Practice (12/12/11) notes
Posted: Mon Dec 12, 2011 8:39 pm
The Mustangs returned to the practice field Monday as they began preparation for the BBVA Compass Bowl, Jan. 7 against the Pitt Panthers, in Birmingham, Ala. Some notes:
• The team practiced for about two hours. Head coach June Jones said before the practice that many of the practice reps during the four practices this week would go to young players, with older players basically coaching their young teammates, and that was the case Monday.
• Considering the events of the last week, the mood was surprisingly upbeat and enthusiastic. When defensive players squared off in one-on-one drills that basically look like a wrestling match, with two players trying to drive each other to the ground, teammates howled and jumped all over each other in response to various matchups. When receivers and defensive backs were locked in downfield battles they talked trash to each other and patted each other on the back over good plays, etc. All in all, it seemed genuine.
• Kicker Chase Hover was back on the field with his teammates after missing the last two games because of illness. Hover kicked several field goals (with his regular holder, punter Matt Stone) of intermediate range. The longest I saw were 37 yards. Accuracy, distance and height looked pretty good.
• Catch of the day: early in the session, QB J.J. McDermott fired a deep pass down the sideline to WR Der’Rikk Thompson. Thompson looked back over his right shoulder, and the ball dropped over his outside (left) shoulder. Without breaking stride, Thompson reached out and snagged the pass with his left hand.
• Catch of the day - runner-up: The secondary worked on a drill with coach Derrick Odum, in which the players ran toward Odum, who was throwing high, looping passes. CB J.R. Richardson made a particularly nice grab when he jumped up, tipped the ball with one hand and then, after landing, shot straight back up to snatch the ball with one hand.
• Richardson also ran over WR Terrance Wilkerson while defending in a passing drill, planting Wilkerson on the ground, but the senior receiver made the catch and held on to the ball.
• Other freshmen who looked good included WR Ronnell Sims, who made a couple of nice, twisting catches on shallow crossing routes, and LB Robert Seals, who looked exceptionally quick in defensive and special teams drills.
• Hit of the day: Accidental, of course, because the Ponies are not hitting this far in advance of the bowl game. But when WR Keenan Holman caught a screen pass on the left side of the field and turned upfield, he split between Seals and transfer CB Lazarri Middleton. Holman got between the two defenders untouched, and Middleton clearly got the better end of the collision.
• At the end of practice, the Mustangs went through some light conditioning sprints. Two players who consistently led their position groups: DE Taylor Thompson and LB Jonathan Yenga (whose brother, former SMU LB Youri Yenga, was in attendance).
• The team practiced for about two hours. Head coach June Jones said before the practice that many of the practice reps during the four practices this week would go to young players, with older players basically coaching their young teammates, and that was the case Monday.
• Considering the events of the last week, the mood was surprisingly upbeat and enthusiastic. When defensive players squared off in one-on-one drills that basically look like a wrestling match, with two players trying to drive each other to the ground, teammates howled and jumped all over each other in response to various matchups. When receivers and defensive backs were locked in downfield battles they talked trash to each other and patted each other on the back over good plays, etc. All in all, it seemed genuine.
• Kicker Chase Hover was back on the field with his teammates after missing the last two games because of illness. Hover kicked several field goals (with his regular holder, punter Matt Stone) of intermediate range. The longest I saw were 37 yards. Accuracy, distance and height looked pretty good.
• Catch of the day: early in the session, QB J.J. McDermott fired a deep pass down the sideline to WR Der’Rikk Thompson. Thompson looked back over his right shoulder, and the ball dropped over his outside (left) shoulder. Without breaking stride, Thompson reached out and snagged the pass with his left hand.
• Catch of the day - runner-up: The secondary worked on a drill with coach Derrick Odum, in which the players ran toward Odum, who was throwing high, looping passes. CB J.R. Richardson made a particularly nice grab when he jumped up, tipped the ball with one hand and then, after landing, shot straight back up to snatch the ball with one hand.
• Richardson also ran over WR Terrance Wilkerson while defending in a passing drill, planting Wilkerson on the ground, but the senior receiver made the catch and held on to the ball.
• Other freshmen who looked good included WR Ronnell Sims, who made a couple of nice, twisting catches on shallow crossing routes, and LB Robert Seals, who looked exceptionally quick in defensive and special teams drills.
• Hit of the day: Accidental, of course, because the Ponies are not hitting this far in advance of the bowl game. But when WR Keenan Holman caught a screen pass on the left side of the field and turned upfield, he split between Seals and transfer CB Lazarri Middleton. Holman got between the two defenders untouched, and Middleton clearly got the better end of the collision.
• At the end of practice, the Mustangs went through some light conditioning sprints. Two players who consistently led their position groups: DE Taylor Thompson and LB Jonathan Yenga (whose brother, former SMU LB Youri Yenga, was in attendance).
