Purple/White Game

[Jasper]

I mentioned earlier today that CCH apparently does not put much stock in the these Purple-White affairs and he proved it once again. He clearly does not want to see anyone injured in this penultimate spring practice session. Today's efforts were way less than the Saturday practice of a few weeks ago. Having said that, a few observations:
1. Cole Neely and Jordan Harris at C and RG blew a hole in the D line a mile wide on a dive play from inside the 10. Good to see that.
2. In spite of that, the D line played very well. Of note Matt Sochova. This is a strong unit and very deep.
3. DeJuan Bell and Thomas Gordon are very dangerous deep threats. Both made nice grabs today.
4. Jack Hardin is much more than a serviceable QB.
5. Hamp Sisson is a cool customer. Love to see him in live action.
6. No one has more fun playing football than Donovan Perryman

[AstroDin]

I'll add a few more thoughts…

DeLuca really impressed me, I was on the field and sometimes that perspective negates observing quickness unless someone is really quick. DeLuca is very quick, twitchy quick. Gordon, DeLuca, and Bell make for a fast, athletic sure-handed receiving corps.

Lots and I mean lots of juniors were in attendance - I moved around to each position as they drilled. The offensive line had the largest crowd - they look impressive and smooth. This could be a big year for Jordan Harris.

Tailback and Quarterback drills were interesting to watch - I was very impressed with the ball handling and the fakes. Sisson excels at this. Watkins speed was impressive. Abrams and McElveen played B back - I assume Maples was dinged up. By the way, the coaches are calling them B backs. Abrams ran hard he also looks and plays bigger than 6-1 215. Another note maybe I just haven't noticed but Wynn isn't a small tailback. He's listed at 6-0 195, he's a legit 6-0.

Jasper mentioned this earlier Perryman looked impressive, love his spirit and he's settled in. Sochovka played a bunch of snaps looked impressive/ I will wonder out loud here - I think Seabrook could be the man at DE. London Lewis had a red jersey on bit played a good bit, Lewis had a smile on his face all day and looked like he really enjoyed being out there, I hope he gets cleared to play.

If looks translate to on the field play Davonta Porter is an All-American. Porter is physically impressive he played well and seems to play nasty.

The defense under Duane Vaughn. The defense played focused and very up. The defense was itching to hit and the highlight of that was a catch for a short gain by Zach Peterson - who was then picked up in the air and thrown down by a safety - Jack Owens or Austin Jones? A pushing match ensued and was quickly stopped. IMO Jones will play in 2019.

[Jasper]

I'll add a few more thoughts…

DeLuca really impressed me, I was on the field and sometimes that perspective negates observing quickness unless someone is really quick. DeLuca is very quick, twitchy quick. Gordon, DeLuca, and Bell make for a fast, athletic sure-handed receiving corps.

Lots and I mean lots of juniors were in attendance - I moved around to each position as they drilled. The offensive line had the largest crowd - they look impressive and smooth. This could be a big year for Jordan Harris.

Tailback and Quarterback drills were interesting to watch - I was very impressed with the ball handling and the fakes. Sisson excels at this. Watkins speed was impressive. Abrams and McElveen played B back - I assume Maples was dinged up. By the way, the coaches are calling them B backs. Abrams ran hard he also looks and plays bigger than 6-1 215. Another note maybe I just haven't noticed but Wynn isn't a small tailback. He's listed at 6-0 195, he's a legit 6-0.

Jasper mentioned this earlier Perryman looked impressive, love his spirit and he's settled in. Sochovka played a bunch of snaps looked impressive/ I will wonder out loud here - I think Seabrook could be the man at DE. London Lewis had a red jersey on bit played a good bit, Lewis had a smile on his face all day and looked like he really enjoyed being out there, I hope he gets cleared to play.

If looks translate to on the field play Davonta Porter is an All-American. Porter is physically impressive he played well and seems to play nasty.

The defense under Duane Vaughn. The defense played focused and very up. The defense was itching to hit and the highlight of that was a catch for a short gain by Zach Peterson - who was then picked up in the air and thrown down by a safety - Jack Owens or Austin Jones? A pushing match ensued and was quickly stopped. IMO Jones will play in 2019.

You are right about Davonta Porter at Bandit. That position is actually awesome for us. Adrian Hope has put on 10-15 more pounds of muscle and also looks great. Dillon Vann is big, fast and aggressive. That will be some rotation.

I also agree on Jordan Harris. Last year was his first year on offense and he started right away. Now he has a full year of experience. He too has been working hard in the weight room and is much bigger than his stated weight.

