Practice Observations - Friday July 26
Posted: Fri Jul 26, 2024 1:00 pmAs mentioned yesterday, media is only allowed to view the first 6 sessions of practice. Today, they ran special teams for three of the sessions... so there isn't a lot to share.
That said, the area of the team I focused on today was cornerback. Here are my thoughts:
When I think about last season, Meggs was on one side, and he was a solid cover corner who didn't have the top end speed. So on that side of the field, they would play off the ball a bit or play close and provide safety help. On the other side, we had Woods who you didn't have to help as much. Really good cover corner and he had enough top end speed to cover deep as well. I think that is how they are going to split the corners up this year.
Rogers - has really improved. He is the guy who has taken a big leap forward. Good acceleration, and his hips flip well and he is able to break. While he was always an athlete, I never thought he looked smooth at corner, but he really does now. He doesn't have great top end speed, so need to protect him over the top with a safety. But it is nice to see him step up. We will see how camp goes, but I think he is going to fight for a starting spot on that right side where Meggs played.
Smoke - I think he is the other starter right now. He is fast and smooth. Comfortable defending the fade while trying to intercept the ball. He has both good top end speed and strong acceleration. I'd like to see him stay healthy for all of Fall camp so that he continues to gain consistency and show that he can be relied on as a starter.
Crossley - I think he will fight for the other starting spot with Rogers. Longer than Rogers, good acceleration. Not quite as athletic as Rogers, but longer arms helps him cover it. Same top-end speed issue as Rogers, so in that Meggs boat. Behind Rogers right now, but will probably see a heavy rotation there.
AJ Davis - I know the coaches raved about him in the spring, but I think he has taken a little step back in the fall. Just one practice, so I don't know if he is carrying an injury or just one of those days. But his acceleration and his hips aren't great. Better top end speed than Crossley or Rogers, so he is playing on the same side as Smoke, but he gave up an easy catch in the brief tempo period where he couldn't get out of his backpedal quick enough on a cut inside and was 10 yards away from where the catch was made. It is early, so maybe he was just on the outside in a zone, but he just looks a little slow in reaction in the drills. His feet move slow so he seems to glide a little. In the fade drill down the line, he was the one guy who didn't make a play on the ball. Less athletic than the others, I think.
Deuce - He didn't play in the tempo session - they are giving the Frosh time on the third team early in camp, so every day one of the 5 veterans is going to have to sit in the tempo period, and he sat today. He is an athlete. Hand reaction time was slow on the jump the route drill, so he didn't catch the hard pass. Smooth when he runs, you can see the athleticism, and the top end speed is there on the deep route. Hips are okay, but his feet are really slow, so you don't see that quick twitch reaction and you don't see the acceleration on the break. I think he will play on that left side, competing with Smoke, but he is going to need to show consistency and a firm grasp of the defense before he passes AJ in the rotation.
Speedy - It has been a minute since SMU had frosh corners that look ready to contribute... but I think both of our young corners might make an impact. Nettles body is more mature and built and he looks like he could make a push. They are playing him on the right side. I *think* Rogers and Crossley will hold him off, but I really like what I see. He is quick, is very fluid. He isn't a guy you have to teach the position like Rogers was. His feet are very quick, has a very quick twitch. Again, not sure he will move past the seniors but he is definitely a good one.
Alex Rogers - He has really surprised me. Quick, fluid, and even cocky - he isn't afraid to go in press coverage during tempo drills. He stayed with Carroll off the press on a fly route without an issue. Seems to have good acceleration as well as top end speed. Wasn't as highly regarded as a recruit as Nettles or AJ Davis, but he really looks the part. He needs a year in the weight room... he isn't a twig, but his body isn't the same as Speedy. He wasn't an unknown recruit or anything like that (offers from Baylor, Houston, K State, OSU, Texas Tech), but was less heralded and I think he is going to end up being a really good player. Like I said, he is slimmer, so we will see how everything looks once the pads come on. But if Duece and Davis don't step up, he might challenge...
Overall, I am really happy with the young players, but I'm still nervous about the group. This is the weakest spot on the defense for sure. We might really miss Woods this year.
Interviews:
Casey Woods - Two things stood out for me. One is that we will really start to get a better feel of the team after a couple days of pads. That is when you see which frosh can actually help you out and the offense has had enough time to catch up to the defense. The second is that he mentioned the Michigan TE transfer HIbner. I've heard from several people at camp that while us outsiders thought of him as a big blocking TE, he is way, way more than that. He has been more athletic than advertised and made some great catches. He is going to have a significant impact on the offense.
Rooster - He seems more confident than he did in the spring. I think there is a feeling in the running back room that the team is going to run the ball a lot more and everyone is really excited about it. Camar has sat out the last couple of days, so it has been him and LJ in the Xavier role and then Smith and McFall in the West role. With a stronger, more athletic line, you can run with two types of backs and you don't need the bruiser so much. So it seems like you have the Xavier Jones combo style back and then the West flyer who can also line up in the slot from time to time, if you remember the first iteration of the RL offense at SMU. I suspect that Camar will end up in the Smith/McFall group as part of that rotation, but we will see how that plays out. McFall has certainly flashed, and it may be difficult to keep him out of the rotation, but we will see what happens after the pads come on.
Anderson - he confirmed that they want to rotate players in on the line and have two full groups. Pending injuries, which we aren't allowed to report on, I think your list of "playable" linemen right now are PJ, Chamblee, Byrd, Parr, Clark, Anderson, Sparks, and Osborne. The players who I think have the best opportunity to play themselves into that group are Woods, Uter, and Caleb Johnson. The next group is Patterson and Sapp. They really need Caleb to play his way in there just in case something happens. We will see if he can get there.
