Nine days before the opener against FIU, Tulane practiced again at the Superdome this morning and had a spirited 11-on-11 session before breaking into scout teams. In the ongoing battle for starting right guard, Ben Knutson had the upper hand today, working with the first time while Keyshawn McLeod got reps as the second-team right tackle. Cameron Jackel was the second-team right guard and, with Timothy Shafter at left tackle, Stephen Lewerenz at left guard and Sincere Haynesworth at center. The other four starters along with Knutson were the normal guys.
A receiver who has consistently made plays the last two days is Dane Ledford. I don't know how much work he needs to become a polished receiver, but he looks confident and definitely could be a factor as Tulane looks for depth in its wideout corps. Keon Howard hit Ledford in stride on a crossing route for a nice gain.
"He (Ledford) certainly does (have a chance to make an impact)," Willie Fritz said. "He was a 23-foot long jumper in high school. He has good size, good quickness and good hands. He's just got to get in the mix, too. The first two or three games is when you experiment to see who is going to play and who won't."
Starting cornerbacks Thakarius Keyes and Jaylon Monroe are not letting guys get open. Justin McMillan tried to hit Darnell Mooney on a fly pattern in the end zone, but Monroe blanketed him. Monroe told me either he or Jalen McCleskey is the fastest player on the team, and if he gets the confidence to get past the times he gets beaten, which invariably happens with the rules favoring receivers, he can have a heck of a year. At times last year he got down on himself.
The 11-on-11 work ended with a long pass from Howard to Ygenio Booker that had collision written all over it. Freshman Kiland Harrison raced over from the center of the field to chase it down and arrived at the spot the same time as Booker. Luckily, they avoided heavy contact as Harrison got his hands on the ball but could not bring it in as he fell to the ground hard.
They definitely did not have any running backs on the offensive scout team at the end of practice, using defensive players in that role instead. I don't know how the coaches are going to handle having seven running backs, but they have not put any of them on the scout team as of yet.
The receivers dropped some passes at the end, with McCleskey letting one go through his fingers over the middle and Darnell Mooney mishandling one later. The drops have not been as prevalent in this camp as last year's, but Booker was stripped after a short reception in 11-on-11 work, too. Even offensive coordinator Will Hall's 8-year-old son, who catches everything at practice when he tosses a little football around with trainers, dropped a long toss after practice ended.
I got to practice later than normal because preparation for an upcoming concert at the Smoothie King Center blocked off my normal parking spot and I had to search for one and walk a long way back to get in the dome. I'll be glad when practice returns to Yulman Stadium for a day tomorrow morning.
WILLIE FRITZ
How good do you feel about your cornerback play?
"Good. We're pretty deep at that spot. We think Thakarius Keyes can be a top-flight corner in our conference. He has a lot of length and size and then Jaylon Monroe has played well for us in the past. Willie Langham is going to compete and Chris Joyce, we've got four guys we feel really confident about."
Monroe has a lot of ability. Does he need to focus a little better than he did in games last year?
"He played quite a bit for us last year. He's got great speed and is quick as a cat. He's got great change of direction. We also think he can be a top-flight corner."
And Langham?
"He's a lot like (Keyes). He's got a lot of length to him. He's 6-0, 6-1 and a reach of a guy 6-5, the same thing with Keyes. We've got some taller guys and some quick guys who may not be as tall."
Joyce had an interception in the bowl game last year after not playing a bunch during the year.
"He's going to be involved quite a bit in some of our different packages. He'll also roll in there and play some at corner. He's a good player as well."
What are your thoughts on the receivers' speed?
"We've got some good speed on the perimeter. Darnell Mooney was one of the tops in the nation last year in yards per catch (20.7), which is really phenomenal. Jalen McCleskey has got great top-end speed. He can be a deep threat for us. And the other guys as well, Amare Jones and YG (Booker), those guys can fly, so we've got good speed outside."
As a coach, do you look forward to that first game to know how it's going to look putting all the pieces together. Are you excited about it?
"Yeah, I'm really excited about it, but you have to temper guys worrying about that first game right now. We still have to practice and get better and improve. We have to take advantage of these eight workouts we have left prior to the first ball game. Part of my job is makjng sure to keep practices interesting, coaches are demanding and the players understanding there is still a lot of room for improvement."
Do you tell your players to treat Florida International like a top-tier program?
