Observations from Saturday (3/5) practice

[PonyPride]

The Mustangs held their second spring practice Saturday morning in misty/drizzling conditions. Several alums showed up — recent players included Trevor Denbow, Beau Morris, Derek Green and fresh off his appearance at the NFL Combine, Reggie Roberson. Again, they're not hitting — practice looks a little like two-hand touch — so it's not easy to get a clear read on some things. That said ...

• Practice began with a kicking session, with Brendan Hall handling field goals from 35-40 yards. He converted all five, sending each over the net behind the goalposts and toward the Meadows Museum.

• One-on-one drills with receivers going against defensive backs are always entertaining. Some notes:
— Rashee Rice said Fridaythat he lost a little weight over the offseason but is stronger than he was a year ago. That was on full display on three consecutive routes; on one, he basically ran over the would-be defender, on the other two he shoved the DB aside — all three ended with easy wide-open receptions downfield.
— WR Jordan Kerley took an outside route to get around CB Jahari Rogers, heading toward the end zone for what looked like an easy touchdown. But Rogers found another gear, closed the gap and caught up to Kerley in time to knock the ball away.
— Suffice to say that TE Nolan Matthews-Harris presents an inviting target for the quarterbacks. Listed at 6-6 and 258, when Matthews-Harris is able to position his body between the ball and a defensive back in coverage, the DB has no chance to reach around him to knock the ball away. He did have a couple of drops Saturday, but with a little more consistency, he has a chance to contribute.
— WR Roderick Daniels has an elusive quality, a little like Cole Beasley. When the teams went to skeleton (seven-on-seven) passing drills, Daniels was able to find seams in the coverage and then burst between defenders, turning intermediate routes over the middle into longer down-field gains.
— Catch of the day was turned in by WR Dylan Goffney, who went up and over CB Bryce McMorris and LB Ty DeArman, to stretch out for a twisting grab on the sideline.

• Every assessment has to be prefaced by the fact that the Mustangs have had just two days of practice, which is nowhere near enough time to make any definitive statements. That said, one of the most impressive players Friday and Saturday has been transfer WR Beau Corrales. The former UNC Tar Heel is a matchup nightmare for DBs, too big for most corners to handle and too fast for linebackers to match up, if they're brave enough to try. QB Preston Stone raved about Corrales, citing his physical ability and massive catch radius. One one play, WR Austin Upshaw caught a short screen pass, and got sprung for a long gain because Corrales planted an approaching DB on his back, erasing him from the play entirely.

• Redshirt freshman Trevion Sneed, who spent last year working as a linebacker and briefly at running back in practice, is working with the defensive ends. Mason Jolley, who was recruited as a linebacker and greyshirted in 2021, also got some work in drills with the defensive ends.

• During skeleton drills, linebacker Shanon Reid, a transfer from Illinois State, returned an interception for a touchdown. That, in and of itself, was not particularly noteworthy — interceptions happen in every practice. What was interesting was that defensive players working in all around the field stopped what they were doing and raced to green Reid in the end zone if his play had just won a bowl game. No idea if that reaction was organic or if the coaches are asking for more visible outpouring of support.

• LB/DE Turner Coxe was in a jersey but did not practice.

• When the Mustangs took part in team (11 on 11) scrimmage-like drills, it was interesting to see the defense sending pressure from multiple looks. The defensive line, of course, made its push, but linebackers also came off the edge and S Bryan Massey even raced in on a pair of safety blitzes. Nobody was burying the quarterbacks — the plays usually end when defenders get within shouting distance of the quarterbacks — but it was unusual to see the defensive mixing up its approach so early in spring drills, while the offensive line is still juggling players at different positions to find combinations that work.

• Speaking of which, Jaylon Thomas got some snaps Saturday at right guard; he has played at least three positions in two days.

• Before practice ended, the workout shifted from the Pettus practice field to inside Ford Stadium. Maybe the damp conditions made the ball a little slippery, but several DBs dropped catchable would-be interceptions.

[Higher Authority]

Starting to get high hopes for Corrales.

Interesting that they're running safety blitzes in practice. I don't remember them sending corners or safeties almost ever last year.

[PerunaPunch]

These practice reports are the best part of spring. Well, that and not freezing. Thanks guys.