Three practices away from the scrimmage that will be a defining point of preseason drills, Tulane worked out under hot and humid but hardly sweltering conditions compared to any of the past 10 years at Yulman Stadium on Tuesday morning. Practice No. 6 is in the books, with No. 7 and 8 to follow tomorrow and Thursday before the Green Wave takes a break Friday and returns for Saturday morning's scrimmage. The receivers, who dominated early one-one-one drills in camp, struggled to get the best of the defensive backs in a goal-line version of the drill. With the offense trying to score on each play, freshman cornerback Cadien Robinson intercepted a Justin Ibieata throw for Luke Besh on the first play I watched. Another freshman, Kentrell Webb, then locked up Bryce Bohanon, who did not have one of his better days, to prevent Michael Pratt from having any throwing angle. Kai Horton threw too high for 6-3 receiver Chris Brazzell, who has looked impressive, before Carson Haggard connected with Shae Wyatt for the first score of the segment.
In sequence after that, walk-on DB Gabe Liu deflected a pass for Phat Watts, Dea Dea McDougle pinned Bailey Despanie behind him for an easy touchdown grab, Jarius Monroe broke up a pass for Duece Watts, McDougle could not shake Shi'Keem Laister to make a play on a ball, Jha'Quan Jackson burned one of the starters (no numbers) for an easy score, Lawrence Keys toasted T.J. Huggins with a sweet move, Besh fell down making a cut and Bohanon slipped running in the back of the end zone. The receivers definitely were less sharp today than in most of the other practices, but the scholarship guys still are not dropping routine throws like they did constantly last season in practice.
I've noticed Michael Pratt begins almost every 7-on-7 drill with a big completion, and today was no exception. He hit McDougle for a big gain. Not much of note went on the rest of the way, although a couple of DBs avoided potential serious injury when they collided trying to intercept a Carson Haggard pass. One of them got up slowly but appeared fine when he reached the sideline.
Situational work has become the norm in football practices, a stark contrast to what I started with covering Steve Spurrier's Florida team in 1991. That group played full possessions as if it were a game most of the time even when tackling was not allowed. I remember being taken aback when Ron Zook arrived in 2002 and spent plenty of time having the offense start at its 1-yard line or work on second-and 8 or other down and distances instead of having the chains move as a result of the previous play. Willie Fritz always has been all about situational football in practice, and today they had a drill where the ball was the defense's 21-yard line with 13 seconds left and the offensive having one timeout remaining. Pratt was first up, and he immediately threw a touchdown pass to Tyrick James. Ibieta was next, and he produced a touchdown in three plays, hitting Duece Watts on the sideline for 12 yards while taking only five seconds off the clock, throwing short to Will Wallace to the 3 before calling timeout with three seconds left and then hitting Duece Watts for a too-easy touchdown when he turned around at the goal line before any defender could get close to him. I must have missed a play with Horton, because all I saw was a bullet pass to Keys on the sideline over the outstretched hands of Monroe and then a 36-yard field goal attempt by Graham Dable, which was good. Dable went back out after the next possession to attempt a 45-yarder. That, too, was good, but I still have a hard time believing the kicker will be anyone but Valentino Ambrosio.
Next, they did a drill where the offense had to try to score in one play from its own 40-yard line. McDougle dropped a pass from Pratt, ending the first attempt immediately. before an Ibieta short completion was followed by a series of laterals that led to Robinson picking one off and heading the other way before sliding to a stop around the offense's 30-yard line. That drill is an indication of how much stuff Fritz tries to get his team prepared for in a game. Curtis Johnson did some of that stuff, too, but without the organization. I remember in his first year they had a drill called "Operation Scuba" where defenders took a dive and pretended to be hurt to stop the clock ( have not seen that one under Fritz, thankfully).
Next was the first 11-on-11 segment. The starting offensive line remained unchanged, with Kanon Ray missing his third consecutive day despite being in uniform. Ibieta had a nice completion to Wyatt on a waggle. Tyrek Presley intercepted a Horton throw. Walk-on wideouts dropped back-to-back passes. McDougle had a nice run and made a nice catch on a throw by Pratt.
They worked on kickoff returning for a while. Jha'Quan Jackson was the first guy fielding them, followed by Tyjae Spears (I'm not thrilled with the idea of him returning kicks; more people get injured on kickoffs than any other play), Mahki Hughes, Ashaad Clayton, Keys and Jadon Canady (not thrilled with him possibly returning kicks, either).
The finished with another 11-on-11 segment, but I was instructing a photographer for part of it and did not see anything particularly notable. For the second time in preseason drills, though, Spears got drilled (I did not see who hit him) and reacted angrily again. This time, no fights erupted, but he was steamed. It was not a full-contact day, and it is strange that it has happened to him twice already.
Noah Taliancich, who was affected by injury for most of last year, limped off with what appeared to be a minor injury after going to the ground at one point today. Caleb Thomas still has not practiced in camp and continues to watch without having a helmet or shoulder pads. Jalen Rogers was out today, too, working on the exercise bike at one point.
