Monday (8/22/11) practice report
Posted: Mon Aug 22, 2011 10:54 am
The first day of school means the first day of a "normal" (pre-classes) practice routine. The first thing learned was that 7 AM is still really #*^$-ing early and there isn't enough coffee in the world at that hour of the day.
• In seven-on-seven drills and in 11-on-11 drills, there continues to be a very high emphasis being placed on downfield blocking. On several plays, it was the "other" receivers who drew the criticism or praise after a passing play, rather than the receiver to whom the ball was thrown - the idea being, of course, to spring receivers who catch shorter passes for longer gains.
• Monday marked the beginning of the team's look at its season-opening opponent, Texas A&M, which also meant the formation of scout teams. After working through preseason camp at guard, freshman Dontae Levingston worked with the scout team at left tackle. During two-a-days, he had been at guard with Ben Gottschalk at left tackle, but with Gottschalk at the other end of the field, where the first- and second-team offense were working, Levingston slid over. Whether he ends up playing tackle down the road remains to be seen, but he played it in high school, and if he can handle the strength and quickness required at the position, this move might be a glimpse into the future.
• S Brett Haness (neck) remained out. NT Jordan Favreau (illness) and NT Rishaad Wimbley (back) were back working with their teammates. Wimbley said after practice that his back is still sore, but "it's just a muscle strain, so I'll practice."
JUNE JONES notes:
• Jones said after practice that he has been very pleased with the progress made this offseason and during camp by QBs Kyle Padron and J.J. McDermott, saying each has had a "very good" camp. He also said he has an idea in mind who would be his third/emergency QB, but declined to name him.
• Jones said he and the coaches have studied their first opponent, Texas A&M, and the first thing that jumps out is how fast the Aggies are. "They have got great team speed," Jones said. "They're a year into their system, and they don't even look like the same team that opened up last year against Stephen F. Austin."
• Jones said he was very impressed by the film he has seen of Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tennehill, who earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors last season after taking over the starting QB job during the 2010 season after starting his Aggie career as a receiver, where he caught 112 passes for 1,596 yards and 10 touchdowns over his first two-plus seasons. The difference between Tannehill's ascent to the starting quarterback job at Texas A&M and Kyle Padron's at SMU is that Tannehill did it as a fourth-year junior you redshirted the 2007 season, while Padron took over the SMU offense as a true freshman.
• Jones said Texas A&M RB Cyrus Gray "might be the best running back in the nation," and then said "their receiver (Jeff Fuller) might be the same way - he might be the best in the country. Those guys are scary. We've got to tackle them."
• In seven-on-seven drills and in 11-on-11 drills, there continues to be a very high emphasis being placed on downfield blocking. On several plays, it was the "other" receivers who drew the criticism or praise after a passing play, rather than the receiver to whom the ball was thrown - the idea being, of course, to spring receivers who catch shorter passes for longer gains.
• Monday marked the beginning of the team's look at its season-opening opponent, Texas A&M, which also meant the formation of scout teams. After working through preseason camp at guard, freshman Dontae Levingston worked with the scout team at left tackle. During two-a-days, he had been at guard with Ben Gottschalk at left tackle, but with Gottschalk at the other end of the field, where the first- and second-team offense were working, Levingston slid over. Whether he ends up playing tackle down the road remains to be seen, but he played it in high school, and if he can handle the strength and quickness required at the position, this move might be a glimpse into the future.
• S Brett Haness (neck) remained out. NT Jordan Favreau (illness) and NT Rishaad Wimbley (back) were back working with their teammates. Wimbley said after practice that his back is still sore, but "it's just a muscle strain, so I'll practice."
JUNE JONES notes:
• Jones said after practice that he has been very pleased with the progress made this offseason and during camp by QBs Kyle Padron and J.J. McDermott, saying each has had a "very good" camp. He also said he has an idea in mind who would be his third/emergency QB, but declined to name him.
• Jones said he and the coaches have studied their first opponent, Texas A&M, and the first thing that jumps out is how fast the Aggies are. "They have got great team speed," Jones said. "They're a year into their system, and they don't even look like the same team that opened up last year against Stephen F. Austin."
• Jones said he was very impressed by the film he has seen of Texas A&M quarterback Ryan Tennehill, who earned honorable mention All-Big 12 honors last season after taking over the starting QB job during the 2010 season after starting his Aggie career as a receiver, where he caught 112 passes for 1,596 yards and 10 touchdowns over his first two-plus seasons. The difference between Tannehill's ascent to the starting quarterback job at Texas A&M and Kyle Padron's at SMU is that Tannehill did it as a fourth-year junior you redshirted the 2007 season, while Padron took over the SMU offense as a true freshman.
• Jones said Texas A&M RB Cyrus Gray "might be the best running back in the nation," and then said "their receiver (Jeff Fuller) might be the same way - he might be the best in the country. Those guys are scary. We've got to tackle them."
