Checked in with the Second and Third Wisemen to see how practice has been through the initial two weeks. The team has a massive scrimmage on Saturday and the staff is hoping some more roles will become defined.Some points of note:
KEVIN WILSON-has been an absolute boon to the offense.The offense is getting back to having “fun”, which many have said hasn’t happened since Tom Herman left .A major issue has been Ed Warinner’s general fear of upsetting Coach Meyer, thus leading him to be too conservative and calling things he knows Urban likes. Wilson, however, is the opposite of scared of Urban.He even remarked to an onlooker “What is Coach Meyer going to do?Fire me?”. That drew some serious chuckles, and people appreciate how confident and comfortable Kevin is in his own skin.MONUMENTAL difference between now and the last two years under Ed Warinner. Ed was a good OL coach, but he ended up at Minnesota for a reason…
JT BARRETT-JT has been adjusting to the new route concepts, but the Ryan Day impact is very very clear to this point. Ryan and Kevin Wilson have been on JT about distributing the ball, and he has responded by improving dramatically. JT has also made strides in recognizing “best matchups” (more on that later), and has been told to take deep shots when the matchup is one in their favor (remember it is an all new secondary minus Damon Webb). Aside from “balance” (250 rushing/250 passing), Urban’s internal objective is to get JT more comfortable throwing the deep ball…
J.K. DOBBINS- JK has been a force since he stepped on campus (you generally don’t get to start in a coveted single digit number, but he did). JK has an “Ezekiel-like” feel for the game, and it has led him to lapping the incumbents. Most people within the program know this will be Mike Weber’s last year, so the competition will be one to watch through summer conditioning and fall camp. With no limit on his playing time, look for JK to make some noise in the spring game (he’ll be in #2). His burst is an upgrade over Mike’s, so look for much more of a timeshare in the backfield this year.With our new tempo(s), that’ll be critical.
The Third Wiseman thought comparisons would be a good way to explain the WR position.He REALLY knows the WR position, so his nuggets were very in depth:
BEN VICTOR-Mike Thomas. Ben has been a roller coaster this spring. The ability to “go get” the ball is tops on the team, but he has to start matching the effort of the Paris Campbells to start getting Meyer and Zach Smith’s adulation. One thing that is certain though is that he has been eating Damon Arnette’s lunch in both drills and team sessions .It is almost a running joke now that Ben is getting the ball in the matchup, as he has beaten him for some long gains in the past week. Not really a knock on Arnette, but it just shows that when Ben is confident (as he is versus Damon), he is a load to stop at the X receiver.
TERRY MCLAURIN-Evan Spencer- if you could splice Terry’s demeanor into Ben’s body, you’d have the top WR in the nation. Terry has been very consistent in the passing game, but has been a wrecking ball stalk blocking. He cut his teeth last year battling Gareon and Marshon, so now he gets to get after some of the new DBs (minus Damon Webb). Look for him to benefit from some targets to reward his blocking efforts. The Evan Spencer comparison is quite the compliment, as you remember he was the MVP of the 2014 National Title team (seems like forever ago, doesn’t it?)
PARRIS CAMPBELL-Urban Meyer has had glowing things to say about Parris this offseason, and these two weeks have been no different. Parris was personally challenged by Urban to become “the guy”. Parris has responded in a major way. He has become a pro in the same way Mike Thomas did at this point in his career. When it became apparent that he was going to start as the H, Ryan Day suggested to Parris that he should watch some of the things Jeremy Kerley did in the slot for the 49ers last year. Specifically, he mentioned the game versus Arizona where Kerley worked versus Patrick Peterson and had a line of 8 catches for 102 yards with a TD. Parris has worked hard to learn route running, and Kerley makes up for his deficiencies by being able to get open with technique versus a far superior athlete (getting open in the slot versus Patrick Peterson is a tough task). Since our offense shares a fair number of traits with Chip Kelly, this has been a good thing to study for the players. Parris has to become a force in the slot, and I believe he will…
MALCOLM PRIDGEON-Malcolm has been his own worst enemy thus far.One play, he looks like the guy who should be starting at right guard. The next play he will blow a protection and get the QB killed. Consistency and just know what to do versus the exotic fronts our defense has been running will go a long way in determining the amount of playing time he’ll earn. We need him to step up, and we needed it yesterday.
MATT BURRELL-GRADED OUT AS CHAMPION LAST SCRIMMAGE-he hit 82% last Saturday in a very tough scrimmage and has a lot of momentum right now. He has also been a roller coaster throughout his career, but he may be one of the late blooming gems that we seem to develop (Fragel, Baldwin, Farris, etc.).
DEFENSE
TYQUAN LEWIS-has been working a ton of standup/walk around Viper work .Runs a new “pick” stunt with BB Landers and it has been a huge issue for the OL, which means it will be tough on our opponents. Tyquan coming back was a very pleasant surprise to the staff, and he is aiming to cement being a 1st round pick
ROBERT LANDERS-playing Nose in the new odd defensive front (very similar to the 2014 Michigan look). We might not be seeing Michael Hill for a while, so Landers has a great opportunity to add some athleticism to the nose guard spot.
NICK BOSA-playing a ton of 3 technique to mix in with his end. His status has changed with Hill’s status, but he will still get plenty of work at the DE spot. Great luxury to have this year, as Sam and Tyquan with Landers and Bosa will be fun to watch and a nightmare to block.
MIKE HILL-SUSPENDED FOR FIRST SIX GAMES FOR "VIOLATION OF TEAM RULE" BEFORE THE FIESTA BOWL
KENDALL SHEFFIELD BAMA JUCO STRIPE OFF- been dominant at corner. Still the number two behind Ward, but has been a very tough matchup for our WRs. He and Jeff Okudah will likely round out the top of the three man rotation.
