This post was edited on 3/16 9:30 PM by Wavetime

This post was edited on 3/16 9:30 PM by Wavetime

Link

We're now twenty games into the Dave Pierce era and I like what I see, though the euphoria of some a little earlier in the season may have been somewhat premature. We're 15-5 through 20 games compared to last year's 10-10, but, IMO, we've got several areas of improvement necessary to become an NCAA tourney team.


On the recruiting front, Duester, Steele, and Johnson, all signed by the previous staff, chose to stay when Pierce was signed. They have clearly helped out pitching, along with the improvement of guys like Merrill and Gibbs and the greater use of Yandel and Rankin, both of whom pitched very well last year in limited opportunities. Along with Gibault, these guys have more than made up for the loss of Mapes, Leblanc, McKenzie, Garner, Flowers, Wilson, and France who threw over 270 innings between them last year (roughly 60% of our total). Massey's most recent performance yesterday is also encouraging. I think coaching can take credit for much of our improvement on the mound.


The rest of recruiting has not played out that well so far. Sequiera and Issa haven't pitched and, except for some pinch running by Symington, he and Aumus haven't taken the field.


Hitting continues to be a concern. From last year, we lost Garner, Woodson, and Dimaggio, who hit a combined .230 on the year, about what the team hit as a whole. And we've added no one. Pierce is having to do with essentially the same guys who hit .227 last year. Frankly, with the new balls and, hopefully, better coaching, I expected better results. And, we're getting it in a few areas. For example, Kaplan, Williams, Gandolfo, Wilson, Brown, Yandel, and Burns hit a combined .150 last year, though, other than Kaplan, they didn't play all that much. This year, they're hitting .243 as a group, not great but almost .100 better. Alemais, Hope, Rogers, Deschamp, Carthan, and Willsey, the other returners, hit .250 last year. As a group, they're hitting .265 so far this year. Again, better, but not great.


Some of our players still lack bat speed to compete at this level and, as a team, we are not very aggressive. We're getting to two strikes far too often-- effectively half of our at bats. This is important because we're hitting .336 prior to two strikes and .163 with two strikes (not unlike past years or other teams, BTW). If it weren't for all the strike outs, we'd be hitting .311 with two strikes, counting only those balls we actually put in play. But we're striking out at a fearful pace, even more than last year. We're taking a tremendous number of strikes while swinging at far too many balls. Part of that goes back to the bat speed and having to make "early decisions." I don't think we'll see a lot better hitting until Coach Pierce can bring in a lot better hitters. Recruiting for 2016 give hope that could be soon.


Fielding continues to be erratic. Without Brown, we don't have any really good outfielders and no-one with a "plus" arm. Most of our throws so far have been short and off line. Teams are running on our outfield arms. We have some speed in the outfield, which is good, but, despite some "highlight reel" plays, we need better outfield play. Rogers, at catcher has been great. He's proven to be a good receiver and excellent at throwing out runners. So far he's thrown out 13 of 20 steal attempts. I might add that the pitching staff is doing a good job holding runners also. With Merrill or Duester on the mound, opponents are 1 for 11 attempting to steal. But, Alemais continues to be a mystery. He makes sensational plays and then bungles the most routine. His .924 fielding average to this point is by far the worst for a Tulane shortstop in at least 15 years and probably much longer.


But, I see more scrappiness in this team than I've seen in a Tulane team (any sport) in a long time. They fight to the end and don't ever give up. I also attribute that to coaching, though some leadership from team members has to play in that results.


The remainder of the year will be interesting. And if we can win two out of three the rest of the way, we should have a shot at the NCAA's. The teams we've played so far have won 166 and lost 204 (.449), though I think they'll improve that over the rest of the season. Those we've yet to play are 404 and 222 (.645), though because many of them (our conference mates) will be playing each other, that will almost assuredly go down. Nonetheless, that will help our RPI a great deal if we can keep winning.


Roll Wave!!!
This post was edited on 3/16 12:14 PM by WaveON

Brown, who injured his shoulder diving for a catch against Creighton, will have surgery after rest did not help the shoulder get better.

He will be a significant loss because of his defense--the Green Wave is shaky in the outfield without him--but like WaveON, I love the toughness and competitiveness of this team. They got the sweep they needed against Xavier, so by sweeping San Francisco and Xavier, they've already matched the number of weekend sweeps they had in the last two years combined.

This post was edited on 3/16 4:28 PM by Guerry Smith

After all the "bracket" discussion and predictions, the results are in. Thirty-Two teams received automatic bids and 36 others received "at large" bids to the NCAA tournement. Had those 36 "at large bids" been awarded based on RPI only, Colorado State, Temple, Tulsa, and Old Dominion would have been in and Purdue, LSU, Ole Miss, and Indiana would have been out. I, personally, would have preferred that, but college basketball fans, ESPN, and the "money men" running the tournament are probably happy. The four "winners' will undoubtedly draw more fans and result in greater TV ratings than those overlooked. And, I suppose that's important.

Colorado State, who is a #1 seed in the NIT, has the biggest gripe, at least as far as RPI is concerned. Twelve teams, behind them in RPI, got in. My guess is their 2-3 record against top 50 teams and 5-5 record against top 100 teams hurt them, along with their third place finish in the 10th place Mountain West Conference, despite their overall 26-6 record.

Still, two SEC teams and two Big 10 teams got in with lower RPI's than teams with better records and better RPI's from "lesser" conferences. Some might suggest "big conference" bias. I have no idea how the decisions were made behind closed doors.

Sadly, the Wave wasn't in the discussion regardless.

I thought I would chime in here as a "has been" to let you guys know the remaining status of Fudge. As you all knew, he tore his hip labrum (after his second surgery) in the third fall practice. They moved him to cornerback after practicing all summer as a receiver and his hip was not ready for that. Who knew. As a result the doctors (and myself) declared him ineligible for football. We petitioned for Tulane to let him just run track to at least give back something to Tulane. The answer from the Wilson Center was the "NCAA said no". It is a stupid stupid ruling to say the least. Fudge is scheduled to graduate next December, ahead of time, with a double major. He can then go run track at another school and get his MBA. He will have two years of eligibility left. Today, for the first time he has competed since high school in the 100 meter, without any coach or coaching, Fudge finished 11th out of 50 with a time of 10.76 running "unattached" under his own name. That is better than a sprinter for Tulane has run in many years without being wind aided, I think Badie ran a 10.74 in a wind aided meet last year. The NCAA sucks big time in my book for many reasons but especially this. If a player has an injury that prevents him from playing in his primary sport, why in heaven's name, can he not play something else for his university? Tulane was at today's meet...without a sprinter in the 100M. The Tulane track team cheered him on while he ran in a blank neon green shirt...

http://cfpitiming.com/liveresults/2015_Outdoor/McNeese_Cowboy_Relays_2015/results_9.html

Two months ago I posted here that the basketball team had clearly improved over the previous year. Of course, we had an RPI at the time of 136. Despite the end-of-year tailspin, that is probably still true, but far less evident. We may have actually been worse at the end of this year than last.