That said, the area of the team I focused on today was cornerback. Here are my thoughts:
When I think about last season, Meggs was on one side, and he was a solid cover corner who didn't have the top end speed. So on that side of the field, they would play off the ball a bit or play close and provide safety help. On the other side, we had Woods who you didn't have to help as much. Really good cover corner and he had enough top end speed to cover deep as well. I think that is how they are going to split the corners up this year.
Rogers - has really improved. He is the guy who has taken a big leap forward. Good acceleration, and his hips flip well and he is able to break. While he was always an athlete, I never thought he looked smooth at corner, but he really does now. He doesn't have great top end speed, so need to protect him over the top with a safety. But it is nice to see him step up. We will see how camp goes, but I think he is going to fight for a starting spot on that right side where Meggs played.
Smoke - I think he is the other starter right now. He is fast and smooth. Comfortable defending the fade while trying to intercept the ball. He has both good top end speed and strong acceleration. I'd like to see him stay healthy for all of Fall camp so that he continues to gain consistency and show that he can be relied on as a starter.
Crossley - I think he will fight for the other starting spot with Rogers. Longer than Rogers, good acceleration. Not quite as athletic as Rogers, but longer arms helps him cover it. Same top-end speed issue as Rogers, so in that Meggs boat. Behind Rogers right now, but will probably see a heavy rotation there.
AJ Davis - I know the coaches raved about him in the spring, but I think he has taken a little step back in the fall. Just one practice, so I don't know if he is carrying an injury or just one of those days. But his acceleration and his hips aren't great. Better top end speed than Crossley or Rogers, so he is playing on the same side as Smoke, but he gave up an easy catch in the brief tempo period where he couldn't get out of his backpedal quick enough on a cut inside and was 10 yards away from where the catch was made. It is early, so maybe he was just on the outside in a zone, but he just looks a little slow in reaction in the drills. His feet move slow so he seems to glide a little. In the fade drill down the line, he was the one guy who didn't make a play on the ball. Less athletic than the others, I think.
Deuce - He didn't play in the tempo session - they are giving the Frosh time on the third team early in camp, so every day one of the 5 veterans is going to have to sit in the tempo period, and he sat today. He is an athlete. Hand reaction time was slow on the jump the route drill, so he didn't catch the hard pass. Smooth when he runs, you can see the athleticism, and the top end speed is there on the deep route. Hips are okay, but his feet are really slow, so you don't see that quick twitch reaction and you don't see the acceleration on the break. I think he will play on that left side, competing with Smoke, but he is going to need to show consistency and a firm grasp of the defense before he passes AJ in the rotation.
Speedy - It has been a minute since SMU had frosh corners that look ready to contribute... but I think both of our young corners might make an impact. Nettles body is more mature and built and he looks like he could make a push. They are playing him on the right side. I *think* Rogers and Crossley will hold him off, but I really like what I see. He is quick, is very fluid. He isn't a guy you have to teach the position like Rogers was. His feet are very quick, has a very quick twitch. Again, not sure he will move past the seniors but he is definitely a good one.
Alex Rogers - He has really surprised me. Quick, fluid, and even cocky - he isn't afraid to go in press coverage during tempo drills. He stayed with Carroll off the press on a fly route without an issue. Seems to have good acceleration as well as top end speed. Wasn't as highly regarded as a recruit as Nettles or AJ Davis, but he really looks the part. He needs a year in the weight room... he isn't a twig, but his body isn't the same as Speedy. He wasn't an unknown recruit or anything like that (offers from Baylor, Houston, K State, OSU, Texas Tech), but was less heralded and I think he is going to end up being a really good player. Like I said, he is slimmer, so we will see how everything looks once the pads come on. But if Duece and Davis don't step up, he might challenge...
Overall, I am really happy with the young players, but I'm still nervous about the group. This is the weakest spot on the defense for sure. We might really miss Woods this year.
Interviews:
Casey Woods - Two things stood out for me. One is that we will really start to get a better feel of the team after a couple days of pads. That is when you see which frosh can actually help you out and the offense has had enough time to catch up to the defense. The second is that he mentioned the Michigan TE transfer HIbner. I've heard from several people at camp that while us outsiders thought of him as a big blocking TE, he is way, way more than that. He has been more athletic than advertised and made some great catches. He is going to have a significant impact on the offense.
Rooster - He seems more confident than he did in the spring. I think there is a feeling in the running back room that the team is going to run the ball a lot more and everyone is really excited about it. Camar has sat out the last couple of days, so it has been him and LJ in the Xavier role and then Smith and McFall in the West role. With a stronger, more athletic line, you can run with two types of backs and you don't need the bruiser so much. So it seems like you have the Xavier Jones combo style back and then the West flyer who can also line up in the slot from time to time, if you remember the first iteration of the RL offense at SMU. I suspect that Camar will end up in the Smith/McFall group as part of that rotation, but we will see how that plays out. McFall has certainly flashed, and it may be difficult to keep him out of the rotation, but we will see what happens after the pads come on.
Anderson - he confirmed that they want to rotate players in on the line and have two full groups. Pending injuries, which we aren't allowed to report on, I think your list of "playable" linemen right now are PJ, Chamblee, Byrd, Parr, Clark, Anderson, Sparks, and Osborne. The players who I think have the best opportunity to play themselves into that group are Woods, Uter, and Caleb Johnson. The next group is Patterson and Sapp. They really need Caleb to play his way in there just in case something happens. We will see if he can get there.