I tend to remain relatively quiet on the board these days as the access to the program is much better than it used to be and the staff at HOL and a few others bring the goods on a regular basis. In light of the recent events, I thought I’d throw out some thoughts about practice this year in hopes that we can return our focus to the upcoming season.
Before I get into it, I must say Phillips et al have done a great job getting this team put together from a physical stand point. If you saw the roster three years ago compared with today, it’s night and day. Will that translate to better results… I don’t know but I’d like to think it will help.
I guess I’ll start with the rotation as I see it.
OL: Gates, Foster, Utter, Farmer, Knevel
Pretty solid group that we should feel comfortable with. Funny enough, Gates and Foster used to have a lot of disdain for each other. The last couple years Foster felt like he was at least as good as Gates and should be starting. At one point, it was alleged that Foster was thinking about transferring – just keep in mind, where there’s smoke there’s usually fire. Happy to say that all that appears to be behind them now and they’ve been seamless on that left side. Their chemistry is great and they truly have a chance to be a force this year.
Utter is ok. We’ve got options down the road but he’s the man right now.
Farmer and Knevel will be tested early and often. Knevel has had a nice transformation over the past 1.5 years but is still lanky.
RB: Oz, Newby, Bryant, Wilbon, everyone else
Ad nauseam, there is no leader. Staff would like to take Oz’s power, Newby’s burst and Wilbon’s elusiveness and put them all into one. Honestly, they may have done just that… his name is Tre Bryant. If he was here last year I think it’d be a two man show between him and Oz. As it stands, we’re content running different backs out situationally. Zero % chance he RS this year.
QB: Tommy, Fyfe, Bush
I hate to even say Tommy looks better. As its Olympic season, I’ll put it this way – if you were a sprinter and they asked you to the high jump… and win a gold medal… could you do it? Tommy was recruited to play in a different system. He’s done his best to adapt his skill set to what the staff needs and vice versa. He’s made improvements but there will be bumps along the way. His checks appear to be better. Not saying it isn’t but… above all else, he HAS to make better decisions.
We’ve incorporated a lot more bubbles, swings, and boots to play to Armstrong’s skill set. He’s a force when he gets to the open field and we’ll see more zone read, and misdirection to spring him loose this year.
I’d say after Westy, Morgan is probably Armstrong’s favorite target, which is a little surprising. They two just have some chemistry.
Fyfe is ok.
Next year will be refreshing at QB. Lee throws a great ball and POB also has great intangibles. Going to be fun to watch them battle. Lee weighed in at 228 and has great command of an offense -- you can tell he’s been there before. POB has a great release and is surprisingly elusive for his size.
TE: Carter – everyone else.
Cethan will be a high draft pick if he stays healthy. Some new plays have been installed to get him more involved and better showcase his talent. The drop-off after him is significant. Foster, Cotton, Engelhaupt, Hoppes, Snyder are ok. Really hoping we didn’t miss on Snyder but he’s got to get better. A stud TE would be a welcome addition to this class.
WR: No need to discuss them. We’re talented and deep. My lone concern would be the guys getting a big head. No heads were down in the group despite their leader not being present. It’s a tumultuous time and unit has been addressed by the SLT at Nebraska. Nothing but support for KW, as expected. Cherry worked out at PR. He’s another one that will be hard to keep off the field.
Defense:
DL: Dzuris (I still shake my head at this but the guy is consistently grading in top 2), Freedom, Maurice and Big Mick
Barring injury, I’d say that lineup is pretty set. There has been a lot of rotation in practice and I expect the same in the games. Newell and Davis(2), King, Neal and A. Davis all getting reps. The middle has held up pretty good but we really need someone not named Freedom to step up at DE. Going to be putting a lot of pressure on our secondary again they stress we don’t want to be playing in a bend-don’t-break scenario.
LB: Certainly a strength of this team. Coach Bray is phenomenal and while he’s been a bit overshadowed lately by Williams (and I’m talking pre-Sunday AM), he will need some more $ after this year if we want to retain him.
Bando, Newby, Young and MRI are as good of a group as we’ve had at that spot in a number of years. It’s unfortunate that Mike Rose is so injury prone. They team feeds off his out-spoken leadership. We’ll be fine without him but his leadership is evident when he’s on the field. They LB’s are crazy fast and have stuck several of the RB’s in the backfield during practice. When they’re doing tackling drills they pull out a big pad that the RB is tackled onto and Bray is very hands on teaching them the new rugby style. TFerg and Barry are beasts and will see PT on specials and in the game but their limited reps are only due to the fact that the guys in front of them are that good. Really like Jefferson too. He’s flashed some talent when working with the lower groups.
DBs:
Led by Gerry and they’re a solid group. As I mentioned earlier, they’re going to be tested frequently if we can’t find a way to put pressure on the QB.
Jones, in my opinion, is our best corner. They guy has put in the work and it’s paying dividends. Good hands, aggressive and probably a step or two faster than Kalu. K. Williams had a good first week as well. Seems like he’s grown an inch or two taller since last Fall.
