The Blue Hens are moving on up. Ryan Carty’s group is heading to Conference USA for their first season at the FBS level. He also led Delaware to their first back-to-back nine-win seasons for the first time since 2003-04, a significant accomplishment given how poor the prior regime had done. Offensively, this team should be fascinating.
Offense / Scheme
Delaware head coach Ryan Carty runs an uptempo yet aggressive offense. In 2024, The Blue Hens ran 2.03 players per minute (ranked 52nd amongst FBS teams), and their 72 plays per game would have ranked 32nd. The offense is almost entirely no-huddle when in neutral scripts. Carty’s system is built on three receiver sets and spread principles as both he and offensive coordinator Terence Archer have Air Raid backgrounds. There is some Chip Kelly influence here and depending on which quarterback gets the nod, could lead to fantasy success.
Carty spent time at both Sam Houston State (under KC Keeler), and New Hampshire, hired by Kelly himself. He commandeered a top-15 offense in 2024 per Beta_Rank, emphasizing explosives and a more explosive pass game, even with the third and fourth-string quarterbacks seeing significant playing time.
One note about Carty is that he is more flexible with his system than most other coaches, tailoring it to personnel but keeping most spread principles and tempo in neutral game scripts, where they ranked 19th in plays per minute.
Quarterback
The Delaware resurgence is a combination of Carty bringing the program back on track and the play of Ryan O’Connor at quarterback. A two-year starter, O’Connor threw for 879 yards and eight touchdowns in three games before missing the season with an upper-body injury. Delaware and O’Connor have yet to announce a medical redshirt for another season of eligibility, which he will be granted if it is pursued. If he returns, it’s a significant development for the offense. However, he is out of eligibility otherwise, and if he opts to hang it up, the Blue Hens will have a real competition at quarterback.
Without O’Conner, Carty and the staff turned to Zach Marker to start. In his four games, Marker threw for 1,011 yards and 10 touchdowns. He was recovering from a significant knee injury entering the season and wore a brace during his starts. It was clear from the first snaps that he was not 100% and ultimately sat out the remainder of the season following the loss to Richmond and another injury.
A healthy Marker is a good contributor to this offense and a potential difference-maker in CUSA if it pans out as the staff hopes. With him, his rushing upside is limited, but he does have mobility to avoid sacks and will keep the ball a handful of times. His most significant question is how healthy he will be for the 2025 season. Marred by injury last season, his yards per attempt dropped from 10.4 to 7.6, and his adjusted accuracy fell by 7%. His receivers did no favors, however, with a 13% drop rate, which would’ve certainly helped his raw totals.
Interestingly, Marker’s injury opened room for third-sting quarterback Nick Minicucci, who started the final four games. Minicucci has had packages in most games, even when not starting, as he’s a legit threat with his legs, rushing for 85 and 43 in the season’s final two games. Although he can run, he has a real fumbling issue that might keep him on the bench. With six fumbles in his final three starts, one wonders if Carty and the staff are willing to have him start games for an extended period. Any fantasy value would come from his mobility as he’s a limited passer, averaging 194 yards per game and 6.2 yards per attempt in his career. Inaccuracy is an issue with a 62% completion percentage, but he is willing to push the ball downfield when needed, evidenced by his 9.1 aDOT in 2024.
Behind those two, Braden Streeter saw limited action as a true freshman, showing some promise. He’s a limited athlete and likely not a real competitor for the starting gig given the inexperience -. Still, given the staff’s feelings about his potential, he’s unlikely to sink the offense if thrust into a starting role. They also added EJ Archield, a three-star dual-threat quarterback from the Tampa area, to this year’s class. Athletically, he’s probably the best quarterback on the roster but is limited as a passer. He’s a name to watch down the road. However, he is likely years away from starting.
Finally, and just to cover all our bases, Daniel Lipovski entered the portal after two years with the Blue Hens.
The million-dollar question is what happens with Ryan O’Connor. A history of concussions may result in him foregoing any attempt to redshirt medically. Entering 2025, I don’t think any quarterback is draftable in college fantasy formats if O’Connor leaves.
Running Back
The best player on the roster in 2024 was running back speedster Marcus Yarns. Now Senior Bowl-bound, Delaware is looking to replace him internally. Yarns was the engine for this offense, rushing for 849 yards in 6.6 yards per attempt and six touchdowns in only nine games. He had 297 yards on 17 receptions through the air, an absurd 17.5 yards per reception as a running back. His 21.9 fantasy points per game would have ranked as RB14. Yarns was a special player for the Blue Hens, running *actual* routes, with a 4.0 aDOT in 2024. Replacing the player will be impossible, but they’ll try.
The job likely falls on the shoulders of Jo’Nathan Silver. Built slightly bigger than Yarns (5’10”, 200lbs), he’s another highly efficient back with a quality receiving profile. Silver enters 2025 in his fourth year with Delaware after being the backup to Yarns. Yarns averaged 14.8 rushes and 2.5 targets as a starter for 18.6 weighted opportunities per game. However, he left multiple contests early with an injury. In four of seven games (when playing the full game), he had at least 17 attempts, even with nagging injuries. The lead back for Delaware will get 15+ attempts in positive game scripts, but it’s unrealistic to expect 20+ touch games consistently. The highly efficient nature of the RB role in the Carty offense helps make up for bellcow usage.
