Byron Hout has had the gaze of a pair of watchful eyes upon him during his first spring as a full time position coach.
The former Boise State linebacker is working with Montana State’s defensive line as the Bobcats completed their first spring football session under new head coach Jeff Choate on Monday afternoon. Choate, the defensive line coach at Washington the past three years and Florida the season before that, has had his hands in Hout’s position group more than any other on the Bobcats the last few months.
MSU defensive line coach Byron Hout working drills with tackle Zach Wright
“Having Coach Choate right there has accelerated everything,” Hout said. “I’ve learned a lot. I’ve been around a lot of good coaches, Pete Kwiatkowski, Steve Caldwell, Andy Avalos and Choate is one of them.
“This is a great experience for me to be around a head coach — I’ve never played or been on a staff where the head coach has been a defensive line coach. It’s awesome having him there. He likes to be hands on, really high energy. I love when he comes and works with us.”
Montana State has a deep lineage of defensive linemen, from Gary Gustafson in the 1960s to Bill Kollar and Brad Daws in the 1970s, to Mark Fellows in the 1980s up to players like Adam Cordeiro, John Taylor, Dane Fletcher, Brad Daly and Caleb Schreibeis during the 21st century. But the last two seasons, the Bobcats have lacked the dominant force on the edge that was commonplace for generations at MSU.
The defensive line has received the biggest revamping thus far during Choate’s five months on the job. Choate hired Hout to replace Bo Beck, a successful coach for nine seasons under Rob Ash who helped mentor Fletcher, Daly, Schreibeis and All-Americans like Dan Ogden and Zach Minter. Choate has also been very hands on in coaching the defensive linemen, particularly the tackles and the ends.
MSU defensive coordinator Ty Gregorak coaching buck end BJ Ojo
First-year defensive coordinator Ty Gregorak, an assistant at Montana for 12 of the last 13 seasons who helped mentor NFL linebackers like Jordan Tripp and Brock Coyle and professional pass rushers like Zack Wagenmann and Tyrone Holmes, is doing more than coordinating the defense. He is also working with MSU’s Buck ends, a group that includes sophomore Grant Collins, senior Jessie Clark and redshirt freshman B.J. Ojo.
Collins was MSU’s starting middle linebacker as a redshirt freshman in 2015. Clark was a situational player who still led MSU with 5.5 sacks despite playing sparingly. Ojo is a converted linebacker who made the switch to the edge earlier this spring.
“Coach Hout is doing an astounding job with those guys with Coach Choate helping him along,” said All-America candidate senior offensive lineman J.P. Flynn said. “It’s a whole new energy on the defensive line. They have gotten astronomically better this spring which is something that is promising to see.”
MSU was among the Big Sky Conference and national leaders in sacks during its run to three straight BSC titles between 2010 and 2012. Last season, MSU notched 22 sacks, 8th in the league and one sack short of half of the league-leading total posted by Gregorak’s defense in Missoula.
Choate is putting an emphasis on production more than any other aspect of defensive football this spring, particularly when it comes to the defenders up front.
MSU head coach Jeff Choate coaches end Tyrone Fa’anono
“I’ve always been a production guy but I’m also a really fundamentally oriented football coach,” Choate said. “I want good body position. I want guys to do things like we are asking to do them. I want them to be disciplined enough to be focused on the details we are coaching in that drill. That means they are disciplined enough to help us win football games. But on the same token, playmakers make plays. We need guys to make plays on defense.”
Opposite the Buck end position is a group of defensive ends trying to carve out a niche among the Bobcat defense. Junior Tyrone Fa’anono is the starter at defensive end. The powerful 6-foot-2, 255-pounder from Oxnard, California has had ability since breaking into MSU’s starting lineup as a true freshman in 2014.
Fa’anono is able to shed blocks and bull rush offensive linemen prolifically but he has found himself out of position more often than not in his time as a starter. Last fall, he notched 24 tackles, including 15 solo stops, four tackles for loss and three sacks as MSU gave up yards and points in gobs during a 5-6 campaign.
“Tyrone has not missed a practice and taken a ton of reps this spring and gotten a ton better,” Hout said. “He’s a guy who people listen to because of his excitement for the game. This is a big year for him.”
Gregorak and Choate have singled out senior Shiloh LaBoy as an athlete who could contribute in the fall if he can stay healthy and lock in the mental aspect of the game. The 6-foot-4, 250-pound smooth athlete who came to MSU from Honolulu by away of Scottsdale Community College could never find his groove in his first season at MSU in 2015. He played in 10 games, notching just three tackles. This spring, Hout has been impressed by his curiosity and his eagerness to learn the position.
MSU head coach Jeff Choate with ends Robert Wilcox (L) and Devin Jefferies (R)
The defensive end position also includes a pair of highly productive in-state products: Devin Jeffries, a 6-foot-2, 250-pound junior and former Class AA Defensive MVP out of Kalispell Glacier along with Marcus Ferriter, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound former Class A Defensive MVP out of Butte Central.
Jeffries has been held out of all contact drills this spring after having off-season hip surgery but should contribute in the fall. Ferriter is still developing physically, particularly in his lower body, but showed his natural pass rushing ability during Friday night’s Sonny Holland spring game, notching a sack against the first team offense on the second play from scrimmage.
“Ferriter will be a player,” Hout said. “He will work to be great.”
Senior Robert Wilcox is a physically imposing presence who provides position versatility for the Bobcats. The 6-foot-2, 265-pounder from Frisco, Texas started the second half of last season at defensive end for the Bobcats. He has struggled with repeated knee injuries for the majority of his three years in Bozeman after transferring from Grambling State in 2013.
Wilcox had four touch sacks during the Triangle Classic spring game in Great Falls earlier this month, shifting between end and tackle. Wilcox is listed as senior Joe Naotala’s backup at defensive tackle on the first official depth chart of spring football released on Friday.
MSU defensive lineman Robert Wilcox
“Wilcox is a good football player,” Choate said. “He has to stay healthy and he has to continue to work. You get an old dog that is going into a new system, it takes a little while for those guys to knock the rust off. I think he’s starting to understand what our expectations are. If he continues to work and buy in, he has a chance to do some nice things.”Joe Na
Wilcox and the rest of the defensive line have responded positively despite the loss of Beck, a friendly and affable mentor who was well-liked by the group. Having the extra attention from the head coach and the newfound energy or the trio working with the defensive line has been a positive for MSU’s defensive line, Wilcox said.
“We love it as a d-line,” Wilcox said. “As a team as a whole, we are already a whole lot closer. For me specifically, the defensive line is even more close knit. We do everything together and we are progressing as a unit. We will be a force this season.”
Photos by Brooks Nuanez. All Rights Reserved.
