It was Ygenio Booker Day at Yulman Stadium this morning, as Tulane's fourth-year running back (classified as a redshirt sophomore due to the free COVID year) had another outstanding practice. He simply makes plays, particularly in the passing game, where he sometimes splits out as a receiver. He had two huge plays in an 11-on-11 drill. First, he found an open spot against a busted coverage for a big gain on a throw by Justin Ibieta. Then he topped himself, running a streak to the end zone and out-jumping cornerback Reggie Neely for a 50-50 ball and a 37-yard touchdown. That play prompted Willie Fritz to run up to Booker on the sideline and give him a celebratory jump bump.
After redshirting in 2018, Booker had only 25 carries and nine catches combined in 2019 and 2020 while being hampered by injuries. Healthy for all of preseason camp, he looks ready to make a huge impact on the offense. He would have ended the practice in style after getting open deep again, but Michael Pratt underthrew him and hit a trailing defensive back in the back.
"He's caught that injury bug a little bit since he's been here, but I'll tell you, he's very explosive," Willie Fritz said. "He has great speed and he has excellent hands. The thing he's got is a great burst. He's running full speed in four or five yards. Sometimes it takes them 15 yards to get running full speed. We're excited about him. He's going to be play some back, some receiver and in the kicking game, too."
Booker is a reluctant talker, giving the stock answer that he was just having fun for several different questions after Thursday's workout at Yulman Stadium, but he will walk the walk this season if he stays healthy. He goes by either YG or Geno instead of his given name, and everyone will know his name and its iterations if he continues to produce like he has the last past weeks.
Practice No. 12 was a full workout in extremely hot conditions that Fritz said felt the most humid of any of the days. Cam Carroll, who is in excellent shape, cramped up after catching a deep ball from Pratt near the end of the final 11-on-11 session, and it will only be hotter for Saturday's scrimmage, which is set to start around 11 to approximate the feel for the Aug. 4 opener against second-ranked Oklahoma.
"It was a good workout," Fritz said. "We backed off a little yesterday. We are going to go to the Superdome tomorrow. We are really lucky that they allow us to get out there. We are helping them a little bit with preparations for (The Saints preseason home opener is Monday) game day. They will be checking bags and how we get in and out of the stadium and visiting teams and stuff like that. We're really grateful for the opportunity to go out there."
Pratt was sharp early before tailing off a bit at the end. He began the final 11-on-11 drill by overshooting Duece Watts on a long ball, was pressured into a thorwaway two downs later and then threw into the turf on a pass for Jaetavian Toles over the middle. He rebounded on his final series to complete four in a row--three on quick timing routes to Toles, tight end Tyrick James and tight end Will Wallace before hooking up with Carroll deep, but he finished with the bad miss for Booker.
In addition to his touchdown pass to Booker during the first 11-on-11 session, Ibieta hit Wallace deep on the sideline after holding on to the ball for a while and scrambling, but a whistle blew signifying a sack just before he released it. On the final 11-on-11 session, he connected with walk-on Lucas Desjardins a couple of times, one when defensive back D.J. Douglas messed up an assignment and received a tongue lashing. Douglas bounced back on the next play to knock down a pass. In the next and last series, he scrambled twice in a row, threw incomplete off the hand of Desjardins and hit an uncovered Wallace down the sideline for a touchdown when the defense had only 10 players on the field. Douglas ran off before the snap, and no one replaced him. Ibieta then hit Ryan Thompson with a perfect pass down the sideline, with Neely the victim again, before scrambling on the last play. Ibieta really does throw a pretty ball.
Josh Remetich, who started the first four games as a true freshman last year before getting mononucleosis and really feeling its effects for the rest of the season, practiced with the first team at right guard for both of the 11-on-11 sessions. Caleb Thomas, who had been getting most of the reps at that spot the past week or so, was strictly the No. 2 center this time. Nothing is settled at that spot, but Remetich is making his move. He started only once after his bout with mono, replacing Corey Dublin at left guard against Memphis when Dublin was sidelined by coronavirus protocols.
