Practice 10
There were heavy scrimmage periods today with full contact and my impression was that the coaches were pleased with what they saw. I think the heat and humidity were as intense as they’ve been; there wasn't a lot of cloud cover and it was 91 with mid-50s humidity, but it felt worse than that because of the intensity of the sun.
I saw former Commodore Chris Williams there today; he’s been at practice a lot it seems.
QBs
I felt Mike Wright was the best of the bunch today; I didn’t see major mistakes and there were a few throws downfield of significance, even if it was the receivers doing a lot of the work. I didn’t keep stats but he seemed efficient.
Ken Seals had his worst practice today; ball security and decision-making have not been issues for him in camp, but they were today.
FWIW, Drew Dickey seems to be the fourth QB ahead of Walter Taylor. DIckey’s looked fairly good for a freshman; he throws a very catchable ball and has nice accuracy and I think he could help them one day. Taylor may help them down the line, too, and has better physical tools and you can see what they see in each.
RB
If I had to project an offensive MVP at season’s end, it would be Ray Davis. He’s shown he can do everything asked of him and he’s more versatile than I expected. He’s getting tough yards, breaking big runs, catching passes and can block. They like their group but he’s clearly their best.
WR/TE
It was a really good day for Quincy Skinner, who had the offensive play of the day and has shown some run-after-catch ability. He, Will Sheppard and Jayden McGowan have a shot to form a competent WR trio and I think their fourth right now would be Devin Boddie, who’s had a good camp. There’s probably a drop-off from there, but it’s not like the other guys have been bad and I still think Logan Kyle could see some snaps.
TE Gavin Schoenwald was in street clothes today, but was dressed up and looked as if he had some place to go. It seems like they’re trying to give him and Ben Bresnahan a little break in volume right now.
OL
Not a lot of new ground to cover here. The top two teams don’t seem to change much except at center, where I think Jake Ketschek and Grayson Morgan are in a battle for the backup spot. They really think Morgan will be a player for them long-term but he needs a good amount of bulk. Xavier Castillo and Bradley Ashmore continue to get a lot done in the run game.
DL/star
The headliner here today was Michael Spencer, who was outstanding and came up with 3-4 huge plays.
Right now, this is the biggest question on the team. Daevion Davis and Devin Lee don’t look ready, though Christian James seems to be getting closer. I asked Clark Lea about those guys and he doesn’t seem to know when they’ll be back, though he also didn’t rule them out for the opener. They really need some bulk at DE and James’s return could help. Brayden Bapst, who is also playing some end, is out and Lea, if I remember his words correctly, said he’d be “out a while.”
The good news is that Lee has added a lot of good weight and physically looks like the type of lineman they usually don’t get. He’s all kinds of muscular through the chest and shoulders and looked good in some drills that tested his strength and upper-body endurance. So if they get him back, that’ll be a big add because they really lack SEC size through the middle outside Malik Langham, although Myles Cecil will help too.
I’m about convinced Darren Agu will see the field. I think he’s too athletic not to help and that’s been translating into plays of late.
Linebacker/anchor
CJ Taylor has a chance to be really good. Taylor was in a car wreck last week that honestly, after I saw the photos, I’d have guessed him dead, but he was back today making big things happen as if the accident never happened. I’m starting to get very slightly concerned about Anfernee Orji; he’s not practiced for 4-5 straight days now. My guess is he’ll be fine and they’re being careful here.
I haven’t talked any about Bryce Cowan all camp, but he got some reps at anchor today and may play special teams. Speaking of freshmen, Langston Patterson seems to be asserting himself more lately, though I’m not sure how much available playing time is there.
Secondary
I’d still like to see their fop corners make more plays than they’ve made, but I’ve got little doubt they’re more athletic up and down the depth chart there than a year ago. They’ve been consistent in rolling out the same starting corners, but I’m not sure how much separation is between first and second teams some days. You can take it to the bank that Jaylen Mahoney and Max Worship will start, and probably De’Rickey Wright also, but I would’t be shocked to see some shuffling at the other spots.
Special teams
Matt Hayball didn’t get as much work today; they did work a good bit on kickoffs and puts but since nothing is live, there’s not much to say.
