Practice Notes 3/12/2011

Practice Notes: 3/12/2011

Day started out warm, but got a little colder as practice began. Definitely had a long practice today, you can tell the staff is working hard to get these guys up to speed, they seem to have a long way to go in some areas. A lot of inexperience on this team right now, at almost every position but the O and D lines and Receivers and Linebackers.

Offense-

Continue to be impressed with Thretton Palamo as a runner, still has a lot to learn but the natural ability and instincts are definitely there. John White is talented but needs time to refine, same with Langi. Physically, both are ready to compete, but both need to learn the cuts, develop better as blockers, and work on technique, White especially as far as his ball carrying goes. Luke Matthews probably is in the lead though right now, much more advanced across the board then the rest of the RBs. Very fluid runner. Also impressive is the depth at Wide Receiver, Devonte Christopher is definitely the anchor but teams won’t be able to double him due to the talent at other positions. Westlee Tonga, Kendrick Moeai, and Jake Murphy are talented, Murphy was very impressive, and I would be surprised if he wasn’t in contention to start in the fall. Boo Anderson looked good today, he won’t blow you away with his athleticism but he gets the job done well. O line needs some work with the twos, Ones seemed pretty on top of things. Tyler Shreve might have the edge on Griff Robles coming out of spring, made some pretty throws, definitely a gunslinger, drop back guy, good footwork, needs to improve his decision making, but you can see why they were so high on him when they signed him. Robles looks like he might have the edge on Shreve in terms of being more calm under pressure, and throws much better when he is on the run as opposed to in the pocket. Both made a few bad throws, Robles is pretty effective with his feet. Mostly under center stuff, saw a little pistol, but if this was the old Utah spread, I think Robles would be pretty fun to watch running the ball. Could see him doing that in short yardage and goal line.

Defense-

Defensive line is awesome. Star Lotolelei and James Aiono like strong, big, and effective, and look like they will work well together. I think the biggest reason Aiono didn’t play much last fall was physically he wasn’t quite big enough to man the middle, but they certainly looked good today. Ends are reliable, I think the move for Kruger will be good, they might have a hard time chasing down speedy quarterbacks from behind though. Developing depth will be a key, Joape Pela is a big mound of unmovable man, and Tevita Finau should benefit from more time in the system. Linebackers looked good in team, not as much in individual, very impressed with Trevor Reilly, and think he will be a major factor come fall. Blechen has adjusted well, probably still needs to get a little more stout, but that will come with time. Martinez and Walker are heart and hustle guys, VJ Fehoko didn’t have a terrific practice, might still be adjusting to the system and learning how to use his body. That sounds like an excuse, but some guys take more time than others. We’ll see how he looks in fall camp. Defensive backfield looks strong, athletic, aggressive, but definitely inexperienced. Coach Scalley had to make a lot of the calls when they would break formation, and it wasn’t like the offense was doing that complicated of stuff with their formations. Damien Payne and Michael Walker both look like they could develop quite nicely, Walker is a hitter, and had a pretty good thump on an RB in team session, and Payne made a nice play to intercept a tipped ball. Terrell Reese certainly looks the part of a starting corner, caught my eye on several occasions, same with Lucky Radley, and Jamal Scott, to an extent. Konroy Black has that same kind of swagger we’ve seen in past DBs in Utah’s system, he needs to have a good spring to solidify his starting spot.

Bottom Line-

This is a talent-laden, raw, developing team. They have a lot of guys that could be REALLY good, and they have a lot of guys that need to work hard and really develop their talent in order to be competitive. I thought the effort today was decent, focus was there, but I expected a little more excitement out of the guys for the first day in pads, especially after a rowdy pre practice Oklahoma drill, and the offense wasn’t nearly as crisp as Thursday, I’d almost say at times they were sloppy. Bottom line is this, a lot of young guys that are worth getting excited about, but they have a long, long way to go before making any kind of statements or claims, let alone being competitive in the Pac-12.