Though the comparison certainly has many flaws (probably fatal in fact ) I took a quick look at the schools we played in 2014 that we also played in 2015. In 2014, we beat Southern, Jackson State and ECU and lost to Wake Forest, Washington, and Tulsa twice. Interestingly, we beat the same schools and lost to the same schools, including twice to Tulsa in 2015. In 2014, we were outscored by 52 points (7.4 per game) and in 2015 we were outscored by 31 points (4.4 per game). So, whatever one might think of the comparison, we performed roughly the same against the same universities. (I keep saying "schools" or "universities" because obviously they were not the same "teams" from one year to the next).

In a different comparison, last year, we went 8-8 in the 13th ranked conference. This year we went 6-12 in the 7th ranked conference. It's hard to compare that result. We fared worse in a better conference.

Last year, our final RPI was 224; this year at this point it's 214 (it could still change a little)-what one might call "marginal" improvement. Last year we went 0-11 against the top 150; this year we went 3-12, a solid, if unimpressive improvement.

In the five years of the Conroy reign, our RPI's have been consecutively 235, 251, 173, 224, and 214, an average RPI of 219.4. Through the five years, we are 5-45 against "top 150" competition. We've essentially "cleaned up" on the bottom half of the Division 1 world, going 67-26. And, thankfully, we haven't lost any to non-Division 1 teams.

I will guess that Conroy will be back next year and, barring a ten win or fewer season, the following year as well. I personally thought he should have been fired two years ago and that we wasted a year keeping him on. I then thought he should have been fired last year, so now we've wasted two years with him.

Could everything turn around next year? Possibly. Guerry listed a number of "IF's" in his "By the Numbers" article. I agree with those, though I'd add "if Stark and Dabney can shoot better than the combine 35% they shot from the floor this year." Last year, for example they shot 41.6% from the floor-- a lot better. The biggest "IF," however, regarding a turn-around next year from my perspective is "IF we have a new coach." I don't think that will happen, so I hope all the other "IF's" come through and we become NIT, if not NCAA, worthy.

Roll Wave!!

The Tulane baseball team, which has been struggling the past two weeks, needs to sweep Xavier this weekend. Any loss to that team would be a bad loss that could keep the Wave out of a regional at the end of the year.

That beefed-up non-conference schedule is not panning out as expected, by the way.

Xavier is 4-13, Pepperdine is 9-9, Gonzaga is 9-8, San Francisco is 5-12, Creighton is 6-6 and UC Riverside is 7-10.

Although David Pierce got rid of the RPI-killing bottom feeders Rick Jones used to schedule, none of Tulane's weekend non-conference opponents are positioning themselves for regional runs at this point.

Wave wins again 1-0. Roll Wave

Tulane will practice from 9 to 11 tomorrow, and with rain supposedly finally leaving this afternoon, it should be dry. That one will be open.

The Wave also has scheduled a closed practice for Sunday.

Guerry - I think it would be nice to do a story on the women's basketball team. They are projected to make the NCAA tournament as an 11 seed. It would be their first appearance since 2010. These seniors have won 20+ games every year they have been here - it would be great if they could make it to the big dance. Also, Lisa now has 501 total career wins - she is one of only 32 active coaches with 500+ wins. Lisa and this team deserve some attention and recognition for their accomplishments.

CJ said they had a scrimmage at the end of today's practice because he was not happy with the defense's performance in spring game. He said the offense scored a lot today and dominated the scrimmage more than it had on Saturday, so he's still not happy with the defense.

I didn't feel like the offense had that good of a day in the scrimmage. Today's scrimmage and practice was closed.

I still have a lot of material from the spring to post, including reviews on each position, five burning questions and more, but all of that will start next week after spring drills are over and my schedule becomes much less hectic. I'm covering the Sun Belt basketball tournament for The Advocate this weekend, which won't involve a ton of writing but will involve a lot of hours at the New Orleans Arena.

CJ also reiterated what he said about Trevor Simms on Saturday, only this time he said it stronger. Simms is ahead of DiRocco and likely will enter the fall as the No. 1 guy. My concern with Simms is he does not handle bad snaps well at all, sometimes kicking line drives that never get above the crossbar, something you never, ever see from a competent kicking operation. His leg is tremendous, but they can trust him even to make an extra point when it matters. I don't know yet.

I saw elsewhere that we had a number of high school recruits visiting this past weekend to the Spring game. Does anyone have any names? Thanks.

Roll Wave!!

Since today was the only practice I will miss in the spring (unless they practice Saturday), I'll throw up Tulane's official report.

It was a light day.




Link.

It was a beautiful day for football. Around 60 degrees w/a slight wind from the north. I got there around 9:30 and the kickers were working. They were using a ball holder and just picking their spots. Simms as has been reported was kicking all over though not as wildly as inaccurate as in his past. He wass mostly kicking from 40 and beyond. Make followed by miss time and again tll aaron Price finally showed him how he was crossing too far over on his follow through. He definetly became more accurate after that. DiRocco was trying mostly from 30 -35 yards and was inconsistent .

The team came out and started w/a punt by Picereli. Leglue was the snapper. Picerelli was kicking from the 45 on the north end going south w/the wind and his lone kick was a 33 yarder.

The FG unit went out w/Lizanich as the snapper. His snaps were high,low and behind the holder mostly. The first kick was by DiRoocco for an extra point, snap was high but kick was god. Simms then made his extra point attempt. They next tried 26 yarders w/ both making them. The next kicks were from 30 yards and both converted. The snap on Simms kick was low. They then kicked from 35 yards out and both were good again. From 40 yards both made their kicks. Snap on DiRocco's low, high on Simms kick. From 42 yards on the right hash DiRocco missed right. Simms hit his even w/a high snap. They then went from 47 yards on the right hash and DiRocco's kick was low and no good.The snap was very low and hit the ground before it got to the holder. Simms drilled his through the uprights. They then kicked from 53 yards out i the middle of the field. Another low snap and DiRocco's kick was short. Simms missed wide left after a high snap. It is clear the the focus of the staff should be to nurture Simms as he has a great leg. As I noted above he became more accurate after the instruction he got from Price. Overall it was not an inspiring performance on the whole but Simms was encouraging.

They then did some walk through drills followed by stretching.

The next drills were linemen drills where both sides lineup as a unit but only one pair goes against each other. Sheinle beat Braynon Edwards. Hanson beat Redwine. Uzdavinis beat Kennedy. Leglue held off Aruna. Godfrey beat Bell. Diaz held Smart out. Jacquet beat Darren Williams. Luke Jackson finally got a win for the D by beating Johnson. Smart followed by beating Jacquet. Godfrey beat Edwards. Bell then beat Stewart who made zero effort. Uzdavinis finished the drill by winning against Darren Williams. Sean Wilson did not participate.

