Holtz: Giddins has chance to be ‘difference maker’

Posted Mar 31, 2011 by Adam Adkins

Updated Mar 31, 2011 at 05:33 PM

USF football coach Skip Holtz ran through Wednesday what he believed were some of the good individual stories of the spring, and one of them was sophomore defensive end Ryne Giddins, who joined the Bulls as one of the most highly touted recruits in program history.

Giddins, a local product of Armwood High in Seffner, played in 12 games in 2010, even earning starts in the final two, but the Bulls depth at defensive end had an impact on his amount of game reps. He still finished with 19 tackles and 3.5 sacks, which was good enough to rank third on the team, just a half sack behind team leaders Jon Lejiste and Craig Marshall.

But with Marshall and fellow starting defensive end David Bedford lost to graduation, Giddins figured to see an increased role in 2011. His work this spring has landed him with the first team defensive line at left end on the initial spring depth chart, which is where most probably expected to see him, but Holtz believes Giddins has the chance to really make an impact for the Bulls next season if he continues on his current path.

“He’s just got to keep getting better and keep doing exactly what he’s been doing, which is working, maturing, getting stronger, growing up, understanding football, understanding not just what to do but understanding the little things about when to use an under move, when to use the speed rush and get out on the perimeter and when to turn and kind of hold your gap. He’s got to play football,” Holtz said.

“Right now I think he’s doing everything. He’s got a great attitude, great work habits, but I think he can go from a guy who was a non-starter to a guy who is a real difference maker.”