Scrimmage (Aug. 19) notes/observations
Posted: Sat Aug 19, 2017 5:47 pmThe Mustangs went through a scrimmage-style practice Saturday morning. Many of the assumed starters were limited or even held out while recovering from injuries or just to be cautious (i.e. WRs Courtland Sutton, Trey Quinn and James Proché each took part, but each was wearing a green/limited jersey and didn't play much).
• SMU had an event for former players, and the alums turned out in droves; someone said the expected total was around 150, and included players who suited up for the Mustangs as far back as the 1970s.
• Guards Jerry Saena and Braylon Hyder no longer are on the team, so Harrison Barton worked with the first team at right guard. Head coach Chad Morris talked about Barton and the offensive line after practice.
• With Sutton, Proché and Quinn getting limited reps, one player who looked very impressive was true freshman Judah Bell, who repeatedly created space downfield to get open and caught just about everything thrown near him, including a pair of really nice sliding/diving catches.
• Hunter Thedford is getting a crash course (also an accurate description of his blocking style) in the SMU offense at tight end, and while the system might be new to him, it's not like the position and the idea of playing on offense are foreign concepts to him. When he signed with SMU in 2015, he was the No. 29 tight end prospect in the country according to ESPN.com, and if head coach Chad Morris' claim that Thedford now is "about 270" pounds, that would mean a jump of about 35 pounds since the start of last year. If he can get up to speed at the position, Morris, offensive coordinator Joe Craddock and tight ends coach Keith Gunn will have, as Craddock likes to say, "a lot of tools in the (tight ends) tool box," including Thedford, Raymond Epps, Ryan Becker, Mitchell Kaufman and Corey Rau.
• Morris made no secret after practice that he didn't think the quarterbacks showed much consistency, and he was right. There were plenty of good throws, both short touch passes and downfield strikes, but also more than the usual allotment off-target floaters and heaves off the back foot that either missed their targets or got picked off. (To be fair, one of the interceptions was thrown when Morris put the offense in fourth-and-goal from the 40-yard line. D.J. Gillins was able to evade two rushers and then flung the ball toward the end zone — it was a strong throw that reached the end zone in a hurry, but ended up getting picked off by CB Cedric Lancaster.)
• Speaking of Gillins, he looked better running the ball today — certainly better than in the spring and to the naked eye, better than earlier in camp. Morris said a couple of weeks ago that Gillins has been cleared to play, and could play tomorrow if called upon. But Saturday morning's scrimmage featured several plays on which he ran through the middle of the line of scrimmage, including with a lot of starting and stopping, and changing of direction.
• One scary moment when WR Kevin Thomas went down with an injury. I was watching the ball and didn't see what happened to Thomas, who was 15 or 20 yards away. He lay motionless for several minutes, while receiving attention from the Mustangs' medical staff and then walked slowly to the trainers' table by the field. But it turned out to be temporary, as Thomas was back on the field in later drills.
• SMU had an event for former players, and the alums turned out in droves; someone said the expected total was around 150, and included players who suited up for the Mustangs as far back as the 1970s.
• Guards Jerry Saena and Braylon Hyder no longer are on the team, so Harrison Barton worked with the first team at right guard. Head coach Chad Morris talked about Barton and the offensive line after practice.
• With Sutton, Proché and Quinn getting limited reps, one player who looked very impressive was true freshman Judah Bell, who repeatedly created space downfield to get open and caught just about everything thrown near him, including a pair of really nice sliding/diving catches.
• Hunter Thedford is getting a crash course (also an accurate description of his blocking style) in the SMU offense at tight end, and while the system might be new to him, it's not like the position and the idea of playing on offense are foreign concepts to him. When he signed with SMU in 2015, he was the No. 29 tight end prospect in the country according to ESPN.com, and if head coach Chad Morris' claim that Thedford now is "about 270" pounds, that would mean a jump of about 35 pounds since the start of last year. If he can get up to speed at the position, Morris, offensive coordinator Joe Craddock and tight ends coach Keith Gunn will have, as Craddock likes to say, "a lot of tools in the (tight ends) tool box," including Thedford, Raymond Epps, Ryan Becker, Mitchell Kaufman and Corey Rau.
• Morris made no secret after practice that he didn't think the quarterbacks showed much consistency, and he was right. There were plenty of good throws, both short touch passes and downfield strikes, but also more than the usual allotment off-target floaters and heaves off the back foot that either missed their targets or got picked off. (To be fair, one of the interceptions was thrown when Morris put the offense in fourth-and-goal from the 40-yard line. D.J. Gillins was able to evade two rushers and then flung the ball toward the end zone — it was a strong throw that reached the end zone in a hurry, but ended up getting picked off by CB Cedric Lancaster.)
• Speaking of Gillins, he looked better running the ball today — certainly better than in the spring and to the naked eye, better than earlier in camp. Morris said a couple of weeks ago that Gillins has been cleared to play, and could play tomorrow if called upon. But Saturday morning's scrimmage featured several plays on which he ran through the middle of the line of scrimmage, including with a lot of starting and stopping, and changing of direction.
• One scary moment when WR Kevin Thomas went down with an injury. I was watching the ball and didn't see what happened to Thomas, who was 15 or 20 yards away. He lay motionless for several minutes, while receiving attention from the Mustangs' medical staff and then walked slowly to the trainers' table by the field. But it turned out to be temporary, as Thomas was back on the field in later drills.