The nesxt drill was punting w/Leglue snapping. Kicking south w/the wind Picerelli hit a 45 yarder that was fielded by Monroe. He then punted to the 30 but it backed to the 35 for a 30 yard kick.Hen the hit a 35 yarder. They moved to 45 yards from the goal and he kicked rugby style to the 10 where it was caught by Veal. He then kicked one to the 5 where Dace scrambled to field it. The snaps were good.

The scrimmage then started w/the first team offense at the defense's one yard line. The offensive line was from left to right- Uzdavinis,Hanson,Shienle,Taylor and KSM who alternated w/Jacquet. Thompson went off LT for a TD. The next attempt Lee rolled right and finally hit a wide open London. From the right hash a fade to Jones was incomplete. Rounds was then stuffed trying to go up the middle. Powell came in and Rounds fumbled. Rounds was then stopped short on the last attempt from the 1.

The next series was set up as 3rd and one attempts on the 25. This drill was one 's versus one's. The defense was Darren Williams at left end,Smart,Redwine,and Aruna at right end. Marley and Quin Carroll were at LB. Nickerson and Allen at CB, Monroe and Davis at safety and Franklin at the nickel. On the first attempt Badie was stopped short. Thompson was stuffed on the next attempt. Thompson and then ran for 10 to the right side. Powell came in. The defensice line was then Woullard, Bell, Edwards and Kennedy. He rollled right w/pressure from Aruna and threw it away. Price then called a time out. Badie ran for 2.

They then set up 3rdand 5 from the 25. Hilliard for 3 up the middle. HIlliard then ran for 2 to the right side.Badie then ran right for 2.The next attempt was a screen to Thompson for 7 yards. Powell then hit Scott for 30 over the middle on a sliding catch. The next attempt was a screen to Thompson for 5 yards. The last play of this period was Hilliard for 15 up the middle.

The offense then set up in the red zone at the 20. Thompson ran for 2. Lee's pass on the next play was tipped at the line but Badie caught it for 5 yards. Badie then ran 9 yards on the right side. Marley whiffed on a tackle that shoud have been made which would have limited the play to a 4 yard gain. Thompson ran for 2 on first down from the 4. Lee then threw a TD to London a play action play. Simms drilled the XP.

The next series started at the offense's 35 w/Powell in.The second team O-line was Leglue at LT,Jacquet at LG,Diaz at center,Godfrey at RG and Johnson at RT.The second unit D was Kennedy at LE,Bell,Edwards and Jackson at the other end. Fleury and Marbley were at LB. Carlton Williams was at Nickel. Lewis and Lofton were at CB and Copper and Townsend at safety. Rounds ran for 9 and then for 5. On 3rd down he threw incomplete to Badie. Holdind was called on the offense.

The next series W/Powell started again at the 35 and Hilliard ran for 1 on successive plays followed by an incomplete to Ardoin. Pass was short.

Powell then led another series from the 35. He hit Jones for 6 yards. Powell then rolled right and ran past Kennedy who should have had him. Powell got 16 yards. First down at the defense's 44 wss an incomplete on a bad pass by Powell to Jones. Powell was the intercepted by Lewis who made a nice 25 yard return.

Cuiellette came in on a series started on the offense's 35. He hit Ardoin for 30 yards. Kennedy had pressure on the play. Macias ran for 4 and then lost it back on the next play when Smart and Jackson drilled him. The next pkay was an incomplete but there was a penalty on the D. From the 18 there was no gain on a play where there were was a confrontation between Johnson and Zach Harris. Cuielette scrambled right and threw incomplete to London as the pass was behind him when he should have led him. On 3rd down he hit Rounds for 8 to the ten. DiRocco came in and hit a 28 yarder.

The one's came back in and started 40 yards from the goal. Thompson ran 17 to the 23. On 1st down Marley almost picked off the pass. Badie was stuffed. Badie then leaped high for a catch that gained 4. On 4th down a screen pass lost 8 yards w/Carroll on the tackle.

Starting from the 40 again w/Lee at the helm Thompson ran for 2. Jones cuaght one for 5 but the D was offsides. A blitz then caused an incomplete to Jones. The last play was a n incomplete to Rounds. Simms tried a 50 yarder that was no good to the left.

Powell came in. Marley went offsides. CJ then called for Lee to go back in.Rounds ran for 6. Marley and Williams blitzed and and Lee threw it away. Lee the threw a beautiful pass to Veal in the end zone but Veal dropped it near the end line. Allen then broke up a pass on 3rd down. DiRocco then made a 45 yarder just clearing the cross bar.

The two's came back out w/Powell at QB. Rounds for 2 and Dace followed on an end around for 9. 1st down athe 29 had Rounds run for 3. Bowie blitzed but Medina gained 4 on a short pass. Edwards then stuffed Rounds for a 1 yard loss. On 4th down Rounds ran for 18 to the 4. a fade to Breaux was incomplete w/Coper on the coverage. carlton williams then stuffed Rounds. The next play was an 8 yard loss on a blitz. Simms then hit a 30 yarder.

Cuielette came in and missed Ardoin ona play where Ardoin released from a block and was wide open. Ardoin then caught one for 12. Offense went offsides. Lofton then laid out Fletcher Barnes on the next throw. He hot Dubriel for 6and then he ran for 10 yards. He over threw Dubriel in the end zone. DiRocco then made a 40 yarder.

The one's came back out and Veal ran for a TD on an end around hwere he embarrassed Monroe. Monroe and another DB had snuffed it out and were waiting for him. However he cut inside of Monroe who might still be looking for his jock. Simms made the XP.

Lee started the next series at the D's 25. Allen drilled Veal on a pass attempt and he dropped it. He then threw a bad paass to Encalade that fell incomplete. Veal then got open between Allen and Monroe near the goal but Lee threw a bad pass.that was incomplete.

Lee started again from the 25. a pass to Hilliard lost 2. A middle screen to Badie lost 6. Badie then caught one for 7. DiRocco then badly missed a 47 yard attempt. There was a high snap.

The one's started again at the 25. Hilliard ran for 11 and then 7. Redwine was then hurt. It looked like a rib injury. Darren Williams then blocked Lee's pass. Badie got 3 for a first down. On first and goal Marley stuffed Rounds for a loss. A penalty was called on the D. The O lost 2 and then Encalade caught one for 2. Allen then intercepted in the end zone.

Powell came in on a series from the 25. He hit Dace for 10. Rounds went up the middle for 4. He then threw to Dace who wssn't looking. He then hit Rounds for a TD over the middle. DiRocco made the XP.

