MONDAY PRACTICE REPORT
Posted: Mon Mar 30, 2009 2:14 pmSpent much of the morning practice session talking to some people on the sideline, and therefore didn't take as many notes as I normally do (that will change going forward). But a few nuggets:
The Margus Hunt World Tour is in full swing. On the first day of his football career, Hunt was the primary draw at practice, drawing the attention of the print, TV and web media. Picking out the 6-foot-8 Hunt was easy, as he towered over the other defensive linemen, but it was tough to determine much. The defensive line walked through very basic drills, working on single moves to get by each other; the Mustangs also wore no pads, so there was no hitting - just work on hand placement, footwork, etc.
What's in a number? Several players are wearing different numbers this spring:
QB Bo Levi Mitchell is wearing No. 9
WR Cole Beasley is wearing No. 11 in 2009, but wore No. 3 Monday morning
RB B.J. Lee is wearing No. 21
WR E.J. Drewery is wearing No. 7
LB Andrew Ellison is wearing No. 43
LB Youri Yenga is wearing No. 45
DE Taylor Thompson is wearing No. 83
RG Bryce Tennison is wearing No. 64
OL Jimmy Chase is wearing No. 72
Snap out of it: Some new faces were working on snapping the ball: Jimmy Chase was limited mostly to a spectator's role, but was working on shotgun snaps behind one end zone, while DE Kevin Grenier was working on deep snaps after practice.
Line up: Three of last year's starting offensive linemen - LT Kelvin Beachum, Jr., C Mitch Enright and RG Bryce Tennison - are back this spring, but the Mustangs must replace LG Sean Lobo and RTs Tommy Poynter and Vincent Chase. Josh LeRibeus earned significant playing time in his redshirt freshman year, and enters spring as the most likely candidate to replace Lobo at LG, but several candidates apparently are being considered at RT - J.T. Brooks is listed with the first team on the first spring depth chart, but he, Sidney Nwangwu and Jordan Free all worked with the first-team offensive line Monday.
The defensive line certainly had a different look: the starting group of LDE Taylor Thompson, NT Chris Parham and RDE Marquis Frazier average a little over 6-3 and 278 pounds per man ... a far cry from last year's starting line that averaged a little over 6-1 and 253 pounds per man.
Bombs away: New punter/kicker Matt Szymanski had his first practice as the team's expected starter at each position, working alone at the south end of the Ford Stadium field while the offense worked on the other. Replacing a guy with Morstead's leg is a daunting task, but Szymanski looked impressive, launching numerous punts with excellent height and distance. Kicking from the east sideline, he fired his punts across the field ... including one that landed in the seats on the far side of the stadium. It was hard to tell if he was exactly on the sideline, but by reaching the seats, the ball clearly sailed close to 60 yards.
Not unveiled yet: RB Shawnbrey McNeal, who transferred from Miami, was at practice (wearing jersey No. 8), but did not take part. Head coach June Jones said after the morning practice that McNeal would not practice this spring while getting injury treatment and focusing on academics.
Big guy, big arm: QB J.J. McDermott made his first appearance in an SMU uniform, and while it's hard to get a read on a player after a practice that didn't include hitting, it was clear that he has the arm strength Jones and QBs coach Dan Morrison covet. At first glance, McDermott seems to be a guy who takes advantage of his height, keeping the ball high during his drop and snapping the ball off with a fairly quick release. Accuracy looked pretty good, at least for the first day.
The Margus Hunt World Tour is in full swing. On the first day of his football career, Hunt was the primary draw at practice, drawing the attention of the print, TV and web media. Picking out the 6-foot-8 Hunt was easy, as he towered over the other defensive linemen, but it was tough to determine much. The defensive line walked through very basic drills, working on single moves to get by each other; the Mustangs also wore no pads, so there was no hitting - just work on hand placement, footwork, etc.
What's in a number? Several players are wearing different numbers this spring:
QB Bo Levi Mitchell is wearing No. 9
WR Cole Beasley is wearing No. 11 in 2009, but wore No. 3 Monday morning
RB B.J. Lee is wearing No. 21
WR E.J. Drewery is wearing No. 7
LB Andrew Ellison is wearing No. 43
LB Youri Yenga is wearing No. 45
DE Taylor Thompson is wearing No. 83
RG Bryce Tennison is wearing No. 64
OL Jimmy Chase is wearing No. 72
Snap out of it: Some new faces were working on snapping the ball: Jimmy Chase was limited mostly to a spectator's role, but was working on shotgun snaps behind one end zone, while DE Kevin Grenier was working on deep snaps after practice.
Line up: Three of last year's starting offensive linemen - LT Kelvin Beachum, Jr., C Mitch Enright and RG Bryce Tennison - are back this spring, but the Mustangs must replace LG Sean Lobo and RTs Tommy Poynter and Vincent Chase. Josh LeRibeus earned significant playing time in his redshirt freshman year, and enters spring as the most likely candidate to replace Lobo at LG, but several candidates apparently are being considered at RT - J.T. Brooks is listed with the first team on the first spring depth chart, but he, Sidney Nwangwu and Jordan Free all worked with the first-team offensive line Monday.
The defensive line certainly had a different look: the starting group of LDE Taylor Thompson, NT Chris Parham and RDE Marquis Frazier average a little over 6-3 and 278 pounds per man ... a far cry from last year's starting line that averaged a little over 6-1 and 253 pounds per man.
Bombs away: New punter/kicker Matt Szymanski had his first practice as the team's expected starter at each position, working alone at the south end of the Ford Stadium field while the offense worked on the other. Replacing a guy with Morstead's leg is a daunting task, but Szymanski looked impressive, launching numerous punts with excellent height and distance. Kicking from the east sideline, he fired his punts across the field ... including one that landed in the seats on the far side of the stadium. It was hard to tell if he was exactly on the sideline, but by reaching the seats, the ball clearly sailed close to 60 yards.
Not unveiled yet: RB Shawnbrey McNeal, who transferred from Miami, was at practice (wearing jersey No. 8), but did not take part. Head coach June Jones said after the morning practice that McNeal would not practice this spring while getting injury treatment and focusing on academics.
Big guy, big arm: QB J.J. McDermott made his first appearance in an SMU uniform, and while it's hard to get a read on a player after a practice that didn't include hitting, it was clear that he has the arm strength Jones and QBs coach Dan Morrison covet. At first glance, McDermott seems to be a guy who takes advantage of his height, keeping the ball high during his drop and snapping the ball off with a fairly quick release. Accuracy looked pretty good, at least for the first day.
