As always, defensive tackle a position of concern for OSU
Published: 8/20/2010 2:58 PM
Last Modified: 8/20/2010 2:58 PM
At defensive tackle, Oklahoma State's starters are seniors Shane Jarka and Chris Donaldson. When he arrived as a freshman in 2006, Jarka weighed 235 pounds. He now carries 295. The 299-pound Donaldson, an Anderson, S.C. native who transferred to OSU last year from Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College, has been the best tackle in camp. During last week’s scrimmage, he twice dropped Cowboy quarterbacks for safeties.
The current backups are third-year sophomore Nigel Nicholas and surprisingly good first-year freshman Davidell Collins. He was recruited as an end out of Bearden, Ark., and he definitely is undersized as a Big 12 defensive lineman (255 pounds), but Collins has thrived since being tried at tackle.
Among the other tackle backups is Cooper Bassett, a 265-pound sophomore who was switched from tight end.
“We’re still concerned about the defensive tackle spot,” coach Mike Gundy said. “We’ve got to stay healthy. It seems like we say that every year. Those guys are so hard to find. We need the ones we have to stay healthy and play hard.”
-- Bill Haisten
Written by
Bill Haisten
Sports Writer
