SDSU’s second practice had a couple more special teams work done but there was still a lot of action going on for a team not playing in pads yet.
-On the QBs, my initial observations from Monday still stand. Christian Chapman won’t be challenged because he puts the ball on the money more than any of the other QBs do, combined. The only thing he still needs to improve with is his consistency throwing the deep ball. Every other throw is delivered in a good spot that is catchable and that’s why he’s the best fit for the offense.
-Now that Rocky has seen a bit of Brandon Jones in uniform I think it’s possible he’s now open to considering Jones as the backup QB as things stand. It’s pretty clear that Jones is an experienced guy and he’s quickly turned the backup battle into a true competition, otherwise Ryan Agnew would be the guy.
Most of you guys don’t go to practices I assume or watch the team warmups but after seeing Agnew for the past year the one thing I think will strike most fans on Saturday is that he throws wobbly balls at a surprisingly high rate and he does it enough to the point where some unnecessary drops happen. I don’t think it’s a huge deal, but long term I feel like those drops have added up. That said, his ball placement and timing with the receivers has improved over the past year. But when you consider that Jones has just stepped into the mix and has immediately shown a good feel for the receivers and decent accuracy and doesn’t have any glaring issues (like Agnew’s wobble issue), he should be considered as a legitimate option to step in for Chapman if anything were to ever happen.
I wrote in my primer that the QB depth was a little more worrisome than people may realize, but Jones’ arrival has eased that thought up a bit. We’ll see how Jones handles pressure and live tackling on Saturday.
-For those of you guys that are going to fanfest on Saturday I want you to be prepared for a practice-like viewing. There will be scrimmaging done but I doubt it will be anything like scrimmages in year’s past. Because of the scheduling issues with Qualcomm, Saturday will be SDSU’s first practice in full pads and it wouldn’t make sense to do a full on scrimmage on the first day. That said, I think the practice like setup will make for a better viewing experience since SDSU would probably run the ball 50+ times and sit Pumphrey for most of the snaps in a full scrimmage setting. If the Saturday plays out like I expect, fans will see fun one-on-one action between the WRs and DBs and OL vs. DL drills and exciting 7v7 action. It will also be a good way to see how the freshman and new team members look on the spot, rather than trying to follow all the action play by play in a scrimmage. We’ll see how it pans out.
-On the running backs, DJ Pumphrey continues to slice and dice the defense and there are no concerns with him. But when evaluating you have to focus on the areas for improvement and there are some I continue to notice when feeling out Juwan Washington and Rashaad Penny with their increased reps at tailback. They aren't huge issues but are worth considering and being aware of.
1) I don’t think Washington is very confident in his pass catching ability and that will limit his snaps this year in formations where he would be required to run a route out of the slot, something that Penny was asked to do last year and Washington is expected to fill in a bit for that role. But now I’m thinking that SDSU may be better off with just using a receiver there instead, whether it be Mikah or a guy like Jerry Chaney. Washington’s still very fast and will be a dangerous weapon this year but I’ll be surprised if he makes an impact in the passing game. Maybe he’ll make the jump that DJ made as a receiving threat down the line, though.
2) As for Penny, I’m having a growing feeling that we’ll see him become the victim of some fan frustration that Ronnie Hillman felt during his time with team. I’m referring to Hillman’s tendency to bounce outside far too often. I make the comparison because both are great athletes but sometimes the fail to show it when running horizontally and gaining zero yards. With Penny, he just needs to prove that he can trust the holes developing in front of him and burst through them instead of showing any hesitation. He also showed a little anxiousness when he mishandled Chapman’s handoff to him during a zone read run play that Trey Lomax easily recovered for a scoop and score.
Getting over that hump of confidence is the only thing holding Penny back, but I know he can do it because he kept on improving his inside runs as spring practices went on. Hopefully that will be the case heading into the season.