FRITZ
On kicking situation:
"It's getting a little clearer. Graham Dable went today and he hit two long ones. We are going to have some officials there Saturday and put some stress on the kickers with some real situations and the defense going after it. You get out there and you let them just kick by themselves, that doesn't really mean anything. We are trying to get some game-like situations as much as we can. I'm hoping by the end of this week we're down to where we're really comparing two guys and not four (my guess is Constantino Ambrosio and Dable will be the finalists, with Kriston Esnard and Lucas Dunker out of the picture)."
More on scrimmage:
"We'll be doing some tackling. Not everybody is going to play a bunch. Some guys have logged a bunch of snaps. Joey Claybrook has played over 2,500 snaps of Division I football. He doesn't need to get up to 2,600 after Saturday, but there are some guys that will play 40 live snaps and get a chance to see what they can do, and then obviously the extra point/field goals are going to be big."
On getting Ambrosio:
"He went in the portal and was 21 of 27 at Rutgers. He made a couple of field goals in the Big House (Michigan) and that's probably a pretty tough place to kick, and it was late in the season, so he's had some big-game experience. We need someone to come in here and make the gimmes--the 36-yarder, the 41-yarder, the 29-yarder--and then it's bonus when you get the 52-yarder. We're going to give him an opportunity to win the job. There are a couple of other guys who are going to have that chance, too. We're not just going to give it to him."
On coaching differently in red zone if he has comfort level with kicker:
"Yeah, you would. There were some times last year when I just wasn't quite sure if we had the chance to make it or if we could make it. When we were in that area where it was a 38-to 44-yard field goal, we went for it. Now we're pretty aggressive. We do what the book tells us to do. If we should go for it, we go for it, and we know that, but obviously if you're having a tough time making them, you are less inclined to attempt them."
On relying on analytics for decisions:
"Big time. I'm a big analytics guy. It determines if we take penalties, go for 2 or if we go for it on fourth. There are a lot of things that matter to us, and we go by the book. I study it big time. Today we went over a bunch of different situation. You don't want things to surprise you. There are an infinite amount of scenarios in a game, and you try to go over every one as best as you can, and the analytics part is pretty easy. It's your ability to convert on fourth down, their inability to stop you. You are playing the odds. If it's 73 percent you'll get it, great, go for it, because those are four-point plays, a touchdown instead of a field goal, and those are huge in a ballgame.
On the analytics service he subscribes to:
"It's called Championship Analytics Incorporated."
On Ashaad Clayton:
"Well, you want to go with the hot hand. Early in the season, especially in the non-conference schedule, you are going to play a lot of guys. There are a lot of guys that deserve the opportunity to get out there and show what they can do, and he's certainly one of them. If you get a guy that's carrying the ball better than another guy, I tell coach Svoboda, 'feed him.' We got to get the ball to Tyjae or Cam or Iverson or Shaadie. He's done a nice job in camp. He's got good size. I think he was a 10.6 100-meter guy in high school at Warren Easton, and he's going to play a lot for us."
In sequence after that, walk-on DB Gabe Liu deflected a pass for Phat Watts, Dea Dea McDougle pinned Bailey Despanie behind him for an easy touchdown grab, Jarius Monroe broke up a pass for Duece Watts, McDougle could not shake Shi'Keem Laister to make a play on a ball, Jha'Quan Jackson burned one of the starters (no numbers) for an easy score, Lawrence Keys toasted T.J. Huggins with a sweet move, Besh fell down making a cut and Bohanon slipped running in the back of the end zone. The receivers definitely were less sharp today than in most of the other practices, but the scholarship guys still are not dropping routine throws like they did constantly last season in practice.
I've noticed Michael Pratt begins almost every 7-on-7 drill with a big completion, and today was no exception. He hit McDougle for a big gain. Not much of note went on the rest of the way, although a couple of DBs avoided potential serious injury when they collided trying to intercept a Carson Haggard pass. One of them got up slowly but appeared fine when he reached the sideline.
Situational work has become the norm in football practices, a stark contrast to what I started with covering Steve Spurrier's Florida team in 1991. That group played full possessions as if it were a game most of the time even when tackling was not allowed. I remember being taken aback when Ron Zook arrived in 2002 and spent plenty of time having the offense start at its 1-yard line or work on second-and 8 or other down and distances instead of having the chains move as a result of the previous play. Willie Fritz always has been all about situational football in practice, and today they had a drill where the ball was the defense's 21-yard line with 13 seconds left and the offensive having one timeout remaining. Pratt was first up, and he immediately threw a touchdown pass to Tyrick James. Ibieta was next, and he produced a touchdown in three plays, hitting Duece Watts on the sideline for 12 yards while taking only five seconds off the clock, throwing short to Will Wallace to the 3 before calling timeout with three seconds left and then hitting Duece Watts for a too-easy touchdown when he turned around at the goal line before any defender could get close to him. I must have missed a play with Horton, because all I saw was a bullet pass to Keys on the sideline over the outstretched hands of Monroe and then a 36-yard field goal attempt by Graham Dable, which was good. Dable went back out after the next possession to attempt a 45-yarder. That, too, was good, but I still have a hard time believing the kicker will be anyone but Valentino Ambrosio.
