Spring Practice

[Jasper]

Wilson seems like an ideal fit then. IF I recall he came from a HS offense in which he did a lot of running. He is very athletic and quick in avoiding contact. I hope the two QB's we have coming in for summer camp are of the same mold. As I said, there does not appear to be much behind Wilson right now. In the two scrimmage sessions I watched, he took all but a handful of snaps. Also, in watching drills at least, there seems to be more speed in the receiving group then before. Can't speak to the hands as yet but some of these kids can fly. As expected, we are very deep at RB. Good observation about Roberto as well. Not only does he give us great running but following him into a hole is like riding a Mack track. BTW, I know Dominic pretty well and he really LIKES to block. He could have a monster year. I will try to concentrate on the D in the next visit - although with what we have coming back, I am not as concerned about that side of the ball.

[The Jackal]

I went back and watched some of Wilson's high school highlights. His senior year, he spent much of the time in a single back offense in the shotgun similar to what Roper runs. For the record, Jones and Huff were also running similar offenses.

Roper's QB at Holy Cross was a battering ram at 6'3 215. He was a big hombre. That physical profile more closely resembles what Carson Jones (6'2 205) might be with a few years in the weight room. Wilson a smaller/shiftier player.

I think the reps this spring and time in the weight room will do a lot for Wilson. He's got a lot of the tools for Furman's offense to be successful

[Jasper]

It looks like a marriage of an offensive scheme with matching personnel is imminent. We haven’t had that since Drew Cronic and Blazejowski.

[Paul C]

BTW - nice call on making Citadel the favorite in today's BB game. How DO you do it?

Years of practice.

Now that’s funny

[DeepPurple]

I hope we can get some depth at qb in the near future and we can turn our QBs loose running the football. I think Jace will have a break out year moving forward.

[AstroDin]

concerning depth a look at (Carson Jones)
below is the link to his highlight package on Hudl.
Fast Forward to 1:01 to see Carson Jones on a keeper.
This play is very similar to the runs the HC quarterback made in the playoff games I watched.
http://www.hudl.com/video/3/9765832/615 ... 0308399679

[AstroDin]

a look at (Tyler Huff)
First, the dude has a very quick release and is a very savvy passer, he has an uncanny knack to hit receivers in space.
He's also a very good runner, fast forward to the 1:53 mark.

[Jasper]

Let the competition begin. Both these guys look very good. We need them both right now.

[apaladin]

Running is all well and good but any team has to be able to throw the ball consistently to win consistently. That is what has been sorely missing the past few seasons.

[The Jackal]

Running is all well and good but any team has to be able to throw the ball consistently to win consistently. That is what has been sorely missing the past few seasons.

Hendrix has addressed that in interviews. My impression is that he is well aware we need improvement there.

We have a good offensive line and a strong running back group, all of which help a young QB. I think we'll have a deeper group of pass catchers than we've had in a while.

We've struggled mightily with developing QB depth. Some of that falls on the coaches. Some of that is outside of their control. I do believe Dan Scott highlighted in his recent interview that for the first time in Hendrix's tenure we are returning a starter at QB.

There will be a QB battle in the fall. Wilson, I assume, has the upper hand at the moment given the fact that he had a pretty successful run last season and is the only one of the three QBs in spring practice.

[Afurmanfan]

Jace is obviously a great athlete and talented qb who also has a very cool temperament. His talent was obvious early, but missing camp was a big hindrance. Both of the soon to be on campus qb’s look very good and with some time could provide real depth at the position we have had the most trouble. The new OC and Jace have bonded very quickly and I expect a much improved Jace come August (if not already). Look forward to seeing what Justin can do with the new qb’s and seeing some fun offense utilizing all the speed and talent we now have at our skill positions.

[FurmAlum]

This is a question for either Jackal, Jasper, or FuBear.

With the new FU offense leaning towards a 1 RB set and Roberto seems to be that guy, where does that leave Devon Abrams, Wayne Anderson, and Kendell Thomas?

All three have demonstrated the ability to catch the ball. Might we see them lined up in the slot?

[FUBeAR]

This is a question for either Jackal, Jasper, or FuBear.

With the new FU offense leaning towards a 1 RB set and Roberto seems to be that guy, where does that leave Devon Abrams, Wayne Anderson, and Kendell Thomas?

All three have demonstrated the ability to catch the ball. Might we see them lined up in the slot?

Yes…AND…a Team that’s going to run the ball 50+% (hopefully more) of the time, regardless of their ‘set,’ needs 3 solid RB’s to be a Championship Team. An exp’d, good OC will find a way to ‘ride his horse’ and keep the others engaged & happy with meaningful touches & ways to contribute.

[The Jackal]

This is a question for either Jackal, Jasper, or FuBear.

With the new FU offense leaning towards a 1 RB set and Roberto seems to be that guy, where does that leave Devon Abrams, Wayne Anderson, and Kendell Thomas?

All three have demonstrated the ability to catch the ball. Might we see them lined up in the slot?

I do not believe this will be a problem.

Just for comparison's sake, Holy Cross and Furman both ran the ball approximately 42 times per game last season. The Crusaders had 6 players with 30+ carries on the season. Furman had 5 players with 30+ carries (albeit in fewer games).

I agree with Bear, you are going to need a strong rotation of 3 or 4 running backs. Holy Cross had a primary back, but then gave plenty of carries to the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th backs on the roster.

Honestly, it may be a better set up for Furman. Under Quarles, we frequently had two backs on the field with one often lined up as an H-Back or a WR. Those are snaps, blocks, and routes that often did not turn into touches.

My guess would be that in 2022 our running backs would primarily be running backs. The TEs will likely handle the H Back role. A lot of formations will feature 3 WRs instead of 2 WRs and a RB.

If history is any indicator, we will likely run the ball as much as we did in 2021, just the distribution of carries will change. Our QB will factor much more in the run game. I'd expect most of the rushing damage to be done by a rotation of backs led by Roberto.

I don't know how the game distribution went for Holy Cross. I can get a big picture, though, of Roper liking the idea of keeping Roberto and Abrams fresh for the fourth quarter. Those two pounding away behind a good offensive line is going to be a pain for a defense to deal with. Alternatively, if we are behind and have to throw, Anderson and Thomas are excellent receivers.

[gofurman]

I've always had 2 thoughts about having a system with a running QB.. 1) MAINLY, (you know I love all caps for emphasis LOL) - it makes the game 11 on 11 instead of 10 on 11. And the elusiveness factor is awesome - think Armanti Edwards or the opposing D missing what should be a sack. Heck, I think it was Mercer we missed about 7 would-be sacks vs a 'mildly' elusive QB.. not a Jayson Foster.. and it drove us crazy. But the primary point here is the 11 vs 11. Usually the O has their advantage because they know the play that is coming and the D does not ... but the O is playing down a player if the QB only drops back - so it evens out in a way as hte D has the latter advantage. Now the O really has an advantage with 11 vs 11. !
2) there is a threat of injuries. However, you have to play to win and I will take my chances with a running QB system. Just don't run him when we are up 29 on Woff

on a side note - I know this is not spring practice... but I guess the intention is to have the PC guy start to redshirt Jace or at least have the PC ready in case Jace gets hurt in some way. I hope the Blue Hose guy is a good one - at a minimum for strong competition. His (PC guy) big disadvantage will be that Jace has had 1+ year in the system...

Hoepfully team is great ... QB position is still one year away from what I hear of the old days. then Jace as a junior and the scholarship new kid then a sophomore