This article is part of a series previewing SMU football's 2020 football roster. Today, we discuss the players wearing Nos. 26-30.
With the athletes wearing Nos. 26-30, SMU has talented players who are either looking to build off promising 2019 seasons or looking to break out with 2020 seasons to remember.
Today, The HillTopics takes a look at those players.
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The running back race is wide open with Xavier Jones and Ke'Mon Freeman gone, and SMU has a few young-but-talented players. Ulysses Bentley IV, who will wear No. 26, is a candidate to take over the starting role. The redshirt freshman played in four games last year but only had 36 yards on seven carries. At 5-10 and 184 pounds, Bentley's blazing speed could play a role in how well SMU's offense moves the ball.
On defense, Brandon Stephens established himself as a dependable starter at cornerback. He played all 13 games and recorded 49 tackles (38 solo) and a team-best 12 pass breakups. Stephens, who also wears No. 26, is still learning the position at the college level after playing running back at UCLA for two seasons. 2020 could be a huge year for the 6-0, 206-pound athlete, particularly with the safeties being inexperienced.
And speaking of the safety position, junior Michael Salerno will be one of the athletes battling for playing time in the secondary. The 6-0, 187-pound safety played predominantly on special teams last season and had four tackles. He played in nine games in 2019.
Stephens and Ar'mani Johnson are incumbent starters at cornerback for SMU, but Christian Davis and Justin Guy-Robinson both hope to find their ways into the regular rotation. Davis, a 5-11, 195-pound senior, only played in one game last season after redshirting. Guy-Robinson, a 5-10, 180-pound junior, played in nine games in 2019 and finished with two tackles. Davis wears No. 28, while Guy-Robinson wears No. 29.
Bentley will compete for the starting running back role, but during the shortened spring practice schedule, sophomore Tyler Lavine made a lot of noise in the backfield. The 5-11, 220-pounder was recently placed on scholarship and hasn't disappointed since. Lavine, who wears No. 30, rushed for a touchdown against South Florida last season, and he played all 13 games, mostly on special teams.
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Today: No. 26-30
