There has been a lot of discussion and concerns raised from spring camp and I feel like it's knee jerk and premature. Going into a new season with so many new position coaches, a new offensive coordinator and almost completely new secondary and offensive line and most importantly, a new quarterback battle Briggs a lot of challenges anywhere under any circumstance.
Here are some positive thoughts I have after the spring:
1. The development of offensive line talent. I know it's early but when breaking in a new quarterback having a strong running game will be a great relief. With the emergence of Bailey, McClure, Jones, improvement of Goodman, experience of McCray and Robertson and Miller waiting behind I feel much better about our offensive line that I did before camp. This will be huge because our offensive lineman haven't developed well overall compared to other schools Ino. I am very happy to see powerful run blocking both as a scheme choice and as a capability built through depth and coaching. If they can be average at pass blocking they should buy some time for the quarterback to develop. I'm going to stay positive on the o line and give kudos you Coach Thomsen for speeding along their development.
2. Quarterbacks - I love all three of these quarterbacks. I think sterling Cole is definitely red shirting no matter what they say. If I'm wrong then he is a baller. Any rumor of outside players seem laughable. Even the limited film I have seen of all three of these guys in practice has looked really good. I've seen strong arms and good legs in all three of them. Learning to do check downs after doing a zone read at the line before snap is really difficult and requires practice through reputation. Even Kelly made the wrong reads in game situations in year three of running the offense. His arm was never as strong or as accurate as any of these three qbs (hence the over-reliance on the back shoulder fade to strong). That play was hardly utilities with Berco on because he had a mega arm. This competiton is about who runs the system most efficiently and doesn't turn the ball over. Once the qb situation is settled I will laugh if Boise state is the first pursuer to try and pick up the player that decides to transfer. I think all three of these guys could be in competition to start anywhere they went. It is rare that you can really say there is a two man competiton let alone a three man competition. When in our history have unproven quarterbacks on the roster are not the number one concern to fans? Right now we are seeing that with the secondary being concern number one because most of us feel really confident that one of these guys will emerge and become a sun devil legend. If Chip Lindsey delivers, we could see numbers that are unimaginable. I'm excited about this position battle come fall camp.
3 - running backs - Richard, Ballage, Ralston, Lewis, and Turner coming in...need I say more?
4 - tight ends - Kohl is hurt and honestly his costly drops left a bitter taste in my mouth. His injury is unfortunate but it left room for the talents of Wilson, Epps, and Hudson to be demonstrated. Now Lindsey knows and it will be a 6 man amazing depth situation at tight end once Bubak, Martinez and Kohk hop in there. Talk about competition. That thing is stacked. Those who think that Lindsey won't use a tight end are wrong. At southern miss there was nobody on the roster that stacked up to these tight ends and he adapted. The tight end will be one of these young qbs best friends. If you don't believe me watch the practice highlights from spring and see how many passes they got. I love the use of tight ends and they will make a huge impact this year. That's a prediction on my part.
5 - defensive line - we know Wicker is a beast. If he plays to his potential it will help the secondary. Latu and Smallwood are smaller guys and I'll admit I'd wish Smallwood was bigger. He is quick but does get lost at times when he faces lineman with big wingspans and great technique. Good news is = George Lea. This guy is not 315 lbs but he can flat out bulk you over or run around you. He is developing fast and the fact that he returned after his issues should get him plenty of reps. While he won't supplant Smallwood because of Graham's loyalty, 30-40 reps per game would t be surprising. Out of ends I expect some split reps. Hill is raw but there are situations where you can line him up to just blow by a tackle. I still have. Questions about Wrenn and why somebody that big can't get in there but I'm bullish on Bates. His issue is staying disciplined and so toward the end of spring he sort of stopped playing as aggressive because he needs to play the run better but rest assured he will get better and when he does...look out.
6 - linebackers. We all know that this position is strong. It's so strong that they can afford to bump Laiu back to free safety. That might help keep him healthy. Hope it does but I'm impressed with lawal and ball. Two injured guys getting a shot at redemption. Sam is hurt but we know he's a stud. Fiso is solid. Crump emergence at devil sounds strong. First year ending spring since Bradford that we felt like we had a guy to play that position. I don't know if that's where they'll put Subtyl to compete but I'm glad down body seems to fit the bill. If Subtyl can compete there, the more the merrier.
