Just as a quick warning, I might jump from point to point but these are the notes I took while at student appreciation day on the offensive side of the ball.
The quarterbacks were out warming up before anybody else, and while it isn't exactly breaking news, Cardale Jones has the most arm strength I have ever seen. He was putting the ball on a dime from about 60 yards and looked like he was just flicking his wrist. He was getting enough height on the ball that he was just missing the rafters in the Woody Hayes while the ball still went 50-60 yards.
Dontre was out in pads, but he wasn't involved in any of the action outside of helping J.T. during some of the quarterback drills.Barrett looks fantastic throwing the ball and was a lot more mobile than when camp started a few weeks ago. Braxton was still limited in throwing the ball, didn't throw anything more than 15 yards that I saw so it was hard to assess where he is at.
He isn't going to play much, but Jeff Greene is huge. You don't realize how big he is (6' 5'') until he is next to the relatively short players like Jalin Marshall and others, but he towers over everybody in his unit and every defensive back. He didn't play well in the scrimmage portion of things-his hands aren't great-but if he can improve his height makes him a valuable asset.
Both Demetrius Knox and James Clark were in full pads but didn't take part in at least a portion of the team warmup. I'm not sure if they were involved in any of the other drills, but it didn't look like it.
Bri'onte Dunn looked big, in a good way and showed some flashes of speed as the top option at running back with Ezekiel Elliott out right now. He looks to have turned a corner and could have an impact if Curtis Samuel stays at the H-back long term. Warren Ball on the other hand didn't impress much, dropped a couple of easy passes and was relatively anonymous with the second team.
Parris Campbell was the standout of the day for me. He took first team snaps (we'll get to that in a little bit) throughout and looked really crisp running his routes, not to mention his outrageous speed.
Before getting into the offense v. defense portion of the practice, the team ran a few kick returns and the only two players to take it back were Jalin Marshall and Curtis Samuel. My prediction is that Marshall will stay as the punt returner and Samuel and Dontre will be the kick returners.
A number of players took first team snaps today: With Jones, Decker, Price, Vannett, Marshall and Elflein the guys that were comfortable entrenched in the starting lineup before today. The rest of the players who took first team snaps were Bri'onte Dunn, Corey Smith, Noah Brown, Parris Campbell and Terry McLauren. Of those, the most likely to start will be Corey Smith, but don't count out Noah Brown making a big impact next season as well, it was clear why people have been raving about him all spring.
Elflein was the top center, with Jacoby Boren still out, which gave Evan Lisle a chance with the starters on the offensive line. He played well, but Chase Farris-the likely starter in place of Baldwin-was consistently obliterated by Joey Bosa. Marcelys and Jamarco Jones both took snaps as well, with Elflein and Decker members of the 2,000 rep club. During the time with the Jones' Billy Price was playing at center.
The tight ends also stood out and were utilized a ton during the practice. Vannett didn't play a lot because of the 2,000 rep club, which gave Baugh a ton of reps that he used to really stand out. Baugh's talent is starting to shine through and the days of his arrests and suspension seem far behind him.
The quarterbacks were out warming up before anybody else, and while it isn't exactly breaking news, Cardale Jones has the most arm strength I have ever seen. He was putting the ball on a dime from about 60 yards and looked like he was just flicking his wrist. He was getting enough height on the ball that he was just missing the rafters in the Woody Hayes while the ball still went 50-60 yards.
Dontre was out in pads, but he wasn't involved in any of the action outside of helping J.T. during some of the quarterback drills.Barrett looks fantastic throwing the ball and was a lot more mobile than when camp started a few weeks ago. Braxton was still limited in throwing the ball, didn't throw anything more than 15 yards that I saw so it was hard to assess where he is at.
He isn't going to play much, but Jeff Greene is huge. You don't realize how big he is (6' 5'') until he is next to the relatively short players like Jalin Marshall and others, but he towers over everybody in his unit and every defensive back. He didn't play well in the scrimmage portion of things-his hands aren't great-but if he can improve his height makes him a valuable asset.
Both Demetrius Knox and James Clark were in full pads but didn't take part in at least a portion of the team warmup. I'm not sure if they were involved in any of the other drills, but it didn't look like it.
Bri'onte Dunn looked big, in a good way and showed some flashes of speed as the top option at running back with Ezekiel Elliott out right now. He looks to have turned a corner and could have an impact if Curtis Samuel stays at the H-back long term. Warren Ball on the other hand didn't impress much, dropped a couple of easy passes and was relatively anonymous with the second team.
Parris Campbell was the standout of the day for me. He took first team snaps (we'll get to that in a little bit) throughout and looked really crisp running his routes, not to mention his outrageous speed.
Before getting into the offense v. defense portion of the practice, the team ran a few kick returns and the only two players to take it back were Jalin Marshall and Curtis Samuel. My prediction is that Marshall will stay as the punt returner and Samuel and Dontre will be the kick returners.
A number of players took first team snaps today: With Jones, Decker, Price, Vannett, Marshall and Elflein the guys that were comfortable entrenched in the starting lineup before today. The rest of the players who took first team snaps were Bri'onte Dunn, Corey Smith, Noah Brown, Parris Campbell and Terry McLauren. Of those, the most likely to start will be Corey Smith, but don't count out Noah Brown making a big impact next season as well, it was clear why people have been raving about him all spring.
Elflein was the top center, with Jacoby Boren still out, which gave Evan Lisle a chance with the starters on the offensive line. He played well, but Chase Farris-the likely starter in place of Baldwin-was consistently obliterated by Joey Bosa. Marcelys and Jamarco Jones both took snaps as well, with Elflein and Decker members of the 2,000 rep club. During the time with the Jones' Billy Price was playing at center.
The tight ends also stood out and were utilized a ton during the practice. Vannett didn't play a lot because of the 2,000 rep club, which gave Baugh a ton of reps that he used to really stand out. Baugh's talent is starting to shine through and the days of his arrests and suspension seem far behind him.
