I showed up at "practice" yesterday and no one was here. Then I checked my schedule and realized they were off, something CJ forgot, too, when he said they would get the problems of Monday's practice corrected "tomorrow." Now that classes have started, Tulane has to have one off day per week, and with Duke coming up next Thursday, they chose Tuesday for this week and will work every day until that game.
This will be a short report because I'm covering the Saints for AP today and will not be able to stick around for interviews. Kenneth Santa Marina, as expected, is in a boot on his left leg and not practicing. I will see if I can get Ted Lewis of The Advocate to ask about him (he will be here to do a story for tomorrow's paper) for me. As they did Monday, John Leglue is lining up as the second-team right tackle and Devon Johnson is the second team rlght tackle.
After watching Saturday's scrimmage, I'd say right tackle is Tulane's concern on the line. The coaches say Todd Jacquet has been outstanding in preseason camp, but he did not look good on Saturday. I would not be surprised if Leglue ends up getting a lot of time as a starter, but we'll see.
Parry Nickerson is practicing in 11-on-11 work today, so CJ's timetable for his return was right on the mark. They are not in full pads today but are having plenty of contact at the line of scrimmage. Nickerson just jumped a route for Terren Encalade but had the ball bounce right off his hands and go to Encalade for a completion on the sideline. That could easily have been a pick six.
Here are my predictions for Tulane's reception leaders this year, in order.
1) Dontrell Hilliard--He could catch upward of 50 passes because he is the best pure receiver of the running backs. Some will come out of the backfield and some will come out of the slot.
2) Teddy Veal--He is by far the best wideout on the team and a lot more comfortable than last year. If the offense is like last year's he will lead the team in catches, but I am expecting a lot more throws to the backs and tight ends.
3) Trey Scott--He has looked terrific all camp and caught just about everything thrown his way. Lee looks for him short and long on seam routes. He could be a huge mismatch.
4) Terren Encalade --He has come on in the last week. I'm still not as high on him as CJ because he has trouble getting separation, but he presents a big target and has gotten much more fundamentally sound.
5) Sherman Badie--Again, this is predicated on them throwing a lot to the backs. He will catch a lot of swing passes, allowing him to show his ability to make the first guy miss in the open field, and he also is dangerous in the red zone.
6) Rob Kelley --They need to throw to the backs. A lot. Think I've stressed this point enough? Kelley is a solid receiver who scored the winning touchdown against SMU three years ago on a reception over the middle.
7) Charles Jones--He has not been targeted nearly as much as Scott in preseason camp, but he is good on quick routes and is faster than he looks. Again, this is predicated on them changing the offense to go heavily to the tight ends and backs.
8) Devon Breaux--Hopefully I'm dead wrong on this because he has a lot of ability and probably will start a season opener for the third consecutive year. But he still needs to show better ball awareness and route running and concentration.
9) Larry Dace--He does everything right but has trouble getting separation. His favorite play is a down and out where he shields the defender and catches the ball just before going out of bounds.
With Nickerson back, Taris Shenall and Stephon Lofton are the backup cornerbacks. Dedrick Shy looks the part but is not as advanced as Shenall yet.
Sam Davis is still working with the second-team defense at nickelback, so even though he spent some time on the scout team defense Monday, he is still in the picture for playing time. Jarrod Franklin figures to play almost every down, but if he needs a breather, Davis remains the guy behind him. Coaches hesitate truly trusting walk-ons, though.
Jordy Joseph just threw a beautiful pass to Dace for a touchdown in a two-minute drill. Dace dove in the end zone to catch it. If he translates what he is doing in practice into games, he will finish higher than I have him on the receiver chart.
They just completed the field goal drill. Picerelli hit from 33 yards from the left hash, then had a 40 harder blocked by Richard Allen off the edge.
Logan made a 37 harder from the left hash then was short from 43 yards from the left hash. You cannot be short from that distance.
Simms then tried five longer field goals, making one from 46 yards from the left hash, having a 49 harder blocked because it was ridiculously low, then missing wide on three straight kicks from the right hash, going left on the first two (a bad snap hurt the first one) and right on the third one. Only the third one was close.
