Three more position groups to look at, starting today with the linebackers. Check Thursday for a look at LU’s secondary and Friday for a look at the Flames’ special teams (and a bonus look at the tight ends, since I inexplicably forgot to put them in with the offensive line, like I had planned.) After the weekend off, it’s game week, which is always music to a beat writer’s ears after spending close to a month just doing preview stuff.

If you missed the defensive line preview, click here.

First, the linebacker stats:

LBs lost
Nick Hursky (97 tackles, 12 1/2 TFL, 2 sacks, 2 PBU, 7 QBH, 1 FR, 1 FF)
Jamal Giddens (29 tackles, 3 TFL, 1 1/2 sacks, 1 PBU, 1 FF—transferred to Norfolk State)
Patrick Bannon (28 tackles, 1 1/2 TFL, 1 QBH, 1 FR—moved to D-line)

LBs returning
Ian Childress (59 tackles, 6 1/2 TFL, 3 1/2 sacks, 2 PBU, 2 QBH, 1 FR, 3 FF)
Chad Brown (48 tackles, 5 TFL, 2 sacks, 1 INT, 2 PBU, 1 QBH, 1 FR, 2 FF)
Wes Cheek (44 tackles, 1 1/2 TFL, 3 INT, 7 PBU, 1 QBH, 1 FR)
Doncel Bolt (20 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack)
Pierre Tinsley (9 tackles, 1 QBH)
Mike Connolly (5 tackles)
Kyle O’Donnell (4 tackles, 1 QBH)

The Flames had to replace Nick Hursky, whom defensive coordinator Tom Clark characterized as one of the all-time greats at Liberty. And Jamal Giddens‘ transfer early in training camp left the team scrambling to redefine some roles. But still, Clark said the group has the potential to very good. One only has to look at the ascension of Chad Brown (6-2, 230, rJr.) last year to see how deep this group can be. Brown was a bit of an afterthought heading into the season. By the end, he was one of the Big South’s steadiest inside linebackers.

First, we’ll start with the man who is replacing Hursky, Doncel Bolt (6-3, 230, Jr.), who transferred to LU from a California junior college prior to last season. Bolt started two games last season while Hursky was rehabbing from minor knee surgery, so he has some experience.

“He’s taken a big leap,“ Clark said. “He’s become one of our top leaders, no doubt. He’s one of our better communicators, which he needs to be at the Mike linebacker position. He’s a prototype Mike. He’s a big kid. He’s physical. And he runs well enough to make plays in the alley and to the sideline. He’s done well. ... Nick was one of the all-time greats here, and his production was amazing. But I’m excited for Doncel. I think he’ll have a great future.“

The Flames got an unexpected boost in the summer when the NCAA granted Ian Childress (6-4, 225, rSr.) a fifth year of eligibility because he only played a handful of snaps his freshman year. Childress, a former Liberty High standout, will start again on the strong side at outside linebacker.

“That was really an amazing thing,“ Clark said. “Unexpected. He’s thrilled to death. ... I’ve got a lot of confidence in Ian. He might have led our defense in actual snaps last year. He didn’t come off the field very much. He’s just got a lot of experience. He’s got a long body. He’s a kid who should get a look (from NFL scouts) too. He’s 6-4 and he can run. He played well last year. I think he can play even better. It’s a great situation to have.“

Brown, a former defensive lineman, was thrust into the starting role at Jack linebacker when Kyle O’Donnell (6-2, 230, rJr.) went down with a training camp knee injury. Brown not only filled in, he excelled. Flames coach Danny Rocco said Brown had a better training camp than anyone on defense.

“Chad is phenomenal,“ Clark said. “He benched 415. He’s just cut. He’s running. He’s in great shape. You talk about a 6-2, 230 kid who can run. He’s probably the most focused guy we’ve got. He’s really no nonsense. He really is a perfectionist. He’s starting to really get this thing down pat.“

At this time last year, Wes Cheek (6-0, 205, Sr.) was transitioning from running back to linebacker. Now he’s a defensive team captain and has turned into one of the league’s better outside linebackers. He played linebacker in high school, so the transition wasn’t tremendously difficult. With a year of experience under his belt, Clark is expecting big things.

“When he was thrust into it, it was remarkable to me after the first day that he could even function,“ Clark said. “It’s a hard position. There’s a lot going on. There’s different alignments, different coverage responsibilities. He’s a really fast learner. As we got towards the end of the year, he was really starting to turn it on. This offseason, he’s gotten up to 224 (pounds). He’s physically big enough to be a leverage player. That kid’s a special kid in regard to the way he sees things. I’ll correct guys, but I’m always careful to correct Cheek. He sees it so well that I’ve got to make sure I watch the film sometimes before I correct him. He’s a tremendous leader.“

Before O’Donnell got hurt last season, Rocco raved about O’Donnell as a replacement at Jack linebacker for Stevie Ray Lloyd. The knee injury was a huge setback, and O’Donnell only played in seven games and made four tackles. He’s still gaining confidence on the knee, but O’Donnell has the potential to be a pretty good backup linebacker.

“It’s all been about Kyle’s knee,“ Clark said. “It’s gotten better. But he still has to get the confidence to bend that thing. We moved him from Mike back to Jack. Jack does not have to take on as many blockers as Mike does. He’s physical. But he has a hard time bending like he needs to bend. He runs well, though. He gets better every day. Coming out of training camp, he had a little more bounce (Tuesday) than he did before, so that’s good. He’ll get better and better and better. He’s as good as any of them. He’s the fastest linebacker we’ve got.“

Others on the second team include Mike Connolly (6-2, 245, rSo.), Pierre Tinsley (6-0, 235, rJr.) and Marques Jenkins (6-2, 235, rFr.).

“Mike kind of bounced around a little bit, so he’s still feeling himself out,“ Clark said. “We had him at outside and at inside and now back at outside. He’s getting better every day. Marques, you know, is a transfer from Ole Miss. He’s a kid from Stafford, Va., who was in my recruiting area and was on our radar. He ended up having to go to Hargrave and ended up being a Southeastern Conference type of kid. For whatever reason, it didn’t work out. He’s explosive. He’s starting in the nickel right now. He’s another guy who just has to learn everything. He’s a fish out of water, a little bit.“

One more name to watch: Demetrius Ward (6-1, 215, Fr.)

“Demetrius is very good,“ Clark said. “He’s a Phoebus High kid. He was a top guy on the Phoebus defense, and that was as good of a defense as I’ve ever seen. I think the defense outscored their opponents’ offense. They went 15-0 and he scored four touchdowns. So he’s got all of the tools. He’s really disciplined. I can’t imagine he’s not going to be a great player.“