Ok ladies and gents- day three is in the books. Here's the low-down:
Offense:
1) Quarterbacks- according to the coaching staff Wilson has had the most completions of any of the other quarterbacks the past 2 practices (won't know for sure how he did today until Tuesday). As we've talked about (and I think most everyone agrees) it's nice that Wilson can look so sharp during practice, but the last few years it's done Utah little good in games where he tends to shrivel up and lose confidence for one reason or another. Wilson's true test won't come until the season. It's rather unfortunate that Thompson isn't fully able to compete this spring because fall camp last year was really fun between those two. Cox looked good running the ball today but missed a lot of passes. His potential is so outstanding in my eyes but he has got to be able to do everything consistently day in and day out. Manning as always has some of the prettiest throws of any of the quarterbacks. Basically what it comes down to is that right now it's Wilson and then everyone else. Who is going to step up? It's still a mystery after day 3.
2) Running backs- Booker probably had his best day so far in camp and lets just say he's still the champ. Provided there are no injuries and the line performs as good or better this year expect more of the same from him. McCormick seemed a little more corralled today but he still had his moments. He had a really nice play off a reverse and then later had Jason Fanaika cussing him out because he burned him. Poole has earned high praise from OC Aaron Roderick for being outstanding playing in the slot. Roderick said Poole is one of the most diverse players Utah has and it's a shame he was a little forgotten last season.
3) Receivers- Raelon Singleton may be the guy no one was really paying attention to before practice started that you need to be paying attention to. This guy has looked great since the first practice and he's steadily getting better which is no surprise since he's comes from good blood. (Ute great Brian Johnson's cousin.) Also looking good today was Kenric Young and Jameson Field. Delshawn McClellon made a beautiful catch down the sideline off a Wilson pass. Earning praise from Whittingham for picking up quick on what's expected of him is freshman receiver Tyrone Smith. Whitt also mentioned that Tim Patrick is expected back about halfway through spring ball. Kenneth Scott was held out today for percautionary reasons only. Coaches feel like they know what they have in Scott and there was no reason to push him, plus it gave some of the younger guys a chance to really show what they can do.
4) Tightends- no one in particular really stood out today, but Roderick was quick to praise the whole group for working hard and showing well the first three days of camp. There was one particular play where I noticed Evan Moeai doing an outstanding job blocking for Wilson which allowed him to bust free and run for it. Those are the little things the coaches will be looking for from the tightends in determining who one and two wil be. They certainly have some big shoes to fill.
5) Offensive line- these guys appear to be coming together nicely which is to be expected with so much returning talent. I don't think the coaches have determined a line-up just yet as they are moving a couple of guys around to find the best fit. I did get a chance to observe Jackson Barton playing left tackle for a bit and boy does he have nice feet. He was able to absorb the initial push from the defensive end and plant himself very well allowing the quarterbacks time to make reads.
Defense:
1) Defensive line- much like the offensive line these guys are starting to gel nicely but there are still decisions to be made on what the final line-up may be looking like. Pita Taumoepenu had a good day at defensive end. In fact he was playing so hard today that his practice jersey was in shreds by the end of practice. Jason Fanaika also was playing very well and as I mentioned before was quick to show his competitive nature when McCormick managed to get around him. Hunter Dimick looks poised to be THE guy now that Nate Orchard has graduated and Filipo Mokofisi is just a monster on that line for Utah.
2) Linebackers- Whittingham is happy about his depth at linebacker and says it's coming along. Norris was cleared for full contact today (Thursday it was said this wouldn't happen till Tuesday.) Norris wasted no time getting back in the groove of things laying a nasty hit on Chase Loftin. Uaea Masina had a scoop and score off a tipped pass during 11 on 11 and freshman Austin Lee and Jake Jackson look to be getting established in the group.
3) Cornerbacks- this group spent a good chunk of the day working on footwork and looking for the ball. For a little guy Justin Thomas has a pretty nice vertical and he's certainly not afraid to go up against guys bigger than him for the ball. Dominique Hatfield appeared to be having a better day today, but Reggie Porter didn't appear to be as sharp as the first two days (to be expected since spring is still a recovery process for him). Boobie Hobbs also looks to be making strides and should develop into a very good player for Utah.
4) Safeties- it was a little bit of a quiet day again for these guys but I was able to observe a few things. Jason Thompson can really follow where the ball is going pretty well which most likely can be attributed to him playing quarterback and knowing how they think. He's such an interesting case and I'm personally looking forward to watching his progression through spring. Marcus Williams did a really nice job disrupting Bubba Poole during one route. It's sometimes hard to believe he's just a true sophomore and that people were calling for his head after his first start. The progression he's made since then is almost unbelievable.
