As this season comes to its abysmal end; I find that the one glimmer of hope that keeps me positive is the realization that we have a plethora of young talent waiting for their opportunity to shine. Next year the coaching staff will have their first opportunity to run the show with their players.

The expectations surrounding the signees from the 2009 recruiting class will be higher than any class...maybe ever. Wulff and Sterk have gone on record to say that next years team will be much improved (it can’t be worse) with lofty expectations of a bowl appearance by the 2011 season. For the first time in this staff’s tenure, the accountability will be measured (read the post by Westward from Nov. 16).

I for one, think the young guys will do very well. I truly believe that Tuel, Gino, Long, Washington, Carpenter and others will be great players when it’s all said and done. Will we lose some players? Sure. Will a few guys not pan out like we expected? Absolutely. But I guarantee that the attrition levels will not be anywhere near what we’ve seen in the past couple of years.

While I am encouraged by the promise surrounding our young guys, I am concerned about the talent level that exists with many of our returning players. I know that a lot can happen between now and the beginning of next year. I am also quite aware that the injuries sustained kept many of the players we expected to see this year, off the field. Even so, I seriously question if many of our returning players will ever get that much better. I’m not trying to sound overly pessimistic, I’m just calling it as I see it. Of the current sophomore and older players on the team, Louis Bland and Jared Karsetter are the only legitimate guys that I think are truly impact players who could be all Pac 10 one day.

Let me go on record by saying that I don't believe in the JC band-aid fix. It goes against the very process that coach Wulff advocates with regard to building/sustaining long term success. But this is not a typical situation we are faced with heading into next year. I think it behooves us to add some JC players who can make an immediate impact. I’m not talking about redshirting. I’m talking about guys who can come in and play right away.

Let's take the quarterback position as an example. Next season, we will have three scholarship quarterbacks. We have a clear leader in Jeff Tuel (despite his limited action). We have a promising incoming freshman and we have a back-up that should probably be playing at the DII level (sorry; just calling a spade a spade). If Tuel were to get injured, we would be forced into a situation of playing Lobbestael or burning the redshirt of our untested freshman. Doesn't it make sense to bring in a JC player for that extra piece of mind?

At TE we have two returning sophomores in Skylar Stormo and Andrei Lintz. The jury is still out on what type of players they will ultimately become. We have two very promising verbal recruits out of Spokane in Aaron Dunn and Jake Rodgers. Dunn could probably play right away which I am not completely against, unless we can sign an impact TE from the JC ranks and let the cream rise to the top.

By my count, we have 14 offensive linemen that should be listed on the 2010 roster and one verbal commit to date. Wulff stated recently that he plans on signing two JC offensive linemen which is interesting. On the surface it looks like there is some depth. Could there be some concerns with talent?

At DT, there are many unknowns. Assuming that Quayshawne Buckley qualifies, we have two freshmen in him and Justin Clayton. Bernard Wolfgramm has been battling injuries and will be a Senior next year. Toby Turpin has been indefinitely kicked off the team and Anthony Laurnenzi, Josh Luapo (lost to injury) and Dan Spitz have split time all year with varying degrees of success. Turpin to date has shown the most promise at the position but he will be a Senior next year…if he can get out of the doghouse in time to play. This position could probably use some JC depth. We have no verbal commits to date at this position.

The addition of a JC player will, if nothing else, raise the level of competition and ensure that the best player is on the field. In addition, it will retain the redshirt of our incoming freshmen. You can never have too much depth and that is something we haven’t had in a number of years.

I’m not saying that we re-think our whole recruiting philosophy. I simply think that there are some key positions that need an upgrade or some added depth. While we return some players for the first time in years, I am conditioned to believe that we are an injury away from being in trouble again. And as I stated before, I’m just not convinced that some of our returning players are going to cut it.

Finding a player (the right players) to come in immediately, learn the system and be expected to contribute is not an easy task. But, we had four true freshmen do it this year who turned out to be some of our best players. The weight of the program rests on our Freshmen's shoulders. Let’s bring in some JC guys to fill ithe gaps and preserve the redshirts of the 2010 class.

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