1
Mccarney Era - Spring Week One
Posted by
Harry
,
in
Uncategorized,
Aaron Fortenberry,
Adyodele Adedipe,
Antonio Johnson,
Coleman Feely,
dan mccarney,
defensive tackle,
JJ Johnson,
Kyle White,
LaChris Anyiem,
Mason Y'Barbo,
Matt Tomlinson,
Mike Nelson,
Nick Leppo,
Richard Abbe,
Ryan Boutwell,
spring taining 2011
28 March 2011
·
145 views
I was able to watch a fair amount of the practice on Saturday and a couple of thoughts jumped out and compelled me to put them to paper.
- There is slowly but surely an adjustment occurring between this coaching staff and the players. I was starting to see signs of cohesion. In the first practice many of the players had that deer-in-the headlight look, almost as in of the coaching staff and their very intense curriculum. On Saturday I saw more willingness and "buy-in" which bodes well. The kids are starting to have some fun out there which was seen in the field goal and PAT section of the practice where the players were allowed to heckle the kickers in unison while the coaches were dousing them with water bottles. Would it prepare them to be ready for pressure situations sure but more than that it was fun and is the type of thing that will build the camaraderie needed to win.
- The biggest challenge facing this coaching staff is not hitting the players for wholesale change too hard and too fast. The coaching staff is certainly now coming to the realization that the talent level under our former staff fell off significantly. That does not mean to say there aren't some instances of players who will "coach up" and perform better than they did before...there are quite a few who could fall into that category. But back to my original point, McCarney can't allow this to be another Junction. Since they are already below the scholarship maximum, defections must be avoided like the plague. The fact is that we have a fair amount of upper classmen who if pushed to the point of diminished returns could bail out. It happens but the reality is you can't replace them. Usually these situations don't involve sure fire starters but rather second team guys who have talent and are very important for depth.
- There are a few players who have caught my eye. Antonio Johnson is vying for time at the left tackle spot and as a redshirt freshman you hope he is not put into that situation too quickly HOWEVER, he is a physical specimen with long arms and a great frame. He is a prototypical D-I offensive tackle that could be something special for a long time. I also like the look of defensive tackle Kyle White. Yes I know he is in the Mike Nelson doghouse from last year but he has the size and speed to be a player at this level perhaps even dominant at the Sun Belt level. I just haven't seen anything out of Tevinn Cantley yet and "Sarge" looks like he will be a good third down pass rushing threat at defensive tackle and I agree that it is a better fit for his talents. As others have said, Terell Brooks is the real deal physically and he will play right away in Denton.
- Last year the coaching staff would have a coach get onto a player if he missed a class. This season if a player misses a class the same will happen but in addition the coaches will be calling his parents. I love that idea and would think it might be much more effective in keeping the players on track academically.
- Tight end Andrew Power is skinnier than I expected him to be but good gawsh he is as good a technical blocker as I have seen, reminds me of Jeff Muncheow and Randy Gardner.
- Lance Dunbar looks to be ON FIRE this spring! His speed and strength are amazing and I just get the feeling that if he remains healthy he could be the greatest all around talent we have had at running back. Patrick and Kevin were better inside runners but neither could touch the speed, vision and soft hands Mr. Dunbar possesses.
- WR Tyler Stradford has BIG TIME talent and I just hope he puts it all together this Fall because he can be SPECIAL at that position. Chris Bynes is another kid who is limited due to his injury but could be a big time impact possession receiver in this offense.
- Left offensive tackle is a real battle. Right now it looks like our best offensive lineman may well be senior Matt Tomlinson and so it makes sense to put him on the strong side. Adedipe and Johnson are getting a lot of looks at the left tackle but don't be surprised if they move Fortenberry to left tackle and put Mason Y'Barbo at guard. Nick Leppo's health is very important to this team because it will open up other possibilities for instance moving JJ Johnson to guard if a need developed. LaChris Anyiem is new to the position but you have to love his size and quickness. The offensive line is all about chemistry and you get the sense that Coach Simmonds is like a crazed chemist out there trying to figure out his best hand.
- While I like Dick Abbe at defensive tackle I disagree about his weight. Yes he has lost some weight and looks leaner but I would still like to see him drop another 15 pounds this summer. If he does that, I think he has more stamina and speed. The reason you are seeing a lot of press coverages is the coaching staff is trying to compensate for our lack of size and depth in the front seven. Ryan Boutwell has come out of the gate the fastest in terms of receiving coaches praise. He reminds me of a smaller Evan Cardwell. But at 255 we know that we will give up 40-50 pounds against most of the teams we play next season if not more.
- At QB I see Brent Osborn's motion as a side release almost similar to Dan Marino. Osborn is not that quick but he can get rid of the ball quickly. He loses some of his height advantage with the sidearm delivery because his ball is coming more around his shoulder than from the top of his throwing motion. Thompson has a more traditional delivery and seems to be a step quicker. The interesting thing about Thompson is I said he looked like he lost 15 pound but in actuality he has not ---he is still 225; it's just in better proportion. Nether of them blow me away but it's early. Frankly neither has to blow me away or the coaches for that matter because I think they will be handing it off to Lance Dunbar a lot this season.
