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Quick notes after Day 3

Rocky Long confirmed he made a mistake when discussing David Wells foot injury. It's a Jones fracture, not a Lisfranc.

CB Tayler Hawkins may play this year. Rocky ruled him out for the year after the injury this spring. He's a month ahead of schedule and could be cleared to practice during the first game week. Even better, since his frame is bigger and stronger, he could help out with the lack of depth at safety when he returns. He's been watching from the bleachers the last two practices, motivating his teammates.

DB Parie Dedeaux is no longer on the team.
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Day 2 camp report

SDSU will be wearing shells starting on Wednesday night so Tuesday’s practice was the last helmets-only requirement of fall camp and it was another competitive one.

-Christian Chapman had a relatively normal practice but had two major hiccups in 7v7s. On the first mishap, Randy Ricks dropped back into zone coverage and picked him off. TE Kahale Warring was running a wide open crossing route across the field but straight toward Ricks’ zone. Chapman kept his eyes on Warring and never identified Ricks, so his pass led straight to Ricks and all he had to do was make an athletic jump in the air for an easy pick-six.

Chapman’s generally very solid on the run during play action rollouts but he really forced a pass toward Warring again later in the practice. Dwayne Johnson was in perfect position to jump in front of Warring the whole way but Chapman still let it go instead of running out of bounds. Johnson did drop the interception though.

Other than that, Chapman still completes passes more frequently than anybody else on the roster.

-I still really like Chris Laviano’s ability to whip it out quickly with his release but his accuracy is very inconsistent. He throws some really pretty ropes but he’s iffy when it comes to leading his receivers and putting it in the best spot for them to have a chance.

-Ryan Agnew was much more comfortable on day two than day one but I’m wary of how he’ll perform when the pressure gets put on him during scrimmages.

-If you’re wondering about the freshmen, Mark Salazar has the tools you look for in a QB but his decision making will need to be coached up by Blane Morgan over the next few years. Trey Lomax nearly picked him off on a pass up the middle he had no business attempting.

Cam Roane hasn’t done too much so far but he reminds me of Chapman in terms of his poise and the spin he puts on the ball. He throws some very pretty passes and he also comes off as a strong leader on the field.

-Juwan Washington looking very good between the tackles and that’s a very good sign since he’s been considered a perimeter runner during his career. He made some good hard cuts while doing an OK job of continuing his momentum up the field.

-Chance Belll is a legitimate running back and will make a case to challenge Chase Jasmin for the third spot on the depth chart (if the coaches are willing to burn his redshirt). I love his speed coming through the hole. He’s not hesitant at all and has the ability to make quick cuts as well. Vision looks solid too. Definitely could add a lot of weight onto his frame at this point but Pumphrey was much smaller during his first year.

-On the o-line, I paid close attention to Daishawn Dixon at left guard and I still feel like there are better options to start this year (barring an injury or two). He is one of the strongest guys on the line but there are too many instances where he whiffs and doesn’t get his hands on any defenders. Sometimes he ends up in the way of the running backs. And when he pulls he gets to the block right at the line of scrimmage instead of closer to the second level to give the RBs a hole. Nick Gerhard/Keith Ismael (whoever doesn’t start at center) should still be the guy opposite of right guard Antonio Rosales in my opinion.

Zachary Thomas also got some reps at center but I’m not sure that’s the position he should end up at. He looks more comfortable at guard and tackle, especially with his pass blocking ability.

-As for Keith Ismael, he’s looked back to his usual self at center this far. His shoulder isn’t bothering him like it did in the spring so he’s not as stiff or upright. He’s getting out of his stance very very quickly after snapping the ball. He gets up the field quickly on screen passes and he was very clean in the run blocking drills. So far, so good.

-Ryan Pope looks like he’s doing a better job of reading late pressures and picking up blitzes from the defense. He’s not overly committing to double teams like he struggled with at times in the spring. Keeping his head more on a swivel for sure.

-I’m not sure about the full story with newbie Garrison Young but he’s been a surprise on the offensive line. It seems like he played at Carlsbad high, went to Saddleback College and then signed with Nevada this past spring. For some reason, he’s here at SDSU. And he’s pretty impressive. He moves his feet extremely well but he’s a little bit undersized. He’ll get better with time in Adam Hall’s program too.