On the next series from the 25 Powell rolled right and hit ardoin for 2. Lofton hit him hard right after the catch but he held on and made an effort to get more before he was swarmed. Medina went for 4. Encalade then caught one and got to the 6. On the last play of the day Medina ran up the middle and moved the pile into the end zone to end the day on a TD. Simms made the xp.

It was not a good day for the QB's. Also despite what CJ has said there wasn't anything noticeably different about the offense. Too many times they took forever to get the play in from the sideline. The good was seeing Ardoin do some things. Leglue looks much better than he did last fall. Medina did well at FB. Anthony Taylor was in shorts.

On D as I said above I didn't see Sean Wilson play. Edward Williams also wasn't out there unless he switched numbers. Too many missed tackles as they were hitting too high. From other reports this spring this may have been the first live tackling which may explain that.

The kicking game is still scary. Lizanich still has his issues. His snaps aren't as horrible as in the past but still not on the money usually.

I'd say there were about 150 out there today.













This post was edited on 3/8 12:12 AM by winwave

I'll start of my coverage of the spring game with what CJ said after the scrimmage:

What were your thoughts on Tanner Lee's performance?

"He just had the one little turnover, and it was just a jump ball. (Devon) Breaux has to come back and make a play. He didn't turn the ball over, the offense was very efficient, there weren't very penalties and we just kept moving and moving. I thought he played very well for the limited stuff that we did in this scrimmage. He did a great job."

After throwing 14 interceptions last year, is ball management Lee's main concern?

"He needs to understand, and I was talking to (former Tulane QB great) Roch Hontas last night, the one thing he needs to understand is those guys around him are pretty good now. (Terren) Encalade is good. Teddy Veal, Charles Jones, Trey Scott, all of those backs. He has very good players around him, so if he just distributes the ball around him and does it in an efficient matter, we'll win a lot of games."

So you have seen a better Tanner Lee this spring?

"So far, so good. I like what he did today. Like I said, we had one (interception) when we called a jump ball with a mismatch and the guy (Breaux) has to go get the ball, but other than that he played very well. There weren't any balls on the ground. It just was a good day for him."

So we're not going to see another three-win team here?

"Look, I'm on my knees every night praying to Jesus that yeah, absolutely not, but we like the progress that we're doing. We are definitely progressing, we are definitely going forward. This looks like a much better team than I've seen here, ever."

Are players already getting excited about the opener against Duke?

"It's a big dog, a big game for us. We just better be ready. Duke is a fine team, they are very good. We get the opportunity to play them at home, we get the opportunity to play them on Thursday nigh. It will be a good game for us. I think our kids will be ready."

Was Teddy Veal's touchdown run an example of how you're going to use him?

"Yeah, you just have to get the ball to the playmakers, and I think Tanner understands that, too. He's got other playmakers. If we get the ball to the playmakers we'll have a lot more touchdowns, but Teddy is a great athlete and he did a fantastic job. He should have caught the one (fade to the back of the end zone where he beat Parry Nickerson) that Tanner threw to him. Good play. We just have to finish the play."

Richard Allen had an interception. Your thoughts on him?

"He was the other guy that I thought played very well. Richard is one of those corners who's been around. He knows what to do, he's very fast, he runs, he jumps. He outjumped Breaux for the ball, so I like his competitiveness."

Is it a good competition between Allen and Donnie Lewis?

"Richard is definitely ahead, but I like Donnie, what he's doing too. He's a young kid who's playing really good. Lionel (Washington) and Jason (Rollins) have them playing well."

There were a lot of throws to the tight ends today. Was that by design?

"Heavy tight end day, and that's what we have to do. We like the tight ends. We think they are very good players. They catch the ball and they block and they are doing well. Kendall (Ardoin) is one of the guys that really opened my eyes this spring. He's doing very well."

Who are three guys that really brought their game up?

"You look at those three backs--you're looking at Sherman (Badie), you're looking at Lazedrick (Thompson) and (Dontrell) Hilliard. Those three guys I thought had really good springs."

How much of a sense of urgency do you feel?

"The same as on the first day of the job. There's always a big sense of urgency. There's never not one. What we have to do is play well, and we've always been that way."

Last year coming off the bowl game and with a new stadium and everyone being pumped up, you went 3-9. Doesn't that create more urgency for this year?

"It's the same sense of urgency since the first day that we've been here. If we had gone 13-0, there'd have been the same sense of urgency. If we won 13, we'd have to win 14. That's how we practice, and then we got to practice like that and we gotta play like that. I like the hits, I like the interceptions, I love how we played today."

What happened to Marshall Wadleigh (who had a boot on his left foot)?

"He has a foot (injury)."

Was Sean Wilson not playing today a precautionary decision after his knee injury last Saturday?

"Yeah, the defensive guys wanted to protect him a little bit. Sean could have played. He practiced this week."

Have there been any significant injuries this spring?

"None. The weight room has done a great job getting those guys in shape. They are in very good shape."

Do you have any idea what you're going to do at kicker?

"If you ask me right now, and we haven't talked about it, but (Trevor) Simms is on my mind just a little bit more. He's getting on my mind. He almost made a 50-yarder today. In the future I think he'll make those. He just needs a little bit more work. Just listen to (the sound of) his kicks. We have to work on the operation, but he's doing well."

I talked to Tanner Lee, Darion Monroe and Teddy Veal.

MONROE

What did you think of the scrimmage?

"I think we did good. We did a lot of great things. The younger guys played great. Braynon (Edwards), Stephon (Lofton) had a couple of big hits. Donnie Lewis had a pick. Richard Allen. They had a lot of guys stepping up in the absence of Lorenzo Doss and Sam Scofield."

Do you feel good about Richard Allen in particularly replacing Doss?

"Coach Speedy (Lionel Washington) told both of them in the meeting this morning that it's a competition and nobody is setting himself apart. Then both of them come out with a pick today, so they still are not setting each other apart. I love the way Richard is playing and I love the way Donnie is playing. They are quick guys and they listen to me."

You were upset after Teddy Veal scored on the reverse. What happened?

"I missed a tackle. I can't miss a tackle. Richard Allen told me I had you outside, so I should have went inside and I missed the tackle. I hate missing tackles."

Other than that play, do you feel good about the defense?

"I feel great. We gave up a couple of seam routes in cover 2, but that's the weakness of the defense. We just have to rally to it, tackle and play the next down. In the running game our offense looked great. The pass game our offense looked great. Tanner Lee played great. The running backs ran the ball. We just looked good today."

A lot is going to ride on how Lee plays in the fall. How much different do you think he will be than last season?

"Oh, you'll see the old Tanner. You'll see the high school/ first three game (of 2014) Tanner. He's a great kid. He's listening to coaches, he's always up here getting extra film. He's committed."

LEE

What do you like about the offense?

"We have so many playmakers. We have six backs that can make plays. We have enough receivers, so if we can get the ball in their hands and let them run with it and make plays, that's the goal."

