ARIZONA Stoops: Linebackers require experience

Of the Wildcats' 10 linebackers, only two have Division I-A game experience.
ARIZONA DAILY STAR
TUCSON, Ariz. -- The 2004 football season will be on-the-job training for Arizona's inexperienced linebackers.
But that is not a built-in excuse for inferior play.
"We're getting there. It just takes time," said coach Mike Stoops, a native of Youngstown and Cardinal Mooney High graduate. "We're trying to find our way."
Only two of the 10 Wildcat linebackers have actually played the position in a Division I-A game.
Newcomers Randy Sims and Dane Krogstad likely will join senior Kirk Johnson in the starting lineup Sept. 4 against Northern Arizona.
"Come fall, we all have to play," Johnson said. "It's a new defense for all of us, so we're essentially all rookies."
12 starts under belt
The 6-foot-1, 230-pound Johnson has 12 starts under his belt -- six last season -- and tied for sixth on the team in 2003 with 49 tackles. He also had a 28-yard interception return for a touchdown in the spring game.
For Johnson, it will be the fourth defense he has had to learn since playing as a true freshman under John Mackovic in 2001.
"You can't just go from knowing one defense, and then here comes another defense and you write it down on paper and you know it," he said. "You have to actually be out there doing it. The more you do it, the more you learn it."
The only other linebacker with playing experience is fifth-year senior Patrick Howard, who ranked eighth on the Wildcats with 48 stops a year ago. He has played in 31 games, with five of his six starts coming in 2003.
"The two guys that have some game experience, both of them are smart football players," Arizona linebackers coach Tim Kish said. "But they had to become accustomed to playing with better footwork, better technique."
The 6-3, 237-pound Krogstad impressed coaches early in training camp last year, but a lack of consistency kept him off the field.
Solid so far
He has been solid so far, earning his way onto the field at outside linebacker.
"It's been up and down a little bit," said Krogstad, who had a sack in the spring game. "Some things I pick up faster than others. (But) I'm still making freshman mistakes."
In the 2 1/2 weeks since camp opened, Kish said he has seen measurable improvement in understanding the defensive system and concepts.
"We're tweaking things every day, trying to get better at doing the little things right," Kish said.
Sims, a transfer from San Francisco City College, has been hobbled with a sore toe while starting throughout camp. Howard likely will get the bulk of his reps.
The wild card in the linebackers' situation is converted fullback Sean Jones.
Moved to linebacker
Jones moved to linebacker last spring and quickly made an impact with 10 tackles in his first spring scrimmage. He also had an interception.
"I've just always wanted to get on the field," said Jones, a 6-0, 230-pound junior. "This is a way I can help the team."
Other newcomers getting plenty of reps in camp are sophomores John McKinney and Akin Akinniyi, and incoming freshman Ronnie Palmer.
Two other freshmen, James Alford and Brandon Lopez, are likely to redshirt.
Krogstad said he is looking forward to opening night.
"I just think it's going to be awesome," he said. "The adrenaline is going to be pumping. We've all never played a down of college linebacker."