- Disclaimer: you really can't tell to much from practice at this point as it's difficult to judge anything without pads/hitting. Football is a contact sport (no shit, Hash) & leaving that factor our changes everything. You've been warned......
- Embry Peeples looks thicker than last season. My guess is he added 10 pounds.
- True freshman B.J. Bostic is quick. Really quick. Like waterbug quick. He also needs to eat everything in sight to get ready for the season as his slight stature as of this point scares me. I'm afraid he'll get snapped in half (that is if anyone can catch him). Look for him to contribute on kick returns if he doesn't red shirt.
- Several visitors at practice today: OL recruit Trey Braun & his family, former Georgia Southern great & CPJ favorite Tracy Ham, & incoming freshmen Synjyn Days & Anthony Williams. Days looks very muscular & we see why his game might resemble Nesbitt's in the future....
- The tone on defense is so much different this year. Groh & McCollum are VERY vocal & constantly teaching. Most of the reinforcement at this stage is positive, although if a mistake is made it is corrected in a hurry. Coach Kelly continues to be vocal & teach. Coach Speed looks like he could suit up & play today.
- Groh preaches "violent hands" constantly. They'll adopt this philosophy if for no other reason than they hear it 500 times a day.....
- Defense worked on getting on & off the field as a unit & getting set into base formation while recognizing the offensive look. Lots of sprinting & hard work. Groh is pushing them....
- Groh blasted A.T. Barnes in a drill when he missed an assignment. Duck & cover....
- Ball on the turf much less today....
- Tevin's & Sim's arms have really improved, particularly Tevin. No more "lollipop" throws. Accuracy is still an issue for all three quarterbacks. Luallen throws very well on the move, especially to his right (as would be expected from a right hander)
- Austin Barrick has class on Monday & Wednesday thus his absence again today. He's back on Friday.
- Depth chart on offense & defense remains the same as on Monday. It's here if you didn't see it before....
- Kyle Jackson is struggling with his foot injury & is visibly upset & frustrated. He pulled up while running on the side & flung his helmet away in disgust. It's obviously driving him crazy he can't be out there.
- Stephen Hill again looks very good. Caught a long post route from Tevin on his fingertips for a TD in passing skeleton & next time up Rod Sweeting was forced to stop him by pulling off his shorts as he pulled away on a pattern. That's the good news. The bad news is that we may be in trouble after Hill. We look thin at WR & desperately need someone to step up. CPJ has always found a way to get the best 11 on the field & my guess is he'll go that route again & move Chris Jackson to WR this fall. We need more playmakers out wide. I see why Jackson has started at A-back; he's a prototype body & a physical player. But my early intuition says he plays WR as we're deep at A-back.
- Whether it's sooner or later I don't know but walk-on redshirt freshman Robbie Godhigh will contribute while at Tech. Kid plays hard.....
- Malcolm Munroe with a nice leaping pick in 7 vs. 7 drills & then to the house for a score. Defense is fired up & Jefferson is telling everyone about it....
- Domenique Reese looks good at corner & his move there benefits both him & the team. Man does he talk on the field. Non-stop chatter....
- Look out for Rod Sweeting at corner. I worry about his size/physical play in the run game but he's tough in coverage. Very fluid & flips his hips easily. He'll be in the mix as a nickel back this year.
- The biggest battle for playing time appears to be shaping up at safety where four players are competing for two spots; Tarrant, Cooper Taylor, Mario Edwards, & Jemea Thomas. This is going to be a fierce battle as three of the four have significant experience. Safety is certainly a position of strength. Don't sleep on Jemea Thomas. He's a hitter & the coach's are very high on him.
- Evidently coach Groh likes to trash talk. According to Anthony Allen, Groh asked him after Monday's practice when he was going to show up & do something? Allen responded on Wednesday by snagging a nice catch on a drag route over the middle & turning up field for big yardage. After the play as he was jogging back to the huddle Groh came up to Allen & facetiously introduced himself & welcomed him to practice. Really funny moment......
- Last & not least: THE SHOTGUN. Yes they used it again. Once for every four times they threw the ball. CPJ said after practice it's simply to break up the monotony & keep things interesting - we'd never use it in a game. After thinking about it we actually believe him. It also makes sense from an efficiency stand point. With three young & inexperienced QB's, why not make passing drills easier & allow them to use the shotgun? Makes it a better practice for all involved. As time goes by my guess is we use less & less shotgun as the QB's become acclimated to the offense. That's not to say we won't use it in a game. We may, particularly if we are forced to throw the ball. But even if we do use the shotgun, I don't expect to see it more than once or twice a game.....
If you have any questions don't hesitate to leave a comment, things have been pretty dead around here of late. We're working on a post that will cure that.....
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