Next, they did a drill where the offense had to try to score in one play from its own 40-yard line. McDougle dropped a pass from Pratt, ending the first attempt immediately. before an Ibieta short completion was followed by a series of laterals that led to Robinson picking one off and heading the other way before sliding to a stop around the offense's 30-yard line. That drill is an indication of how much stuff Fritz tries to get his team prepared for in a game. Curtis Johnson did some of that stuff, too, but without the organization. I remember in his first year they had a drill called "Operation Scuba" where defenders took a dive and pretended to be hurt to stop the clock ( have not seen that one under Fritz, thankfully).
Next was the first 11-on-11 segment. The starting offensive line remained unchanged, with Kanon Ray missing his third consecutive day despite being in uniform. Ibieta had a nice completion to Wyatt on a waggle. Tyrek Presley intercepted a Horton throw. Walk-on wideouts dropped back-to-back passes. McDougle had a nice run and made a nice catch on a throw by Pratt.
They worked on kickoff returning for a while. Jha'Quan Jackson was the first guy fielding them, followed by Tyjae Spears (I'm not thrilled with the idea of him returning kicks; more people get injured on kickoffs than any other play), Mahki Hughes, Ashaad Clayton, Keys and Jadon Canady (not thrilled with him possibly returning kicks, either).
The finished with another 11-on-11 segment, but I was instructing a photographer for part of it and did not see anything particularly notable. For the second time in preseason drills, though, Spears got drilled (I did not see who hit him) and reacted angrily again. This time, no fights erupted, but he was steamed. It was not a full-contact day, and it is strange that it has happened to him twice already.
Noah Taliancich, who was affected by injury for most of last year, limped off with what appeared to be a minor injury after going to the ground at one point today. Caleb Thomas still has not practiced in camp and continues to watch without having a helmet or shoulder pads. Jalen Rogers was out today, too, working on the exercise bike at one point.
FRITZ
On kicking situation:
"It's getting a little clearer. Graham Dable went today and he hit two long ones. We are going to have some officials there Saturday and put some stress on the kickers with some real situations and the defense going after it. You get out there and you let them just kick by themselves, that doesn't really mean anything. We are trying to get some game-like situations as much as we can. I'm hoping by the end of this week we're down to where we're really comparing two guys and not four (my guess is Constantino Ambrosio and Dable will be the finalists, with Kriston Esnard and Lucas Dunker out of the picture)."
More on scrimmage:
"We'll be doing some tackling. Not everybody is going to play a bunch. Some guys have logged a bunch of snaps. Joey Claybrook has played over 2,500 snaps of Division I football. He doesn't need to get up to 2,600 after Saturday, but there are some guys that will play 40 live snaps and get a chance to see what they can do, and then obviously the extra point/field goals are going to be big."
On getting Ambrosio:
"He went in the portal and was 21 of 27 at Rutgers. He made a couple of field goals in the Big House (Michigan) and that's probably a pretty tough place to kick, and it was late in the season, so he's had some big-game experience. We need someone to come in here and make the gimmes--the 36-yarder, the 41-yarder, the 29-yarder--and then it's bonus when you get the 52-yarder. We're going to give him an opportunity to win the job. There are a couple of other guys who are going to have that chance, too. We're not just going to give it to him."
On coaching differently in red zone if he has comfort level with kicker:
"Yeah, you would. There were some times last year when I just wasn't quite sure if we had the chance to make it or if we could make it. When we were in that area where it was a 38-to 44-yard field goal, we went for it. Now we're pretty aggressive. We do what the book tells us to do. If we should go for it, we go for it, and we know that, but obviously if you're having a tough time making them, you are less inclined to attempt them."
On relying on analytics for decisions:
"Big time. I'm a big analytics guy. It determines if we take penalties, go for 2 or if we go for it on fourth. There are a lot of things that matter to us, and we go by the book. I study it big time. Today we went over a bunch of different situation. You don't want things to surprise you. There are an infinite amount of scenarios in a game, and you try to go over every one as best as you can, and the analytics part is pretty easy. It's your ability to convert on fourth down, their inability to stop you. You are playing the odds. If it's 73 percent you'll get it, great, go for it, because those are four-point plays, a touchdown instead of a field goal, and those are huge in a ballgame.
On the analytics service he subscribes to:
"It's called Championship Analytics Incorporated."
On Ashaad Clayton:
"Well, you want to go with the hot hand. Early in the season, especially in the non-conference schedule, you are going to play a lot of guys. There are a lot of guys that deserve the opportunity to get out there and show what they can do, and he's certainly one of them. If you get a guy that's carrying the ball better than another guy, I tell coach Svoboda, 'feed him.' We got to get the ball to Tyjae or Cam or Iverson or Shaadie. He's done a nice job in camp. He's got good size. I think he was a 10.6 100-meter guy in high school at Warren Easton, and he's going to play a lot for us."
