Post-training camp grades: Offense

Part 2 of 3: Offense

OFFENSIVE LINE
Where it all begins for the offense, and USU has five returning starters. This unit is anchored by a trio of stars in Jamie Markosian, Eric Schultz, and Tyler Larsen; all three guys earned all-WAC honors last season. Kyle and Kevin Whimpey took huge steps forward as the season rolled on in 2012, and while both might be better suited as interior linemen, Kevin still was solid enough at left tackle by season's end.
Depth is still a big question here, and I'm still crossing fingers that Kevin Whimpey can handle some of the bigger guns around the edge that the early part of the schedule will test him with, but there's no doubting the prowess of five returning starters.

Preseason grade: A-

Practice moves over to Romney Stadium on Tuesday

To calm a lot of people's nerves, Tuesday marked the first sighting of wide receiver Ronald Butler practicing with the team. Due to the rules stating that players must have x-amount of practices before adding shoulder pads, and then full pads after that, Butler was limited in what he do, but it appears everything is sorted out now.

Things are starting to look more crisp all around as guys look to have the bulk of their rust shaken off after a few practices. Now with contact entering the mix, you can see just how competitive so many of these guys are. Even after some plays are blown dead, you'll see ballcarriers still running, while defenders are still trying to stop them, and both sides trying to get the best of one another. Things get a little chippy at times, but after those little shoving matches are over, you've still got two guys competing at a high level. Pretty alright if you ask me.

First practice is in the books

Took my own picture for once

Finding too much excitement in a first practice is something I was guilty of in my younger years. These days though, I've learned well enough that a first practice is exactly that, and shouldn't come with too much excitement or worry. There are a lot more practices to go and plenty that can change.

Still, there are observations to at least be had and impressions to take away. What is exciting to keep an eye on is if the good aspects can be sustained and if the sore spots can be improved upon.

So after a day of casually observing the first practice, which only included helmets, here's some bullet points...

First football scrimmage looks like a first scrimmage

There's always a difference between running the team drills in practice and actually getting out in a competitive scenario like a scrimmage. So with this being the first scrimmage of the spring, there was undoubtedly going to be some rust. But that's about where we are every year around this point. This is where the team finds its kinks and starts really sharpening things.

I don't want to go reading too much into things that didn't go well, or getting overly excited about guys who put together a noteworthy performance. It was a first scrimmage. Plenty can change between here and April 20 and plenty likely will. Even after that, a lot more will likely change over the summer too.

Let's just bullet point some observations...

What to watch for during spring ball: Offense edition

Here come the Aggies!!!

Chuckie Keeton is going to be the quarterback, the linebackers are a dynamite unit, and the offensive line returns all five starters.

Those are things we know to start spring football, among several other things, but there's plenty left out there that we should hope to see settled by April 20. At the very least, we should be hoping to see some guys step up and impress the coaches to give an idea about who will compete for the open position battles before fall camp.

So here's part one of a two-part series of what and who to keep a close eye on during spring football in 2013. Today is offense. Let's get at it!

Things I want to see this weekend

This weekend is going to be a fun one with a home football game to occupy Saturday afternoon, followed by basketball's second exhibition that night. And with how things are going for football and how early along basketball is right now, I'd feel overly nitpicky to point out any lows as part of a highs, lows and IDKs.

So for the sake of doing something mid-week this week, let's just talk about a few things I want to see this weekend.

MORE THAN ANYTHING...
Both Romney Stadium and The Spectrum should be packed with students for both of these games. Especially Romney. The attendance against New Mexico State was kinda about what you'd expect during Fall Break, but the crowd needs a strong showing to rebound from that. This team is on the verge of a historic season, and we already know they aren't going to get much love from the stands for the last home game over Thanksgiving break.

So basically, this is the last time Romney will really be rocking this season, so it needs to rock hard!!! This team has earned a packed house, and dammit they had better get it!

And after the football game is finished, take a quick break, maybe grab some food, and head right up to The Spectrum!

It's gonna be one hell of a day!!!

Also, wear blue. 


