Late in the 2020 season Kansas offensive lineman Earl Bostick Jr. moved from right tackle to left tackle. It looks like he’s there to stay.
That important position, often most responsible for protecting the quarterback’s blindside, is where Bostick has settled in during the Jayhawks’ spring practices and where the senior from Barnwell, S.C., expects to play this fall.
“It’s not that different at all. Just switching the feet,” Bostick said of playing on the opposite end of the O-line. “That’s it. Basically everything play-wise is the same thing, just flipping it around.”
This past fall, Bostick started at right tackle in five of KU’s first seven games. But after the firing of then offensive line coach Luke Meadows, the Jayhawks moved some personnel around and Bostick started the final two games at left tackle.
That’s where new O-line coach Lee Grimes has kept Bostick since taking over the position group.
“It’s just a little weight on my shoulders, but I’m so used to having that,” Bostick said of playing left tackle. “Like playing on the right side, I’m still blocking the person in front of me, protecting the quarterback, making sure the running back is getting past me, like getting his block so he can run through his hole like he’s supposed to.”
Bostick said he doesn’t mind the added responsibility of making sure the QB doesn’t get blindsided by a pass rush or blitz.
“I just take it and I run with it,” he said of the opportunity to play a position that comes with a brighter spotlight.
While there is an entire offseason to get through before KU’s depth charts are set, as of now it looks like the starting O-line group could be Bostick at left tackle, super senior Malik Clark at left guard, junior transfer Colin Grunhard or super senior Adagio Lopeti at center, sophomore Armaj Adams-Reed at right guard and redshirt freshman Bryce Cabeldue at right tackle.
Cabeldue started the final two games at right tackle in 2020, after Bostick moved to the left side.
The first-string blocker on the opposite end of the line, Bostick said during spring ball he sees Cabeldue improving by the day. Bostick shared that the young prospect has worked this offseason on getting his weight up and increasing his strength.
“When we get into fall camp, he’s going to be a great player,” Bostick predicted.
KU’s sophomore nose tackle, Da’Jon Terry, goes up against centers Grunhard and Lopeti at practices and during scrimmage situations.
“Shoot, they’re great competitors. Every day at practice they come out on their A-games,” Terry said of the centers. “We compete and go at each other, and it’s amazing, because the only thing we can do is get better when we’re going at each other like that every day.”
While interim head coach Emmett Jones has tried not to give away too much about the strengths and weaknesses of the Jayhawks this spring, he has been more willing to speak of the broader strides he thinks the team is making at its closed practices.
Jones recently rattled off a number of areas that stood out to him in terms of the team’s progress.
“Buy in. Brotherhood. Comprehending everything that we’re doing on the offensive side. Not thinking about the past. Continuing to stay focused on one day at a time approach,” Jones said.
Something Jones has preached throughout his time in charge of the program is the idea that players need to get 1% better every day this offseason. It’s a concept that many players have referenced in interviews, as well.
According to Jones, the players are absorbing the lessons KU’s assistants are providing, and he’s optimistic about how the Jayhawks are moving toward the future.