Don’t hold back, Bobby.

Light ‘em up

During today’s University of Louisville’s Football Kickoff Luncheon, head coach Bobby Petrino was asked, in jest by Sean Moth, if there would need to be some additional light’s added to the scoreboard for the upcoming football season.

Coach Petrino had this in response:

Yes, yes it is about time we start lighting up that scoreboard again. When Petrino was hired (again) to lead the Cardinals, many fans envisioned the days of old when the Cards would routinely score in the 40’s. That hasn’t quite been the case so far in his first two years back as the Cardinals averaged 29.9 points a game. While that’s still not a bad number, it’s not close to the 41 points a game that Petrino’s teams averaged over his first 4 years here.

While there’s no guarantee that this year’s team will have an offensive explosion like we’ve been waiting for, it certainly helps that the quarterback knows what the plays are now.

While I do miss Fiery Bobby and his “Let’s go kick their ass!” attitude, I don’t think we’ll see that same type of demeanor in Bobby 2.0. However, with small little jokes and responses like this, it’s becoming apparent that he is really confident with this team and we may see the offense burst on to the scene.

Or, if we could just hang 60 on Kentucky this year, I’d be ok with that too.

Written on August 19, 2016 at 8:26 pm


Michigan DL Ryan Glasgow Not Taking Senior Year for Granted

Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

The senior spoke to the media after practice Friday and praised his new DC and freshman Michael Onwenu.

Football is a sport where things can change very quickly and careers can be altered with the snap of a finger.

Michigan senior defensive lineman Ryan Glasgow gained this perspective last season when he tore a pectoral muscle in the game against Rutgers, which caused him to miss the rest of the season and his absence was noticeable.

Now healthy and rehabilitated, Glasgow is not going to take his last season at Michigan for granted.

“It makes you think, this game does end,” Glasgow said after practice on Friday. “Having it taken away so abruptly … if I were a true senior, that could have been my last game, against Rutgers. It makes you take every day and cherish it, and not take the days for granted.

“The thing that bothered me was I felt like I was hanging my teammates out to dry. We played a lot of up-tempo teams. We need depth against those teams. You can’t expect four or five guys to go out there and play every snap against a team that’s snapping the ball every 15 seconds.

“I felt like I could have done more. That hurt pretty bad.”

Glasgow is healthy and says he is ready for the season opener on Sep. 3 against Hawaii. Like many of his teammates, he is ready for one last ride to leave a lasting legacy with the program.

“It’s great,” he said. “I really miss playing football. Mostly, I just miss the camaraderie. When you’re hurt, you’re not playing. You have to sit out. You don’t get to play with your friends.

“These guys are your best friends, your teammates, guys you work with all year to achieve your goals. Not being a part of that really hurts.”

Glasgow also is enjoying being coached by first-year defensive coordinator Don Brown, who has brought a ton of energy to practices in fall camp.

“He’s awesome,” Glasgow said. “It’s a little different being coached by him. He’s not as big a screamer as our last defensive coordinator (Maryland head coach DJ Durkin), but he gets the point across.

“He’s a great guy, and his defense is awesome. We’re excited to play in it this year.”

One of the storylines that many have been keeping an eye on during training camp is how the freshman class is progressing and practicing. Michael Onwenu, a former four-star prospect, is one of those players that is turning heads, and Glasgow praised what he has seen from him so far.

“He’s a mountain of a man,” he said. “He’s a big guy. When he was giving us looks as an offensive guard, you’re like, this kid is huge. And he picks up on everything really quickly.

“If you can play offensive and defensive line both, as a true freshman? And you’re rolling through both, whichever side of the ball they want you on, depending on the day? That’s pretty impressive.”

Written on August 19, 2016 at 8:02 pm


UK Football: News and notes from Friday practice

Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

A big scrimmage is coming Saturday for UK Football.

One day before a scrimmage and the official move in day for the football team, quarterbacks coach Darin Hinshaw spoke with the media about what he expects from his quarterbacks, backup Stephen Johnson, and how the QB’s are handling the pass rush.

What He is Looking for on Saturday

The Wildcats have another scrimmage on Saturday and Coach Hinshaw isn’t looking for spectacular performances from his quarterbacks, just consistency and quality decision making.

“I just want to take one play at a time and execute that play. I know that sounds so ‘Oh, that’s coach talk, blah, blah, blah,’ but the bottom line is that’s the truth. We don’t focus on — I don’t tell them they have to throw for so many yards or they have to do — we’re going to take what the defense gives us. I want to see the quarterbacks make great decisions and great targets.”

Hinshaw also added that he wants Drew Barker and company to control the game and take care of the football.

“That’s what’s going to help us win on Saturday”, Hinshaw said.