"You know, they won a bowl game last year. Butch Davis was a head coach in the NFL, Miami and North Carolina. They are very well coached. We went down to their place and got whipped a couple of years ago. They are a quality team. We are going to have to definitely bring our A game."
A receiver who has consistently made plays the last two days is Dane Ledford. I don't know how much work he needs to become a polished receiver, but he looks confident and definitely could be a factor as Tulane looks for depth in its wideout corps. Keon Howard hit Ledford in stride on a crossing route for a nice gain.
"He (Ledford) certainly does (have a chance to make an impact)," Willie Fritz said. "He was a 23-foot long jumper in high school. He has good size, good quickness and good hands. He's just got to get in the mix, too. The first two or three games is when you experiment to see who is going to play and who won't."
Starting cornerbacks Thakarius Keyes and Jaylon Monroe are not letting guys get open. Justin McMillan tried to hit Darnell Mooney on a fly pattern in the end zone, but Monroe blanketed him. Monroe told me either he or Jalen McCleskey is the fastest player on the team, and if he gets the confidence to get past the times he gets beaten, which invariably happens with the rules favoring receivers, he can have a heck of a year. At times last year he got down on himself.
The 11-on-11 work ended with a long pass from Howard to Ygenio Booker that had collision written all over it. Freshman Kiland Harrison raced over from the center of the field to chase it down and arrived at the spot the same time as Booker. Luckily, they avoided heavy contact as Harrison got his hands on the ball but could not bring it in as he fell to the ground hard.
They definitely did not have any running backs on the offensive scout team at the end of practice, using defensive players in that role instead. I don't know how the coaches are going to handle having seven running backs, but they have not put any of them on the scout team as of yet.
The receivers dropped some passes at the end, with McCleskey letting one go through his fingers over the middle and Darnell Mooney mishandling one later. The drops have not been as prevalent in this camp as last year's, but Booker was stripped after a short reception in 11-on-11 work, too. Even offensive coordinator Will Hall's 8-year-old son, who catches everything at practice when he tosses a little football around with trainers, dropped a long toss after practice ended.
I got to practice later than normal because preparation for an upcoming concert at the Smoothie King Center blocked off my normal parking spot and I had to search for one and walk a long way back to get in the dome. I'll be glad when practice returns to Yulman Stadium for a day tomorrow morning.
WILLIE FRITZ
How good do you feel about your cornerback play?
"Good. We're pretty deep at that spot. We think Thakarius Keyes can be a top-flight corner in our conference. He has a lot of length and size and then Jaylon Monroe has played well for us in the past. Willie Langham is going to compete and Chris Joyce, we've got four guys we feel really confident about."
Monroe has a lot of ability. Does he need to focus a little better than he did in games last year?
"He played quite a bit for us last year. He's got great speed and is quick as a cat. He's got great change of direction. We also think he can be a top-flight corner."
And Langham?
"He's a lot like (Keyes). He's got a lot of length to him. He's 6-0, 6-1 and a reach of a guy 6-5, the same thing with Keyes. We've got some taller guys and some quick guys who may not be as tall."
Joyce had an interception in the bowl game last year after not playing a bunch during the year.
"He's going to be involved quite a bit in some of our different packages. He'll also roll in there and play some at corner. He's a good player as well."
What are your thoughts on the receivers' speed?
"We've got some good speed on the perimeter. Darnell Mooney was one of the tops in the nation last year in yards per catch (20.7), which is really phenomenal. Jalen McCleskey has got great top-end speed. He can be a deep threat for us. And the other guys as well, Amare Jones and YG (Booker), those guys can fly, so we've got good speed outside."
As a coach, do you look forward to that first game to know how it's going to look putting all the pieces together. Are you excited about it?
"Yeah, I'm really excited about it, but you have to temper guys worrying about that first game right now. We still have to practice and get better and improve. We have to take advantage of these eight workouts we have left prior to the first ball game. Part of my job is makjng sure to keep practices interesting, coaches are demanding and the players understanding there is still a lot of room for improvement."
Do you tell your players to treat Florida International like a top-tier program?
"You know, they won a bowl game last year. Butch Davis was a head coach in the NFL, Miami and North Carolina. They are very well coached. We went down to their place and got whipped a couple of years ago. They are a quality team. We are going to have to definitely bring our A game."
