With Bounds in slot.TE... that’s cute. There will be 4 WRs on the first offensive play.
JMac isn’t dynamic but he’s experienced, and pretty trustworthy and that means a lot, particularly with HCMM. Most punts are fair caught anyway. I wish we had another, experienced PR but we really don’t. I would expect they’ll give some others some opportunities in blowouts.I pretty much agree with the first two attempts about 95%, except I honestly do not see Jay Mac back returning any punts ever again? He is not a game breaker, last time he was returning a punt it caused a concussion, and he is coming off an injury. We have a lot more athletic talent on this team, and do not need to use a guy like him on Punt Return?
Also, there are a few 1A/1B scenarios that are really hard to say that they are definitive starters:
Shenault, Winfree, Ento, and J-Mac are all starter quality easily, and Tony Brown might just outplay J-Mac if all things are equal
Falo and Callier are going to rock this year and are equal starters if they were playing with two true OLB rushing the passer instead of the Buff Backer
I am not so sure that McMillian comes in and takes the starter spot straight away from Fontenot, who looks like the back of the future!
What I am very happy to see is a solid strong PAC 12 team out on the field. Depth is coming around in many places, except in the LOS!
Anxious as hell to play some ball
I was real cose to posting it that way. Official depth chart last year showed it as 12 starters - with WRs at X and Z on the outside while the Y and H were the 2 slot positions. One of those 2 slots is either/or with a TE.TE... that’s cute. There will be 4 WRs on the first offensive play.
To start I believe Phil saved at least 7-8 sacks last year because he could/would block, the back that starts will need to do the same and be able to catch the ball out of the backfield.If JMac is healthy and not starting, that is a great sign for this football team. He may not be the most dynamic player, but dude knows how to get open and doesn’t drop the ball. He has made many critical 3rd down catches in his career. If he isn’t playing much, the talent at WR really is up several notches.
McMillan and Fontenot = Brown and Purify. Two headed monster!
Totally not true. In fact, I re-watched a few games this week (Arizona game from beginning to start) while it was raining out, and many of our long running plays or short passing plays that broke it was JayMac making a key block that he was able to hold for ridiculously long times. He's one of the most reliable blockers at the position, and that's overlooked, because the other guys are much bigger.To start I believe Phil saved at least 7-8 sacks last year because he could/would block, the back that starts will need to do the same and be able to catch the ball out of the backfield.
I agree JMac has very good hands and is dependable however he became a liability on certain plays because he wasn't physical enough to hold a block long enough. I do believe he's been recruited over, Nixon, Jackson & Brown are wild cards in that only Nixon has seen the field for us to see his potential. Jackson hasn't played a down at this level and Brown has D1 playing experience and a red shirt year to learn an offense that he's somewhat already familiar with.
Last season Lindgren went to the well one too many times in several games, I don't see Chiv duplicating that mistake with the personnel combos he can put on the field. If this season plays out as I suspect it will, CU will average 10-15 more offensive plays per game and because of this JMac will get plenty of reps to get 30+.
I made sure to say 'on certain plays', I wasn't trying to insinuate that he was completely inept at blocking.Totally not true. In fact, I re-watched a few games this week (Arizona game from beginning to start) while it was raining out, and many of our long running plays or short passing plays that broke it was JayMac making a key block that he was able to hold for ridiculously long times. He's one of the most reliable blockers at the position, and that's overlooked, because the other guys are much bigger.
Your definition of "liability" is different than my understanding of the word.I made sure to say 'on certain plays', I wasn't trying to insinuate that he was completely inept at blocking.
If I were to be totally honest, Fields and Ross weren't great at down field blocking and Bobo wasn't that far ahead of them.Well, I definitely wouldn't say he is one of the most reliable but he is solid and has improved a lot since he first took the field.