A starter at DT for 2 years, Jonah Tubbs seems to like his move to DE very much. It looks to me as if we are going to get much more of pass rush without blitzing next season. Parker Stokes is showing an excellent bull rush from NG.

[paladinduece]

I saw a lot of things to be really excited about and some not bad, but we will need answers in the qb situation. I have never been a fan of a 2 qb system and I am hoping one of the two will separate themselves so the offense can have an identity. Delueca is a true weapon. With the slot and TE game I see a lot of options offensively. But honestly when you don’t tackle it is advantage offense which makes the defensive dominance that much more impressive. Yes the O had their moments but they were few and mostly on 5th and 6th down plays the coaches wanted to extend after the D flexed on them. We have tremendous depth across the front 7 and experience at corner the one position we don’t is strong safety with Aaquil gone it is a big hole. I wasn’t sure who 25 was working first team but ultimately was informed it was Jones the freshman. I wouldn’t be surprised to see him step in and contribute if not start. I am really excited at the depth on the D line and bandit and agree we will be able to pressure the QB without exotic blitzes. I see positives all over and I am excited to see how this group gels. Have a feeling we might be ahead of projections.

[MNORM]

In the limited time I was able to attend, one thing really stood out to me...the "zip" on Grainger's passes. On the 7-12 yard passes, he was throwing BBs with really tight spirals. That's good to see from a kid in his third year playing the position...and an improvement over last season.
Sisson looks like he's been playing QB since in the womb.

[Fred Garvin]

Watch for Donovan Perryman as well. Moved to ILB last season and now has a year of experience under his belt - plus he is bigger and faster. Lots of spirit.

Yes - definitely watch for Perryman in 2019. This is going to be a big compliment, but may not sound like it...at first.

I hadn’t realized that Perryman made a position change in 2018...and at the beginning of the season, I consistently saw him in the wrong places doing wrong things. I was saying things (to myself) like, “OMG, #44 is the worst LB I have ever seen. He needs to come off the field & never return. Looks like Tarzan, but plays like Jane’s baby sister.” Dumb fan stuff like that...but this is why Coach Lamendola is FU’s LB Coach & FUBeAR isn’t. By the lattter part of the season, #44 was MONEY...and all of his spirit and passion for the game was evident as he was in all the right places, doing all the right things...BIGLY!

He and McKoy just might be FU’s best pair of ILB’s since Green52 & Blitz51 (if he’s still on here)...or BHall & Coatney or Coatney & Hurst or Blankenship & whoever his running partner was...or whomever else of the many great Furman ILB tandems I’m omitting...

Bottom-Line...Perryman & McKoy, in 2019, are going to have other SoCon Offenses saying...

Thud Davis was his own tandem

[FUBeAR]

Watch for Donovan Perryman as well. Moved to ILB last season and now has a year of experience under his belt - plus he is bigger and faster. Lots of spirit.

Yes - definitely watch for Perryman in 2019. This is going to be a big compliment, but may not sound like it...at first.

I hadn’t realized that Perryman made a position change in 2018...and at the beginning of the season, I consistently saw him in the wrong places doing wrong things. I was saying things (to myself) like, “OMG, #44 is the worst LB I have ever seen. He needs to come off the field & never return. Looks like Tarzan, but plays like Jane’s baby sister.” Dumb fan stuff like that...but this is why Coach Lamendola is FU’s LB Coach & FUBeAR isn’t. By the lattter part of the season, #44 was MONEY...and all of his spirit and passion for the game was evident as he was in all the right places, doing all the right things...BIGLY!

He and McKoy just might be FU’s best pair of ILB’s since Green52 & Blitz51 (if he’s still on here)...or BHall & Coatney or Coatney & Hurst or Blankenship & whoever his running partner was...or whomever else of the many great Furman ILB tandems I’m omitting...

Bottom-Line...Perryman & McKoy, in 2019, are going to have other SoCon Offenses saying...

Thud Davis was his own tandem

LOL - True - While I'm not 100% sure, FUBeAR may have given him that moniker during his Scout Team days...Recalling that FUBeAR didn't do windows, nor go LIVE in practice (EVER) after the '81 season, I still ran into peeps when we were going 'half-speed' (we didn't use the terms "thud" or "thud up" back then to describe less-than-full-contact drills)...and every time I even ran into that dude, it was like "THUD!!!" echoing in my helmet. Just felt like he was made of frickin' concrete or something. I know I called him "Cement Head" and such...and I think it evolved to "Thud" at some point. Anyway - glad I never had to play LIVE against him. I don't have any idea why, but nobody I ever hit felt like it did when I hit him...I can only imagine what ball carriers felt like when HE HIT THEM!

