Friday’s practice at Camp Tontozona was the first where the team donned shoulder pads (no leg pads until next week), adding a higher degree of physicality compared to the two first days at camp. Additionally, both newcomers and veterans practiced together and not in separate sessions like the last two days.
Whereas when the team is only in helmets is a decent time to evaluate the skill positions, as more padding goes on, it’s a better time to evaluate both the offensive and defensive lines.
The defensive line, being the more experienced unit than the offensive line, controlled their portion of the 1-on-1 matchups during the individual portion of practice as well as doing a good job controlling the line of scrimmage during the team portions.
There was also some experimentation with alignments and personnel packages. The defensive front took a slightly different look with sophomore JoJo Wicker lining up on the field side as opposed to the position’s normal Devilbacker alignment on the boundary side.
There was continued evolution of blitz packages featuring pre-snap movement combined with a use of a nickel package, which will be delved into a little deeper in the report.
Here is how the depth chart looked after Friday’s session
First team offense:
Quarterback(s): Manny Wilkins, Brady White, Bryce Perkins
Running Back(s): Demario Richard, Kalen Ballage
Wide receivers: Ellis Jefferson, Tim White, Jalen Harvey
Tight end: Kody Kohl, Raymond Epps
Left tackle: Evan Goodman
Left guard: Sam Jones
Center: Tyler McClure
Right guard: Stephon McCray
Right tackle: Quinn Bailey
Second team offense:
Quarterback(s): Same as above, all ran with both 1s and 2s
Running Back: Nick Ralston
Wide receivers: Ryan Jenkins, Cam Smith, Fred Gammage
Tight end: Grant Martinez, Raymond Epps
Left tackle: Mason Walter
Left guard: Connor Humphreys,
Center: Stephon McCray
Right guard: Steve Miller
Right tackle: Zach Robertson
First team defense:
Devilbacker: JoJo Wicker
Defensive end: Renell Wren
Nose guard: Ami Latu
Tiger: Tashon Smallwood
Spur: Marcus Ball
SAM: Salamo Fiso
WILL: DJ Calhoun
Field corner: Bryson Echols
Boundary corner: Kareem Orr
Field safety: Laiu Moeakiola
Boundary Safety: Armand Perry
Second team defense:
Devilbacker: AJ Latu
Defensive end: Edmond Boateng
Nose guard: George Lea
Tiger: Renell Wren
Spur: Koron Crump
SAM: Brandon Matthews
WILL: Carlos Mendoza
Field corner: Gump Hayes, J’Marcus Rhodes
Boundary corner: Robbie Robinson
Field safety: James Johnson
Boundary safety: Chad Adams
Quarterbacks:
In the first day of combining the veterans and new arrivals, the top three quarterbacks, redshirt sophomore Manny Wilkins and redshirt freshmen Brady White and Bryce Perkins were inconsistent.
Even in drills where there was no oncoming rush the quarterbacks were mostly relegated to short and intermediate throws. Most of the deeper throws were a touch overthrown, again better than being underthrown, but still would like to see those completed.
Freshman Dillon Sterling-Cole saw some individual work but didn’t get into the team rotation, which was dominated by the other three quarterbacks.
White, Perkins and Wilkins all saw action with both the first and second teams with reps being distributed pretty evenly, with Wilkins perhaps getting a few more reps than the other two. We still see the competition as Wilkins leading followed by White and Perkins.
Running backs:
On day three of camp there was finally an element of physicality to the running game. As has become normal, junior Demario Richard ran like a bowling ball and he and junior Kalen Ballage appear well ahead as the two bell-cow backs.
Behind them redshirt freshman Nick Ralston got the majority of the second team reps including breaking a long run off the right side for a long gain.
The effectiveness of the running game will continue to become more evident as more pads come on – and as the offensive line develops.
Wide receivers:
The starting three remained the same for the third day in a row as redshirt junior Ellis Jefferson, redshirt senior Tim White and redshirt sophomore Jalen Harvey continued to be the starting three receivers.
