Since I was invited to (thanks jwinslow) I will post a modified verison of my Texas practice report from our first open practice in tuesday.
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The big news was that Henry Melton was there (6-3 270 4star athlete). He is as big and athletic as advertised. He started out with the RBs as promised, and we'll see where that goes (backup TE?). Jamaal Charles (4star RB) was not suited up again today. I'm not sure what's up with that (waiting on clearinghouse to OK a summer school class as part of his core requirement. He is an honor student, but didn't take all the necessary classes in HS).
Like most practices they started with special teams. Selvin, Ramonce, Ross, Shipley, Quan, Wilkerson, and Palmer took turns handling punts from Johnson (Freshamn AA at Vandy) and Gerland (50 yard average in HS last year). They seemed to be just getting used to handling the catches as it may take a week or so for the best returners to emerge. Gerland has a big leg with similar range to Johnson. A little eratic but not bad for a first day. They had Colt McCoy (FR QB) try a few punts and that was enough, then they had him at holder.
They ran a drill with the speed guys to see who is fastest to the punter for punt blocking. I couldn't pick a favorite and the coaches will certainly sort through the tape.
They ran some place kick plays that were not bad for day two. When the kickers practiced they didn't really stretch their range and I didn't see any kickoffs, so that report will have to wait. (Our starting punter McGee was mostly working on kicks that day. He is our long distance specialist. David Pino our likely kicker is a little better than Mangum, our kicker last year )
As far as running backs go, Selvin looked good both running and catching. The extra weight he carries looks good on him, not excessive. Taylor did well running, and also caught a few balls with the WRs during warmups. Ogbannaya (RS FR) continues to be impressive at RB too. Of the younger guys Houston (FR FB) had a couple great catch and runs during 11 on 11 and Wilkerson (FR 3 star RB) had a nice run too.
Shipley was first in line for the flankers, so he appears to have overtaken Nate Jones, but it could just be a day-to-day thing. Shipley caught almost everything thrown his way. Sweed also looks improved except when Ross jumped in front of him to grab an INT (Sweed has a bad habit, of standing still and not coming back for a ball). Hardy played very well and made some nice catches in traffic during 11 on 11. Finley (6-6 Fr WR/TE) continues to impress me. During drills his hand and foot speed and overall coordination are excellent, he looks more polished than guys who have been around a couple years. Pittman got behind a couple DBs and made some good catches and a near misses on long balls. Quan also got behind Oduegwu (true Fr S) a couple times for 50 yard pass plays, but one was overthrown. They were definitely emphasizing deep routes today and they are a bit hit and miss, but overall I was impressed with the wide receivers. (Note that for the most part the wide receivers had their best success against 3rd string DBs, but Shipley was very good no matter who was covering him)
For the tight ends Tweadie (2nd string TE, former OT and a great blocker) had a couple good grabs and is running better than ever. He seems to have slimmed down some more and regained some speed.
I guess you are wondering about the QBs. For the most part Vince looked outstanding, but he did have a few bad plays. As I said before they were working on a lot of deep routes that tend to be lower percentage. I didn't really see a big improvement from the spring, but it is hard to tell anything from one day in shorts. (I should add that Vince threw 6 perfect 50 yard fade roiutes in succession, very impressive) Nordgren and Colt played pretty well, but there is a definite dropoff in passing ability.
They had Brown (smallish FR 4 star) and Hall (last years starting SLB) working with the DEs today, and they got some work in 11 on 11. Brown did a great job on one rush. He is easily the fastest (and the smallest) DE, we will see where that goes. Orakpo (RS FR Robison's backup) continues to look impressive at rush end. He is going to be a good one. And, in one of the best plays in practice Robison got a diving INT on a pass deflection by Okam. The DTs didn't see much action, but they won't mix it up much until they get in pads.
At LB they had Kelson (Best SS recruit in the country in 2003) at SLB and Killabrew at WLB with the starters, so they are obviously giving Kelson a serious look. The second string went Foreman, Derry, Bobino, with Foreman at SLB. Foreman (played QB last year at his insistance) looked like he was making his assignments and didn't look nearly as lost as in the spring, I was glad to see that. Of course, it is early and I expect Chizik will give all the LBs a chance. Aside from Harris the next five are all pretty even.
At DB they had Ross running first team at one corner with Huff at safety. However, Brown (last years starter who was out in the spring with an injury) was looking really good, and has appeared to have elevated his game over the summer. Brown also grabbed an INT. This will be a tough battle for the second starting corner spot, and they appear improved enough to keep Huff at safety for the most part. Cedric Griffin looked better in coverage than in the spring, but Pittman still gave him trouble deep. Still his coverage is tight enough that most QBs probably won't chance it in a game situation. Huff pretty much shut down his area, so there isn't much to report on him.
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Unfortunately practice was closed today, they moved into "the bubble" to avoid destroying the practice field after a heavy rain earlier in the day. If you like hearing this stuff, I'll give you an update now and then.