Stephen Johnson Helping the Defense

Earlier this week defensive coordinator DJ Eliot said that practicing against backup QB Stephen Johnson is beneficial for his unit, which struggled mightily against mobile quarterbacks last season.

Quarterbacks coach Darin Hinshaw said that the call is usually up to Mark Stoops on whether to use Johnson as fodder. Hinshaw also offered some insights into why dual-threat quarterbacks are such a problem for opposing defenses.

“You have to account for them. Some guys are faster than others in different way. As a defense, if you can throw as a quarterback and be able to run some, it creates problems for ‘em. But if you cannot throw and you become one-sided – and it’s the same thing if all you do is throw. It’s the same situation. Defenses can really hunker down and figure out ways to beat you” he said.

Hinshaw added that a quarterback does not “have to run great” but do it well enough to move the chains, which is a requirement in the offense that Eddie Gran brought to Lexington from Cincinnati.

The QB’s and Pass Rush

Hinshaw was quite complimentary of how the defensive line is getting after the QB’s in practice.

“I’m not gonna name names, but the whole defensive line has been doing a great job. They’ve been doing a great job of putting pressure on us, making Drew move in the pocket. Really game-like situations in practice, and that’s what we continue to focus on and then get into the scrimmages and all those things”, he said.

Even without his guys taking hits, Hinshaw spares them no quarter when they don’t get rid of the ball in time and uses the situation as a teaching tool.

“If you don’t throw the ball away, you’re costing the team 10 yards, seven yards, eight yards a sack fumble, all those things.”

Other Notes

– Drew Barker is making the appropriate pass protection calls at the line of scrimmage, according to Hinshaw, even when the defense disguises their blitz well.

– Hinshaw noted that so far during camp that Kentucky’s deep stable of running backs have been a boon as pass catching options, something he thinks is essential for the Wildcats to keep developing if they want to win on Saturdays.

– There is no word on if junior running back Boom Williams will sit or participate in the scrimmage on Saturday morning.

Written on August 19, 2016 at 7:57 pm


Oklahoma Sooners Football: RB Rodney Anderson Out For Season

So Friday was humming along rather smoothly, until I was blindsided by this:

This is just terrible news first and foremost for Rodney Anderson, who has worked so diligently to get back on the field healthy after the leg injury suffered at Tennessee kept him out all last season. A highly touted HS running back from Katy, TX., Anderson had been looking to solidify his spot in the beastly Oklahoma backfield rotation. Unfortunately, 2016 will not be the season Rodney Anderson breaks out as an Sooner star.

We wish Rodney the best of health and a smooth road to recovery — stay strong, and Boomer Sooner.

Written on August 19, 2016 at 7:19 pm


Why Jerod Evans Should Start for the Hokies this Season

Josh Jackson may be the Hokies QB of the future, but I think Jerod Evans gets the nod this season

Everyone loves a good quarterback competition during training camp. The Virginia Tech Hokies will have a 3 man race for the starting job this season between transfer Jerod Evans, redshirt Senior Brenden Motley, and true Freshman Josh Jackson. Coach Fuente knows the value of the quarterback position which is why he should be trusted to make a great decision. He has obtained a reputation for selecting and developing great quarterbacks after working with high profile players such as Andy Dalton of the Cincinnati Benglas and Paxton Lynch of the Denver Broncos. If Coach Fuente’s past at Memphis tells us anything, he’ll go with Jerod Evans this season while giving Josh Jackson a chance to be the quarterback of the future.

When he first arrived at Memphis in 2011, the Tigers just lost an experienced starter in Taylor Reed. However, Fuente was able to recruit Jacob Karam, a transfer from Texas Tech. Fuente’s staff also took the time to check out a young high school quarterback prospect from Deltona, Florida by the name of Paxton Lynch. The two quarterbacks had talent, but Fuente made the decision to go with Jacob Karam in his first season. And after the improvement the Memphis Tigers showed in 2012, it looked like a great decision. Karam had a solid season in Coach Fuente’s first year at Memphis and showed potential to build off that great season.

But despite the steady improvement of Jacob Karam, Coach Fuente decided to play the long game and go with  redshirt Freshman Paxton Lynch in 2013. That first season with Lynch had its ups and downs and the team overall looked like it took a slight step backwards. But Coach Fuente showed great resolve and belief in the 3 star recruit he hand picked out of Florida and it paid off. In 2014 and 2015, the Memphis Tigers put themselves on the map with 19 wins and that little known 3 star quarterback recruit developed into a first round pick by the Superbowl champs.