-Kyle Spalding looks the part on the offensive line but he’s going to be a project player. He’ll need at last a year to get his steps and overall footwork down.

-Dakota Turner was very involved during run defense drills and I expect to hold onto to his starting spot. With Anthony Luke being set back with an injury and Myles Cheatum and Chibu Onyeukwu better suited to come in on passing downs, it just makes more sense to have a front three of Noble Hall, Sergio Phillips and Turner. They’re all big and tough and experienced.

-Freshman DL Mark Brown is lining up at DE even though on film I thought he would play nose. That said, he’s much quicker than I thought he was and he’s seems light on his feet.

-DE Miles Cheatum had a strong practice. He’s becoming one of the best linemen when it comes to shedding off of blocks quickly and getting to the ball.

-OLB Jay Henderson has always been known for his quickness as a pass rusher but he’s getting better and staying within himself and swatting down passes at the line now. That’s something Julian Rochelin was particular good at before he medically retired.


On to the skill guys….

-TE Darryl Richardson is playing like he’d start for several Mountain West schools if not for David Wells being in front of him on the depth chart. Now that his catching rate has went way up thanks to improved hands, he’s been able to show off what he can do after the catch - such as stopping on a dime and straight up outrunning DBs.

Richardson and Tim Wilson always impress me with their ability to make quick moves after the catch at their size, something the passing game desperately needed last season. Their top end speed is no joke either.

-I was high on WR/TE Shane Coleman coming out of high school because of his hands but he’s a really smooth runner too. He actually looks a lot like Kahale Warring at this stage. Very high upside.

-WR Quest Truxton has continued to dominate in one on ones, mostly matching up with Ron Smith and Trey Lomax. Truxton has had some really nasty double moves through two practices.

-I still believe in the fact that Parker Houston is going to take the conference by storm this year. He doesn’t look all that athletic when he’s running routes but he competes for every pass and has shown off great concentration and hands. Houston always seems to catch the DBs by surprise and even humble a few of the projected starters.

-I mentioned how Kahale Warring has a scary second gear for his size yesterday. Tim Wilson is another guy that can really turn on the afterburners when you least expect it. He got Jeff Clay (one of the fastest players on the entire team) to bite on an out-and-up route and smoked him down the sideline. That’s legit 6-4 speed.

-WR Isiah Macklin continues to look like a guy you’d expect to see exclusively on fade routes in the red zone. As long as the o-line and Chapman give him enough time to get downfield and into position, he’s going to bring down a few big gains during big moments.

-It’s crazy how Isiah Richardson and Ethan Dedeaux are two of the smallest guys in the 2017 class yet both have legitimate chances to contribute as true freshman. Both come off as very mature and focused.

-Walkon warrior safety Israel Cabrera had his second straight practice with an interception, this time jumping a bad pass thrown short by Agnew. Don't be surprised if he ends up starting during game one.

-There are a lot of times where I feel CB Kyree Woods is better than Ron Smith but then I have to consider the competition he is facing is a notch below and the fact that Smith has both a size and experience advantage. Woods is about two inches shorter so at times he can’t compete for jump balls against the taller guys but regardless, watching him in man to man coverage is a treat.

-War Dwayne Parchment continues to look like someone who should have a chance to start, especially if Trenton Thompson continues to be hampered by the hamstring problem. He continued to get his hand on passes throughout day 2 and he’s physically ready to see the field a lot this year.

-Freshman War Darren Hall is sporting the No. 23 jersey and he looks a lot like Damontae Kazee when it comes to how often he takes chances and guesses on routes. He guesses wrong much more often than Kazee did, but the instincts are definitely there. He also has similar recovering speed to Kazee when he does mess up at this stage.

-I’m generally starting to look at the Aztec position differently this days. Nat Berhe sort of spoiled everyone with his coverage skills mixed with his tackling/run stopping ability. The main three Aztec safeties now - Parker Baldwin, Dwayne Johnson, Will Stricklin - are definitely run first safeties and a work in progress as cover guys.