"When he got mono, he lost 20 or 30 pounds," Fritz said. "He's back up in weight. He got banged up a little bit in the spring, too, but he's healthy and doing a very good job."
With Macon Clark concentrating on safety, the three candidates at nickelback for the moment are Ajani Kerr, Douglas and freshman Jadon Canady. Canady is one of the few freshman who appears to be pushing for serious playing time because of the depth in front of the class. Fritz elaborated.
"I was talking to one of the other freshmen about this this morning, No. 1 you've got to be talented to play as a true freshman," Fritz said. "But they have to be ready to compete and get after it every day. It's really more their mental makeup. We've got 10 to 15 true freshmen who are very similar as far as ability for their position, but the guys who are going to play are ready to play mentally. I think Jadan is. He learns things, picks it up and makes changes on the fly. (Defensive end) Keith Cooper is another one who comes to work every day. Some guys are ready physically but not ready mentally. Some guys are ready mentally and need to put on a little weight. It's rare that you get both from a true freshman."
Other than Remetich working exclusively on the first team in the part of practice I watched, there were no differences up front on the first and second units for the offensive line.
Some quick hitters:
--Noah Seiden returned at defensive tackle today after missing some time with a minor injury, and he worked with the second unit alongside Noah Taliancich and ends Jojo Dorceus and Armoni Dixon.
--Shae Wyatt, the focus of my receivers feature in the paper today, missed an opportunity for a big play when Pratt led him with what looked like a good deep ball. Wyatt did not accelerate enough and then tried to pull it in with one hand and failed instead of laying out to make a diving catch. Those are the plays the secondary receivers need to make for Tulane to take the next step.
--Kriston Esnard practiced kickoffs and demonstrated a pretty good leg. I would expect Merek Glover to retain his role there after getting 35 touchbacks in 74 attempts last season, but Esnard, who struggled with accuracy on field goals as a senior in high school, has the leg strength to push Glover on kickoffs.
--Tulane's Dome workout will be closed to reporters, so my next report will be Saturday for the scrimmage.
--Rick Dickson was named full-time AD at Tulsa, signing a three-year contract after taking the job originally on an interim basis. This is his second stint at Tulsa, and Ed Conroy is available if he wants to make a basketball coaching change. Heck, Tubby Smith probably would leave High Point to coach Tulsa if Dickson asked, and Tubby was his last good hire for a major coaching position as AD back in 1990.
After redshirting in 2018, Booker had only 25 carries and nine catches combined in 2019 and 2020 while being hampered by injuries. Healthy for all of preseason camp, he looks ready to make a huge impact on the offense. He would have ended the practice in style after getting open deep again, but Michael Pratt underthrew him and hit a trailing defensive back in the back.
"He's caught that injury bug a little bit since he's been here, but I'll tell you, he's very explosive," Willie Fritz said. "He has great speed and he has excellent hands. The thing he's got is a great burst. He's running full speed in four or five yards. Sometimes it takes them 15 yards to get running full speed. We're excited about him. He's going to be play some back, some receiver and in the kicking game, too."
Booker is a reluctant talker, giving the stock answer that he was just having fun for several different questions after Thursday's workout at Yulman Stadium, but he will walk the walk this season if he stays healthy. He goes by either YG or Geno instead of his given name, and everyone will know his name and its iterations if he continues to produce like he has the last past weeks.
Practice No. 12 was a full workout in extremely hot conditions that Fritz said felt the most humid of any of the days. Cam Carroll, who is in excellent shape, cramped up after catching a deep ball from Pratt near the end of the final 11-on-11 session, and it will only be hotter for Saturday's scrimmage, which is set to start around 11 to approximate the feel for the Aug. 4 opener against second-ranked Oklahoma.
"It was a good workout," Fritz said. "We backed off a little yesterday. We are going to go to the Superdome tomorrow. We are really lucky that they allow us to get out there. We are helping them a little bit with preparations for (The Saints preseason home opener is Monday) game day. They will be checking bags and how we get in and out of the stadium and visiting teams and stuff like that. We're really grateful for the opportunity to go out there."
