Spring Practice
Spring Practice started today, and guessing by the weather forecast they will be in Hulluba Hall this week practicing. So much for me trying to sneak by one of the practices this week to snap a picture or two and heckle Jay Paterno....
But anyway; let's get to what we should be concerned about.
1. Running Back: Let's face it, Royster got beat up more last year than a wife in the south that served her husband cold grits for breakfast. But in all seriousness; he did get dinged up a bit here and there and that should be a concern.
Behind Royster , is well ??? It seems Carter has been moved back to the defensive side of the ball ; so we are all hoping and wishing that Green is the next big thing. Sure, word out of camp is that he's just sick and makes the first team look stupid. But this is the same camp that convinced us Morelli turned the corner and would finally own teams other than Akron.
With a new QB coming in, and with the HD offense Jay wants to run; it's crucial that the RB be able to pick up the blitz and also be able to carry the rock 25 times a game.....
2. Defensive Back: King is gone , and we only seem to have one DB back. Will A.J Wallace be the shutdown corner we all hope he can be? Can we find a second corner to come in and make an immediate impact?? Can D'Antonn Lynn progress fast enough to see the field? What do we do in the Dime package???
Lots of questions surround the team in the backfield....
3. Wide Receiver. This is my biggest concern. Let's face it, we are dangerously thin at WR right now. Bell is so deep in the doghouse he's finding discarded rawhides and biscuit crumbs. Williams hasn't been right since I broke his arm....Norwood can't go over the middle .... and Butler is only one man.
At one time it seemed like we'd have a sweet fab four that could rip a team in shreds; now the team is one injury away from Mark Rubin being a go-to guy....Shame we lost in state WR tallent because Joe doesn't make house visits.....
4. Linebacker. See above. We are thin at LB, there are players kicked off the team, and what do we do with Sean Lee? Do we move him to the inside, do we keep him on the edge?
What about Stupar? Does he see the field sooner than later?
5. Special Teams. Kevin Kelly is a head case - there I said it. He's a headcase and has been a headcase since the Orange Bowl.
Will the local kid Collin Wagner see the field? I've heard through the grapevine he was on the travel squad last year for a few games, and I'd love to see how this kid can do. Last year Kelly had to deal with the back injuries , but what about this year? How many more excuses does Papa Joe give him?
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Tune in next time when we can discuss the 5 positives heading into next season.