- Still no vocal leader emerging on this team and frankly I don't see that happening this spring. Lance Dunbar is a quiet, set the example type of leader. We need a crazy defensive guy that takes no prisoners. Success breeds leadership and I suspect that we shall see more leaders emerge once this program starts tasting some long needed wins again. I also think it will be paramount in the recruiting process as well.
- There is slowly but surely an adjustment occurring between this coaching staff and the players. I was starting to see signs of cohesion. In the first practice many of the players had that deer-in-the headlight look, almost as in of the coaching staff and their very intense curriculum. On Saturday I saw more willingness and "buy-in" which bodes well. The kids are starting to have some fun out there which was seen in the field goal and PAT section of the practice where the players were allowed to heckle the kickers in unison while the coaches were dousing them with water bottles. Would it prepare them to be ready for pressure situations sure but more than that it was fun and is the type of thing that will build the camaraderie needed to win.
- The biggest challenge facing this coaching staff is not hitting the players for wholesale change too hard and too fast. The coaching staff is certainly now coming to the realization that the talent level under our former staff fell off significantly. That does not mean to say there aren't some instances of players who will "coach up" and perform better than they did before...there are quite a few who could fall into that category. But back to my original point, McCarney can't allow this to be another Junction. Since they are already below the scholarship maximum, defections must be avoided like the plague. The fact is that we have a fair amount of upper classmen who if pushed to the point of diminished returns could bail out. It happens but the reality is you can't replace them. Usually these situations don't involve sure fire starters but rather second team guys who have talent and are very important for depth.
- There are a few players who have caught my eye. Antonio Johnson is vying for time at the left tackle spot and as a redshirt freshman you hope he is not put into that situation too quickly HOWEVER, he is a physical specimen with long arms and a great frame. He is a prototypical D-I offensive tackle that could be something special for a long time. I also like the look of defensive tackle Kyle White. Yes I know he is in the Mike Nelson doghouse from last year but he has the size and speed to be a player at this level perhaps even dominant at the Sun Belt level. I just haven't seen anything out of Tevinn Cantley yet and "Sarge" looks like he will be a good third down pass rushing threat at defensive tackle and I agree that it is a better fit for his talents. As others have said, Terell Brooks is the real deal physically and he will play right away in Denton.
- Last year the coaching staff would have a coach get onto a player if he missed a class. This season if a player misses a class the same will happen but in addition the coaches will be calling his parents. I love that idea and would think it might be much more effective in keeping the players on track academically.
- Tight end Andrew Power is skinnier than I expected him to be but good gawsh he is as good a technical blocker as I have seen, reminds me of Jeff Muncheow and Randy Gardner.
- Lance Dunbar looks to be ON FIRE this spring! His speed and strength are amazing and I just get the feeling that if he remains healthy he could be the greatest all around talent we have had at running back. Patrick and Kevin were better inside runners but neither could touch the speed, vision and soft hands Mr. Dunbar possesses.
- WR Tyler Stradford has BIG TIME talent and I just hope he puts it all together this Fall because he can be SPECIAL at that position. Chris Bynes is another kid who is limited due to his injury but could be a big time impact possession receiver in this offense.
- Left offensive tackle is a real battle. Right now it looks like our best offensive lineman may well be senior Matt Tomlinson and so it makes sense to put him on the strong side. Adedipe and Johnson are getting a lot of looks at the left tackle but don't be surprised if they move Fortenberry to left tackle and put Mason Y'Barbo at guard. Nick Leppo's health is very important to this team because it will open up other possibilities for instance moving JJ Johnson to guard if a need developed. LaChris Anyiem is new to the position but you have to love his size and quickness. The offensive line is all about chemistry and you get the sense that Coach Simmonds is like a crazed chemist out there trying to figure out his best hand.
- While I like Dick Abbe at defensive tackle I disagree about his weight. Yes he has lost some weight and looks leaner but I would still like to see him drop another 15 pounds this summer. If he does that, I think he has more stamina and speed. The reason you are seeing a lot of press coverages is the coaching staff is trying to compensate for our lack of size and depth in the front seven. Ryan Boutwell has come out of the gate the fastest in terms of receiving coaches praise. He reminds me of a smaller Evan Cardwell. But at 255 we know that we will give up 40-50 pounds against most of the teams we play next season if not more.
- At QB I see Brent Osborn's motion as a side release almost similar to Dan Marino. Osborn is not that quick but he can get rid of the ball quickly. He loses some of his height advantage with the sidearm delivery because his ball is coming more around his shoulder than from the top of his throwing motion. Thompson has a more traditional delivery and seems to be a step quicker. The interesting thing about Thompson is I said he looked like he lost 15 pound but in actuality he has not ---he is still 225; it's just in better proportion. Nether of them blow me away but it's early. Frankly neither has to blow me away or the coaches for that matter because I think they will be handing it off to Lance Dunbar a lot this season.
- Still no vocal leader emerging on this team and frankly I don't see that happening this spring. Lance Dunbar is a quiet, set the example type of leader. We need a crazy defensive guy that takes no prisoners. Success breeds leadership and I suspect that we shall see more leaders emerge once this program starts tasting some long needed wins again. I also think it will be paramount in the recruiting process as well.