Harvey has been solid and consistent throughout camp along with improving his routes.
White, for as fast as he is, his route running has become very crisp. Especially in 1-on-1 work it’s been virtually unseen that a defensive back has been able to stop him.
Freshman N’Keal Harry mostly worked with the second and third teams alongside redshirt junior Cam Smith and redshirt senior Fred Gammage as he continues to adjust to the college game. It will still take some time for him to break through what looks to be a deep receiver corps.
Harry did however have a couple of reps against the first-team defensive backs but nothing came his way. It will be interesting to watch his continued development. Terrell Chatman and Ryan Jenkins got second-team reps.
Tight ends:
So far, the tight ends haven’t been a big part of the passing game but that could change as camp continues on.
So far it’s redshirt senior Kody Kohl redshirt junior Raymond Epps holding down the starting spots and then Grant Martinez backing them up. Martinez could push for playing time but he’ll have to unseat Epps to do it. Then you have Jay Jay Wilson who has yet to practice in camp but should be back in action sometime next week and if he can knock off the rust quickly that he should make an impact on the depth chart.
Offensive Line:
It appears the offensive line is beginning to build some continuity starting with redshirt senior left tackle Evan Goodman. Of all the offensive linemen, Goodman has been the most consistent and more or less the leader of the group.
After him, though, things aren’t as settled. While Thursday and Friday’s lines remained the same, the 1-on-1 drills seemed to reveal a lot. Goodman had some good reps with solid technique but the rest of the offensive linemen struggled to keep the defenders away from the quarterback.
Things looked a little better for the offensive line in 2-on-2 drills but that was about it. In team portions the quarterbacks were under constant duress on passing plays.
One bright spot in 1-on-1 drills was redshirt freshman Steve Miller who, although he was beaten a couple of times, displayed good upper body strength while leaning a minimal amount. His one drawback was a tendency to go pigeon-toed with his feet.
If there is one glaring hole at the moment, aside from quarterback, it appears to be at the offensive line.
Whereas when the team is only in helmets is a decent time to evaluate the skill positions, as more padding goes on, it’s a better time to evaluate both the offensive and defensive lines.
The defensive line, being the more experienced unit than the offensive line, controlled their portion of the 1-on-1 matchups during the individual portion of practice as well as doing a good job controlling the line of scrimmage during the team portions.
There was also some experimentation with alignments and personnel packages. The defensive front took a slightly different look with sophomore JoJo Wicker lining up on the field side as opposed to the position’s normal Devilbacker alignment on the boundary side.
There was continued evolution of blitz packages featuring pre-snap movement combined with a use of a nickel package, which will be delved into a little deeper in the report.
Here is how the depth chart looked after Friday’s session
First team offense:
Quarterback(s): Manny Wilkins, Brady White, Bryce Perkins
Running Back(s): Demario Richard, Kalen Ballage
Wide receivers: Ellis Jefferson, Tim White, Jalen Harvey
Tight end: Kody Kohl, Raymond Epps
Left tackle: Evan Goodman
Left guard: Sam Jones
Center: Tyler McClure
Right guard: Stephon McCray
Right tackle: Quinn Bailey
Second team offense:
Quarterback(s): Same as above, all ran with both 1s and 2s
Running Back: Nick Ralston
Wide receivers: Ryan Jenkins, Cam Smith, Fred Gammage
Tight end: Grant Martinez, Raymond Epps
Left tackle: Mason Walter
Left guard: Connor Humphreys,
Center: Stephon McCray
Right guard: Steve Miller
Right tackle: Zach Robertson
First team defense:
Devilbacker: JoJo Wicker
Defensive end: Renell Wren
Nose guard: Ami Latu
Tiger: Tashon Smallwood
Spur: Marcus Ball
SAM: Salamo Fiso
WILL: DJ Calhoun
Field corner: Bryson Echols
Boundary corner: Kareem Orr
Field safety: Laiu Moeakiola
Boundary Safety: Armand Perry
Second team defense:
Devilbacker: AJ Latu
Defensive end: Edmond Boateng
Nose guard: George Lea
Tiger: Renell Wren
Spur: Koron Crump
SAM: Brandon Matthews
WILL: Carlos Mendoza
Field corner: Gump Hayes, J’Marcus Rhodes
Boundary corner: Robbie Robinson
Field safety: James Johnson
Boundary safety: Chad Adams
Quarterbacks:
In the first day of combining the veterans and new arrivals, the top three quarterbacks, redshirt sophomore Manny Wilkins and redshirt freshmen Brady White and Bryce Perkins were inconsistent.
