Georgia Southern legend Tracy Ham slipped into the back of the office during a recent staff meeting and listened while the coaches went down the depth chart and discussed players. Then he raised his hand and interrupted coach Chris Hatcher to ask a question.

Ham, who quarterbacked the Eagles to two national championships, wanted to know why so many of the names on the board — almost half the roster — were written in blue ink.

Those, Ham was told, were the freshmen. The preseason roster began with 27 true freshmen and 25 redshirt freshmen. There are 56 others and a mere 16 are seniors. Sounds like a great sponsorship opportunity for Clearasil.

"And that's the unknown factor," Hatcher said. "We have a lot of inexperience and a lot of unknowns."

And these guys are expected to play, too. Five freshmen were listed as first-team on the preseason depth chart: quarterback Lee Chapple, center William Maxwell, right tackle Josh Petkovich, punter Charlie Edwards and long snapper Carter Jones. Five others were listed as backups, meaning they likely figure into the rotation.

"It may be one of the biggest challenges we've ever had," Hatcher said. "I'm excited about it. We've got to go out and coach hard."

The Eagles, who reported to camp on Wednesday and open practice today, don't have time to sit around and talk. They open the season on Aug. 30 at Georgia and must prepare for another rugged Southern Conference schedule. They went 7-4 last season.

But there's more to the ripening process than making sure the freshmen know the direction of plays or which defender to block during a safety blitz. The mental aspect can often be more demanding.

"The mental part is the hardest part," said senior guard Dio Herrera. "When you get here you have to commit everything you do to football. You've got to get guys to grow up. Guys who have been around know what it takes and we try to get (the freshmen) to grow up."

Herrera, a transfer from Mississippi State, is the lone veteran returning on the line. Otherwise there's a lot of blue-named blockers on the depth chart.

That means additional pressure on Chapple, who opens camp as the No. 1 quarterback, despite having never played a down. Billy Lowe, who was effective in spot relief of Walter Payton Award winner Jayson Foster, opted for a medical redshirt season because of back problems.

Chapple won the job with a strong spring and led Blue team to a win in the spring game. Chapple has learned the offense and Hatcher said the freshman from the Greater Atlanta Christian School is "a great competitor and a good leader."

"We're excited and we're optimistic," Hatcher said. "I hope we'll get a lot of questions answered over the next few weeks."