Offense:
1) Quarterbacks- according to the coaching staff Wilson has had the most completions of any of the other quarterbacks the past 2 practices (won't know for sure how he did today until Tuesday). As we've talked about (and I think most everyone agrees) it's nice that Wilson can look so sharp during practice, but the last few years it's done Utah little good in games where he tends to shrivel up and lose confidence for one reason or another. Wilson's true test won't come until the season. It's rather unfortunate that Thompson isn't fully able to compete this spring because fall camp last year was really fun between those two. Cox looked good running the ball today but missed a lot of passes. His potential is so outstanding in my eyes but he has got to be able to do everything consistently day in and day out. Manning as always has some of the prettiest throws of any of the quarterbacks. Basically what it comes down to is that right now it's Wilson and then everyone else. Who is going to step up? It's still a mystery after day 3.
2) Running backs- Booker probably had his best day so far in camp and lets just say he's still the champ. Provided there are no injuries and the line performs as good or better this year expect more of the same from him. McCormick seemed a little more corralled today but he still had his moments. He had a really nice play off a reverse and then later had Jason Fanaika cussing him out because he burned him. Poole has earned high praise from OC Aaron Roderick for being outstanding playing in the slot. Roderick said Poole is one of the most diverse players Utah has and it's a shame he was a little forgotten last season.
3) Receivers- Raelon Singleton may be the guy no one was really paying attention to before practice started that you need to be paying attention to. This guy has looked great since the first practice and he's steadily getting better which is no surprise since he's comes from good blood. (Ute great Brian Johnson's cousin.) Also looking good today was Kenric Young and Jameson Field. Delshawn McClellon made a beautiful catch down the sideline off a Wilson pass. Earning praise from Whittingham for picking up quick on what's expected of him is freshman receiver Tyrone Smith. Whitt also mentioned that Tim Patrick is expected back about halfway through spring ball. Kenneth Scott was held out today for percautionary reasons only. Coaches feel like they know what they have in Scott and there was no reason to push him, plus it gave some of the younger guys a chance to really show what they can do.
4) Tightends- no one in particular really stood out today, but Roderick was quick to praise the whole group for working hard and showing well the first three days of camp. There was one particular play where I noticed Evan Moeai doing an outstanding job blocking for Wilson which allowed him to bust free and run for it. Those are the little things the coaches will be looking for from the tightends in determining who one and two wil be. They certainly have some big shoes to fill.
5) Offensive line- these guys appear to be coming together nicely which is to be expected with so much returning talent. I don't think the coaches have determined a line-up just yet as they are moving a couple of guys around to find the best fit. I did get a chance to observe Jackson Barton playing left tackle for a bit and boy does he have nice feet. He was able to absorb the initial push from the defensive end and plant himself very well allowing the quarterbacks time to make reads.
Defense:
1) Defensive line- much like the offensive line these guys are starting to gel nicely but there are still decisions to be made on what the final line-up may be looking like. Pita Taumoepenu had a good day at defensive end. In fact he was playing so hard today that his practice jersey was in shreds by the end of practice. Jason Fanaika also was playing very well and as I mentioned before was quick to show his competitive nature when McCormick managed to get around him. Hunter Dimick looks poised to be THE guy now that Nate Orchard has graduated and Filipo Mokofisi is just a monster on that line for Utah.
2) Linebackers- Whittingham is happy about his depth at linebacker and says it's coming along. Norris was cleared for full contact today (Thursday it was said this wouldn't happen till Tuesday.) Norris wasted no time getting back in the groove of things laying a nasty hit on Chase Loftin. Uaea Masina had a scoop and score off a tipped pass during 11 on 11 and freshman Austin Lee and Jake Jackson look to be getting established in the group.
3) Cornerbacks- this group spent a good chunk of the day working on footwork and looking for the ball. For a little guy Justin Thomas has a pretty nice vertical and he's certainly not afraid to go up against guys bigger than him for the ball. Dominique Hatfield appeared to be having a better day today, but Reggie Porter didn't appear to be as sharp as the first two days (to be expected since spring is still a recovery process for him). Boobie Hobbs also looks to be making strides and should develop into a very good player for Utah.
4) Safeties- it was a little bit of a quiet day again for these guys but I was able to observe a few things. Jason Thompson can really follow where the ball is going pretty well which most likely can be attributed to him playing quarterback and knowing how they think. He's such an interesting case and I'm personally looking forward to watching his progression through spring. Marcus Williams did a really nice job disrupting Bubba Poole during one route. It's sometimes hard to believe he's just a true sophomore and that people were calling for his head after his first start. The progression he's made since then is almost unbelievable.
