Fifth in a series breaking down the Bears by position.

THE DEFENSIVE LINE
 
CONWAY, Ark. _  Not only will the University of Central Arkansas Bears send out one of the best defensive ends in school history for the season opener against Oklahoma State, they will feature another one on the opposite side just as talented. Both hail from the state of Arkansas.

Junior David Walker from Stuttgart, Ark., is one of the most decorated players in school history in just one season, earning six All-America nods last fall, his first with the Bears. He was also one of three finalists for the Buck Buchanan Award, which goes to the top FCS defensive player in the nation. He finished the season with 21 tackles for loss and 12 sacks.

"Our defensive end room is probably similar to our running back room, there is really just a ton of depth there," said head coach Nathan Brown. "And it starts with David Walker. There are probably not enough adjectives for me to use to describe him. I think he's just an amazing human, someone that has grown so much in the year he's been here. And not just how good a player he is on the field, but just the man he's becoming. He's taken on a leadership role in that short time.

"At practice the other day, at one point I looked over at Coach (Greg Stewart) Stacks and said, 'you can't block that guy.' It's just crazy. Now, he knows this, he's not going to by flying under the radar this year. There's going to be double teams, he's going to get chipped, they're going to slide the protection toward him. So he's going to have be a little more precise, he's going to have to work even harder. 

"And that's fine, he's good enough to do that and I think he's going to welcome that challenge."

On the flip side is another matchup problem for opponents, senior Logan Jessup from Wynne, Ark., who has 34 career tackles for loss and 19 career sacks among his 146 tackles, along with four forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries.

"If teams try to do that to David, guess what, we've got a guy who in some form or fashion, is really a three-time All-American in Logan Jessup on the other side. Logan is maybe the most solid kid on our team. Leadership qualities, work ethic, football talent, just no nonsense. He goes out and he works, he's durable and he plays the game the way you want it to be played. 

"It definitely starts with those two on the edge."

Brown said Walker will play a little different role in his second season at UCA, and first under defensive coordinator Stewart.

"We moved him from our field defensive end to what we call our bandit linebacker, which is like a defensive end in a 3-4 scheme," Brown said. "So he'll stand up a little bit more, but his main focus is obviously still going to be rushing the passer, although he'll have a little bit more responsibility within the defense. 

"One of Coach Stacks' keys to that defense is the bandit position and he wants, if not your best, one of your best players playing that position. When he was coaching here before, you might remember names like Chris Chambers and Chris Terrell. Those guys played that same position for Coach Stacks in this defense."

The Bears might have a few other hybrid players as well, including sophomore Jake Golday of Arlington, Tenn., who made an impressive debut last season with 37 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and a sack as a redshirt freshman.

"A guy like Jake Golday will play a little bit of linebacker, a little bit of bandit, a little bit of defensive end," said Brown. "He's going to be a great addition at that edge spot. And (junior) Reggie Shepherd, who is a transfer defensive end that we signed in December from the Mississippi junior college ranks. And (Deorius) Buck Cobbs, a redshirt freshman from Jacksonville who has taken a step forward. 

"And there are couple of others like (sophomore) Barylre Davenport and (redshirt freshman) Sam Horton who need to step up there as well. Their time is getting close. We know they are talented, it's just a matter of getting them out there and doing it."
 

The obvious losses on defense for the Bears were in the middle of the defensive line, at noseguard and tackle.

"On the defensive side, probably the biggest hit was on the interior line," Brown said. "Losing (seniors) Caden Brown and Jalen Bedell hurts. They were two guys you could count on that played a lot of football for us the last few years. But we're talented in there. (Junior) Stephon McGlaun is a guy that played a lot last year who is going to be counted on as a starter in there.

"(Junior) Jace McCoy got bumped inside from defensive end, he's put on 10-15 pounds and adds a little bit more of an athletic element in there, which we're excited about. We made that move in the spring and he stuck and did a great job. He's going to be a playmaker inside there. 

"Names to remember are (sophomore) Bradley Clark out of Pine Bluff. He has All-Conference ability. He's an explosive, talented big man. Coach (Tony) Davis raves about him, Coach (Walker) Ashburn loves him. He's a guy that I don't think even realizes how good he can be. I think he's going to have a huge year.

"Along with (junior) Javeon Jones. He played a lot of tootball for us last year and he's going to have to play even more snaps this year. And then we brought in a transfer this summer, (senior) Eric Bentley, who started for Austin Peay, and we know them very well. He's going to add some maturity inside for us.

    "That's a group that's a little but unknown. It's a group we're constantly coaching. I know Coach Ashburn is working his tail off with that group since he got here and has done a great job with them. He likes them, he thinks they have a ton of talent, a ton of upside, and I think they do. We look the part, now we just have to go get our nose bloodied and play some football with those guys."