Blocking from WRs is 100% effort. Those 3 guys sold out in 2016 and we’re tremendous in the run game. They let their egos and NFL dreams get in the way of that same effort in 2017. That’s partly on Chev, too.If I were to be totally honest, Fields and Ross weren't great at down field blocking and Bobo wasn't that far ahead of them.
Looking at Ento, Winfree & Shenault the YAC is going to go up considerably...that's my hope anyway.
Blocking from WRs is 100% effort. Those 3 guys sold out in 2016 and we’re tremendous in the run game. They let their egos and NFL dreams get in the way of that same effort in 2017. That’s partly on Chev, too.
Totally. In my mind our WR took a major step back in 2017 because they weren't blocking like they did in 2016. I really hope this year's crew can get us back to 2016 form. We need WR blocking to be institutional and expected, or you sit.Blocking from WRs is 100% effort. Those 3 guys sold out in 2016 and we’re tremendous in the run game. They let their egos and NFL dreams get in the way of that same effort in 2017. That’s partly on Chev, too.
Totally. In my mind our WR took a major step back in 2017 because they weren't blocking like they did in 2016. I really hope this year's crew can get us back to 2016 form. We need WR blocking to be institutional and expected, or you sit.
Yeah, it's hard to see for yourself, but I think that was a common point of emphasis from many during last season and I feel like Chev made some comments about it as well. Regardless, there seems to be a refusal from the staff to bench Seniors in favor of underclassmen, regardless of scenario. There was no reason Shenault and Winfree shouldn't have been playing over Fields and Bobo in the second half of the season, or even KD over Ross. I'm not saying a full blown replacement of all three, but there should have been more of a time share than there was.It's usually difficult to see WR blocking on TV broadcasts, so I'm agnostic about this take. However, if it is true, then it's Chiaverini's fault for not sitting guys who weren't pulling their weight by blocking on the perimeter while Winfree and Shenault rode the bench. One gift of a a deep position group is the ability to send a clear message about what is expected.
It's usually difficult to see WR blocking on TV broadcasts, so I'm agnostic about this take. However, if it is true, then it's Chiaverini's fault for not sitting guys who weren't pulling their weight by blocking on the perimeter while Winfree and Shenault rode the bench. One gift of a a deep position group is the ability to send a clear message about what is expected.
Loyalty will get you beat.Yeah, it's hard to see for yourself, but I think that was a common point of emphasis from many during last season and I feel like Chev made some comments about it as well. Regardless, there seems to be a refusal from the staff to bench Seniors in favor of underclassmen, regardless of scenario. There was no reason Shenault and Winfree shouldn't have been playing over Fields and Bobo in the second half of the season, or even KD over Ross. I'm not saying a full blown replacement of all three, but there should have been more of a time share than there was.
Have you heard something here?QB - Lytle
RB - McMillian
TE - Bounds
WR - Shenault
WR - Nixon
WR - Winfree
OT - Moretti
OT - Kaiser
OG - Lynott
OG - Haigler
C - Pursell
NT - Edwards
DE - Mulumba
DE - Lang
ILB - Gamboa
ILB - Lewis
OLB - Callier
Buff - Davion Taylor
CB - Miller
CB - Udoffia
S - Fisher
S - Worthington
K - Stefanau
P - Keeny
PR - Nixon
LS - Bale
KR - Nixon/Blackmon
There are a few bold predictions in this... I know you’re a little more removed from the team than you used to be, but do you have any insight here that leads you to predict these, specifically QB and a DE spot?QB - Lytle
RB - McMillian
TE - Bounds
WR - Shenault
WR - Nixon
WR - Winfree
OT - Moretti
OT - Kaiser
OG - Lynott
OG - Haigler
C - Pursell
NT - Edwards
DE - Mulumba
DE - Lang
ILB - Gamboa
ILB - Lewis
OLB - Callier
Buff - Davion Taylor
CB - Miller
CB - Udoffia
S - Fisher
S - Worthington
K - Stefanau
P - Keeny
PR - Nixon
LS - Bale
KR - Nixon/Blackmon