Overall, pretty impressive group. Intensity at practices has been good and the boys seemed to be ready. Only a couple more weeks and we’ll see if the practice has paid off.
GBR
Before I get into it, I must say Phillips et al have done a great job getting this team put together from a physical stand point. If you saw the roster three years ago compared with today, it’s night and day. Will that translate to better results… I don’t know but I’d like to think it will help.
I guess I’ll start with the rotation as I see it.
OL: Gates, Foster, Utter, Farmer, Knevel
Pretty solid group that we should feel comfortable with. Funny enough, Gates and Foster used to have a lot of disdain for each other. The last couple years Foster felt like he was at least as good as Gates and should be starting. At one point, it was alleged that Foster was thinking about transferring – just keep in mind, where there’s smoke there’s usually fire. Happy to say that all that appears to be behind them now and they’ve been seamless on that left side. Their chemistry is great and they truly have a chance to be a force this year.
Utter is ok. We’ve got options down the road but he’s the man right now.
Farmer and Knevel will be tested early and often. Knevel has had a nice transformation over the past 1.5 years but is still lanky.
RB: Oz, Newby, Bryant, Wilbon, everyone else
Ad nauseam, there is no leader. Staff would like to take Oz’s power, Newby’s burst and Wilbon’s elusiveness and put them all into one. Honestly, they may have done just that… his name is Tre Bryant. If he was here last year I think it’d be a two man show between him and Oz. As it stands, we’re content running different backs out situationally. Zero % chance he RS this year.
QB: Tommy, Fyfe, Bush
I hate to even say Tommy looks better. As its Olympic season, I’ll put it this way – if you were a sprinter and they asked you to the high jump… and win a gold medal… could you do it? Tommy was recruited to play in a different system. He’s done his best to adapt his skill set to what the staff needs and vice versa. He’s made improvements but there will be bumps along the way. His checks appear to be better. Not saying it isn’t but… above all else, he HAS to make better decisions.
We’ve incorporated a lot more bubbles, swings, and boots to play to Armstrong’s skill set. He’s a force when he gets to the open field and we’ll see more zone read, and misdirection to spring him loose this year.
I’d say after Westy, Morgan is probably Armstrong’s favorite target, which is a little surprising. They two just have some chemistry.
Fyfe is ok.
Next year will be refreshing at QB. Lee throws a great ball and POB also has great intangibles. Going to be fun to watch them battle. Lee weighed in at 228 and has great command of an offense -- you can tell he’s been there before. POB has a great release and is surprisingly elusive for his size.
TE: Carter – everyone else.
Cethan will be a high draft pick if he stays healthy. Some new plays have been installed to get him more involved and better showcase his talent. The drop-off after him is significant. Foster, Cotton, Engelhaupt, Hoppes, Snyder are ok. Really hoping we didn’t miss on Snyder but he’s got to get better. A stud TE would be a welcome addition to this class.
WR: No need to discuss them. We’re talented and deep. My lone concern would be the guys getting a big head. No heads were down in the group despite their leader not being present. It’s a tumultuous time and unit has been addressed by the SLT at Nebraska. Nothing but support for KW, as expected. Cherry worked out at PR. He’s another one that will be hard to keep off the field.
Defense:
DL: Dzuris (I still shake my head at this but the guy is consistently grading in top 2), Freedom, Maurice and Big Mick
Barring injury, I’d say that lineup is pretty set. There has been a lot of rotation in practice and I expect the same in the games. Newell and Davis(2), King, Neal and A. Davis all getting reps. The middle has held up pretty good but we really need someone not named Freedom to step up at DE. Going to be putting a lot of pressure on our secondary again they stress we don’t want to be playing in a bend-don’t-break scenario.
LB: Certainly a strength of this team. Coach Bray is phenomenal and while he’s been a bit overshadowed lately by Williams (and I’m talking pre-Sunday AM), he will need some more $ after this year if we want to retain him.
Bando, Newby, Young and MRI are as good of a group as we’ve had at that spot in a number of years. It’s unfortunate that Mike Rose is so injury prone. They team feeds off his out-spoken leadership. We’ll be fine without him but his leadership is evident when he’s on the field. They LB’s are crazy fast and have stuck several of the RB’s in the backfield during practice. When they’re doing tackling drills they pull out a big pad that the RB is tackled onto and Bray is very hands on teaching them the new rugby style. TFerg and Barry are beasts and will see PT on specials and in the game but their limited reps are only due to the fact that the guys in front of them are that good. Really like Jefferson too. He’s flashed some talent when working with the lower groups.
DBs:
Led by Gerry and they’re a solid group. As I mentioned earlier, they’re going to be tested frequently if we can’t find a way to put pressure on the QB.
Jones, in my opinion, is our best corner. They guy has put in the work and it’s paying dividends. Good hands, aggressive and probably a step or two faster than Kalu. K. Williams had a good first week as well. Seems like he’s grown an inch or two taller since last Fall.
Overall, pretty impressive group. Intensity at practices has been good and the boys seemed to be ready. Only a couple more weeks and we’ll see if the practice has paid off.
GBR