-On the receivers, Mikah Holder stole the show again. The way he snatches balls out from the air and his improved footwork after the catch will lead to some fun highlights this year. He’s going to juke his way for a couple big catch-and-runs.
I don’t know who the second receiver will be but Chase Favreau and Eric Judge are the clear frontrunners and it sounds like Coach Cooper is going to look for a 2nd receiver that can do it all instead of plugging in specific receivers for specific situations like he did last year (which becomes a bit predictable, ex. Cumberlander called in to run block). And he probably only did that because it was his first year, and he was using players he didn’t recruit. This is why it was so important for him to bring in two huge freshmen that have enough speed in them to help the team in all sorts of situations. What’s cool about Cooper is that he’s not going to pigeon hole Wilson or Macklin into becoming solely red zone threats, he’s going to make them straight up competitive receivers.
The tight ends won’t be released much because of the offense but I need to reiterate that Coach Horton should be confident when he does call a play for them with Wells and Warring at his disposal. Wells gets up and out into his routes very smoothly and I’d be shocked if Warring doesn’t see a good amount of snaps on the field this year. What separates him from most tight ends, and makes him stick out like Escobar did, is that he’s legitimate downfield threat. He looks like a natural receiver when tracking the ball down and fighting for it and I could even see him motioning out to the slot and running more complex routes with his ability. Now that I think about it he ran a corner route against Parker Baldwin during 7v7s and he was able to maintain separation with his speed while the ball was in the air. There was some touch on the pass so I actually figured Baldwin would close the gap on him at some point but Warring never let him catch up to his route.
-On the DL, it would be pretty easy for me to say that Sergio Phillips is going to have a big year but he won’t rack up many sacks or receive much praise from the press because his position on the field requires him to handle more of the brunt work and create easier jobs for those around him. That said, his hands seem more active and he’s been getting good leverage during team periods.
However, if you are looking to predict who will get a hefty bump in his stats, be prepared for Jay Henderson. A quick glance at the media guide and he somehow only finished last year with three tackles. Blasphemy, although he was at a different position. This year, Henderson is going to be in on every tackle and his “second effort” and pursuit of the QB and running backs are really going to stick out this season. I see a lot of production coming from him. He and Barrett are going to cause fits on that end of the line.
The best looking player up front is still Alex Barrett, who looked much quicker off the snap in spring and has kept it up since then. He’s made life miserable for Miller and Siragusa during pass blocking 1v1s.
I also noted that No. 55 had very good flexibility and quickness and I was not surprised to look up that it was Chibu Onyeukwu, the juco transfer I raved about last winter. I can see him being very useful doing stunts and twist for Coach Lawson this year. He’s a blur, albeit not very big.
-On the OL, it’s clear that this will be a very, very good run blocking unit. Every player in the starting line is extremely physical and will be able to execute their plays with sheer brunt force.
The newest starter, Antonio Rosales, deserves some extra praise because he really turned his career around. Remember, both he and Jordan Watson were dismissed from the team during last year’s spring camp and their return was pending on Rocky. Both did return, but as we learned yesterday Watson has been dismissed again and this time it seems final. Rosales, on the other hand, has stayed out of the dog house and worked his way up to a starting gig. I actually feel like he’s completely locked up his spot with his performance so far in camp, I don’t see any other lineman challenging him. He’s that good for such an inexperienced player.
-I also want to point out that Daniel Brunskill is actually better in pass-protection than he says he is. This could be because he’s lighter than the rest of the linemen, but his foot speed is actually very impressive and that allows him to position himself well and maintain his blocks throughout the play. I think his transition to tackle will be pretty smooth. Understanding the blocking schemes will be more of an obstacle for him than than matching up athletically is what I’m trying to say.
-Get excited for the new and improved Kwayde Miller. He looks fresh and comfortable moving around out there. I specifically watched him finish out plays that required him to run toward the second and third level, and he gets up field soooo much better than he did last fall. His back doesn’t seem to be holding him back at all at this stage so fans will finally get to see all of his potential this season.