Baldwin is definitely better than the rest at staying with receivers and breaking on the ball but for the most part, the Aztecs don’t flip their hips as well as the rest of the DBs so they don’t do all that well during non-padded practices. They’ll perform much better when they’re able to play like the hybrid linebackers they really are.
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Day 4 quick note

Only note after today was that Quest Truxton started practice with tape on his hamstring but he only made it about a quarter through. Likely another day to day thing.

No worries. Fred Trevillion and Tim Wilson had very very strong practices in the absence of Holder and Truxton.

Also on my way home, right after I just interviewed Ron Smith post practixe, he was on 1090 doing a radio interview. If you guys remember, I posted on here back when he committed that he was a very bright, likeable kid. On the radio tonight he was asked some off the wall questions and he handled it very well. You guys will be fans of him for sure.

Camp starts tonight

Camp is here and I feel like I’m coming out of hibernation.

This is probably one of the best portions of the year to be subscribed to this site because I know it’s one of the most exciting for me.

Practice times are a bit wonky so you’ll be getting updates at different parts of the day for the next month. Most practice start times are for 730 PM (like tonight) and 300 PM (like tomorrow) and there are a few morning sessions. This is good for you guys with 9-5 that want to come out and watch compared to previous camps.

I’ll be posting the usual camp player evaluations on this board along with just general offensive and defensive observations and news/injuries. Practice videos will be posted after this (usually by the following morning) along with stories on the team and players.

It feels like schools around the country are getting more and more restrictive about media access but I’m getting the impression that things won’t change much with ASR and SDSU this year.

I’ll be able to film the first few practices in their entirety but that’s only because there will be little contact drills and not much team periods where play calls and formations can be identified. So things will get more limited as the season approaches but you guys should be getting a ton of updates from me no matter what.

With the way things usually work, most of the video clips will be of the skill position players during the first week since the interior players won’t be wearing full pads until this Saturday. I anticipate getting a lot of telling footage of the skill players since the defensive secondary depth will be a big storyline all camp, joining the play of the quarterbacks and the tracking of the up and coming receivers and running backs in the program (most notably the abundance of freshman).

I feel like I got a good idea of how this camp is going to go but if there are any unique storylines you’d like for me to get on, feel free to post them on the board. I always appreciate replies and questions on my camp reports because sometimes I’ll leave stuff out and other times I’ll make sure to keep note of things I missed during the following practice.

If I don’t respond immediately, it’s likely because the first few practices of camp are pretty hard to cover. There are over 100 guys on the field with new numbers and I’m standing out there facing the sun trying to film and jot down notes at the same time.

So if you ask a question about an offensive lineman after day one I probably won’t be able to give a detailed response that night. I’ll be sure to keep an eye on him/them during the next practice, however.

My goal is to post enough information on camp reports so you guys aren’t left wondering about any topics/players I missed but I know that’s pretty much impossible with so much stuff going on in a short span of two hours. There is a big pay off with the overall knowledge of the team, especially if you’ve been a long time subscriber to this site who is able to track the progression/development of particular players though the camp reports.

We saw it this past spring with the improvements from guys like DE Myles Cheatum, DB Kyree Woods, TE Parker Houston and OL Derrick Achayo to the out-of-nowhere standouts like OT Tyler Roemer and WR Fred Trevillion.

The same could be said for the guys that struggled, such as QB Ryan Agnew, S Dwayne Johnson and even projected starting cornerback Ron Smith. I was honest about their inconsistent play throughout spring camp, just like I was with TE Darryl Richardson throughout his career when everyone was saying he would become a great receiving tight end while I was posting that his hands weren’t going to let him get on the field.

That may have came off as harsh but once Richardson showed improvement with his pass catching this past spring, I was sure to repeatedlymake that clear during my reports because he deserved it. I feel like I did the same with Achayo too.

So I’ll continue to be honest on the board and share as much information as possible but at the same time, you have to remember that these are just practices. There is such a thing as “practice All-Americans” - players who dominate during camp but do nothing during the season. It happens all the time and I try to be wary of that (such as when I hype up Roemer, Trevillion etc. as future all-conference players) but hey, practice is all I got to work with so I’ll just keep trying to do my best with it.