7 - secondary - here is the elephant in the room. As it stands we are looking at Orr, Hayes, Laiu, and Perry as starters. The bad news is that both chandler and Rhodes missed time. The good news is that Rhodes made some athletic plays and was strong in press. I know he was called out for over pursuing on one play. Rushing will coach him up. I think he will be more ready come fall. I also think he will be a starter. I'm not sold on Hayes but I am on Orr, Perry, and Laiu. I also think Chandler will provide solid depth. Robinson may not redshirt but he will add some much needed depth. They are short handed but I'm leaning positive on the development. I'm going to hope that Hayes continues to improve. I'm going to assume that injuries and complexity of Graham's defense led to the struggles of Rhides and Chandler. I hope Guignard develops nicely for a safety backup. Meanwhile Adams who isn't as talented is there at least. This back 4 will completely be contingent on how much Graham blitzes and how much of a push the front 3/4 give when not blitzing. When Perry went down last year that secondary wasn't the same. He may be the most important player back there. My version of positive here is that they end up yielding yards but not last in the nation. Maybe something like number 64 in yards given. (Hey I'm being positive not unrealistic).
8 - receivers - I expect the starters to be : Cameron Smith, Tim White, Jalen Harvey. I expect the next in line to be Terrel Chatman, Frederick Gammage, Ellis Hefferson to be next in line. With glee Williams and Harry come in and compete to start or get in two deep right away. If they don't then it's even better because the guys in front of them have improved and are playing that well. The threats of Smith and White are going to open a lot of things up for option 3 receiver, tight ends and even running backs to make big plays in the receiving game.
I didn't drink the cool aid last year ironically. When Smith went down I didn't see any receiver replacing strongs production and helping Berco out. I didn't realize the secondary would be so bad, but there is nowhere to go but up from where they are at. To the credit of Graham, he went out and got the best to coach at each position he had to reolace. This will make the biggest difference I believe and I'm predicting that asu wins a minimum of 9 games. They win the pic 12 south and lose to Stanford in the championship game. Pipe dreams ? Maybe but I'm seeing sun devil rainbows from where I'm sitting.
I'd love to see feedback and thoughts from others on the board on how they all see this playing out. Just a little fun.
Here are some positive thoughts I have after the spring:
1. The development of offensive line talent. I know it's early but when breaking in a new quarterback having a strong running game will be a great relief. With the emergence of Bailey, McClure, Jones, improvement of Goodman, experience of McCray and Robertson and Miller waiting behind I feel much better about our offensive line that I did before camp. This will be huge because our offensive lineman haven't developed well overall compared to other schools Ino. I am very happy to see powerful run blocking both as a scheme choice and as a capability built through depth and coaching. If they can be average at pass blocking they should buy some time for the quarterback to develop. I'm going to stay positive on the o line and give kudos you Coach Thomsen for speeding along their development.
2. Quarterbacks - I love all three of these quarterbacks. I think sterling Cole is definitely red shirting no matter what they say. If I'm wrong then he is a baller. Any rumor of outside players seem laughable. Even the limited film I have seen of all three of these guys in practice has looked really good. I've seen strong arms and good legs in all three of them. Learning to do check downs after doing a zone read at the line before snap is really difficult and requires practice through reputation. Even Kelly made the wrong reads in game situations in year three of running the offense. His arm was never as strong or as accurate as any of these three qbs (hence the over-reliance on the back shoulder fade to strong). That play was hardly utilities with Berco on because he had a mega arm. This competiton is about who runs the system most efficiently and doesn't turn the ball over. Once the qb situation is settled I will laugh if Boise state is the first pursuer to try and pick up the player that decides to transfer. I think all three of these guys could be in competition to start anywhere they went. It is rare that you can really say there is a two man competiton let alone a three man competition. When in our history have unproven quarterbacks on the roster are not the number one concern to fans? Right now we are seeing that with the secondary being concern number one because most of us feel really confident that one of these guys will emerge and become a sun devil legend. If Chip Lindsey delivers, we could see numbers that are unimaginable. I'm excited about this position battle come fall camp.
3 - running backs - Richard, Ballage, Ralston, Lewis, and Turner coming in...need I say more?
