant gain by Matt Miller. The pass he broke up was excellent, as he found the ball even after being beaten. He turned his head and batted it down, while being careful not to run into the receiver and draw a pass interference penalty.

With Derrick Jones having seemingly disappeared, the coaches are going to have to find a tall corner they can rely on. Webster took a big step towards that last Thursday night.