I saw most of Saturday's practice. Unfortunately I had to leave before some of the late scrimmage fireworks noted in the writeup Josh Tolentino posted on Huskiewire (long TD run by Harbison, etc) but was able to see quite a bit. A few quick notes:

-Graham was not dressed today so Childers, Thompson and Hall took all the reps, in that order.

-I thought Childers looked solid and the first team reps appear to be doing him a world of good. He looked confident, had nice pocket presence, threw a pretty tight spiral and was accurate. He didn't complete every ball but no one does. How it translates to games we shall see but he looked the part of a number one QB today.

-Thompson and Hall did some nice things too but it's clear that Childers is the guy.

-I was really impressed with Nettles' quicks. His burst is unreal, reminiscent of Jaz Hopkins if that helps. It's great that they're working him at both receiver and tailback because they need to find ways to get him on the field.

-The number one O-line today was Scharping, Patton, Shively, Dale Brown, Steckler left to right. Hawn and Roberts were both nicked up so its unclear how that affected the right tackle situation. The number two O-line was Steckler, Olson, CJ Perez, Veloz, Dassow left to right. With so many guys competing it wouldn't surprise me to see the competition continue into the nonconference schedule this fall.

-I was pleasantly surprised with the wide receivers. It appears we may be in better shape there than I would have thought. We already know the upperclassmen can play, the question is how the freshmen will do. I thought Cole Tucker, Dennis Robinson, Juwan Denton and Leon Payne looked really good and all have a chance to contribute. Robinson and Denton can also provide some matchup problems, Robinson due to his size and Denton because he's built a lot sturdier than many wideouts. Really excited about this group, and maybe an incoming freshman or two can push for playing time this fall as well.

-I didn't pay a ton of attention to the defense today but it is easy to see why the coaches are excited about the young linebackers Jordan Cole, Rayshawn Gay and Danny Walker. Those guys have a chance to be really good.

-The overall team speed is pretty impressive. Guys at every position can really get after it.

-There were quite a few high school visitors today and some of those kids were gigantic. Come on down!

thanks for overview

(04-14-2018 08:58 PM)NIU1981 Wrote:  I saw most of Saturday's practice. Unfortunately I had to leave before some of the late scrimmage fireworks noted in the writeup Josh Tolentino posted on Huskiewire (long TD run by Harbison, etc) but was able to see quite a bit. A few quick notes:

-Graham was not dressed today so Childers, Thompson and Hall took all the reps, in that order.

-I thought Childers looked solid and the first team reps appear to be doing him a world of good. He looked confident, had nice pocket presence, threw a pretty tight spiral and was accurate. He didn't complete every ball but no one does. How it translates to games we shall see but he looked the part of a number one QB today.

-Thompson and Hall did some nice things too but it's clear that Childers is the guy.

-I was really impressed with Nettles' quicks. His burst is unreal, reminiscent of Jaz Hopkins if that helps. It's great that they're working him at both receiver and tailback because they need to find ways to get him on the field.

-The number one O-line today was Scharping, Patton, Shively, Dale Brown, Steckler left to right. Hawn and Roberts were both nicked up so its unclear how that affected the right tackle situation. The number two O-line was Steckler, Olson, CJ Perez, Veloz, Dassow left to right. With so many guys competing it wouldn't surprise me to see the competition continue into the nonconference schedule this fall.

-I was pleasantly surprised with the wide receivers. It appears we may be in better shape there than I would have thought. We already know the upperclassmen can play, the question is how the freshmen will do. I thought Cole Tucker, Dennis Robinson, Juwan Denton and Leon Payne looked really good and all have a chance to contribute. Robinson and Denton can also provide some matchup problems, Robinson due to his size and Denton because he's built a lot sturdier than many wideouts. Really excited about this group, and maybe an incoming freshman or two can push for playing time this fall as well.

-I didn't pay a ton of attention to the defense today but it is easy to see why the coaches are excited about the young linebackers Jordan Cole, Rayshawn Gay and Danny Walker. Those guys have a chance to be really good.

-The overall team speed is pretty impressive. Guys at every position can really get after it.

-There were quite a few high school visitors today and some of those kids were gigantic. Come on down!

Juwan Denton? Is this the same kid from Morgan Park that was recruited as a linebacker? Was he moved to WR?

Same kid. He played wideout at Morgan Park in addition to defensive end. He ran a 10.9 100 meters and 21.52 200 meters in high school.

