Matchup: East OL vs. West DL
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SAN ANTONIO - Each day this week leading up to Saturday's U.S. Army All-American Bowl, Rivals.com analyst Adam Gorney is looking at the players involved in a key matchup. The latest installment focuses on the East offensive line against the West defensive line.
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The players:
East offensive line: Donovan Smith (Owings Mills, Md.), Tyler Moore (Clearwater, Fla.), Aundrey Walker (Cleveland, Ohio), Brandon Shell (Charleston, S.C.), Antonio Richardson (Nashville, Tenn.), Brian Bobek (Palatine, Ill.), Landon Turner (Harrisonburg, Va.), Zach DeBell (Tarpon Springs, Fla.)
West defensive line: Juda Parker (Honolulu, Hawaii), Jason Gibson (Gardena, Calif.), Jermauria Rasco (Shreveport, La.), Brennan Scarlett (Portland, Ore.), Todd Peat Jr. (Tempe, Ariz.), Marquis Anderson (Cibolo, Texas), Viliami Moala (Sacramento, Calif.), Quincy Russell (San Antonio, Texas)
The breakdown:
The West is strongest in the middle with 300-pound defensive tackles Moala and Peat, who are nearly unmovable objects and can help stuff the run all game.
It should be an interesting matchup going against Walker, an athletic big man who is massive enough to stonewall those defensive tackles.
Rasco has been the West's best defensive end when he's practiced but has been sidelined with headaches.
It will be interesting to see if Rasco plays can he be dominant against big offensive tackles Shell and Richardson. The other West defensive ends have had their moments but it's definitely not the strength of the team.
The offensive line isn't extraordinary but it's a capable group. Walker and Turner at guard will be tough to get past because of their size.
DeBell and Bobek have struggled at times this week but they're talented enough to play well when it counts. Moore and Smith have done well throughout the week.
This could be one of the game's most interesting position matchups. Neither the East offensive line nor the West defensive line are the strengths of either team but with the big bodies at defensive tackle going against the massive guards for the East, this could be something to watch.
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