Thankfully, the situation with the Hokies isn’t as dire as the Tigers, but there are parallels to be made. Virginia Tech just lost an experienced starter in Michael Brewer. Coach Fuente brought in the top rated JUCO quarterback recruit in the country and recruited a very talented young quarterback in Josh Jackson. The fact that there are reports of Josh Jackson entering the quarterback competition so early is a great sign for his future with the Virginia Tech football program. But like Paxton Lynch, it would be best for the young freshman to let the talented transfer start in year one and then develop into the great player Coach Fuente believes he can be.

Written on August 19, 2016 at 6:30 pm


LaRod Stephens-Howling joins Pitt football program as graduate assistant coach

Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images

Training camp continued for the Pitt football program on Friday and one bit of news that came out was in regard to the coaching staff. Joining the coaches this year as a graduate assistant is former Panther and NFL running back LaRod Stephens-Howling. Pat Narduzzi spoke a little about the move on Friday.

We hired a new graduate assistant yesterday—he’s obviously a former player—for recruiting and operations. LaRod Stephens-Howling will be our new graduate assistant. As you guys know, he’s a former great [Pitt] tailback and a NFL tailback. We’re happy to have him in the program as well.

Narduzzi went on to talk a little about meeting him last year (at the time, Stephens-Howling was doing some work over at Robert Morris) and then eventually bringing him on board at Pitt.

After a solid career at Pitt, Stephens-Howling was taken late in the 2009 NFL Draft, going to the Arizona Cardinals in the seventh round. Late picks like that don’t often stick, but he did. Stephens-Howling played in 57 games over four seasons with the Cardinals as a backup running back and kick returner. He had his best year in 2012, his final season with Arizona, starting in five contests and totaling 462 rushing and receiving yards. He left after that season and resurfaced with the PIttsburgh Steelers in 2013 as a third-down back and return man.

Unfortunately, his season ended early as he tore an ACL in the team’s debut. And while he thought he’d be fully healthy the following year and ready to go, that marked the end of his playing career in the NFL.

While it’s unfortunate that he can’t still be playing football, getting these types of players back on a coaching staff is a great thing for the program. Graduate assistants can be helpful but when you have a former NFL guy there and he’s going to be helping out with recruiting, that’s a big plus. Hopefully he can turn it into a coaching career if that’s what he’d like to do.

Be sure to join Cardiac Hill’s Facebook page and follow us on Twitter@PittPantherBlog for our regular updates on Pitt athletics. Follow the author and manager/editor of Cardiac Hill @AnsonWhaley

Written on August 19, 2016 at 6:30 pm


Legacy linebacker recruit DeCalon Brooks commits to Florida State

The ‘Noles add another commitment to its 2017 recruiting class.

Earlier Thursday evening, legacy 2017 three-star linebacker DeCalon Brooks, son of former FSU great Derrick Brooks, committed to Florida State. The Gaither high school student from Tampa (Fl.) chose the ‘Noles over seven other schools that were Rutgers, Louisville, USF, Iowa State, FIU, Middle Tennessee and USF.

Brooks had been a participant in Jimbo Fisher’s football camp over the summer and was a visitor for the Spring Game back in April. He had been offered by FSU since January of 2016 with his recruiting led by Lawrence Dawsey and Charles Kelly. Standing in at 5’11 175 lb, the linebacker is ranked the 1,103 prospect in the nation and 51st among inside linebackers.

With the commitment, Florida State’s 2017 recruiting class now sits at eighth in the nation and first in the ACC with its 13 total commitments. Brooks becomes the second linebacker recruit of that 2017 class with DeMarco Artis, three-star from Seminole (Fl.) the other.

Written on August 18, 2016 at 8:23 pm


ASU Football: Quarterback, offensive line battles heating up

The temperature isn’t the only thing that is hot in Tempe.

Competition, competition, competition.

Competition was certainly the buzzword for Arizona State Sun Devils head coach Todd Graham after Thursday morning’s practice.

“There’s been a lot of competition everywhere,” says Graham. “Offensive line, quarterback, secondary. There’s competition at linebacker. There’s competition up front.”

While position battles may still be heated at numerous positions for the Sun Devils, no contests are more hot, and important, than the ones at quarterback and throughout the offensive line.

Under center (and in shotgun), the race between freshman Brady White and sophomore Manny Wilkins is still about as tight as it can be. The pair continue to alternate reps with the first team offense, and Graham wasn’t about to give away any information on who may or may not be pulling ahead in the competition.

“Sometimes when they walk on the field, there’s a little bit of space in between them,” Graham deadpanned. “That’s it.”

It’s a good bet that whoever ends up starting the maroon and gold’s season opener on September 3 will be the quarterback who controls the ball best.