Thanks for the post 81. The OLINE appears to be very loaded. Glad to hear about the receivers,Payne is the true Fr, I have high hopes for him. If Childers is the guy, Huskies will push for title.

Really appreciate the update 81. Season can't get here fast enough! Big fan of running backs and Harbison has the makings of a good one. If Childers improves even a reasonable amount from frosh to soph, Tears could be in for a special season. And even with JJ's departure, the D should keep things interesting (at a minimum) during the nonconference schedule and dominate in the MAC. Keep the updates coming!

Love to hear that Childers is improving.....

Appreciate 1981 recaps. They're the best

Nice to hear about Nettles at WR & RB. Really need to get the ball in hands of the playmakers.

Jet-Sweep jokes aside....Akeem Daniels was a guy who could make plays at both positions not too long ago.

Akeen Daniels and Josh Hopkins in same thread been years hearing those names. GREAT HUSKIES!

I like the attitude of our running backs. Should be a good year for them....
A Quarterbacks best friend is a strong running game.

http://www.daily-chronicle.com/2018/04/1...9/dv0xi19/

Thanks for the update 1981. Having day-drinks in Venice Beach today. Will taste a bit sweeter knowing our #1 QB is actually connecting his preseason passes downfield

It's early and yet to be proven, but it's great to see some optimism around here. I'm all for a run(not QB) first offense to set up the pass. Relieved to hear Williams is looking good. Thought he was inconsistent last year. He can be a huge boost to a young secondary.

(04-15-2018 10:30 AM)Rabid Squirrel Wrote:  It's early and yet to be proven, but it's great to see some optimism around here. I'm all for a run(not QB) first offense to set up the pass. Relieved to hear Williams is looking good. Thought he was inconsistent last year. He can be a huge boost to a young secondary.

Williams - very athletic, especially for a Safety. We could use a big year from him, expecting good things from him.

Thanks 81, great write up


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(04-15-2018 10:06 AM)BDB5yp Wrote:  I like the attitude of our running backs. Should be a good year for them....
A Quarterbacks best friend is a strong running game.

http://www.daily-chronicle.com/2018/04/1...9/dv0xi19/

Just as a RB’s best friend is a strong passing game particularly the deep pass. They go hand and hand. One of Huff’s best games last year was against SDSU. The effectiveness in passing game (deep passes) forced their D to change from 7 in the box. This opens up running lanes and short routes. This is what is need this year from Childers. If we are able to do this, given the strength/depth of our RBs, the offense can be very good.

Speaking of running backs, 1981 - did you notice anything from Jordan Rowell at practice? We’ve heard a lot of Nettles but nothing on Rowell yet. I was hoping he would be an early contributor. Is he still at RB or did he get moved to defense?


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(04-15-2018 12:19 PM)NIU32 Wrote:  Speaking of running backs, 1981 - did you notice anything from Jordan Rowell at practice? We’ve heard a lot of Nettles but nothing on Rowell yet. I was hoping he would be an early contributor. Is he still at RB or did he get moved to defense?


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I was not there for the whole thing so I don't know what Rowell might have done at the end of the scrimmage. He's still at running back and I noticed that he seems to be filling out some so that's good. Speaking of filling out, Lorbeck looks a lot bigger to me. We'll find out when the post the updated weights in the fall.

Hopefully Childers is working on his long ball accuracy. Every pass attempt over 20 yards last year was a wasted down. That and an expanded play book would open up the offense.

Harbison looked good last year, even with his limited playing time. Reminds me of Spann. Hopefully he'll have a breakout year. We need another signature 1000 yard running back,

(04-15-2018 12:23 PM)NIU1981 Wrote:  

(04-15-2018 12:19 PM)NIU32 Wrote:  Speaking of running backs, 1981 - did you notice anything from Jordan Rowell at practice? We’ve heard a lot of Nettles but nothing on Rowell yet. I was hoping he would be an early contributor. Is he still at RB or did he get moved to defense?


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I was not there for the whole thing so I don't know what Rowell might have done at the end of the scrimmage. He's still at running back and I noticed that he seems to be filling out some so that's good. Speaking of filling out, Lorbeck looks a lot bigger to me. We'll find out when the post the updated weights in the fall.

Thanks 1981, good to hear both guys are filling out. Rowell will be an interesting guy to keep an eye on. Really curious to see where they use him. We seem pretty deep at RB and OLB and he’s an athlete you want to find a spot for


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I thought Williams showed flashes last season where he can be damn good. There’s tons of potential with him.