NEWS
DEPTH CHART NOTES
COACH DEREK MASON
PLAYERS: C Spencer Pulley, LB Darreon Herring, S Oren Burks
- This weekend’s game with Texas A&M in Nashville kicks off at 6:39 Central. It’ll be televised on the SEC Network.
- Next Saturday’s game with Tennessee in Knoxville starts at 3 Central, and will also be shown on the SEC Network.
- Seventeen players will be honored on Senior Day this Saturday. That includes a number of redshirt juniors. Players to be honored are: Torey Agee, Caleb Azubike, Ladarius Banks, Jake Bernstein, Colby Cooke, Blake Fromang, Harding Harper, Darreon Herring, Kris Kentera, Chris Martin, Kevin McCoy, Jahmel McIntosh, Spencer Pulley, Steven Scheu, Jake Sealand, Stephen Weatherly and Andrew Williamson.
- Agee, Banks, Cooke, Fromang, Harper, McCoy and Weatherly all have eligibility left. They’re on the list because they can all graduate by August. I specifically pulled Mason aside and asked about this, and he said not to read into anything with this group. They just want them to experience that moment with their class because (like Patton Robinette a year ago, he used as an example), you never know what can happen here.
DEPTH CHART NOTES
- QB Kyle Shurmur is listed as the sole starter at quarterback.
- Starter at right tackle is listed as either Bailey Granier or Blake Fromang, in order.
- Starters at defensive end are listed as Adam Butler and Torey Agree at one end, and Caleb Azubike and Jonathan Wynn at the other, in that order. This was the case a week ago, though Azubike is listed first this week, which wasn’t the case last week.
- Co-starters at defensive tackle, in this order, are Jay Woods and Nifae Lealao.
- Landon Stokes is listed ahead of Nehemiah Mitchell as a co-starter at outside linebacker. Mitchell was listed as the sole starter this time a week ago.
- Backup nickel is listed as either Emmanuel Smith or Donovan Sheffield. Arnold Tarpley is listed as the sole starter here; a week ago, it was Tarpley “or” Smith.
- Dallas Rivers has moved ahead of Darrius Sims as the No. 2 RB.
COACH DEREK MASON
- Still things that need cleaning up, but guys are working hard. At the end of the season, November is where the real teams show up. They’re in a good place.
- TAMU is talented across the board. Mentioned QB Kyler Murray, big RBs who can run the football. In wins, they’ve run well, in losses they have not.
- VU put some bad stuff on tape. A&M has the ability to exploit those, esp. WR Christian Kirk. “Those guys can put you on ESPN real quick.”
- QB Murray runs well. He’s a one-speed thrower, has a tremendous arm. Loves to compete.
- DC John Chavis has done a great job getting players to understand his vision. “They play hard, they’re opportunistic, it’s a sack factory.” They have to stay on schedule and not hurt themselves with early penalties.
- A&M special teams: “These guys are dynamic.” They have to be consistent in all phases and stay in their lanes. “If we do that, we’ll like how this game lines up.”
- How to prepare for Kirk: (long pause) “Cover better. Kick it away from him.”
- He didn’t like how they looked against the run game “big or small.” “Obviously we leaked.” “We have to play 11-man football.”
- Guys get out of their rushing lanes trying to do too much. That’s what happened to them on Saturday. “We’re not the first guys to miss on Boom Williams.”
- Mason recruited Christian Kirk when he was at Stanford. He’s from Arizona, which is where Mason’s from. “I’ve known about him for a long time.”
- Thursday is their “no-sweat” practice.
- RB Ralph Webb’s starting to get a bit sore from the season.
- QB Kyle Shurmur is learning. They’ve got to keep him upright. He needs to be able to focus on reads and not pass rush. “We left some production out there” referring to WR drops. Yesterday was a good prep day for him and Tuesday he looked good on the field.
- Asked where Shurmur was in terms of learning the playbook vs. Missouri. Was non-specific, said he continues to do what OC Andy Ludwig asks him to do. He missed a signal on Saturday and they lined up in victory formation one play too soon.
- On CB Torren McGaster: He’s playing well. He’s taken a while to “get himself stable,” in terms of how he can sometimes be his own worst enemy. Praised his work, practice and film habits. “Every week, he’s had to take on a different challenge. He’s had to play some good receivers in this conference.”
- He likes to keep his CBs consistently on the same side of the field, because the game moves too fast.
- OL Bailey Granier and Bruno Reagan “are fighting.” They need more in the run game but did okay in pass protection. They’ll get better as the game slows down for them.
- At FB: “We’re looking at all the options.” Banks is still part of what they do, but they also want Dallas Rivers to give them some touches. Everyone has to fall into a role.
PLAYERS: C Spencer Pulley, LB Darreon Herring, S Oren Burks
- When they go back out at halftime, they approach it as if it’s tied, even though they’ve led a lot of games at half lately. - Pulley
- Was asked about bowls. Answer was more or less they’re focusing on winning their next two. - Pulley
- Shurmur’s a confident guy. Lots of skill and leadership ability.
- A&M has some of the best receivers they’ll face all year in terms of size. Murray’s good at running the ball. OL is big. Two big RBs. - Herring
- On goal line success: The defense gets excited, they go out with the mentality nobody’s going to score. Preparation has been a big key to that. They know their schemes and what teams like to do much through formation recognition and such. - Herring
- On Torren McGaster: he gets credit for his 1st INT vs. Kentucky. He’s an emotional player, always gives it his all. - Burks
- Margin for error is small in the end zone. Windows are small. That helps. They have to know their keys and that helps. - Burks
- Being SEC POTW is a huge honor. It’s a testament to the coaches around him and the players, too. - Burks
- It’s impossible to not realize the end is coming. He’s been here 5 years, it’s his last home game, he’s valuing every moment on and off the field. - Pulley
- Time’s winding down. As a senior, he feels the team deserves a bowl and that’s his job to get them there. - Herring
- On Kirk: Any explosive player is going to make plays. They have to stay in their lanes. They have some guys they think can simulate them okay, but there’s nothing like game situations. - Burks
- On RB Ralph Webb: He’s a great player having a great season. He deserves anything he gets. If he gets to 1,000 yards, that’ll be great. - Pulley
- Mason and his staff have given them the tools to be a successful defense. Everyone’s buying into it. - Herring
- They’ve named their defense “Black Death.” - Herring
- Herring has been like a big brother to him. This game means a lot. It’s special. - Burks