Pratt was sharp early before tailing off a bit at the end. He began the final 11-on-11 drill by overshooting Duece Watts on a long ball, was pressured into a thorwaway two downs later and then threw into the turf on a pass for Jaetavian Toles over the middle. He rebounded on his final series to complete four in a row--three on quick timing routes to Toles, tight end Tyrick James and tight end Will Wallace before hooking up with Carroll deep, but he finished with the bad miss for Booker.
In addition to his touchdown pass to Booker during the first 11-on-11 session, Ibieta hit Wallace deep on the sideline after holding on to the ball for a while and scrambling, but a whistle blew signifying a sack just before he released it. On the final 11-on-11 session, he connected with walk-on Lucas Desjardins a couple of times, one when defensive back D.J. Douglas messed up an assignment and received a tongue lashing. Douglas bounced back on the next play to knock down a pass. In the next and last series, he scrambled twice in a row, threw incomplete off the hand of Desjardins and hit an uncovered Wallace down the sideline for a touchdown when the defense had only 10 players on the field. Douglas ran off before the snap, and no one replaced him. Ibieta then hit Ryan Thompson with a perfect pass down the sideline, with Neely the victim again, before scrambling on the last play. Ibieta really does throw a pretty ball.
Josh Remetich, who started the first four games as a true freshman last year before getting mononucleosis and really feeling its effects for the rest of the season, practiced with the first team at right guard for both of the 11-on-11 sessions. Caleb Thomas, who had been getting most of the reps at that spot the past week or so, was strictly the No. 2 center this time. Nothing is settled at that spot, but Remetich is making his move. He started only once after his bout with mono, replacing Corey Dublin at left guard against Memphis when Dublin was sidelined by coronavirus protocols.
"When he got mono, he lost 20 or 30 pounds," Fritz said. "He's back up in weight. He got banged up a little bit in the spring, too, but he's healthy and doing a very good job."
With Macon Clark concentrating on safety, the three candidates at nickelback for the moment are Ajani Kerr, Douglas and freshman Jadon Canady. Canady is one of the few freshman who appears to be pushing for serious playing time because of the depth in front of the class. Fritz elaborated.
"I was talking to one of the other freshmen about this this morning, No. 1 you've got to be talented to play as a true freshman," Fritz said. "But they have to be ready to compete and get after it every day. It's really more their mental makeup. We've got 10 to 15 true freshmen who are very similar as far as ability for their position, but the guys who are going to play are ready to play mentally. I think Jadan is. He learns things, picks it up and makes changes on the fly. (Defensive end) Keith Cooper is another one who comes to work every day. Some guys are ready physically but not ready mentally. Some guys are ready mentally and need to put on a little weight. It's rare that you get both from a true freshman."
Other than Remetich working exclusively on the first team in the part of practice I watched, there were no differences up front on the first and second units for the offensive line.
Some quick hitters:
--Noah Seiden returned at defensive tackle today after missing some time with a minor injury, and he worked with the second unit alongside Noah Taliancich and ends Jojo Dorceus and Armoni Dixon.
--Shae Wyatt, the focus of my receivers feature in the paper today, missed an opportunity for a big play when Pratt led him with what looked like a good deep ball. Wyatt did not accelerate enough and then tried to pull it in with one hand and failed instead of laying out to make a diving catch. Those are the plays the secondary receivers need to make for Tulane to take the next step.
--Kriston Esnard practiced kickoffs and demonstrated a pretty good leg. I would expect Merek Glover to retain his role there after getting 35 touchbacks in 74 attempts last season, but Esnard, who struggled with accuracy on field goals as a senior in high school, has the leg strength to push Glover on kickoffs.
--Tulane's Dome workout will be closed to reporters, so my next report will be Saturday for the scrimmage.
--Rick Dickson was named full-time AD at Tulsa, signing a three-year contract after taking the job originally on an interim basis. This is his second stint at Tulsa, and Ed Conroy is available if he wants to make a basketball coaching change. Heck, Tubby Smith probably would leave High Point to coach Tulsa if Dickson asked, and Tubby was his last good hire for a major coaching position as AD back in 1990.