Silver is the most expected back and started when Yarns missed time, but second-year rusher Saeed St. Fleur will also play a role. At 5’10, 195lbs, he’s slightly smaller than Silver but will rotate in consistently. St. Fleur saw 90 snaps in nine games compared to Silver’s 252 in 11. If last year is a good indication, Silver will likely lead this backfilled in snaps and touches by a good margin.
Running back Quincy Watson saw significant usage in 2024, logging more snaps than St. Fleur, with 109. However, Watson, like Yarns exhausted his eligibility last season and doesn’t return in 2025 after spending the previous six seasons with Delaware.
The wrench in the mix is what Delaware plans to do with true freshman Keveun Mason. A 5’11, 175lbs back out of Florida is a speedster (verified 10.90 100M) who brings a unique talent to the room. Historically, Carty and Delaware have opted to redshirt incoming talent where they can, and I expect Mason to follow a similar trajectory. He is, however, a player to keep an eye on in the future.
Wide Receiver
The receiver position will require a complete overhaul for Delaware entering 2025. They lost leading receiver Phil Lutz, who had 69 targets in eleven games. Lutz averaged 19.2 yards per reception, operating as a downfield threat for the offense the last two seasons after transferring in from Tufts University. Lutz led the team in targets with under 70 despite 393 pass attempts for the entire roster, for only 18% target share.
Delaware also loses their second-leading receiver, Jake Thaw, who had 336 yards in 2024. Thaw is most well-known for his near-fumble for Michigan in the 2023 Rose Bowl, but he was an excellent special teams contributor for the Wolverines and found a role as a reliable slot for the Blue Hens last season.
The receiver with the most experienced returning is Rutgers transfer Max Patterson. Patterson operated in a downfield role opposite Lutz but garnered only 40 targets despite appearing in every game. He is limited as a route runner and is more of a chess piece than a true high-end pass catcher. Expect his role to be essentially unchanged.
The biggest question mark entering 2025 is the health of JoJo Bermudez. Bermeduz transferred to Delaware from Cincinnati in the 2023 season but has yet to make a true impact for the Blue Hens in the receiving game. His tenure thus far has been fraught with injury, which hampered him throughout last season. He also has a history of knee issues dating back to high school, which kept him off the field at Cincinnati and limited in 2023.
Bermudez, if healthy, could be one of the best receivers in this conference. He has a verified 10.80 100M time from high school and reportedly ran a 4.40 at Penn State’s camp in 2020. The injuries have kept him sidelined, but prior, he was WR69 in the 247Sports ranking as a recruit out of New Jersey. Delaware expected him to be their WR1 entering this past season, and before getting injured in week one against Bryant, he had 10 targets and, in his five healthy starts, averaged eight targets per game. He’s worth the dart throw in drafts, but it’s risky.
The other two receivers with returning experience include Ja’Carree Kelly and Nicholas Laboy. With Kelly, he started most games for the Blue Hens but was highly inefficient with his snaps, posting a 1.04 Yards/Route Run, last among receivers last season. On the other hand, Laboy is a more interesting piece of this offense. He entered the season as a starter but saw double-digit snaps once in the final eight games. Coming from Cornell, where he was their best offensive player, the jump didn’t quite click for Laboy in his first season.
Offensive Line
Delaware has work to do in rebuilding the offensive line for the 2025 season. Among linemen with the most snaps, only versatile tackle Anwar O’neal returns. O’neal was an All-CAA honorable mention and allowed only a single sack in all eleven starts. Likely, anchoring the left tackle spot, his experience is crucial.
However, this group loses Brock Gingrich, arguably the best center in the conference and Delaware’s strongest interior lineman. Along with Gingrich, Bradly Anyanwu exhausted his eligibility after being a staple at RG since 2022, allowing four sacks in 2,118 snaps. They also lose two other starters Blaise Sparks and Patrick Shupp. Replacing four of five full-time starters in this unit will be difficult.
Expect center Steven Dembroski to be a key contributor for this group after playing in five games and starting twice in 2024. Dembroski started in place of Gingrich when injured and did well with the role. This is a spot where the Blue Hens feel they have a quality replacement for their All-Conference center. They also get back Fintan Brose, their versatile RG/RT who struggled with injury last year. A two-time All-CAA player, Brose is a quality piece on the right side of this line when healthy and played 850+ snaps in 2022 and 2023.
The staff also tried addressing this need in the portal, adding former Syracuse commit Noah Rosahac. He projects to play at either guard spot, and as a former three-star, he brings pedigree to this group despite not seeing work as a freshman last year. They also added a DII lineman, Patrick Methlie, from West Chester. Methlie was one of the best linemen in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) the last two seasons and at minimum provides quality experience.
Although four of five starters from last year’s team don’t return, getting Brose healthy and development from O’neal and Dembroski might help this unit more than one would think. I wouldn’t call this a strength, especially depth-wise, but it’s not the worst unit on this roster.
Conclusion
There is significant roster turnover for Delaware entering 2025. The quarterback position likely determines whether this offense relies on more spread principles or emphasizes the quarterback run game more. We know this will be an uptempo offense that will rank in the top quartertile in plays per game and has been a top-15 FBS offense the last two seasons in Newark. Replacing key players like Marcus Yarns, and Phil Lutz will be challenging but expect the staff to rely on their current roster to find solutions.