What do you like the most about Sherman Badie?

"He's a freak athlete. I like getting him the ball. We've gotten on the same page when he's in the backfield and he's seeing a lot of the same things I'm seeing. He's understanding who he's running his routes off of, and he's really improving."

The tight ends were heavily involved today. How much do you like those guys?

"It's a good security blanket for me. Charles (Jones) will use his body to get open, and the same thing with Trey. They can both run, and Kendall caught a few balls and took off, so he can make plays also. It's nice."

Did you say anything to Teddy Veal after his dropped TD?

"I told him you just have to make the next catch, and he knows that. He's hard enough on himself, so you don't have to tell him much."

When will you start thinking about Duke?

"I still remember from preparing for them last season, but as soon as possible. That's the good thing with having (walk-on quarterback) Jordy (Joseph) back. He'll make sure I stay up in the film room and reminds me about things and we're still watching some Duke film after workouts to just keep our minds on it."

How much do you want to wipe the taste out of your mouth from what happened last season?

"It's big time. We can't to just get out there and just get some wins and have something new to think about. We won't have to dwell on last season anymore. We can have something new to look forward to."

How much are you looking forward to that?

"We're all wired that way. We are just ready to just win because we have that winning attitude. After those losses, everyone was just kind of silent in the locker room and didn't want to talk to anybody. Getting out there and getting some wins will be good for us."

What is the difference between now and this time last spring?

"We're night and day from this time last year. We're just so much more comfortable and able to do some more things, and it's been more fun."

VEAL

What do you see from Lee this spring that makes you think he is ready to get over his mistakes from last fall?

"His mindset. He takes everything personally, holds himself accountable, gets himself in the film room and cleans up his mistakes."

How upset were you with the dropped TD?

"Wow. I don't think I'm going to be able to sleep with that one. I've been taking things personally. That's me, but I'm learning to play play by play, let go of the mistakes and play faster."

How much do you like the way the offense is developing?

"This offense is pretty great. Everybody ties in and everybody plays their part, but when you have opportunities you have to capitalize. But this is just the beginning. We have a long way to go."

That's the actual scrimmage, not the preamble. CJ said today after practice it would begin right away, or rather they will doing the warm-up stuff before 9.

I will be there.
This post was edited on 3/6 7:39 PM by Guerry Smith

especially from braintrust.
This play has severely deteriorated over the last month.
It may be that we are well-coached in the sense that we are well-taught to execute the offense (such that it is); but the bench Xs/Os coaching is poor and the recruiting, obviously, has been wanting for years.
This can't go on.


This post was edited on 3/4 10:30 PM by DrBox

A lot of confusion seems to surround the computation of RPI (Rating Percentage Index). Moreover, even among people who are familiar with the calculation, controversy follows the rankings. And, certainly, there is no clear statistical justification for the index, but it has some advantages over many other systems. Most important, it does not allow for the biases of past history or subjective views ("This conference is better than that conference"). It only considers the current year results. It also does not give credit for "running up the score." On the other hand, beating a team in baseball 19-0 gives the winner no more credit than squeaking out a one-run victory. Is that fair? It also attempts to give a team credit for winning and for "strength of schedule" based on a statistical formula rather than "gut feel" or polling data. BTW, if you don't like, understand, or care about math or statistics, now is the time to go to a different thread.

In its simplest form, RPI counts a team's winning percentage as 25% of the total RPI. Opponents' winning percentage counts 50%, and the opponents' opponents' winning percentage counts the last 25%. For many people, this business of counting the opponents' record as twice that of a team's own record seems to be ludicrous. And, early in the season, I would certainly agree.

If two teams play an opening series of 1, 2, 3, or however-many games, without playing anyone else, both will have the exact same RPI afterwards, even if one team sweeps the other. On a neutral field, if team A sweeps a series from team B, for example, its winning percentage of 100% counts .25 in the RPI. Its opponents' winning percentage of 0% counts, obviously, as .00. And its opponent's opponents' winning percentage (team A's own) again counts .25 for a total RPI of .50. A similar calculation for team B results in .00 + .50 + .00 = .50. Until they play someone else, their RPI's will be the same no matter the result. (Note: home field advantage changes the equation, to be discussed later, but the philosophy remains the same)

So, let's take a look at the idea that a team's own record only counts half of its opponents'. If, for example, all teams have played only one game, it is clear that the one game counts 25% of the RPI and the opponent's one game counts 50%. So far, so good. But if all teams have played 5 games, then each game one plays counts 5% toward its RPI (25% divided by 5 games). But each opponent will have played 5 games also, for a total of 25 games (5x5) for all opponents. So each of those 25 games counts 2% toward total RPI (50% divided by 25). Opponents' opponents' record would be based on 125 games (5 x 5 x 5). Thus, each of those games only counts 0.2% (25% divided by 125 games) toward RPI. So, by game five each game counts 2.5 times as much as those of the opponents (5% divided by 2%).

If we go out to game 50, the importance of one's own record is even more apparent. Each of a team's games count 0.5% of its RPI (25% divided by 50). Its opponents' individual games count 0.02% (50% divided by 2500) and each of their opponents' games count a miniscule 0.0004%. So each of a team's games count 25 times that of their opponent according to the RPI calculation. Is that too much? Too little? As I said at the beginning, there is no statistical justification for the entire calculation, but the more games played, against more different opponents, the more a team's own record counts, as opponents' win-loss percentage tends towards 50%.

A few years ago, the RPI calculation was changed to account for home field/court advantage. Based on statistical calculations, it was determined that a home court win in basketball should count .6 and an away win should count 1.4. For baseball, using similar calculations, the home team would receive .7 for a win and the visiting team 1.3. In baseball, this was done to account for teams who, like Tulane and many teams in the south, were playing 40 home games while teams in the north were playing 40 away games. Most of this discrepancy was based on weather but some teams with "money making" attendance opportunities simply didn't wish to give up "pay days" to play on the road.

In the end, both winning percentage and strength of schedule have a positive correlation to RPI, as one might expect. However, early in the year, it can be quite misleading. Based on this year's data (taken after Tulane's 9th game), the correlation coefficient (R squared) for a team's own record was .4145 (where 0.0000 is no correlation, or random, and 1.0000 is perfect correlation.) The correlation for strength of schedule was .6258, so that figure was much more important than a team's own performance- silly. At the end of the season last year, the results were much different with a correlation of .7519 for a team's winning percentage and .5520 for strength of schedule. The results in previous years was similar. Is that giving a team too much or too little credit for its schedule when winning percentage has that high a correlation (over 75%) to RPI?

Regardless, if we can keep winning, it will all take care of itself.

Roll Wave!!!

It was supposed to run in The Advocate yesterday, but they held it until today.