FOOTBALL

More reps for the second unit - This one will require another blowout, but that is becoming more the expectation with this program rather than a rarity. With each week the second units are able to get into games and get reps, the more experience they gain, the more film they have to break down of what they're doing right or wrong, and better prepare this team for the future.

Three turnovers -The defense set a goal to have at least three turnovers per game this year, but they have yet to actually make it happen in any games this year. Last game was encouraging with a pair of interceptions by Will Davis and Kyler Fackrell, but they still need to do a bit more with stripping the ball and rocking the worlds of opposing quarterbacks.

A 120-yard game from Joe Hill - Gary Andersen said he's finally back to 100 percent, so it's time to get him involved once again. Like Kerwynn Williams, Hill can be a major threat both running and catching the ball, and we got to see a little bit of that last game. Time to light up the box score once again for him.


BASKETBALL

5+ assists for Tenale Roland - In the first game, Roland had zero turnovers, but only one assist. This time around, I want to see Roland take a few more risks just to test himself in the assist department. even if it means he ends up with a couple turnovers, I want to see him take some risks in passing at game speed and rack up some assists this time around.

Another Saturday, another Aggie blowout

Roadrunner shouldn't be smiling

In the last three games, USU has won by margins of 22, 34 and 31, with the most recent coming Saturday on the road at UTSA.

And once again, this one was never really in doubt. Utah State kicked off to the Roadrunners, forced them to a three-and-out, blocked their punt, and scored two plays later.

The tone was set at that point, and another blowout was on.

The Roadrunners gave themselves a glimmer of hope after a great interception of a Chuckie Keeton pass deep over the middle, which resulted in a field goal drive and only the second time USU has given up 1st quarter points this year.

Utah State's defense locked down after that though, holding UTSA to three-and-outs on each of its next two possessions, and giving up pretty much nothing throughout the rest of the first half. In the meantime, USU's offense put points on the board in each of its next SIX drives to take the game from a score of 7-3 to 41-3.

Let's Talk About Some More Football - Part 2

Can this much really be said about Friday's game? Given that it is basically the defining victory of this new era of Utah State football, I'm saying all that I feel needs to be said. And really, a lot of it is more dealing with the early part of this season so far rather than just Friday's win.

As monumental as the BYU win in 2010 was, and as good as it felt to beat a team we all hate with such passion, that was only one of four wins that season. The momentum of the program is rolling a lot stronger now, and this 2012 Utah team is leaps and bounds better than that 2010 BYU team. We didn't come into the Utah game knowing we should win like we did for the big one in 2010. Beating the Utes was nothing short of a mountain to climb, and the Aggies battled all the way to the summit!

So let's talk a little bit more about some Utah State football.

Football: Highs, Lows and I Don't Knows - 9/4

Week one is in the books, with week two being a big one coming up. I'm of the belief that the USU coaches kept things pretty simple as to not show too much on the game film for Utah to scout. The Utes undoubtedly did the same thing too, so Friday should be full of surprises.

But even despite keeping things simple, let's still try and break things down a little bit.


THE HIGHS

Chuckie Keeton, Matt Austin and Joe Hill - Chances are that any time you get a quarterback throwing for 300+ yards, a receiver with 100+ yards, running back rushing for 100+ yards, all with a good defense backing them up, you'll probably win. This trio was awesome all game, and two of them are only sophomores. We knew Keeton and Austin would tear it up this year, but with Hill's performance, and even Kerwynn Williams still having a decent game of his own, the running game might be better than we'd thought.

The rush defense - Sure, it was only SUU, and they don't exactly have a good running game, but holding a team to just 2.1 yards per carry is impressive, especially going into this week's game against Utah. John White isn't a power back, but he's fast, shifty and great at finding holes, so stopping him will be no easy task. Still, White needed 24 carries to rack up 119 yards against Northern Colorado. If USU can slow him up, scoring points won't come easy for Utah.

Pass defense - A possible NFL quarterback was 12-of-31 for only 153 yards. That's not too shabby for the defensive backfield. Terrence Alston had a team-high five tackles to go with a tackle for loss and a sack to bolster the resume of Saturday's performance by the DBs. 


