4 Days of Camp

Observations & Conversations

It is has only been 4 days and only 2 of those days has the team had any sort of pads on and none of been full pad practices so please, keep that in mind. Since there is such a small sample, we will focus on the positive things we have noticed. We will also lay this disclaimer out there - a person naturally tends to focus on and notice the young players or new players this early on in camp.

These are our opinions, not facts.

Things that should standout to the casual observer - so far:

OL: We will start here because for most of what we write below regarding the offense all depends upon this group. This has the potential to be pretty solid and just as easily this group could be pretty bad. There are all sorts of things we could talk about here but to keep in simple, the success or failure of the OL this season will come down to technique, communication and effort. Not all of them are big and and not all of them are strong but as individuals if they focus on the techniques they are coached, give great effort every play and communicate as a one unit they can surprise a lot of people. The ability is there, it just needs to be consistent.
No, we won't name any names here. The OL operates as one unit.

QB: Pretty similar to the Spring. T. Lee looks as solid as you can running an NFL offense as a red-shirt freshman. He looks like a polished vet sometimes and like a rookie other times. His command of the huddle and respect from the offensive players is however undeniable and that is where everything begins when you are looking for a leader and a QB. It his not his time yet but true freshman G. Cuiellette is a football junkie with an incredible arm and was an outstanding find by the staff.

RB: We could write paragraphs on most of these guys and what they can bring to the table but in an attempt to keep this brief we won't. Simply put - S. Badie = homeruns, L. Thompson = get the hell out his way & D. Hilliard = Oh my goodness! Could be best overall RB right now as a true freshman.

TE: Freshmen C. Jones and T. Scott - you will see them early and often. Ask a coach about those two and watch their eyes light up. It is lagniappe that their effort is equal to Dennis Rodman or Ben Wallace crashing the boards. Those were NBA basketball players in case you didn't know. We are excited to see how these two players can help transform the offense.

WR: T. Veal, T. Encalade and L. James were all hits in recruiting. L. James is the most raw of them having the least of experience at WR in HS based on his teams needs but you can clearly see the potential he has. You should see all three of them contribute this year. Regardless of how talented the young guys are, this team needs X. Rush and/or J. Shackleford to step up to the plate this season and be great.

DL: Freshman B. Edwards might be a very large human being but he can move, he very well may play a big role this year. T. Smart continues to pick up where he left off, just a phenomenal young defensive lineman. T. Gilbert is really good. Our first four on the front four are really exciting to watch. Freshman D. Williams was a great grab. He has a great frame and he has a motor that does not turn off. A. Aruna is getting more and more comfortable out there. We could end up with the best group of 4-5-6 DE's in the league.

LB: L. Jackson is back playing football. Hooray!
N. Marley is N. Marley. He is a humble young man but we would like to see him take even more of a leadership role on this team. We would not be surprised to see 1-2 freshmen take over some of the other spots at LB. R. Marbley and Z. Harris have been extremely impressive. M. Bailey has also stood out and it would be great to see the potential we saw him have as a true freshman finally come to fruition. L. Jackson is back playing football.

DB: L. Doss, D. Monroe and S. Scofield are all rock solid studs. T. Nixon looks really impressive and R. Allen has made huge strides in his technique and will be a major contributor this year. True freshman D. Lewis will definitely see plenty of action this year.

Special Teams: No comment.

Overall: Speed. Another year you should notice we have so much more speed (finally) on offense and even more now on defense.