WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 2 (PRACTICE NO. 7)
Saw almost all of practice today, it was held outdoors. A lot of scrimmaging with just about everybody healthy getting in there, but a lot several key guys—ANCHOR CJ Taylor, S Jalyen Mahoney, S DeRickey Wright were three of the more important guys still out—not playing.
Today’s thoughts have no particular order, sorry about that, I’m in a bit of a time crunch

It could be just me and it could mean nothing because this is the feeling-it-all-out portion of camp and it’s not always a full-on pass rush because of contact restrictions but it feels as if the offensive play-calling has been more aggressive than in the past under this staff.

The passing game was very hit-and-miss today. On the first play of practice, QB AJ Swann made an ill-advised throw and got picked by S Savion Riley, who’s taken advantage of his chance to play more with Mahoney barely seeing the field this fall. Riley later broke up what might have been a TD throw (not sure who the QB was on that one).

I think CB Martell Hight might have the best closing burst of their corners. Hight broke quickly on a ball today that QB Ken Seals threw and knocked it away. My way, way-too-early list of “true freshman most likely to play this year” would be he, WR Junior Sherrill, (who had another TD today, can’t remember if that was 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 portion) WR London Humphries and DT De’Marion Thomas.

WR Ezra McAllister had maybe the best play I’ve seen him make since he’s been here, taking a long throw from Seals and turning int into a long TD.

CB BJ Anderson had a pick today when WR Will Sheppard had a rare miscue, tipping a ball to where Anderson could snag it.

LB Ethan Barr picked QB Drew Dickey on a 2-point play today.

Seals had rare back-to-back picks today when Hight got one and LB Langston Patterson did the same on the next play.
I continue to like DE Darren Agu, who’s probably more thought of as a pass-rush threat, but has shown up pretty well in the run at times.

I haven’t talked about freshman linebacker Bryan Longwell much but he made a nice play or two today. I think he’s playing the “middle” spot, where Ethan Barr and Langston Patterson are ahead of him, and I presume Prince Kollie, too.

G Delfin Xavier Castillo got in a little time at center today; I’m guessing that’s a break-glass-in-case-of-emergency preparation with OL Grayson Morgan continuing to be sidelined.

DL coach Larry Black seemed to indicate DL Christian James would be back soon, though I’ll believe that when I see it since I don’t recall him even going through drills yet.

The biggest question I have is, how much better is the secondary? And I don’t think that one gets answered for a while. It’s still been too easy for the quarterbacks at time but some of that has come against something less than a full-on pass rush (I think that’s by design) and most of that without the three best safeties on the team (if you consider Taylor a safety). Obviously it has to be a concern based on in-game production the last three years. I still can’t tell whether they like Truedell Berry or Tyson Russell better at the boundary corner (Anderson seems close to a lock to start on the field side) and of course, Hight’s quick development could help. Seeing Riley show up in the spring and fall has been encouraging. S Steven Sannienola should be able to help too, but I just don’t remember him being out there much and I’m pretty sure that’s a workload/soft-tissue situation, where they are always cautious.

So, what should the reader make of practice reports here? For now, take them more as observations of things that happened than sweeping statements, and maybe pay more attention to scrimmages, and especially the ones closer to the season.

This may have come up in another thread, but I would like to publicly apologize to McDonald's. The money was delivered in Chick Fil A bags, not McDonald's bags. Even though I was mislead by the mainstream sports media, that is no excuse. I should have waited until all the facts came out before making derogatory statements about McDonald's bags being used to pay off players. I would also like to specifically apologize to the hashbrowns and EggsMcMuffins.

Again, McDonald's you have my heartfelt apology.

Mets closer, Edwin Diaz, appears to have torn his ACL jumping up and down and celebrating PRs win over the DR. The Mets just signed him to a 5 year $102M contract.

This seems like an incredible group. I keep reading about London Humphries and Sherril making plays. I remember years ago we would complain that our WRs couldnt get separation, and rarely had someone who can throw to them. If we have a running back emerge our offensive could be really something. Losing Ray Davis really stinks, had he stayed he could have had a monster year with our passing game being where it is.

