We saw lots and lots on the wideouts today...But does anyone have any opinions or thoughts on what they saw out of the defensive backfield today? Some mention was made of outstanding depth at safety, but I'm specifically wondering about our depth chart and overall depth at corner. I am wondering how Mario Stevensen & Ronnie Prude are working, as well as Chevis Jackson...Can anyone report?
Sammy Joseph the transfer from colorado, atleast for me was the most impressive. I think Mario Stevenson had three consectuive completions against him in the 2 minute drill with Flynn at QB. I dont ever recall anything about Ronnie Prude, but that is generally a good sign. I thought it was a lot harder to follow the defense cause the players were in and out and it was hard to follow who was all on the field at that time. Sorry I couldn't help out more.
I distinctly recall Joseph having outstanding, blanket coverage on whomever he was assigned. On that spectacular 28 yard completion from Flynn to Hill, he was all up in Amp's grille. I also thought E.J. Kuale and Craig Steltz showed a lot during the scrimmage.
I wasn't there but I will concur with what the others have posted from talking to a few who were there and reading all of the posts from people on different boards. Joseph was on the WR's hip on just about every pass play. Stevenson looked good on a few but also had a couple of open receivers he was assigned to and had 2 interference calls against him. Prude was pretty good but his man was wide open on a couple of plays where the ball went the other way. Steltz was very imnpressive especially when forced to come up and cover like a CB. No one mentioned Jackson, which may be a good thing too.
I feel like we have good talent there, outstanding talent that's been coached well for however long it's been on campus...What I worry about is the teaching and schemes in place now...We all saw that zone coverage wasn't our cup of tea last year...We needed to run it more, but weren't very good at it... I am interested in finding out what type of defensive scheme we'll utilize in the secondary...
I was there and I was impressed with Steltz and Hollis, it seemed like they were in on every play. Kuale was real fast and Highsmith was good, but one time Shyrone made hiim look so stupid in the open field that Ali just fell down lol. I agree about Joseph and the catch Amp Hill made on the sideline in the air was just sick on Amp's part. I wasn't too impressed with our corners overall. I think we could have some depth issues on multiple receiver sets, but maybe it was just a bad day. But you have to consider the caliber of WR's on the field. Amp, Skyler, Early, Bowe and Xman were just tearing it up. But I was still discouraged to see so many receivers open. I also like Curtis Taylor, he may turn out to be pretty good. Did anyone ever see Amp preinjury, cause Hanagriff has been saying he isn't as good and fast as he was then? I never saw him, but he looked pretty good.
He was pushing Devery for the starting wide receiver spot during the 2003 campaign...At Fan Day, he was making one handed and behind the back catches during drills...Just so the fans could get a thrill... He was/is the real deal...He had been very discouraged and close to quitting a few times, but has perservered, and re-emerged on our depth chart...Without question I feel like he'll explode next season... When you stop and think that this is his first time on a college campus to train and work on developing the skill set necessary to dominate at this level without the worry of pain, or swelling of a knee, or not being able to cut or move laterally with 100% peace of mind and range of motion...It's scary...This guy is only now able to go 100%, and when he gets back to where he was...LOOK OUT... He is a redshirt sophomore, and it's obvious that to prove himself if he is truly successful, he'll probably stay all 3 years...Which means gloom and doom for the rest of the cornerbacks in the SEC...