Link

Tulane practiced in absolutely gorgeous weather for probably the last time this spring on Wednesday morning, with a nasty cold front likely making Friday's workout miserable if they keep it outdoors and making the spring game on Saturday morning a little uncomfortable.

Curtis Johnson was hot at the end of the workout because nickel back Jarrod Franklin missed a tackle and then fell down for no reason, something CJ considered lazy and unacceptable. He yelled at the team for several seconds before they went to the locker room, and he was still trying to cool down when he talked to reporters.

"They don't want to run extra, so they'll fall," CJ said. Look, we want to run. We're not falling. We got shorts on. We're running."

Franklin was in a red no-contact jersey despite practicing full go, and CJ was not impressed with that either.

"I don't know what his deal was. I think he's milking his injury. It's time for him to get back, but he did everything, especially when he fell, so that kind of got me a little bit. He's going to fall just to fall because he missed a tackle."

I don't want to sound like a broken record, but the kickers remain unacceptably bad. In the field goal drill, Andrew DiRocco made kicks from 20, 32 and 42 yards but was not even close on a 47-yarder. I guess that constitutes improvement. Meanwhile, Trevor Simms, who has a rocket leg, sprayed his attempts all over the place, missing all of them except for the one from extra point difference. When he kicks it solidly, the ball clears the net behind the goal post and lands in the stands. When he flubs it, there's no telling where the ball will end up.

"I don't know who's doing what anymore," CJ said. "We've just got to make those kicks. Those kicks were pretty simple. I expect those kickers to make them."

Coaches can't make kickers kick straight, but Tulane is trying some new special teams drills under new coordinator Doug Lichtenberger. I liked the one yesterday where Peter Picerelli tried to punt near the sideline and the goal line, and the returners had to make a decision on whether to catch it or let it drop. How many times did Teddy Veal mess up that decision last year? It was Veal, Darion Monroe and Devon Breaux, and they also worked on running away from the ball and calling fair catch to fool the coverage guys and give it a better chance of bouncing into the end zone. That's standard stuff in football but something I had not seen at a Tulane practice before.

Lichtenberger is also having the kickers do conditioning work on the field they use outside the stadium while the rest of the team is practicing. That's new, too.

"That's one of the things that we gotta do. The problem with the kicks is we've got to be in better shape. I was a little bit disappointed last year with just the conditioning of those guys, so we are going to do it. All of those guys need to run more. It was Doug's idea. He's brilliant. He's doing a fantastic job. Sometimes we pull them out and bring them in the weight room and stuff like that, but they are going to condition."

It was a run-heavy practice, which can be boring to watch when tackling is not allowed, but it does look like CJ is serious about pounding the ball on the ground next fall. The success hinges on the development of the offensive line because Tulane has outstanding running backs in Dontrell Hilliard, Lazedrick Thompson and Sherman Badie, plus Josh Rounds (I'm doing that like CJ, who always forgets Rounds initially and then adds him after the fact).

"You look at these runners now, and watch what they are doing at receiver," CJ said. "I just saw Sherman make one of the best catches I've seen (I missed that one). We're doing some things differently, and it's going to be a surprise in the fall."

To say CJ is high on those guys is an understatement. With former players Ryan Grant (who politely declined an interview), Ryan Griffin and Lorenzo Doss attending the practice, he lamented the fact that Matt Forte has not returned to Tulane since leaving.

"It's about time we start getting some guys to come back," CJ said. "I wish the running back from Chicago would come back and pay our players a visit. I've sent messages and haven't been able to (talk to him), but I'd love for him to come back. I think these backs are going to play in the NFL, so I like him to come through to these guys a little bit."

Having NFL guys from Tulane talk to his players is a big deal for CJ.

"It's critical in our situation because we're so young," he said. "Whatever you say to these young guys, they get. We even had a visit from old Shaun King last week. It's good to have those guys come back."

Teddy Veal, the most impressive wide receiver in the spring, came up empty at the end of the practice when he got behind the secondary and Tanner Lee threw a perfect pass to him for what would have been a touchdown. But he dropped it. It was a really bad drop. Haven't seen that from him this spring.

One guy making his presence felt is redshirt sophomore William Townsend, who played a big role against option-based Georgia Tech last year and disappeared for the rest of the season. With Tulane playing three option teams (Army, Navy, Georgia Tech) this season, Townsend should make a bigger impact. He was around the ball a lot Wednesday, working with the No. 2 defense. His strength is against the run, and as I wrote earlier, it was a run-heavy day.

Ed Daniels of WGNO-TV attended practice yesterday and asked CJ a series of questions. It's good to get a different perspective than the ones from the people who are out there every day. Here were his questions and CJ's answers:

Have you told your coaches we've got to light years better on offense?

"We did. We talked about it at the end of last season, and we've sat down and done some things that are a little different. We've got to figure out what we can and cannot do, and that's what we're doing. I like what we did today. We really moved the ball real well. I think our defense was good. I had a couple of coaches come back and say, man, you guys killed us today. I think we're moving in the right direction."

When you come off a season like last year, does that send a little different vibe to spring practice?

"We got a little bit better sense of urgency this year. I'd like them o be even-keeled. One thing about me is I have amnesia, and I think our coaches do, too. The bowl season when we were good, it was over right after that, and now this season is over and it's time to get back to work, roll up our sleeves and try to get better."

Is it sometimes harder to handle success than failure?

"I agree with that totally, but also we played 20-something freshman, and that has a lot to do with, and we played in a better conference, and that comes into play also. But when you're successful, it's easy to be a fat cat. These guys are really working hard and practice has been working better."

Give me a couple of guys that maybe we don't know about who have had great springs.

"Trey Scott is one of them. You just watch him improve in catching the ball, and I love what he's doing. Ade (Aruna) is a pass rushing demon right now. If he can continue to get a little bit tougher, those two guys, offensively and defensively, will be important weapons for us this year."
















This post was edited on 3/5 11:23 AM by Guerry Smith

Caught up with offensive line coach John McDonell yesterday. Tulane's offensive line has improved in each of the past two years but still needs to get a lot better for the Wave to win in the fall. He likes the depth this spring, something he's never been able to say, and it has allowed him to experiment with guys at different spots. On Wednesday, Todd Jacquet spent time at guard. Devon Johnson has worked at guard and tackle, too, and Nathan Shienle is playing guard when Junior Diaz gets reps with the first team at center.

Here are McDonell's thoughts on several issues:

How has Kenneth Santa Marina looked?

"We need a new guy, and he's coming along. We've got Todd Jacquet back off a redshirt year, so we've got a lot more depth on the line, so we've been able to flip guys around a littlle bit and kind of have a little competition. I'm happy with Kenny's progress. Like all of us, he still has to continue to work to get better, but I'm very happy with his progression."

Where specifically does he need to improve?

"Just everything. He's got so many gifts. He's a naturally big man, he's got a great wing span, so that gives him a chance to be a really good pass protector. He can always work on his power and his punch and his flexibility."