4 - tight ends - Kohl is hurt and honestly his costly drops left a bitter taste in my mouth. His injury is unfortunate but it left room for the talents of Wilson, Epps, and Hudson to be demonstrated. Now Lindsey knows and it will be a 6 man amazing depth situation at tight end once Bubak, Martinez and Kohk hop in there. Talk about competition. That thing is stacked. Those who think that Lindsey won't use a tight end are wrong. At southern miss there was nobody on the roster that stacked up to these tight ends and he adapted. The tight end will be one of these young qbs best friends. If you don't believe me watch the practice highlights from spring and see how many passes they got. I love the use of tight ends and they will make a huge impact this year. That's a prediction on my part.
5 - defensive line - we know Wicker is a beast. If he plays to his potential it will help the secondary. Latu and Smallwood are smaller guys and I'll admit I'd wish Smallwood was bigger. He is quick but does get lost at times when he faces lineman with big wingspans and great technique. Good news is = George Lea. This guy is not 315 lbs but he can flat out bulk you over or run around you. He is developing fast and the fact that he returned after his issues should get him plenty of reps. While he won't supplant Smallwood because of Graham's loyalty, 30-40 reps per game would t be surprising. Out of ends I expect some split reps. Hill is raw but there are situations where you can line him up to just blow by a tackle. I still have. Questions about Wrenn and why somebody that big can't get in there but I'm bullish on Bates. His issue is staying disciplined and so toward the end of spring he sort of stopped playing as aggressive because he needs to play the run better but rest assured he will get better and when he does...look out.
6 - linebackers. We all know that this position is strong. It's so strong that they can afford to bump Laiu back to free safety. That might help keep him healthy. Hope it does but I'm impressed with lawal and ball. Two injured guys getting a shot at redemption. Sam is hurt but we know he's a stud. Fiso is solid. Crump emergence at devil sounds strong. First year ending spring since Bradford that we felt like we had a guy to play that position. I don't know if that's where they'll put Subtyl to compete but I'm glad down body seems to fit the bill. If Subtyl can compete there, the more the merrier.
7 - secondary - here is the elephant in the room. As it stands we are looking at Orr, Hayes, Laiu, and Perry as starters. The bad news is that both chandler and Rhodes missed time. The good news is that Rhodes made some athletic plays and was strong in press. I know he was called out for over pursuing on one play. Rushing will coach him up. I think he will be more ready come fall. I also think he will be a starter. I'm not sold on Hayes but I am on Orr, Perry, and Laiu. I also think Chandler will provide solid depth. Robinson may not redshirt but he will add some much needed depth. They are short handed but I'm leaning positive on the development. I'm going to hope that Hayes continues to improve. I'm going to assume that injuries and complexity of Graham's defense led to the struggles of Rhides and Chandler. I hope Guignard develops nicely for a safety backup. Meanwhile Adams who isn't as talented is there at least. This back 4 will completely be contingent on how much Graham blitzes and how much of a push the front 3/4 give when not blitzing. When Perry went down last year that secondary wasn't the same. He may be the most important player back there. My version of positive here is that they end up yielding yards but not last in the nation. Maybe something like number 64 in yards given. (Hey I'm being positive not unrealistic).
8 - receivers - I expect the starters to be : Cameron Smith, Tim White, Jalen Harvey. I expect the next in line to be Terrel Chatman, Frederick Gammage, Ellis Hefferson to be next in line. With glee Williams and Harry come in and compete to start or get in two deep right away. If they don't then it's even better because the guys in front of them have improved and are playing that well. The threats of Smith and White are going to open a lot of things up for option 3 receiver, tight ends and even running backs to make big plays in the receiving game.
I didn't drink the cool aid last year ironically. When Smith went down I didn't see any receiver replacing strongs production and helping Berco out. I didn't realize the secondary would be so bad, but there is nowhere to go but up from where they are at. To the credit of Graham, he went out and got the best to coach at each position he had to reolace. This will make the biggest difference I believe and I'm predicting that asu wins a minimum of 9 games. They win the pic 12 south and lose to Stanford in the championship game. Pipe dreams ? Maybe but I'm seeing sun devil rainbows from where I'm sitting.
I'd love to see feedback and thoughts from others on the board on how they all see this playing out. Just a little fun.
