...is depleting by the second. A quick rundown:
Starting nose guard Paul Griffin has extensive knee ligament damage and will miss the remainder of the season. It's expected the JuCo guard will apply for a medical hardship and still have two years remaining. You can read that here
Backup nose guard Emmanuel Dunbar reinjured his back and I don't see him returning to the lineup any time soon. He has had herniated disc problems.
Backup defensive tackle LeTroy Guion reinjured something and he's probably questionable for this week's game.
Reserve nose guard Aaron Jones has struggled with injuries so much that he hasn't even dressed out the last two games, much less practiced.
So that leaves Kendrick Stewart with the golden opportunity to start at nose guard and erase memories from a rough training camp. He played the majority of Saturday's game against Troy but is still looking for his first tackle. Stewart isn't the strongest linemen, but he's probably the quickest and he won't give up on plays. A solid pass rusher on the inside.
Behind him it's hard to say. Obviously having Guion play would be nice. The coaches are once against considering moving Justin Mincey to the inside and according to Warchant, coach Odell Haggins will work out another true freshmen, Bud Thacker, on the inside as well. Not sure about the status of a third freshmen, Ryan McMahon, but if he's healthy, I'm sure he'll get reps in practice.
The kids have talent, I hope they can perform. No way around this, it's a huge loss.