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sportsTCU Horned Frogs

TCU spring breakout candidates: Will John Lanz thrive as a center in Sonny Dykes’ offense?

TCU offensive lineman John Lanz is making the move to center.

Spring practice is well underway. With each and every practice, players find new roles and take on additional responsibility.

Here’s breakout candidate No. 4:

John Lanz

Year: Graduate student

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Position: Center

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2022 stats: Appeared in 14 of 15 games

TCU is losing a lot of firepower within the offensive line, as Steve Avila and Alan Ali are heading to the NFL draft. Ali and Avila, both leaders in the locker room, played center in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

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Lanz, who ranked sixth on the Frogs’ roster in 2022 with 489 snaps played, is making the transition to center.

“It’s been good,” Lanz said. “It’s been fun. I’m excited to learn the position. Whatever I can do to help the team this year.”

As a leader in the offensive line, it’s Lanz’s duty to “make calls” and set the tone.

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“It’s a big deal for me,” Lanz said. “It’s a lot of responsibility on my shoulders, but also I have a lot of experienced guys next to me in tackles like Andrew [Coker] and Brandon Coleman, who have been helping me.”

Lanz has also received help from Avila and Ali, both All-Big 12 caliber players who played pivotal roles in the Frogs’ journey to the College Football Playoffs.

“I’ve just been leaning on them,” Lanz said. “And I’ll watch film with them and they give me some pointers, which is really cool because I know how busy they are. Whenever I have questions I’ll go up to them and I’ll ask them about any tips and advice they have for me.”

Lanz certainly has the right resources available to become the next great Horned Frog center. Will he follow in the footsteps of Avila and Ali?

Lanz said he’s been overwhelmed at times but feels confident in his ability to stay calm and level-headed moving forward.

“I’m confident in what I can do now,” Lanz said.