[The Jackal]

In the limited time I was able to attend, one thing really stood out to me...the "zip" on Grainger's passes. On the 7-12 yard passes, he was throwing BBs with really tight spirals. That's good to see from a kid in his third year playing the position...and an improvement over last season.
Sisson looks like he's been playing QB since in the womb.

Buddy of mine was one of the zebras working the game. He commented on Grainger's quick delivery and zip on the ball.

[The Jackal]

I'll add a few more thoughts…

DeLuca really impressed me, I was on the field and sometimes that perspective negates observing quickness unless someone is really quick. DeLuca is very quick, twitchy quick. Gordon, DeLuca, and Bell make for a fast, athletic sure-handed receiving corps.

Lots and I mean lots of juniors were in attendance - I moved around to each position as they drilled. The offensive line had the largest crowd - they look impressive and smooth. This could be a big year for Jordan Harris.

Tailback and Quarterback drills were interesting to watch - I was very impressed with the ball handling and the fakes. Sisson excels at this. Watkins speed was impressive. Abrams and McElveen played B back - I assume Maples was dinged up. By the way, the coaches are calling them B backs. Abrams ran hard he also looks and plays bigger than 6-1 215. Another note maybe I just haven't noticed but Wynn isn't a small tailback. He's listed at 6-0 195, he's a legit 6-0.

Jasper mentioned this earlier Perryman looked impressive, love his spirit and he's settled in. Sochovka played a bunch of snaps looked impressive/ I will wonder out loud here - I think Seabrook could be the man at DE. London Lewis had a red jersey on bit played a good bit, Lewis had a smile on his face all day and looked like he really enjoyed being out there, I hope he gets cleared to play.

If looks translate to on the field play Davonta Porter is an All-American. Porter is physically impressive he played well and seems to play nasty.

The defense under Duane Vaughn. The defense played focused and very up. The defense was itching to hit and the highlight of that was a catch for a short gain by Zach Peterson - who was then picked up in the air and thrown down by a safety - Jack Owens or Austin Jones? A pushing match ensued and was quickly stopped. IMO Jones will play in 2019.

You are right about Davonta Porter at Bandit. That position is actually awesome for us. Adrian Hope has put on 10-15 more pounds of muscle and also looks great. Dillon Vann is big, fast and aggressive. That will be some rotation.

I also agree on Jordan Harris. Last year was his first year on offense and he started right away. Now he has a full year of experience. He too has been working hard in the weight room and is much bigger than his stated weight.

A starter at DT for 2 years, Jonah Tubbs seems to like his move to DE very much. It looks to me as if we are going to get much more of pass rush without blitzing next season. Parker Stokes is showing an excellent bull rush from NG.

I bet you that the Bandit position is going to see a heavy rotation this season. The coaching staff is going to keep those guys fresh with a focus on causing havoc in the backfield.

Hope did some of his most damaging work against heavier legs late in games. If you can keep those pass rushers fresh, they'll make life tough for a tired offense.

[DeepPurple]

I have also heard that our early enrolled players look very good.
CCH, "time to get bigger, faster, stronger!"

[Jasper]

I have also heard that our early enrolled players look very good.
CCH, "time to get bigger, faster, stronger!"

That is true. I think Jones may be the starter at Safety and Jumper is taking 2nd snaps at Center. Miller is in a tough position - Spur - and is playing behind some real good ones. With the new 4 game rule, it is likely that 2 of them will play some and still be able to redshirt while doing some learning - barring a spate of injuries. Our depth is the best I have seen in a decade.

[DeepPurple]

Didn't they finish spring practice this morning? Last day?

[paladinduece]

Yes they wrapped up Spring today.

[The Jackal]

I have also heard that our early enrolled players look very good.
CCH, "time to get bigger, faster, stronger!"

That is true. I think Jones may be the starter at Safety and Jumper is taking 2nd snaps at Center. Miller is in a tough position - Spur - and is playing behind some real good ones. With the new 4 game rule, it is likely that 2 of them will play some and still be able to redshirt while doing some learning - barring a spate of injuries. Our depth is the best I have seen in a decade.

Hard not to like Jumper. He's a kid that had a ton of offers, showed up early, will get extra reps during spring practice and time in the weight room, plays a cornerstone position, and is already working in with the second team.

If you assume that he redshirts this season, you'll have Neely as a senior next year and Jumper as a redshirt freshman. That's looking like a strong depth chart going forward.

[Paul C]

Jumper gonna need to do some work in the weight room. Not obsessed with size like some are but at 6-4 and 240 gotta be a little concerned about his ability to anchor in pass pro. On the move he’s probably terrific but he won’t always be on the move.