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Practice notes from Thursday's workout at the Saints facility

Guerry Smith

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Moderator
Jun 20, 2001
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I did not attend last night's workout, but someone who did has been cleared to give me some info on what happened.

In seven-on-seven drills, Teamer made a nice pass breakup before Banks scrambled out of the pocket and hit Glenn for 15 yards on a crossing route. If Banks has a big year, it will because of his ability to throw on the run. Banks also hit Toles for 10 yards on an out route, connected with Mooney for 40 yards on a seam route over safety Sean Harper, hit Charles Jones for 10 yards in the middle of the field and made a perfect throw on a comeback route that Hilliard dropped.

When it was Brantley's turn, he threw high on a slant to Mooney, a nice pass to Hilliard out of the backfield, had a pass broken up by LB Monty Montgomery when he jumped the route, something my spy says Montgomery has done more than once this week. Brantley then missed Mooney on a corner route and threw it away when no one was open.

Khalil McClain could not connect with Robertson on go route because Will Harper broke it up. McClain then tucked it and ran, which he does more often than the other QBs in practice, before connecting with Toles on a hitch. Of the three freshmen, Toles is the one who may play right away. He is good after the catch, too.

Dane Ledford was next and had a pass to Prouet tipped and picked off by Kuerschen, who tried to score on the return but was stripped by Bradwell after he chased him down, causing a lecture on ball security by Willie Fritz.

Banks came back and hit Mooney on comeback route to the far hash, one he throws very well and should be a nice addition to Tulane's play sheet. Banks then ran when Jaylon Monroe had good coverage on his primary target and hit Glenn for 50 yards when he made a diving catch on a seam route.

My spy says the guys who have stood out in camp other than the usual suspects are Shenall, who is vitally important as the starting free safety at a position he has not played a whole lot in the past, Sample, who is up to 265 pounds from 250 and likely will play inside, Keyes, who has been out with a sprained ankle after having a terrific opening day, Bradwell, whose potential power is unmatched by the other running backs and is faster than he looks, and Willie Langham, who has gone from 168 pounds to 183 pounds since he arrived this summer. Although Kevin LeDee still needs to get stronger, he is up to 190 pounds, an increase of at least 10 pounds, on his 6-5 frame.

Here are some 40 times of guys before training camp, which was not an emphasis in the summer because they were working more on conditioning than speed training:

Glenn: 4.38
Badie: 4.41
Hilliard: 4.41
Mooney: 4.45
Chris Johnson: 4.55
Teamer: 4.57
Brantley: 4.59
Bryant: 4.60
Banks: 4.61
Sample: 4.82

That's good stuff. I have been skeptical about Glenn at WR from the time he moved there, but he has improved exponentially since the beginning of spring drills. If he can sustain that level into games, he will be an added weapon I did not anticipate.

I've been a Bradwell guy from the start. I love his competitiveness. It's always uncertain when a quarterback moves to running back, but I like his chances to be a big contributor.

It was good to get some analysis of the defensive freshmen who have stepped up.
 
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