Texas quarterback Tyrone Swoopes entered spring practice as the man to beat, and that was evident on day one.
Swoopes was the first-team quarterback from the initial snap, which is something we have been preparing our audience for prior to spring practice. The staff likes Swoopes because of his playing experience, strong arm, and a belief that he improved last season. In addition, they believe Sterlin Gilbert’s offense is so fast, Swoopes will not have to make the same decisions that were required in former offensive coordinator Shawn Watson’s system.
Obviously, it would not be wise to make a final conclusion after one day of practice. However, are my quarterback observations from day one:
- Swoopes received the first-team reps in team drills, followed by Jerrod Heard and Shane Buechele. Kai Locksley and Matthew Merrick did not receive any work during team drills. Every quarterback received reps during the individual portions of practice, but only three played during team drills.
- To the surprise of no one, Swoopes still has the strongest arm of any quarterback. That being said, Swoopes did badly overthrow his receivers on at least two occasions. Swoopes fumbled a snap, too.
- One thing I believe Locksley really needs to do is become more aggressive in practice. Locksley stood with his teammates during team drills instead of shadowing Gilbert throughout practice. He did not seem happy during that portion of the workout, which is understandable. However, Locksley needs to show Gilbert he is engaged, pick his coach’s brain throughout practice, and display an eagerness to learn. These are the little things the staff needs to see from Locksley.
- Merrick is definitely on the outside looking in. He will need to take advantage of every opportunity he receives to climb the depth chart.
- Heard struggled at times during Monday’s practice. He did not release the ball fast enough during a few drills. In fact, Gilbert raised his voice at Heard for throwing a pass too late on one play (it was the only time the assistant coach was noticeably irritated). Heard threw at least two interceptions (defensive backs Dylan Haines and Davante Davis grabbed those picks). He fumbled the ball at least three times (two on back-to-back plays). There were times Heard made some good throws, but it was not his best performance.
- Buechele was very solid on day one. He was not asked to do a lot. However, Buechele seemingly did not make many mental errors during practice. Buechele was not asked to make many deep throws on Monday. However, there were only a few times the quarterbacks went long. Most of Monday’s practice consisted of quick and short passes to receivers. Buechele worked against a combination of first and second teamers during team drills, and completed a touchdown pass to DeAndre McNeal.
- None of the quarterbacks had issues adjusting to the fast tempo. Each quarterback looked to the sidelines for every play and snapped the ball within seconds. They were very efficient while running plays.
- Gilbert took all of his quarterbacks to the end zone - with a handful of running backs - and had them walk-through a play-action fake. He slowed it down for each quarterback in an effort to make sure they executed that play the correct way.
- None of the quarterbacks were vocal during practice. It seems like they were more focused on getting comfortable with Gilbert’s offense. To be fair, Gilbert was very focused during practice, too. For the most part, Gilbert was calm throughout practice. He was very patient with each quarterback.
Swoopes was the first-team quarterback from the initial snap, which is something we have been preparing our audience for prior to spring practice. The staff likes Swoopes because of his playing experience, strong arm, and a belief that he improved last season. In addition, they believe Sterlin Gilbert’s offense is so fast, Swoopes will not have to make the same decisions that were required in former offensive coordinator Shawn Watson’s system.
Obviously, it would not be wise to make a final conclusion after one day of practice. However, are my quarterback observations from day one:
- Swoopes received the first-team reps in team drills, followed by Jerrod Heard and Shane Buechele. Kai Locksley and Matthew Merrick did not receive any work during team drills. Every quarterback received reps during the individual portions of practice, but only three played during team drills.
- To the surprise of no one, Swoopes still has the strongest arm of any quarterback. That being said, Swoopes did badly overthrow his receivers on at least two occasions. Swoopes fumbled a snap, too.
- One thing I believe Locksley really needs to do is become more aggressive in practice. Locksley stood with his teammates during team drills instead of shadowing Gilbert throughout practice. He did not seem happy during that portion of the workout, which is understandable. However, Locksley needs to show Gilbert he is engaged, pick his coach’s brain throughout practice, and display an eagerness to learn. These are the little things the staff needs to see from Locksley.
- Merrick is definitely on the outside looking in. He will need to take advantage of every opportunity he receives to climb the depth chart.
- Heard struggled at times during Monday’s practice. He did not release the ball fast enough during a few drills. In fact, Gilbert raised his voice at Heard for throwing a pass too late on one play (it was the only time the assistant coach was noticeably irritated). Heard threw at least two interceptions (defensive backs Dylan Haines and Davante Davis grabbed those picks). He fumbled the ball at least three times (two on back-to-back plays). There were times Heard made some good throws, but it was not his best performance.
- Buechele was very solid on day one. He was not asked to do a lot. However, Buechele seemingly did not make many mental errors during practice. Buechele was not asked to make many deep throws on Monday. However, there were only a few times the quarterbacks went long. Most of Monday’s practice consisted of quick and short passes to receivers. Buechele worked against a combination of first and second teamers during team drills, and completed a touchdown pass to DeAndre McNeal.
- None of the quarterbacks had issues adjusting to the fast tempo. Each quarterback looked to the sidelines for every play and snapped the ball within seconds. They were very efficient while running plays.
- Gilbert took all of his quarterbacks to the end zone - with a handful of running backs - and had them walk-through a play-action fake. He slowed it down for each quarterback in an effort to make sure they executed that play the correct way.
- None of the quarterbacks were vocal during practice. It seems like they were more focused on getting comfortable with Gilbert’s offense. To be fair, Gilbert was very focused during practice, too. For the most part, Gilbert was calm throughout practice. He was very patient with each quarterback.