THE LOWS

Pass defense - Yep, they're both on the highs and lows! The pass interference penalties, disagree with some of them as I may, are how football is officiated these days. Receivers are given all sorts of freedom to initiate contact and gain separation. Defensive backs can't get away with that, and the sooner they learn that it's life's not fair out there and adjust the amount of contact they make, the sooner they'll see a lot fewer yellow flags thrown their way. The DBs did great at sticking with their guys, but they've got to perfect how to do so without getting flagged for it.

Special teams - A blown extra point, a muffed punt and really just overall unimpressive play didn't offer anything to be encouraged about. Chuck Jacobs had one punt return for 30 yards, which is better than most punt returns we've seen around here for a while. Still, lots of work left to be done here.


THE I DON'T KNOWS

Defensive line - Great at stopping the run, left some to be desired in pass pressure. I'm trying to tell myself that they did what the offense did with keeping things mostly under wraps, but I'm less optimistic here. Still, I think they'll continue to improve as the year goes on, and the run stopping was great on Thursday. So far I'd say they did good, not great.

Turnovers - Kinda was hoping for more of them. Still trying to tell myself that it's because the blitzing packages weren't let loose. Getting pressure on Jordan Wynn can be a game-changer on Friday. His arm isn't strong as it is, so if he's forcing throws on the run or under pressure in the pocket, that could create a couple possible turnover opportunities, which the Aggies will need to capitalize on.

Aggies come out swinging, win 34-3

Not that many of us really thought it would ever be a game, but the Aggies silenced the Thunderbirds pretty handily from the start Thursday night at Romney Stadium. The thunder song from the movie Ted summarizes tonight fairly well (warning, bad words and decent humor in that link)!! Let's compare the first three drives for both Southern Utah and Utah State...

Southern Utah
3 plays, 4 yards - punt
3 plays, 0 yards - punt
3 plays, 5 yards - punt

Utah State
11 plays, 97 yards - touchdown
3 plays, 45 yards - touchdown
9 plays, 98 yards - touchdown

I mean, I guess if we're reaching for positives for SUU, their punter did a great job of pinning the Aggies deep, but it really didn't matter with USU's first unit in there. And the whole game saw a lot of USU's guys from the two-deep getting some serious reps out there.

Preseason Previews and Vibes, Part 1: Special Teams

Chuck Jacobs, alone in the end zone, with people behind him = Touchdowns

Part 1 of 4: Special Teams

Alright kids, it's officially game week, so let's get down to previewing this bad boy!

First up is special teams, which once again doesn't look to be anything too special.

COVERAGE
In theory, this year could see an improvement in the kick and punt coverage teams. As the talent level of the program has continued upward, the guys assigned to special teams should perform better than previous years as well. Between the linebacker and cornerback positions alone, there are 30 guys on the roster, leaving plenty of guys outside of the two-deep that you would hope are hungry enough for snaps that they'll want to make an impact on special teams. There are also a handful of young offensive linemen who could make a splash here.

Main point being though, there are quality starters and quality depth at most positions and only so many snaps to go around. There are also plenty of younger guys who will have a chance to make some big plays on special teams this year. Given the mentality that seems to be around this team now, I'm guessing we'll see a solid improvement in this area over the last few years.

Preseason vibe: Optimistic

Breaking down Wednesday's scrimmage

Adam Kennedy played solid, but Chuckie Keeton fully tore it up, making
Kennedy's window that much smaller.

The lights were on at Romney Stadium Wednesday night for what will be the final major scrimmage of this 2012 fall camp. A solid crowd turned out to see what will likely have been the final chance for a lot of guys to solidify their places on the depth chart going into the start of the season.

As has been the case throughout camp, a handful of guys saw very few, if any reps. Guys like Kerwynn Williams, Matt Austin, Chuck Jacobs, McKade Brady and Tavaris McMillian are among them, giving chances for a lot of other guys to step up and make their case for playing time.

Let's jump right into the basics...

