All I can say is the guys are just really stinkin' eager to hit somebody else in a real game. Here are a few things from today's practice, along with notes from the Whittingham interview mixed in:
Practice--
-First team D, spent the media session inside, while the offense was outside against the scout team.
-From what I saw today, Huntley was a little long on the deep ball, but they were effective in the short passing game. In Taylor's system, expect the tight ends to be used frequently on the short/quick passes.
-The team focused on punt return with Hobbs, Blackmon, Singleton, and Riley Richmond all getting reps. Hobbs, had a no doubt TD, with great blocking by his guys and the other guys showed nice burst and vision too. That being said, they weren't practicing in full pads.
-Since we can't really go into details, the special teams unit was working on a different alignment today. I didn't see them take any reps to it, but the coaches spent a good 7-10 minutes barking out the instructions on the how it was supposed to go down.
-I believe Andrew already mentioned something similar, but Carrington once again was getting work in at the jugs machine during practice. He's definitely one that likes to challenge himself, standing closer to the machine than the other. His focus and hands are pretty impressive. A portion of the time, he even had teammates slapping at each catch.
Whittingham--
-Johnston and Gay are neck-and-neck, right now. They're being heavily evaluated from: makes, misses, distance, trajectory, timing--all the stuff that would excite our buddy, Joseph. Look for an announcement next week.
-Wishnowsky will handle kickoffs, something he's been excelling at.
-Kick returners are Hobbs (punt return) Fulks (kick returner).
-They're excited and comfortable with their top eight receivers. He's beyond impressed with their growth and development.
-Aside from his running ability, Huntley also had the highest completion percentage during fall camp. Whitt called Huntley, "fearless" and he praised the work Troy Taylor has been able to do with him.
-If any player feels less than 100% for the North Dakota game, they won't play, regardless (In my opinion, I don't anticipate Hansen playing). Even without Hansen, Whitt was extremely high on Blair and Afia. Blair played a lot of linebacker last year, but he's transitioned extremely well to strong safety. Afia has also shined, in Whitt's eyes.
Practice--
-First team D, spent the media session inside, while the offense was outside against the scout team.
-From what I saw today, Huntley was a little long on the deep ball, but they were effective in the short passing game. In Taylor's system, expect the tight ends to be used frequently on the short/quick passes.
-The team focused on punt return with Hobbs, Blackmon, Singleton, and Riley Richmond all getting reps. Hobbs, had a no doubt TD, with great blocking by his guys and the other guys showed nice burst and vision too. That being said, they weren't practicing in full pads.
-Since we can't really go into details, the special teams unit was working on a different alignment today. I didn't see them take any reps to it, but the coaches spent a good 7-10 minutes barking out the instructions on the how it was supposed to go down.
-I believe Andrew already mentioned something similar, but Carrington once again was getting work in at the jugs machine during practice. He's definitely one that likes to challenge himself, standing closer to the machine than the other. His focus and hands are pretty impressive. A portion of the time, he even had teammates slapping at each catch.
Whittingham--
-Johnston and Gay are neck-and-neck, right now. They're being heavily evaluated from: makes, misses, distance, trajectory, timing--all the stuff that would excite our buddy, Joseph. Look for an announcement next week.
-Wishnowsky will handle kickoffs, something he's been excelling at.
-Kick returners are Hobbs (punt return) Fulks (kick returner).
-They're excited and comfortable with their top eight receivers. He's beyond impressed with their growth and development.
-Aside from his running ability, Huntley also had the highest completion percentage during fall camp. Whitt called Huntley, "fearless" and he praised the work Troy Taylor has been able to do with him.
-If any player feels less than 100% for the North Dakota game, they won't play, regardless (In my opinion, I don't anticipate Hansen playing). Even without Hansen, Whitt was extremely high on Blair and Afia. Blair played a lot of linebacker last year, but he's transitioned extremely well to strong safety. Afia has also shined, in Whitt's eyes.