Gotta go. This should be one of the only conflicts I have with Saints practice this year. I'm filling in for an AP writer who is on jury duty today.
This will be a short report because I'm covering the Saints for AP today and will not be able to stick around for interviews. Kenneth Santa Marina, as expected, is in a boot on his left leg and not practicing. I will see if I can get Ted Lewis of The Advocate to ask about him (he will be here to do a story for tomorrow's paper) for me. As they did Monday, John Leglue is lining up as the second-team right tackle and Devon Johnson is the second team rlght tackle.
After watching Saturday's scrimmage, I'd say right tackle is Tulane's concern on the line. The coaches say Todd Jacquet has been outstanding in preseason camp, but he did not look good on Saturday. I would not be surprised if Leglue ends up getting a lot of time as a starter, but we'll see.
Parry Nickerson is practicing in 11-on-11 work today, so CJ's timetable for his return was right on the mark. They are not in full pads today but are having plenty of contact at the line of scrimmage. Nickerson just jumped a route for Terren Encalade but had the ball bounce right off his hands and go to Encalade for a completion on the sideline. That could easily have been a pick six.
Here are my predictions for Tulane's reception leaders this year, in order.
1) Dontrell Hilliard--He could catch upward of 50 passes because he is the best pure receiver of the running backs. Some will come out of the backfield and some will come out of the slot.
2) Teddy Veal--He is by far the best wideout on the team and a lot more comfortable than last year. If the offense is like last year's he will lead the team in catches, but I am expecting a lot more throws to the backs and tight ends.
3) Trey Scott--He has looked terrific all camp and caught just about everything thrown his way. Lee looks for him short and long on seam routes. He could be a huge mismatch.
4) Terren Encalade --He has come on in the last week. I'm still not as high on him as CJ because he has trouble getting separation, but he presents a big target and has gotten much more fundamentally sound.
5) Sherman Badie--Again, this is predicated on them throwing a lot to the backs. He will catch a lot of swing passes, allowing him to show his ability to make the first guy miss in the open field, and he also is dangerous in the red zone.
6) Rob Kelley --They need to throw to the backs. A lot. Think I've stressed this point enough? Kelley is a solid receiver who scored the winning touchdown against SMU three years ago on a reception over the middle.
7) Charles Jones--He has not been targeted nearly as much as Scott in preseason camp, but he is good on quick routes and is faster than he looks. Again, this is predicated on them changing the offense to go heavily to the tight ends and backs.
8) Devon Breaux--Hopefully I'm dead wrong on this because he has a lot of ability and probably will start a season opener for the third consecutive year. But he still needs to show better ball awareness and route running and concentration.
9) Larry Dace--He does everything right but has trouble getting separation. His favorite play is a down and out where he shields the defender and catches the ball just before going out of bounds.
With Nickerson back, Taris Shenall and Stephon Lofton are the backup cornerbacks. Dedrick Shy looks the part but is not as advanced as Shenall yet.
Sam Davis is still working with the second-team defense at nickelback, so even though he spent some time on the scout team defense Monday, he is still in the picture for playing time. Jarrod Franklin figures to play almost every down, but if he needs a breather, Davis remains the guy behind him. Coaches hesitate truly trusting walk-ons, though.
Jordy Joseph just threw a beautiful pass to Dace for a touchdown in a two-minute drill. Dace dove in the end zone to catch it. If he translates what he is doing in practice into games, he will finish higher than I have him on the receiver chart.
They just completed the field goal drill. Picerelli hit from 33 yards from the left hash, then had a 40 harder blocked by Richard Allen off the edge.
Logan made a 37 harder from the left hash then was short from 43 yards from the left hash. You cannot be short from that distance.
Simms then tried five longer field goals, making one from 46 yards from the left hash, having a 49 harder blocked because it was ridiculously low, then missing wide on three straight kicks from the right hash, going left on the first two (a bad snap hurt the first one) and right on the third one. Only the third one was close.
Gotta go. This should be one of the only conflicts I have with Saints practice this year. I'm filling in for an AP writer who is on jury duty today.
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