The first team offense was rolling tonight, gaining yards with relative ease against what looked to be a mix of first and second team defensive players. It's tough to really tell the impact of all that from either standpoint, with a lot of the offensive superstars being held out and not all of the first team defense playing together. For what it's worth, it's encouraging to see the offense moving the ball, regardless of who it is against. For the bulk of camp, the defense has been looking absolutely stellar, so to see the offense start coming together a little better is encouraging.

Chuckie Keeton was pretty excellent for this scrimmage, as he has been for most of camp and all of spring ball a few months back. Adam Kennedy is still solid, and he should still see plenty of snaps this season, but Keeton was a solid step above tonight.

Outside of one guy, the run game wasn't to be stoked on, but that was all without Williams taking snaps, and we know he's going to produce.

The receivers had a lot of that same thing going on, with two guys really looking solid out there, but everyone else leaving a lot to be desired. But keep in mind, Austin and Jacobs weren't in that mix, leaving the guys deeper on the depth chart going against first team cornerbacks.

Speaking of the cornerbacks, they look awesome. The fact that Willie Davis is listed as the Dime cornerback is astonishing, and says a lot about the other guys ahead of him. Davis made a handful of clutch plays in limited reps last season and looks to be solidly improved this camp, standing out several times with good coverage downfield. Back there with them, the safeties look just fine.

Let's just break the rest down by positives and negatives though.

POSITIVES

Cam Webb -  Dude absolutely KILLED it!!! He finished with eight catches for 101 yards and was just all over the place making plays. Outside of him and Travis Reynolds at times, it seemed like nobody else could get open, and Webb did it at will. He took a hard hit on a screen pass late in the scrimmage and appeared to be shaken up pretty badly, which is a major bummer to finish off his night. If I were taking a guess, I'd say it was a concussion, and you never know how that'll linger. Hopefully not long, because tonight Webb looked like he could be an impact player for the offense.

Joe Hill - With the top spot at running back locked up, Hill has separated himself from the rest of the bunch to get a lockdown at the No. 2 running back spot. Tonight made it obvious as to why. Hill was finding holes, hitting them hard and racking up yards on the ground. He accelerates to full speed in almost no time, and his top speed makes him almost impossible to catch from behind. He's not the strongest of runners, but he's also young. As it stands, Hill looks like he'll be a solid replacement to Michael Smith in the role of super-speedy No. 2 running back.

Defense - I wanted to pinpoint a specific area of the defense because it seemed every different area performed well enough to earn individual mention. The line got solid push and put some real pressure on the quarterbacks. The linebackers were flying all over, making plays everywhere and adding to the pressure of the quarterbacks. And the defensive backs were basically shutdown on every receiver not named Cam Webb. The offense still got theirs at times, but that's going to happen regardless. The defense made everything difficult on them.


NEGATIVES

Punt returns - Calling that part of the scrimmage anything less than a shit-show is giving them a bit too much credit. If the guy returning the punt actually managed avoid muffing the catch, which was rare, guys were running backwards way too often trying to burn the defenders around the edges. That didn't really work for anyone at all. Credit to the punt coverage team I guess, but the returners did the coverage guys plenty of favors. It brought back a nightmare or two from the Colorado State game, and that's just an awful awful thing to reminisce on.

Running backs NOT named Joe Hill - Outside of a couple decent runs by Abou Toure, the running backs behind Hill didn't really do the offense any favors. Inexperience might play a factor in that, seeing as how Williams and Hill are really the only two healthy backs who have been around a while. You've got to hope though that as guys like Kelvin Lee, Ladale Jackson and Toure get their feet wet, that they will step things up and add more quality depth. When Joey DeMartino and Robert Marshall get healthy again, the depth will get a big boost, but let's hope that some of those other guys can take a giant leap forward or two in the meantime.

Kicking - Damn this theme of special teams not doing all that great... The kicking game is still just wildly inconsistent, much like it has been for what seems like forever. If this results in going for it on fourth down a lot rather than attempting a long field goal, that might not be the worst thing in the world. At this point it certainly looks like it'll be a better option than trying to kick anything from deeper than about 45 yards.