Jacquet has worked with the first team quite a bit this spring, mostly at right tackle. How has he looked?

"Todd probably played too soon as a freshman, so we redshirted him, so now he's got that year to mature. He's a very talented young man. He's got great athleticism. He's very versatile. Sometimes he's a little over-aggressive. That's a good thing, but sometimes it gets him into bad positions. He's the guy I've moved a lot. I've moved him at guard and tackle, so he's definitely going to be in the mix next fall. He's a very key ingredient to our offensive line."

Devon Johnson's been playing guard and tackle, too. Has he made an impression?

"I'm happy with the three freshmen--(John), Leglue, Devon and Junior Diaz. I think those three are going to be real nice players at Tulane. Devon is a lot like Kenny but a year behind. I like his athleticism. He's a little heavy, and as most freshmen he can get stronger, but his energy level is very high and his want-to is very high. That's what I really like about Devon and Leglue.

When Diaz showed up last spring, he looked a little small. What are you seeing out of him?

"In today's college, he's 6-1, 285, I guess that's an undersized guy. But I don't mind my centers to be like that because he can overcompensate with athleticism. Sometimes I think Junior tries to be too powerful and not use his quickness to his advantage, so that's what we're working on with him. Having a redshirt year has been great. I'm really glad we didn't have to play him."

So Shienle would play guard if Diaz moved into the starting lineup?

"Yes. Shienle would be the move guy. That once again builds the competition. We finally are getting the depth where if guys aren't performing, there's another guy breathing right down their neck that want to show me he is the guy that should be in there. That's the nice thing this spring, and the other thing is gradually I want them to become more physical. We're getting there. We can't be physical enough. We're making strides, but I guess that's the coach in me that we're never quite exactly where I want us to be."

Chris Taylor is coming off two years as a starter. What does he need to improve?

"He's got a lot of work to do. He has the great, big blocks and then sometimes he might miss a guy or a guy might surprise him or something. Once again, he played as a true freshman, so he's gotten the baptism by fire. But with him, as with a lot of these guys, there's no more excuses. They've all played a lot, they've all seen almost everything. Now it's just let's go out there and be super physical."

The running backs are really good. How close are you to the point where the line is good enough to sustain the running game without just individual effort from the backs?

"As we saw a lot last season, they (the opponents) are always adding one into the box, so people are always adding an extra hat. We're going to have to continue to battle through that, and we have to be more dominant in the trenches and create bigger holes, so that puts the defense in a disadvantage by them having to tackle in larger spaces. That's what we have to continue to work at."

You mentioned Leglue. How has he progressed?

"John Leglue loves to mix it up. He loves to lay some hat. It might not always be the right guy just right now, but he loves to hit people. That's a real nice play."

How much work does Jason Stewart still need to do with his conditioning?

"He's had a real nice spring, he really has. He's still way to heavy and he's still not where we need him to be, but at least his physical presence has been better this spring."

Kendall Rogers, now of D1Baseball,com, always has had a soft spot for Tulane. After putting the Green Wave in that site's top 25 this week, he has a story on Tulane as one of the five surprises of the season so far.

It's a pay story, but here's the link to the start of it, showing the pub David Pierce already is getting with his terrific turnaround.


This post was edited on 3/5 10:03 AM by Guerry Smith

Link

On a comfortable, warm morning at Yulman Stadium, Tulane went through a routine practice with no tackling as it heads into the second half of spring drills. There are seven practice remaining on the schedule, but I would not be surprised if the Wave practices only twice next week after the spring game. It will be either two or three, not four.

Some notes from yesterday:

1) The new snapper for field goals and extra points, as I indicated in my scrimmage coverage, is John Leglue. CJ said they wanted someone bigger and stronger than Mike Lizanich for field goals because opponents got pressure right up the middle last year. Lizanich will continue to snap for punts. Leglue has been considerably better than anyone who snapped for field goals last year, but he still needs to improve. A couple of them have been low, and a bad snap should never happen. It should be automatic.

2) Sean Wilson is fine. He practiced yesterday and was not favoring his left leg at all. CJ was correct when he said it was nothing after Wilson went down early in Saturday's scrimmage.

3) I heard words I have seldom heard at Tulane yesterday from offensive line coach John McDonnell: "Good job, Jacquet." This isn't meant as a shot at Todd Jacquet; it's just the reality that he has not been in the good graces of this staff very often. This spring, Jacquet has gotten a fair amount of reps with the first unit at right tackle. Kenneth Santa Marina is No. 1, but they definitely are looking at Jacquet, a redshirt junior from Jesuit, as a possibility. He did not play last year while recovering from a knee injury, and was granted a redshirt, but he started three times as a sophomore (once at tight end) and three times as a freshman (all as a blocking tight end). He has the quick feet to be a good lineman. The question always has been his dedication and motivation.

4) I saw something from Tanner Lee I have seldom seen -- a wounded duck pass when he was not under pressure. He actually had a good day, particularly in a two-minute drill at the end when he drove the offense down the field against the No. 1 defense, but earlier, he tried to hit Teddy Veal in the back of the end zone and the ball came down quacking before Richard Allen broke it up easily.

5) Don't count on Lazedrick Thompson being a factor in the passing game. He dropped a swing pass that could not have been any easier to catch. He is Tulane's hardest runner. Dontrell Hilliard is the most well-rounded of the backs. Sherman Badie is the big-play threat. But Thompson definitely ranks fourth out of four (Josh Rounds is the other) as a receiver.

6) The tight ends have to be a huge factor this year. Tulane tried last season, and although Charles Jones was effective in the red zone, Trey Scott dropped as many passes as he caught, killing several possessions. Now both true freshmen are sophomores, and they are playing like it in the spring. Jones caught a nice pass from Devin Powell, and Scott had an easy touchdown from Glen Cuillette when he ran uncovered down the middle. Tulane is using both tight ends at the same time a lot, with Scott split wide. Scott told me he is spending more time split wide than lining up as a traditional tight end, and he embraces that role. Here's a Q&A I had with him, and he certainly is not lacking for confidence:

What was the reason for all of your dropped passes last year, particularly early?

"It was all mental. Jordy (Joseph) helped me and coach CJ, they all worked with my hands to get better training for it. It as all eye contact with the ball. I was trying to run first instead of making the catch first. My goal was to score touchdowns."

The coaches kept using you despite your struggles. What did that say about their confidence in your potential?

"They said I had a lot of potential coming in. They needed me to get better, so I had to step up to the plate."

You played in a high school offense than ran the ball virtually all of the time. How much of an adjustment was Tulane's offense for you?

"We run a lot of the same plays, but of course we didn't run the ball, so it wasn't that big of an adjustment. Of course I had to work on my hands because I didn't really get the ball that much in high school."

What is your best asset?

