SATURDAY AFTERNOON PRACTICE notes
Posted: Sat Aug 09, 2008 6:41 pm• How special: The Ponies re-convened Saturday afternoon for a 90-minute session geared mostly toward special teams, meaning Coach Gansz was holding court. Several things stood out in stark contrast to years past:
-- The team spent a complete hour on special teams. Can't remember the last time I saw the team spend that long on special teams.
-- Like the other groups in practice sessions, the session was constant teaching, right from when the Ponies broke the huddle for a Kellis Cunningham kickoff. Gansz stopped them and had them re-huddle so they could break evenly and uniformly, saying his team is "going to be better than everyone in the league, in everything we do" ... right down to how they break a huddle.
-- Attention to detail: Gansz makes his calls in practice based on game situations, so rather than telling Thomas Morstead to just line up and punt, the instruction comes with a specific game situation (i.e. "we're down 10 with 11 minutes to go") ... Not sure if those calls were the reason, but intensity seemed much higher than during special teams drills in years past.
• Bombs away: Morstead is at it again. After spending part of his summer outpunting some of the best punters in the nation, he let it rip Saturday afternoon, sending several high, long punts with very tight spirals. Many went over 60 yards in the air, and the longest of which traveled about 75 yards. On the fly.
• Bombs away - part II: Kellis Cunningham's kickoffs were a little deeper than last year, but more importantly, they were higher ... which, of course, gives the Ponies' cover unit more time to get downfield and get to the kic returner.
• Catch of the afternoon: Cunningham hit a line drive on one kickoff, sort of a high squib kick that took on a knuckleball effect the way it wobbled through the air with no spin. Undaunted, guard Bryce Tennison (playing in the row of blockers immediately in front of the returner) jumped up and fielded the ball cleanly.
• New numbers: Robert Mojica changed from 21 to 26 when he moved from offense to defense the other day, but because two players on the same unit can't share a number and defensive back Brett Haness already is wearing No. 26, Mojica showed up Saturday afternoon wearing 15. In addition, return specialist/running back Jessie Henderson practiced in No. 25. Whether he stays with 25 isn't clear, though. He could be changing because La'Cori Johnson already had 25, but if Johnson has moved to defensive back, as was the case this morning, Henderson presumably could retain his No. 9 jersey. Stay tuned.
• Hustle award: Gansz stressed - heavily - the importance of getting different kick units on and off the field quickly, and getting set quickly. At one point, he started to implement a "clock," counting down seconds through his headset microphone. In the transition from one unit to another, Kelvin Beachum, Jr., was late getting on the field. With just under than 10 seconds on Gansz' "clock," Beachum realized where he was supposed to be and sprinted about 45 yards across the field and got set in place. No false start, no offsides, and Morstead's kick was good. Remember how "athletic" was the first word used to describe Beachum when he was recruited in 2007? Most haven't had a chance to see it, because he redshirted last year, but he is extraordinarily fast for a lineman.
-- The team spent a complete hour on special teams. Can't remember the last time I saw the team spend that long on special teams.
-- Like the other groups in practice sessions, the session was constant teaching, right from when the Ponies broke the huddle for a Kellis Cunningham kickoff. Gansz stopped them and had them re-huddle so they could break evenly and uniformly, saying his team is "going to be better than everyone in the league, in everything we do" ... right down to how they break a huddle.
-- Attention to detail: Gansz makes his calls in practice based on game situations, so rather than telling Thomas Morstead to just line up and punt, the instruction comes with a specific game situation (i.e. "we're down 10 with 11 minutes to go") ... Not sure if those calls were the reason, but intensity seemed much higher than during special teams drills in years past.
• Bombs away: Morstead is at it again. After spending part of his summer outpunting some of the best punters in the nation, he let it rip Saturday afternoon, sending several high, long punts with very tight spirals. Many went over 60 yards in the air, and the longest of which traveled about 75 yards. On the fly.
• Bombs away - part II: Kellis Cunningham's kickoffs were a little deeper than last year, but more importantly, they were higher ... which, of course, gives the Ponies' cover unit more time to get downfield and get to the kic returner.
• Catch of the afternoon: Cunningham hit a line drive on one kickoff, sort of a high squib kick that took on a knuckleball effect the way it wobbled through the air with no spin. Undaunted, guard Bryce Tennison (playing in the row of blockers immediately in front of the returner) jumped up and fielded the ball cleanly.
• New numbers: Robert Mojica changed from 21 to 26 when he moved from offense to defense the other day, but because two players on the same unit can't share a number and defensive back Brett Haness already is wearing No. 26, Mojica showed up Saturday afternoon wearing 15. In addition, return specialist/running back Jessie Henderson practiced in No. 25. Whether he stays with 25 isn't clear, though. He could be changing because La'Cori Johnson already had 25, but if Johnson has moved to defensive back, as was the case this morning, Henderson presumably could retain his No. 9 jersey. Stay tuned.
• Hustle award: Gansz stressed - heavily - the importance of getting different kick units on and off the field quickly, and getting set quickly. At one point, he started to implement a "clock," counting down seconds through his headset microphone. In the transition from one unit to another, Kelvin Beachum, Jr., was late getting on the field. With just under than 10 seconds on Gansz' "clock," Beachum realized where he was supposed to be and sprinted about 45 yards across the field and got set in place. No false start, no offsides, and Morstead's kick was good. Remember how "athletic" was the first word used to describe Beachum when he was recruited in 2007? Most haven't had a chance to see it, because he redshirted last year, but he is extraordinarily fast for a lineman.