After only turning the ball over 13 times and finishing sixth in the country in turnover margin two years ago, Arizona State took a step back in its 2015 campaign. That number spiked to 19 last season, and with just 21 turnovers forced, the team finished outside of the top-50 in turnover margin.

Graham and company have identified a return to their ball security ways of the past as one of their top focuses as fall camp presses on.

“Waking up tomorrow,” joked Graham when originally asked what worries him the most.

After pausing, the head coach then continued.

“Making sure we get back to turnover ratio football is the biggest thing. So obviously, that is at that quarterback position. Our main three focuses are still the quarterback, offensive line, and secondary. And waking up in the morning.”

Competition remains stiff on that young but intriguing offensive line as the season fast approaches. While senior Evan Goodman has the left tackle spot locked up, nearly every other spot on the line continues to be battled for.

“Evan is the guy I’ve really been impressed with,” Graham says. “You can tell he’s in his fifth year – his last year – and I’m really liking his maturity. But all of those guys have impressed me at one point.”

Left guard Sam Jones, center Stephon McCray, right guard Quinn Bailey, and right tackle Zach Robertson were all immediately identified as guys who have looked good as of late to Graham, and coincidentally or not, all four played with the first-team offense in the 11-on-11 drill that was open to the media on Thursday.

Those positions are far from locked down, however, as guys like freshmen Steve Miller and Cohl Cabral, sophomores Alex Losoya and Connor Humphreys, and JC transfer A.J. McCollum continue to work their way into two-deep and situational roles.

“We just have to get steady everywhere,” says Graham. “We’ve had some consistency but there’s been competition at the center position, tackle positions, and the guard positions. So we’ll have a big evaluation in Saturday’s scrimmage and kind of settle in there before we get prepared for the first game.”

After using the 2015 season to adjust from the move from defensive line to offensive line, Graham says Humphreys is competing hard for a two-deep spot at guard.

“Connor’s one of those guys at guard who is right there competing for the two deep,” Graham says. “We have got a lot of competition with that group. Saturday is going to be a big evaluation day for everybody (on the line).”

Yes, Saturday’s scrimmage will be important for everyone. Whether it is the young offensive linemen, the two frontrunners at quarterback, or at numerous other spots on the field, the scrimmage will mark the final opportunity for players to show off before game-planning for Northern Arizona begins in earnest next week.

Just as the case has been for all of fall camp, there will surely be a lot of competition.

Written on August 18, 2016 at 8:15 pm


Watch 2 future Ohio State stars lose their black stripes

Losing your black stripe is the greatest thing that could happen to you as a young Buckeye. At least early on, before winning tons of football games happens over the duration of their career, of course.

That’s what Jordan Leasure and Binjimen Victor experienced Thursday, much to the pleasure of their teammates and coaches surrounding them. It was a good moment for the young Bucks as we inch closer and closer to the first game of the season.

Leasure and Victor joined Rodjay Burns and Dwayne Haskins, who both lost their black stripes Wednesday on the practice field. You could say it’s been a pretty good week for the Buckeye youth.

In case it still needs to be said, the future is very bright for the Ohio State Buckeyes. September 3 can’t come quick enough.

Go Bucks!

Written on August 18, 2016 at 8:11 pm


Auburn Football 2016 August 18th Post-Practice Rhett Lashlee Press Conference Recap

John Reed-USA TODAY Sports

Offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee met with the media following Thursday’s practice. He had some good news to relate! All credit to the beat writers who were there.

Rhett Lashlee met with the media, tonight. No, there’s no update on the QB race. However, if you expected Lashlee to name the starter instead of Gus Malzahn, you were pretty crazy in the first place. Maybe we’ll know more there when Gus Malzahn meets with the media following Saturday’s practice.

There is a lot of good things in there, though. I like how he mentions the team chemistry is great and how he praises Chandler Cox as a leader. Having vocal leaders on this team is something that didn’t seem to be there last year from the outside looking in. It’s even more impressive of Cox since he’s a true sophomore.

Oh, and Kyle Davis may be back full speed, soon. That warrants some excitement. I was curious about that, since there was this tweet earlier with some receivers practicing. Look closely and it appears #11 is in there catching balls. #11 would be Kyle Davis.

It’s nice to see it confirmed by Lashlee that he’s almost back to full speed. Another good part of that video? No drops!

There’s some bits from Cameron Toney at the bottom, too. I’m really hoping Travis Williams is able to coach those linebackers up to play like he did. If he can, then we’re going to have a much stronger linebacker corps than anyone expects. Toney also gives us some good injury news by confirming that Tre Williams is back from his ankle injury and is on the practice field again.

Cameron Toney:

Words

Written on August 18, 2016 at 8:08 pm


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