KEVIN WILSON-has been an absolute boon to the offense.The offense is getting back to having “fun”, which many have said hasn’t happened since Tom Herman left .A major issue has been Ed Warinner’s general fear of upsetting Coach Meyer, thus leading him to be too conservative and calling things he knows Urban likes. Wilson, however, is the opposite of scared of Urban.He even remarked to an onlooker “What is Coach Meyer going to do?Fire me?”. That drew some serious chuckles, and people appreciate how confident and comfortable Kevin is in his own skin.MONUMENTAL difference between now and the last two years under Ed Warinner. Ed was a good OL coach, but he ended up at Minnesota for a reason…
JT BARRETT-JT has been adjusting to the new route concepts, but the Ryan Day impact is very very clear to this point. Ryan and Kevin Wilson have been on JT about distributing the ball, and he has responded by improving dramatically. JT has also made strides in recognizing “best matchups” (more on that later), and has been told to take deep shots when the matchup is one in their favor (remember it is an all new secondary minus Damon Webb). Aside from “balance” (250 rushing/250 passing), Urban’s internal objective is to get JT more comfortable throwing the deep ball…
J.K. DOBBINS- JK has been a force since he stepped on campus (you generally don’t get to start in a coveted single digit number, but he did). JK has an “Ezekiel-like” feel for the game, and it has led him to lapping the incumbents. Most people within the program know this will be Mike Weber’s last year, so the competition will be one to watch through summer conditioning and fall camp. With no limit on his playing time, look for JK to make some noise in the spring game (he’ll be in #2). His burst is an upgrade over Mike’s, so look for much more of a timeshare in the backfield this year.With our new tempo(s), that’ll be critical.
The Third Wiseman thought comparisons would be a good way to explain the WR position.He REALLY knows the WR position, so his nuggets were very in depth:
BEN VICTOR-Mike Thomas. Ben has been a roller coaster this spring. The ability to “go get” the ball is tops on the team, but he has to start matching the effort of the Paris Campbells to start getting Meyer and Zach Smith’s adulation. One thing that is certain though is that he has been eating Damon Arnette’s lunch in both drills and team sessions .It is almost a running joke now that Ben is getting the ball in the matchup, as he has beaten him for some long gains in the past week. Not really a knock on Arnette, but it just shows that when Ben is confident (as he is versus Damon), he is a load to stop at the X receiver.
TERRY MCLAURIN-Evan Spencer- if you could splice Terry’s demeanor into Ben’s body, you’d have the top WR in the nation. Terry has been very consistent in the passing game, but has been a wrecking ball stalk blocking. He cut his teeth last year battling Gareon and Marshon, so now he gets to get after some of the new DBs (minus Damon Webb). Look for him to benefit from some targets to reward his blocking efforts. The Evan Spencer comparison is quite the compliment, as you remember he was the MVP of the 2014 National Title team (seems like forever ago, doesn’t it?)
PARRIS CAMPBELL-Urban Meyer has had glowing things to say about Parris this offseason, and these two weeks have been no different. Parris was personally challenged by Urban to become “the guy”. Parris has responded in a major way. He has become a pro in the same way Mike Thomas did at this point in his career. When it became apparent that he was going to start as the H, Ryan Day suggested to Parris that he should watch some of the things Jeremy Kerley did in the slot for the 49ers last year. Specifically, he mentioned the game versus Arizona where Kerley worked versus Patrick Peterson and had a line of 8 catches for 102 yards with a TD. Parris has worked hard to learn route running, and Kerley makes up for his deficiencies by being able to get open with technique versus a far superior athlete (getting open in the slot versus Patrick Peterson is a tough task). Since our offense shares a fair number of traits with Chip Kelly, this has been a good thing to study for the players. Parris has to become a force in the slot, and I believe he will…
MALCOLM PRIDGEON-Malcolm has been his own worst enemy thus far.One play, he looks like the guy who should be starting at right guard. The next play he will blow a protection and get the QB killed. Consistency and just know what to do versus the exotic fronts our defense has been running will go a long way in determining the amount of playing time he’ll earn. We need him to step up, and we needed it yesterday.
MATT BURRELL-GRADED OUT AS CHAMPION LAST SCRIMMAGE-he hit 82% last Saturday in a very tough scrimmage and has a lot of momentum right now. He has also been a roller coaster throughout his career, but he may be one of the late blooming gems that we seem to develop (Fragel, Baldwin, Farris, etc.).
DEFENSE
TYQUAN LEWIS-has been working a ton of standup/walk around Viper work .Runs a new “pick” stunt with BB Landers and it has been a huge issue for the OL, which means it will be tough on our opponents. Tyquan coming back was a very pleasant surprise to the staff, and he is aiming to cement being a 1st round pick
ROBERT LANDERS-playing Nose in the new odd defensive front (very similar to the 2014 Michigan look). We might not be seeing Michael Hill for a while, so Landers has a great opportunity to add some athleticism to the nose guard spot.
NICK BOSA-playing a ton of 3 technique to mix in with his end. His status has changed with Hill’s status, but he will still get plenty of work at the DE spot. Great luxury to have this year, as Sam and Tyquan with Landers and Bosa will be fun to watch and a nightmare to block.
MIKE HILL-SUSPENDED FOR FIRST SIX GAMES FOR "VIOLATION OF TEAM RULE" BEFORE THE FIESTA BOWL
KENDALL SHEFFIELD BAMA JUCO STRIPE OFF- been dominant at corner. Still the number two behind Ward, but has been a very tough matchup for our WRs. He and Jeff Okudah will likely round out the top of the three man rotation.