AUGUST 1 (Tuesday-practice No. 6)
The team spent most of the day outside; temps were low-to-mid-80s. There was probably more drill-oriented work today and some 7-on-7 stuff here and there, and probably a little less 11-on-11 today than most days, and certainly less than yesterday. So with that, there wasn’t as much to offer today as some others, and Billy will add some thoughts to this later.

- -I thought WR Logan Humphries was the standout of the day. He took a long throw from QB Ken Seals in one-on-one coverage and turned it into about an 80-yard score, and I think caught another long score from Seals, too, and another long pass from someone. (I feel like one of these came in 11-on-11, another in 7-on-7s and another maybe in just one-on-one drills, but I may be wrong and it’s my fault for not taking better notes. I didn’t see Humphrires do a lot the first 3-4 practices but that guy has really come on this week and, along with WR Junior Sherrill, is going to push for time if he keeps doing this.
- I wrote about this yesterday, but I can’t underscore how much better the depth and athleticism are at receiver compared to two years ago. WR Will Sheppard should be one of the best in the league at the top, and the fact that Humphries is probably a third-teamer today behind WR Quincy Skinner and WR Daevon Walker is telling. Walker’s had a pretty nice last week after a slow start and while I’d like to see a little more from Skinner, I feel like the other guys are maybe getting a little more opportunity to show what they can do because Skinner’s a third-year guy. But I can’t ever remember a time where you had three receivers vying for one spot, and all of them had shown something, and the difference between “1” and “3” didn’t look like much to the untrained eye.
- You can never watch practice without trying to put it in context, and I think the glowing reports about the receivers beg some questions on the other side. And here is some context: CJ Taylor and Jaylen Mahoney haven’t played much (Taylor hasn’t played at all) and I’m fairly certain that the perpetual highlight reel the group has put up the last few days would look differently if those guys had been there. (And sometimes it’s backup corners getting burned, too.) Do I feel the secondary gets better once those guys get back? Yes. Do I think they’re better there when they’re back there, and perhaps inserting Truedell Berry at the other corner (which is who I think starts opposite BJ Anderson)? Yes. How much better? That’ probably the biggest mystery, and I’m not sure we really will know until that Wake Forest game. |
DE Darren Agu had a nice stop behind the line of scrimmage on a running play today. People have asked about Linus Zunk, I perceive the gap between those guys at end to be significant and Brayden Bapst is the 3 there. I’m not saying Zunk has been bad, he just hasn’t stood out to be one way or the other so far, and I wonder if you could see either Miles Capers, or BJ Diakate, or someone at the Star spot flipped to the other side, although that would give Vanderbilt a pair of smallish defensive ends. And of course, Nate Clifton can still play outside, and Christian James could also when he’s back.
- Some guys who have mostly been held out so far; I don’t perceive there’s much serious here but I mention them in case you’re wondering, “Why have I not heard more about (X)?” That list includes Diakate, DB Jameson Wharton (that’s a later development), DL Jacob Katona, S Steven Sannienola, LB Errington Truesdell, OL Anthony Miles. I’m sure I’m missing a name or two here.

Billy should add some thoughts tonight, and we'll be back at it tomorrow.

Bowl ??????

RIP

I was a big fan of his work

Today’s mailbag is sponsored by Sutherland & Belk, a family owned injury law firm. If you or a loved one has been hurt in an accident, give Taylor or Russell a call at 615-846-6200 to see what your rights are and if they can help.

Billy and I plan on filming a show tomorrow previewing Vanderbilt's frontcourt. We'll take questions on that, basketball in general and whatever else you all please!

Aria has posted on twitter that VU is adding sensory rooms at First Bank, Memorial and Hawkins Field. A very important and needed addition for fans who have family members on the autism spectrum as well other sensory needs. Way to go Vandy!!!

Practice has been moved up by about 45 mins. SEC Inside is filming practice today.

Donovan Stewart provides us with another coach analysis. This one is about late addition Jonah Buchanan.

link

Login to view embedded media
Tommy is a stud. This would mean losing both Deputy ADs in two weeks.