Note: I’ll probably have a general write up on the front page after practice number one late tonight but my camp report probably won’t be up until early next morning with videos being uploaded throughout the day.

Good job on the 2017 offensive line article

Think you pretty much covered all the bases Ruben. I am always a little bit confused by the depth chart on goaztecs.com before the season starts. For instance showing Achayo as backup at left tackle instead of backup at center. Whereto me your depth chart makes a lot more sense.
I suppose it will not finally shake down until we see how Salcedo and Ishmael recover from their injuries fully. I am also curious to see if Garrison a walk on JC guard might fit in on the depth chart. I thought he was a very good JC player. In one scrimmage I watched a Achayo or 'Shaka" as he likes to be called, did a good job at center which with Gerhard, gives us some depth there. His position in junior-college was left tackle so maybe that's why he's shown there on the depth chart. Both he and Gerhard are versatile guys particularly Gerhard. I think we have four pretty solid tackles, Roemer, Pope, Salcedo and either Gerhard or Shaka if we need them.
I'm more concerned about guard after Rosales, Dixon didn't seem to be as advanced as I hoped for, Ishmael was not playing at full speed.

Quick notes after day 2

Take a deep breath, no new injuries.

Mikah Holder and Trenton Thompson did sit out again though.

It's also worth noting that seeing David Wells walk/limp on the field doesn't really give me the impression that he will get cleared to practice next week, as Rocky said. I'm not saying Rocky was intentionally downplaying the foot injury but it's probably a little more serious then he may have led on. I can see him sitting out the UC Davis game even since SDSU is such a big favorite.

That said Darryl Richardson has been sharp and i fully expect Parker Houston to kill it this year. He's a very tough cover.

Since it was asked, I jotted down some of the kick returners that I saw out there:

Juwan Washington, Chax Collins
Rashaad Penny, Chance Bell
Ethan Dedeaux, Kyre Richardson

There was a small rumble today, the first of camp, after Quest Truxton ran a route down field and got his jersey tugged on by DB Jerry Chaney. Truxton gave up on the ball and very kindly asked Chaney - and I'm paraphrasing - to stop holding him. A shoving match started and ended with Truxton's helmet getting tossed to the ground. Things cooled down and practice went on.

It's worth mentioning since Truxton getting held is probably an ongoing thing. It sort of speaks to how dangerous he has been as a wide receiver this spring and now fall. The media chatted with him afterward and he did great. Came off as very motivated and competitive. He's going to be well recognized by fans by midseason.

Day 1 camp report

Other than the injury news and getting a first look at some players, nothing too exciting happened during SDSU’s first practice on Tuesday night.

They did one period of 1v1s and two periods on 7v7s but most of practice was position work, a lot of offense/defense only periods and a little bit of special teams coverages units.

Starting with the quarterbacks, it was pretty clear that Chris Laviano got the majority of the reps as the No. 2 QB. For those of you who haven’t seen him, you might be a little surprised with his size. He’s big, but not long and built more like Ryan Katz was a couple of seasons ago. He’s just a little bit taller than Christian Chapman but he definitely has a stronger, bulkier build.

His arm strength is legit. He didn’t air it out too much on day 1 but you’ll definitely be seeing people mentioning his “zip” on the ball on short to intermediate throws.

SDSU worked almost exclusively on play action passes during offense only periods and Chapman and Laviano are clearly the best throwers on the run at this point. Chapman’s passes are always tight spirals that the receivers can make a play on while Laviano’s accuracy is a little bit rattly and tougher to handle.

I really liked seeing how both of them put an emphasis on getting the ball out quickly too. Chapman’s release does seem a little more quicker and sudden once he makes a decision and the ball really rips out of his hand. Laviano’s throwing motion is more forced but it works well for him. His passes have more of a downward motion to them since his arm is strong enough to get the ball far without needing much air underneath them.

Ryan Agnew has improved since last fall thanks to his reps this past spring but his accuracy issues in the 20 yards and shorter range continue to be his main issue. He throws a very pretty deep ball when necessary but his completion rate on short to intermediate throws still leaves a lot to be desired.