Even in drills where there was no oncoming rush the quarterbacks were mostly relegated to short and intermediate throws. Most of the deeper throws were a touch overthrown, again better than being underthrown, but still would like to see those completed.
Freshman Dillon Sterling-Cole saw some individual work but didn’t get into the team rotation, which was dominated by the other three quarterbacks.
White, Perkins and Wilkins all saw action with both the first and second teams with reps being distributed pretty evenly, with Wilkins perhaps getting a few more reps than the other two. We still see the competition as Wilkins leading followed by White and Perkins.
Running backs:
On day three of camp there was finally an element of physicality to the running game. As has become normal, junior Demario Richard ran like a bowling ball and he and junior Kalen Ballage appear well ahead as the two bell-cow backs.
Behind them redshirt freshman Nick Ralston got the majority of the second team reps including breaking a long run off the right side for a long gain.
The effectiveness of the running game will continue to become more evident as more pads come on – and as the offensive line develops.
Wide receivers:
The starting three remained the same for the third day in a row as redshirt junior Ellis Jefferson, redshirt senior Tim White and redshirt sophomore Jalen Harvey continued to be the starting three receivers.
Harvey has been solid and consistent throughout camp along with improving his routes.
White, for as fast as he is, his route running has become very crisp. Especially in 1-on-1 work it’s been virtually unseen that a defensive back has been able to stop him.
Freshman N’Keal Harry mostly worked with the second and third teams alongside redshirt junior Cam Smith and redshirt senior Fred Gammage as he continues to adjust to the college game. It will still take some time for him to break through what looks to be a deep receiver corps.
Harry did however have a couple of reps against the first-team defensive backs but nothing came his way. It will be interesting to watch his continued development. Terrell Chatman and Ryan Jenkins got second-team reps.
Tight ends:
So far, the tight ends haven’t been a big part of the passing game but that could change as camp continues on.
So far it’s redshirt senior Kody Kohl redshirt junior Raymond Epps holding down the starting spots and then Grant Martinez backing them up. Martinez could push for playing time but he’ll have to unseat Epps to do it. Then you have Jay Jay Wilson who has yet to practice in camp but should be back in action sometime next week and if he can knock off the rust quickly that he should make an impact on the depth chart.
Offensive Line:
It appears the offensive line is beginning to build some continuity starting with redshirt senior left tackle Evan Goodman. Of all the offensive linemen, Goodman has been the most consistent and more or less the leader of the group.
After him, though, things aren’t as settled. While Thursday and Friday’s lines remained the same, the 1-on-1 drills seemed to reveal a lot. Goodman had some good reps with solid technique but the rest of the offensive linemen struggled to keep the defenders away from the quarterback.
Things looked a little better for the offensive line in 2-on-2 drills but that was about it. In team portions the quarterbacks were under constant duress on passing plays.
One bright spot in 1-on-1 drills was redshirt freshman Steve Miller who, although he was beaten a couple of times, displayed good upper body strength while leaning a minimal amount. His one drawback was a tendency to go pigeon-toed with his feet.
If there is one glaring hole at the moment, aside from quarterback, it appears to be at the offensive line.
Last edited by a moderator:
