Some first day of practice thoughts
August 02, 2007
Just my views on a few things - I’m a casual observer, not an expert, so please take these just as observations
***QB - Omar had a pretty good day, had a few passes dropped in one-on-one drills but was on the money. Tanner Jones’ arm strength impressed me. He looks like he’ll be the backup this year after one day in pads. Jamie Hampton has a little ways to go but I think he’ll be good in the future.
***RB - Cattouse has gotten a little bit faster, from what people say. Tony Franklin was real impressed with the speed of true freshman DuJuan Harris. He and Stanley Jones, another true frosh, will both see the field this year.
****WR - Impressive, except for a few dropped passes in one-on-one, but there’s a lot of guys in this unit who can GET OPEN - the biggest thing, besides making plays, in this offense. Austin Silvoy caught everything thrown to him that I saw, as did Gary Banks and Mykeal Terry. Jerrel Jernigan’s got some skills. Andrew Davis hit the ground hard during 7-on-7 and came out for the rest of practice after getting the wind knocked out of him. I still think Justin Bray’s a better cornerback than wide receiver. Last year they needed his speed on drag routes, while this year I think they’ve got a few more bodies. He got chewed out when, during one-on-ones, Trevor Ford slapped his helmet at the line of scrimmage and it about came off because he didn’t have his chin strap buckled, which obviously you can’t do in the game. Cornelius Williams looked like he’s ready to take that next step and play like he did at Hoover.
***OL - I’m not good at judging talent here but there’s a lot of bodies. The first group right now is, from left to right, Chris Jamison, Will Chambliss, Danny Franks, Steve Merkel, Dion Small. The second unit mostly had Emeka Okosa at LT, Steven Adams at C, Windham Rotunda at RG, and a slew of others battling at the other spots. Jamarr Thompson, who practiced at RT, is a big dude. Wes Potter and Tyrell Curtis are in the mix as well.
***Defense - Same here, a lot of bodies. The defense practiced away from me. It looks like signees Eugene Kinlaw and Barry Stokes (DL) aren’t on the roster, so either they didn’t qualify or are grayshirting.
There’s a lot of depth all around on defense. Sherrod Martin made some plays defensively and Trevor Ford looks like he’ll be pretty good.
***Kicking - Greg Whibbs kicked the ball well, and the ball booms off Michael Taylor’s leg though he’s got to work on accuracy. He’ll be a good one for Troy.
***Punting - The real concern area right now. It’s likely to be senior Adrian Vera or freshman Will Goggans, but both have to get the ball off quicker.
The next practice I’ll be at will be next Monday, the first in full pads.