It’s going to take time to get used to Quest Truxton’s new No. 8 jersey but you’ll definitely be seeing him make a lot of plays this year if the pass protection holds up. Truxton started fall right where he left off last spring by being the best receiver out there. He caught every catchable pass thrown his way and he was the best receiver at getting separation. He’s a hard cutter and his head fakes really help him out on double moves. He gave CB Ron Smith a very hard time on Monday but I’m looking forward to seeing him matchup more with Kam Kelly moving forward.

I feel pretty similar about Fred Trevillion in terms of his spring-to-fall camp development. He’s still a little more inconsistent than you’d like, but when he’s at his best, he’s definitely a top-three receiver on this team. By that I mean when he’s running his route at full speed, concentrating on the ball, extending his arms and then making moves after the catch, Trevillion’s one of the most exciting players to watch. There are too many plays where he lapses in one of those aforementioned areas. If he plays at his highest level during the season he will definitely contribute.

Tim Wilson and Isaiah Macklin are going to get compared a lot during their careers since they’re the same grad year and are both known as the tall guys SDSU hyped up. Wilson continues to look like the more overall complete player with good speed while Macklin’s more of a wild card and sort of a one dimensional player at this point. Macklin is extremely good at making catches deep down the field because he uses his body to screen off smaller DBs so well. This is what exactly what Rocky wants to keep the defense from playing eight man fronts so I think he’ll overlook Macklin’s hands if it means getting him on to stretch the field.

Wilson on the other hand is more of a quick twicth player that can make catches in short field spaces and his hands are more consistent.

The freshman that stood out on day one was Isaiah Richardson. He’s built much better than I thought with the potential to grow into an Ezell Ruffin type of body. He’s an extremely smooth runner and his hands, body control and catching radius really caught my eye. I can see why Hunkier Cooper took a chance on him when a lot of Pac-12 schools backed off due to a broken bone in his leg. He doesn’t look like he has an injury history at all and will be one freshman to track moving forward.

Two new walkon receivers that stood out were (85) Chaz Collins and (83) Alex Wilson. Collins is a Lloyd Mills type of quick receiver while Wilson was just a flat out load to cover at times. He looks like a walk-on still based off my first impression and will definitely help the scout team out this year.

Continuing with the skill guys, Kameron Kelly had an amazing day one. First off, he made it clear that he’s the vocal leader on this team. He got everyone focused when the defense went out for its first reps during 7v7s and gave instruction to teammates when he was on the sidelines. Kelly also made a lot of plays on passes, including one pick and a handful of breakups. He has terrific top end speed and he’s looking like he will be the playmaker that this young secondary absolutely needs.

I also noticed that he’s at his best when he’s playing off coverage at this point, but I think that’s just natural for him since he moved over from safety.

If you were going to ask which corner looks the most like Damontae Kazee, I’d point to Kyree Woods. He’s in a good spot as the No. 3 corner and he deserves it. His technique is on point and he’s very patient when it comes to letting the receivers run toward him. He’s able to do it well because he trusts his breaking speed enough to make a last second play on the ball once the receiver makes his cut.

Another DB who had a strong showing was safety Dwayne Parchment. He has always been a great athlete but his ball skills were lacking. Like Kelly, he broke up a ton of passes and looking comfortable making his reactions to routes and picking up receivers in his zone. I think he will become a legitimate challenger for Trenton Thompson’s starting spot. At the very least, he’ll play a big role in the rotation with Liam Cabrera.

CB Jeff Clay has moved over from safety and he’s also a work in progress. He’s a great athlete but you can tell he’s learning how to explode off his breaks a bit quicker. Right now he’s very hesitant and freezes a little.

Another walkon that made some eye opening plays was CB Adison Umrarong. Fast and physical.

I played close attention to safety Dwayne Johnson to see if his man to man skills improved at all and during his first rep of 1v1s, TE Darryl Richardson ran past him up the seam for an easy completion over the top. It’s still a work in progress with Johnson, even though he’s a solid tackler against the run. It’s also worth noting that Richardson had a very strong first day.

Edge rushers Jay Henderson and Randy Ricks continue to look like the most impressive frames on the team. They looked pretty smooth opening up their hips and getting into coverage too … but only up until they had to turn up the field and sprint it out with the quicker tight ends. They’re top end speed is the only thing lacking but that won’t be a big deal since they’ll mainly be rushing the passer when they’re on the field.