There were heavy scrimmage periods today with full contact and my impression was that the coaches were pleased with what they saw. I think the heat and humidity were as intense as they’ve been; there wasn't a lot of cloud cover and it was 91 with mid-50s humidity, but it felt worse than that because of the intensity of the sun.
I saw former Commodore Chris Williams there today; he’s been at practice a lot it seems.
QBs
I felt Mike Wright was the best of the bunch today; I didn’t see major mistakes and there were a few throws downfield of significance, even if it was the receivers doing a lot of the work. I didn’t keep stats but he seemed efficient.
Ken Seals had his worst practice today; ball security and decision-making have not been issues for him in camp, but they were today.
FWIW, Drew Dickey seems to be the fourth QB ahead of Walter Taylor. DIckey’s looked fairly good for a freshman; he throws a very catchable ball and has nice accuracy and I think he could help them one day. Taylor may help them down the line, too, and has better physical tools and you can see what they see in each.
RB
If I had to project an offensive MVP at season’s end, it would be Ray Davis. He’s shown he can do everything asked of him and he’s more versatile than I expected. He’s getting tough yards, breaking big runs, catching passes and can block. They like their group but he’s clearly their best.
WR/TE
It was a really good day for Quincy Skinner, who had the offensive play of the day and has shown some run-after-catch ability. He, Will Sheppard and Jayden McGowan have a shot to form a competent WR trio and I think their fourth right now would be Devin Boddie, who’s had a good camp. There’s probably a drop-off from there, but it’s not like the other guys have been bad and I still think Logan Kyle could see some snaps.
TE Gavin Schoenwald was in street clothes today, but was dressed up and looked as if he had some place to go. It seems like they’re trying to give him and Ben Bresnahan a little break in volume right now.
OL
Not a lot of new ground to cover here. The top two teams don’t seem to change much except at center, where I think Jake Ketschek and Grayson Morgan are in a battle for the backup spot. They really think Morgan will be a player for them long-term but he needs a good amount of bulk. Xavier Castillo and Bradley Ashmore continue to get a lot done in the run game.
DL/star
The headliner here today was Michael Spencer, who was outstanding and came up with 3-4 huge plays.
Right now, this is the biggest question on the team. Daevion Davis and Devin Lee don’t look ready, though Christian James seems to be getting closer. I asked Clark Lea about those guys and he doesn’t seem to know when they’ll be back, though he also didn’t rule them out for the opener. They really need some bulk at DE and James’s return could help. Brayden Bapst, who is also playing some end, is out and Lea, if I remember his words correctly, said he’d be “out a while.”
The good news is that Lee has added a lot of good weight and physically looks like the type of lineman they usually don’t get. He’s all kinds of muscular through the chest and shoulders and looked good in some drills that tested his strength and upper-body endurance. So if they get him back, that’ll be a big add because they really lack SEC size through the middle outside Malik Langham, although Myles Cecil will help too.
I’m about convinced Darren Agu will see the field. I think he’s too athletic not to help and that’s been translating into plays of late.
Linebacker/anchor
CJ Taylor has a chance to be really good. Taylor was in a car wreck last week that honestly, after I saw the photos, I’d have guessed him dead, but he was back today making big things happen as if the accident never happened. I’m starting to get very slightly concerned about Anfernee Orji; he’s not practiced for 4-5 straight days now. My guess is he’ll be fine and they’re being careful here.
I haven’t talked any about Bryce Cowan all camp, but he got some reps at anchor today and may play special teams. Speaking of freshmen, Langston Patterson seems to be asserting himself more lately, though I’m not sure how much available playing time is there.
Secondary
I’d still like to see their fop corners make more plays than they’ve made, but I’ve got little doubt they’re more athletic up and down the depth chart there than a year ago. They’ve been consistent in rolling out the same starting corners, but I’m not sure how much separation is between first and second teams some days. You can take it to the bank that Jaylen Mahoney and Max Worship will start, and probably De’Rickey Wright also, but I would’t be shocked to see some shuffling at the other spots.
Special teams
Matt Hayball didn’t get as much work today; they did work a good bit on kickoffs and puts but since nothing is live, there’s not much to say.
