Did some checking around this week and talked to a few folks to get some notes on the off-season workouts. Some of the stuff has been discussed and is pretty much common knowledge, but a couple other notes of interest ...
-- I'm told it's definitely Garrett Gilbert who is running the 7 on 7 show. He's the one who organizes them, sets up the workout times and gets everyone to show up. The participation has been stellar, with attendance high from the skill guys and the linemen (both offense and defense).
The question on everyone's mind is the play of the QBs, and one person I talked with thought it was still Gilbert's job to lose.
"It's just 7-on-7 so there's no pressure. Everybody looks good in 7-on-7," a source said. "Garrett is going to be the quarterback. Case (McCoy) and Connor (Wood) are doing well, still fighting for that back-up spot. I'd say it's about even."
David Ash was given high marks by a few different people who have watched the workouts, but he gets very limited reps. There have been some days where he only picks up one or two series.
-- From the no-surprise file, Jaxon Shipley continues to earn rave reviews for his work in 7-on-7.
"It's the same ol' same ol' that you've heard before. I'll be surprised if he doesn't play a lot this year. He's really good," one person said. "His routes are so good, he's out there breaking people off."
One other source mentioned that Shipley catches everything that comes his way, but cautioned that things will be a lot different when the pads come on and contact is allowed.
-- Looking for another true freshman who is opening eyes?
Let's talk about the DT spot, where there's good news and not-so-good news to report.
We were told that the d-tackle "with the goggles" (Desmond Jackson) has been extremely impressive.
"He's pretty much a sure thing to play this year," we're told. "The team does 11 on 11 before 7 on 7 and he's doing well. He's very strong. He's in the weight room throwing around 150-pound dumbells or something crazy."
The other side of the coin ... we're told 2011 signee Quincy Russell is not enrolled this summer. No details on Russell's situation were given other than the fact that he's not working out with the team and is not in school yet. We'll keep our ears open on that one.
-- Quandre Diggs continues to draw praise for his work at cornerback. In fact, all the true freshmen DBs were mentioned this week as looking good.
Of interest, all the guys are working in at cornerback, including Sheroid Evans and Mykkele Thompson. It's likely that at least one of the true freshmen will eventually move over to safety, but they're all working on the outside this summer.
-- On the defensive tackles ... Taylor Bible is putting in the work this summer to get himself in better shape. One person told us this week that he's down to about 315 pounds (the same person guessed that he was pushing 340 at one point.
"He's out there doing extra workouts. He's working hard. He still needs to watch his weight and watch what he eats. Sometimes he'll revert back to his old ways so he has to fight that but he's doing really well," one person told us.
Greg Daniels is officially listed at 6-5 and 275 but we're told he's closer to 6-3, 285. He's adding bulk to his frame to get ready for playing inside at defensive tackle, and a couple people singled Daniels out as having a good summer.
-- The first-group that's been working along the OL is as follows: LT Tray Allen, LG Trey Hopkins, C David Snow, RG Mason Walters, RT Paden Kelley. A lot of guys are mixing and matching with the second unit and we're told a couple of the freshmen are a bit nicked up but still working out.
-- It's the usual suspects at tight end, minus Dominique Jones, who is not working out, as has been discussed previously. Barrett Matthews, Darius Terrell and M.J. McFarland are getting a lot of work. Blaine Irby is moving around well and everyone's still cautiously optimistic that he'll be able to hold up once he's involved in contact next fall.
-- As we mentioned at the top, the participation has been very good.
"Everyone is working out except Jordan Hicks (foot injury in the spring)," one person told us. "They haven't had him work out but he's walking on it. I'm thinking he should start running and stuff pretty soon."
This post was edited on 7/4 1:31 PM by Suchomel
-- I'm told it's definitely Garrett Gilbert who is running the 7 on 7 show. He's the one who organizes them, sets up the workout times and gets everyone to show up. The participation has been stellar, with attendance high from the skill guys and the linemen (both offense and defense).
The question on everyone's mind is the play of the QBs, and one person I talked with thought it was still Gilbert's job to lose.
"It's just 7-on-7 so there's no pressure. Everybody looks good in 7-on-7," a source said. "Garrett is going to be the quarterback. Case (McCoy) and Connor (Wood) are doing well, still fighting for that back-up spot. I'd say it's about even."
David Ash was given high marks by a few different people who have watched the workouts, but he gets very limited reps. There have been some days where he only picks up one or two series.
-- From the no-surprise file, Jaxon Shipley continues to earn rave reviews for his work in 7-on-7.
"It's the same ol' same ol' that you've heard before. I'll be surprised if he doesn't play a lot this year. He's really good," one person said. "His routes are so good, he's out there breaking people off."
One other source mentioned that Shipley catches everything that comes his way, but cautioned that things will be a lot different when the pads come on and contact is allowed.
-- Looking for another true freshman who is opening eyes?
Let's talk about the DT spot, where there's good news and not-so-good news to report.
We were told that the d-tackle "with the goggles" (Desmond Jackson) has been extremely impressive.
"He's pretty much a sure thing to play this year," we're told. "The team does 11 on 11 before 7 on 7 and he's doing well. He's very strong. He's in the weight room throwing around 150-pound dumbells or something crazy."
The other side of the coin ... we're told 2011 signee Quincy Russell is not enrolled this summer. No details on Russell's situation were given other than the fact that he's not working out with the team and is not in school yet. We'll keep our ears open on that one.
-- Quandre Diggs continues to draw praise for his work at cornerback. In fact, all the true freshmen DBs were mentioned this week as looking good.
Of interest, all the guys are working in at cornerback, including Sheroid Evans and Mykkele Thompson. It's likely that at least one of the true freshmen will eventually move over to safety, but they're all working on the outside this summer.
-- On the defensive tackles ... Taylor Bible is putting in the work this summer to get himself in better shape. One person told us this week that he's down to about 315 pounds (the same person guessed that he was pushing 340 at one point.
"He's out there doing extra workouts. He's working hard. He still needs to watch his weight and watch what he eats. Sometimes he'll revert back to his old ways so he has to fight that but he's doing really well," one person told us.
Greg Daniels is officially listed at 6-5 and 275 but we're told he's closer to 6-3, 285. He's adding bulk to his frame to get ready for playing inside at defensive tackle, and a couple people singled Daniels out as having a good summer.
-- The first-group that's been working along the OL is as follows: LT Tray Allen, LG Trey Hopkins, C David Snow, RG Mason Walters, RT Paden Kelley. A lot of guys are mixing and matching with the second unit and we're told a couple of the freshmen are a bit nicked up but still working out.
-- It's the usual suspects at tight end, minus Dominique Jones, who is not working out, as has been discussed previously. Barrett Matthews, Darius Terrell and M.J. McFarland are getting a lot of work. Blaine Irby is moving around well and everyone's still cautiously optimistic that he'll be able to hold up once he's involved in contact next fall.
-- As we mentioned at the top, the participation has been very good.
"Everyone is working out except Jordan Hicks (foot injury in the spring)," one person told us. "They haven't had him work out but he's walking on it. I'm thinking he should start running and stuff pretty soon."
This post was edited on 7/4 1:31 PM by Suchomel
