WEDNESDAY PRACTICE notes

[PonyPride]

• Contain yourself: When special teams coach Frank Gansz runs his drills in practice, he has several several themes he reiterates time after time. He wants things done at a high tempo, he wants the team to be crisp and organized coming out of the huddle, etc., and he wants efficient execution. When he works with players coming downfield in coverage, he wants them moving fast, but he wants them under enough control that they can make a play, too. Sometimes, pure quickness can override containment, though - freshman Bryce Lunday stepped in as a return man in a drill against four uncoming tacklers: defensive back Ryan Armstrong, defensive end Youri Yenga, defensive tackle Patrick Handy and center Mitch Enright. Lunday ran up the middle, and as the foursome began to collapse on him, he stopped, backtracked, looped around and took off up the sideline. They had good containment on the play, but Lunday is exceptionally quick ... and showed it.

• Someone was listening: Shortly after Gansz' session that focused on containment, the offense and defense returned to the field. The quarterback threw a quick screen pass in the flat to Beasley, who started to juke defenders in an effort to get free. Safeties Chris Banjo and De'Von Bailey closed in quickly, and while they didn't make the tackle, they instead strung him out and ran him out of bounds before he could gain a single yard.

• The more things change ... : The first-team offense looked exactly the same Wednesday. Justin Willis lined up at QB, with RBs DeMyron Martin and Andrew McKinney behind an offensive line that included LT Kelvin Beachum, Jr., LG Sean Lobo, C Mitch Enright, RG Bryce Tennison and RT Vincent Chase. The first-team WRs were Aldrick Robinson, Emmanuel Sanders, Zach Zimmerman and Josh Bryant.

• The laws of physics still apply: SMU's receivers have shown they are willing and able to block for each other, and for the running backs. Give Josh Bryant an "A for effort," but he was a bit overmatched. He came across the line of scrimmage and tried to derail DE Taylor Thompson on his way to the QB. At 5-6, 170 pounds, Bryant gives away a full foot of height and nearly 90 pounds to Thompson, who predictably rolled through Bryant as if he wasn't there.

• Runaway D-Train: All offseason, strength coach Vic Viloria has lauded the efforts of senior RB DeMyron Martin, who Viloria said has been one of the team's real leaders in the weight room and in the overall conditioning program. Some of that newfound determination showed Wednesday when Martin blasted through a series of arm tackles after getting the ball on handoffs, pitches, shovel passes and screen passes. Martin has drawn raves in preseason camp for his improved pass blocking, and he looks like he's very strong and running very hard.

• Never saw him coming: Justin Willis looked totally surprised on one pass that got intercepted. Willis took the snap and looked to his left, where he saw William Webb, and threw a quick out route ... only to watch DB Chris Castro jump the route and take off with the interception. From the start, the play had little chance of succeeding: Willis threw off his back foot so his pass didn't have a lot of zip on it, the ball fluttered a little (slowing it down even more) and Webb waited for the ball near the sideline, rather than going foward to meet the pass, a necessity on routes.

• Nice changeup: Of the QBs in camp, Logan Turner has one of the stronger arms, if not the strongest. But Turner has learned not to throw every ball at the highest possible velocity. On one play, he floated a beautiful pass over SS Rock Dennis to WR Josh Bryant, who had slipped into the small gap between Dennis and FS Tyler Jones.

• A changed man? LB Pete Fleps played a lot on special teams in 2007 but earned spot duty only on defense, although it looks like that will change this season. Fleps has spent the preseason camp running with the first-team and second-team linebackers, and clearly figures heavily into LBs coach Tim Hundley's rotation. He also has become a workout warrior, doing more reps in the bench press (at 225 pounds) than anyone else on the team. Apparently the added muscle hasn't affected his speed too much: in one 11-on-11 drill, he crept forward to blitz the QB and raced between LT Kelly Turner and LG Josh LeRibeus so fast LeRibeus had no choice but to grab Fleps' jersey to hold him back. Even that didn't work, though, as Fleps' jersey slipped out of LeRibeus' grasp.

• Friendly reminder: Odds are good that RB Chris Butler will be aware of where LB Alex Odiari is next time they're on the field at the same time. Late in Wednesday's practice, QB Justin Willis hit Butler with a screen pass that Odiari sniffed out all the way. By the time the ball arrived, Odiari was there, too. He wrapped up Butled in a sort of violent hug, and held him there for a minute, saying something quietly to his new teammate. Knowing Odiari's confident nature, chances are good the conversation had something to do with what he could have done had Butler been a member of another team.


• Ironic tangent: Butler actually is the reason Odiari now wears No. 13. Originally assigned No. 1 - the same number Butler wears - Odiari was switched to 13. The reason is that the NCAA prohibits teams from doubling up numbers among players who might get on the field at the same time. Since both Butler and Odiari are expected to play on special teams, one had to switch. Butler has seniority, so Odiari got his new number (which he still has shaved into the back of his head).

• What can be done in two minutes? The Ponies worked on their two-minute offense Wednesday, one advantage of which head coach June Jones said is the fact that it's also a conditioning drill. Passing was somewhat inconsistent, and the highlight (or lowlight, depending on perspective) of the drill was when Odiari picked off a Logan Turner pass, ran it back for a touchdown and then launched into an end zone dance that could best be described as ... "interesting."

• Move-ing on out ... and in: Next time you see someone put what appears to be a pass-rush move on a classroom door somewhere on campus, ask him if he plays defensive line for the Ponies. Chances are he does - the entire defensive line practices a pass-rushing move on the gate when entering and exiting the Pettus Practice Field, and when they enter and exit the room for position meetings and film sessions. Not one to demand more of his players than himself, new defensive line coach Bert Hill executed a perfect "swim" move on the Pettus gate as he left after practice.

[bagice]

Nice to see Justin locking down that starting QB spot.....

[GeorgiaMustang]

Thanks for the report PP. Other than the interception by Castro, how did Willis look today compared to the other QBs?

[Mustangsabu]

If someone is a Junior with "0L", I believe that has something to do with being a "Letterman" whatever that may be. Would someone explain please?

[mrydel]

If someone is a Junior with "0L", I believe that has something to do with being a "Letterman" whatever that may be. Would someone explain please?

That would mean he has not lettered, meaning he has not played or played very little. 1L is a one year letterman, 2L is a 2 year letterman, etc.

[PonyTales]

• Runaway D-Train: All offseason, strength coach Vic Viloria has lauded the efforts of senior RB DeMyron Martin, who Viloria said has been one of the team's real leaders in the weight room and in the overall conditioning program. Some of that newfound determination showed Wednesday when Martin blasted through a series of arm tackles after getting the ball on handoffs, pitches, shovel passes and screen passes. Martin has drawn raves in preseason camp for his improved pass blocking, and he looks like he's very strong and running very hard.

Hope that's an indication of what we see from him this season

[Mustangsabu]

If someone is a Junior with "0L", I believe that has something to do with being a "Letterman" whatever that may be. Would someone explain please?

That would mean he has not lettered, meaning he has not played or played very little. 1L is a one year letterman, 2L is a 2 year letterman, etc.

Thanks. SO that means we are very inexperienced with regards to backup offensive linemen.

[PerunaPunch]

I think all coaches have their own criteria, but essentially after every season they determine who has played enough or made significant enough of a contribution to earn a varsity letter. In this case, a big M.

That''s why they call the letter jackets, because you sew your letter and other recognition onto them.

The old athlete's dorm at SMU was called Letterman Hall, because (I suppose) all the crappy pseudo athletes lived in Boaz Hall (just kidding).

I would say you're pretty accurate in characterizing the current iteration of the OL as inexperienced. Beachum is a second year (redshirt) freshman, and therefore by definition can't have earned a letter yet. Lobo started every game last year and seven games his sophomore year, has earned 2 letters, so he has good experience, as does Mitch Enright who's started at center for two years (and has two letters to prove it). Tennison is also a redshirt freshman, so like Beachum, he's precluded from having a letter by definition. Chase is the most decorated of the bunch, having earned three letters – but they were all earned at another position (Tight End). So you can't really categorize him as an experience right tackle, although he has a reputation as a ferocious blocker.

[mrydel]

If someone is a Junior with "0L", I believe that has something to do with being a "Letterman" whatever that may be. Would someone explain please?

That would mean he has not lettered, meaning he has not played or played very little. 1L is a one year letterman, 2L is a 2 year letterman, etc.

Thanks. SO that means we are very inexperienced with regards to backup offensive linemen.

That is correct. That is why you see a lot of linemen being recruited. Jones immedately saw a major area of lacking and is trying to catch up.

[Mustangsabu]

How many back-ups do we need. I mean, leaving injuries out of it for a moment, how many players are needed in each position to get through a game?

I know that LeRibeus and JT Brooks will feature this year. And they have good size, but no experience. Let's hope they are quick learners.

[mrydel]

How many back-ups do we need. I mean, leaving injuries out of it for a moment, how many players are needed in each position to get through a game?

I know that LeRibeus and JT Brooks will feature this year. And they have good size, but no experience. Let's hope they are quick learners.

You do not want back ups. You want at least 2 deep that can be changed out without any drop off. If all you want is to "get through a game" then I guess 5 would be enough, but I would prefer to win.

[MustangFan]

Don't want backups? Most O-line coaches want to play at least two lines comfortably, and would prefer to be three-deep. Absolutely we need to collect some quality backups. Quality starters, and quality backups. Lots of 'em.

Jeez, I sound like BUS.

[PK]

Re-read mrydel's post. He doesn't want "backups"...he wants an O-line group that is two deep of equally capable quality players.

[mrydel]

Don't want backups? Most O-line coaches want to play at least two lines comfortably, and would prefer to be three-deep. Absolutely we need to collect some quality backups. Quality starters, and quality backups. Lots of 'em.

Jeez, I sound like BUS.

PK is correct. Trust me, BUS and I are on the same page on this subject. And that page is getting a lot of stress under the weight.

[Stallion]

The last Championship Team at SMU had two strings of quality Offensive Lineman which were substituted as a Unit for one series in each quarter. If you have that kinda quality then you have absolutely no problem rebuilding your offensive line each year. SMU had some kids who didn't start until they were Seniors who made All SWC in their first full year of Starting as Seniors.