"My speed. My athleticism."

The first play of the scrimmage went to you and you had a 45-yard reception, the longest of the day. What was the play?

"I created a mismatch. Leonard Davis actually covering me. I burned him. He thought I was running a flat route, but then I jumped inside of him. It was all over after that."

He told me it was a miscommunication in the secondary and you weren't his primary responsibility.

"Nah. We can check the tape, Leonard (laughing). I ran right by him."

Do you enjoy splitting wide?

"I love it. It's a mismatch, and it's extra work for me, too, so I can get better. Most of the time I'm working with (receivers) coach Carter (Sheridan) at receiver, so I'm pretty much a receiver now. I'm a mismatch."

You're pretty confident. What are your goals for this year?

"I'm trying to be an all-conference player this year, if not All-American. Those are my goals."

I also talked to tight ends/running backs David Johnson coach about Scott. His comments:

On the catching issues:

"His hand placement was real bad, so he had to continue to catch more balls. He did it over and over every day before practice and after practice and during the offseason. He never had an offseason before."

On his unfamiliarity with the passing offense:

"It was different for him being in so many pass concepts, but he's real explosive, and that's one thing we noticed about him when we evaluated him. He's coming on now."

On continuing to play him despite his early issues:

"I definitely didn't want to shatter his confidence, and that's one thing CJ kept emphasizing with the young guys--just keep playing them. They'll make their mistakes right now and we'll be better off in the future. It's paying off, and you can see it."

On long catch during scrimmage;

"That's major for us. If you put a linebacker on him, they're not going to be able to run with him, and even most safeties. He's a 4.4 guy, and that really stretches the defense. He's doing a great job."

And finally, here's CJ talking about Scott.

"He couldn't catch anything (early last year). He's awesome. He's outstanding. He can run, he's catching so much better. For a minute I didn't think he could catch at all, but I like where he is. Early on he was a little bit nervous, but now with the ball drills Dave Johnson has done a fantastic job getting him to catch the ball, and he can run. He can definitely play wideout, too, so that helps us with the receivers depth."














This post was edited on 3/3 11:35 AM by Guerry Smith

I rounded up a few players and one assistant coach after Saturday's scrimmage to get their thoughts on the day and the spring.

ERIC THOMAS

What did you think?

"It was great. It was great for the young players. Rae Juan (Marbley) did real well. Everybody was physical. It was an all-round good day."

You've lined up a lot with the first team this spring. Do you feel like you can start in the fall?

"I do feel like I'm competing well to get the starting job, but that's up to the coaches and I have to continue to do well or that spot's going to be out of my hands."

What they've said several times in the past is you're really good against the run but need to work on your pass defense. How do you think that's coming along?

"Finding the ball (on running plays) is one my strengths, but my pass drops and my pass coverage from last year to now has increased tenfold. It's not smart for you to throw my way now."

TANNER LEE

What's your favorite thing about Teddy Veal?

"He helps in the huddle. When you have some guys that are doing some new things, guys ask questions, and he can answer them and we can sort things out. When they go out to their formation, he can get it organized. He's good to have in the huddle."

Is he kind of an old sophomore?

"He has to be the Ryan Grant now or take over for Xavier (Rush). He's got to be that guy."

What do you like the most about him as a receiver?

"His body control. He understands how to get open. He understands the holes in the defense and he knows the play as well as I know it."

How more comfortable are you than you were a year ago?

"The game moves fast, and everything is slowing down. Once you slow the game down and everybody gets on the same page, you start moving the ball and it just becomes easy and fun. We're trying to get to that point."

The first play was a 45-yard completion to Trey Scott. How much can the tight ends help the passing game?

"They've been putting a lot of work in, and we can put them in different formations and run them down the field, especially a guy like Trey, who is as fast as anybody on the team and is a big body. If you get him the ball, he can make plays."

How frustrating were the rules on the offense today, starting each possession at the 5 and having drives stopped by the coaches before they were over?

"That's how scrimmages go. You get a first down, and then you get to move back to the 5-yard line. That's just how it goes. I think we did solid. We were balanced. We had some good runs, some good pass plays. We had some inconsistencies in the passing game and running game we're going to clean up, but it was a good first scrimmage."

LEONARD DAVIS

What happened on the interception you returned for a touchdown?

"I baited Tanner, so I backed off and made him thing I was going toward the middle, but I came back down and he took the bait and I took off with it."

CJ says he told Darion Monroe you might be the best safety on the team. Your thoughts?

"I think it's more just to get in (Monroe's) head. We all know he's the vet out here, so I pay my homage to him. That's my boy."

You struggled last year. Is it just a learning experience the first time you get a lot of playing time?

"I'm still learning, but I felt my way around. I got help from (Sam) Scofield, the little boy that graduated last year, and (Monroe) is still helping me out on the field."

How much better do you think you'll be in the fall than last year?

"I think I'll be a million times better, especially with my coaches helping me out like coach (Jason) Rollins and coach Speedy (Lionel Washington). And my team around me will help me out."

Was it your responsibility when Trey Scott caught the long pass on the first play of the scrimmage?

"It wasn't. It was just a mix-up and miscommunication from me and one of my DBs. That's all."

What were your thoughts on the performance of the defense today?

"The defense did good, but we still have some things we can work on. We have to help out the younger guys because to be a team we need our backups to be on just like the starters."

DEFENSIVE LINE COACH KWAHN DRAKE

Is Ade Aruna bigger than he was last fall, and is he improving against the run?

"He's about 10 to 15 pounds heavier. It really comes to just understanding the ball and understanding down and distance and how we're going to play and how we're going to fit and him understanding the playbook and what we do here, it's taken him to another level as far as playing the well."

He has such a lack of experience of playing football. How much does he still have to learn?

"Well, he's a sophomore now. The lack of experience is going to get caught up right now with these reps in practice and these scrimmages like this. We're going to have another one next Saturday. Him continuing to get these reps is going to allow him to become a better player. He's starting to embrace the whole football mindset coming from being a basketball player."

How close is the competition at defense end?

"It's close. It's a competition. Practice in, practice out, we're looking at film, and today it's this guy, tomorrow it's the next guy. Who is going to be the most consistent is going to end up winning the spot."

(I asked him who was in the competition, but he listed every scholarship player on the roster --Aruna, Daren Williams, Luke Jackson, Peter Woullard, Robert Kennedy).

Are you cross-training guys at positions?

"Yes. We've got one guy, Sean Wilson, who can probably play all four positions on the line. Royce (LaFrance) can play three (when he returns). I wouldn't put him at the nose."

Corey Redwine played well today. What are your thoughts on him?

"Red turned it up. He's come back with an attitude of just working hard, getting after it in the weight room and being a leader, teaching the young guys the ropes. He's done a great job. He's starting to take over the room. Him and Tanzel are doing a great job leading the room, especially at the tackle position."