TE Kahale Warring just had an OK day but he’s definitely the fastest at his position, especially when he reaches that second gear. He burned Parker Baldwin on a crossing route (Baldwin recovered and made a play on the ball but only because Agnew threw it behind him).

Parker Houston has added a lot of good weight on him while Nick Bawden looks like he’s in fantastic shape. His speed has DEFINITELY improved too. Wouldn’t be surprised if Chapman gets it to him in the flat more often this year if he has space.

Some of the offensive line lineups I spotted yesterday (from left to right)

Tyler Roemer, Daishawn Dixon, Keith Ismael, Antonio Rosales, Joe Salcedo.


Tyler Roemer, Daishawn Dixon, Keith Ismael, Antonio Rosales, Ryan Pope.


Kyle Spalding, Dominic Gudino, Nick Gerhard, Garrison Young, Douglas Tucker


Derrick Achayo, Dominic O’Brien Garrison Young, Ladji Bagayoko, Desmond Bessent


Derrick Achayo, Garrison young, Dominic Gudino, Ladji Bagayoko, Desmond Bessent


Kyle Spalding, Zach Thomas, Dominic Gudino, Garrison Young, Joe Salcedo


As you can see, Mike Schmidt is trying to get players to get experience all over the line. This won’t really get settled into the last few practices of camp, most likely.

The biggest surprise was seeing Daishawn Dixon with the first team though, considering his struggles in the spring. He actually moved much better on Day 1 but I want to see how he holds up.

You should also take comfort in the fact that Antonio Rosales has really taken lead of the OL. He never seemed like an outspoken guy but I caught him giving advice to the young guys and even sprinting from drill to drill at times.

I'll try to get more of an idea of the depth chart spots with the RB group and LBs today.

Quick post practice notes (injuries & roster change)

LBs Ronley Lakalaka, Kyavah Tezino and Jay Henderson were with the first team defense.

Ryan Pope and Joe Salcedo split reps at rght tackle but Pope got more first team reps. Former TE Kyle Spalding got a lot of second team action at left tackle.

First team left tackle was Tyler Roemer.

Daishawn Dixon got reps at left guard with the first team

Keith Ismael got reps at center with the first team.

Antonio Rosales was obviously at right guard.

Second team was from left to right:

Kyle Spalding, Dominic Gudino, Garrison Young, Nick Gerhard, Joe Salcedo

Expect a lot of changes throughout camp

Injured/hurt players seen with Adam Hall:

S Trenton Thompson....So walkon Israel Cabrera got first team reps.

DE Anthony Luke wasnt with Coach Hall but he was standing with the DE group.

WR Mikah Holder .... So WR Fred Trevilion was with the first team. Holder's injury is interesting since I thought he would get healthy during the summer.

Also didn't see TE David Wells.... So TE Darryl Richardson was with the first team and looked good.

Freshman WR Kyre Richardson.

Walk on WR Collin Andrews.

Kam Kelly is legit at corner. Had a great first day. So did Quest Truxton.

DBs got beat over the top a good amount.

2017 Walk-ons

We likely wont have confirmation until a fall roster surfaces, but here are a couple guys who should be new to the team this year and out on the practice field with the rest of the newcomers today.

RB - Vonathan Allen
WR/TE - Alex Wilson
OL - Garrison Young (JC)
DL - Jason Glass
DL/LB - Trevor Barnes
DB - Tyree Baker
K - Liam King

Nico

Nico Siragusa - G - Ravens
Ravens fourth-round OG Nico Siragusa has been diagnosed with a torn left ACL, MCL and PCL, and is done for the season.

Devastating. The No. 122 overall pick had been getting some first-team reps at the Ravens' unsettled left guard position. Now he'll be settling in for what will probably be a year-long rehab. Siragusa has impressive college film and measurables, but was old for a rookie. He will be a 24-year-old sophomore with a shredded knee in 2018. Enduring an unfathomable run of injuries, the Ravens have lost sevenplayers for the season since June 1.

Too bad, since he was working with the first unit.
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