Recruiting Forum: Football Talk XI

[ChattaTNVol]

We could've played pig at QB and still beat AP by 30. They're terrible even by FCS standards.

I was just pointing out that 3 tds against a piss poor opponent skews his stats.

So if we also throw out the USA game where we won then that would take away 2 TD and 3 INTs and then if we don't count the 3 TDs against AP then he had 5 TD and 5 INTs in the other 5.5 games he played. We could also throw out WKU so that was 1 TD, 1 INT. Then his stats were 4 TD, 4 INT. Since he got hurt in the SC game (both hands) the following game probably shouldn't be counted against him and he only played one-half so that's minus 2 INTs against bama which leaves him with 4 TD and 2 INTs. I don't guess you will let me dismissed the 2 INTs against FL even though I think at least one of the throws was a desperate attempt to make a play against the clock. So even still by my analysis his TD to INT ratio was 2 to 1. That's really not too bad.

 

[JacketVol]

We could've played pig at QB and still beat AP by 30. They're terrible even by FCS standards.

I was just pointing out that 3 tds against a piss poor opponent skews his stats.

I agree with your point. AP was horrid.

 

[ChattaTNVol]

KNOXVILLE — Riley Ferguson's first pass during 11-on-11 work in Tennessee's spring football scrimmage Saturday ended in disaster.

The redshirt freshman threw a dart into the flat and hit Jalen Reeves-Maybin right in the No. 34 of the linebacker's jersey.

After that, though, Ferguson played well, but coach Butch Jones lamented the ongoing inconsistencies of the Volunteers' four quarterbacks.

"I'm pretty proud of the way I came back," Ferguson said following the nearly three-hour practice at Neyland Stadium. "I'm just trying to overcome those and just not worry about them and move forward. Once it happens, you can't do anything about it then, because it's in the past. I just tried to move forward and have a good rest of the practice."

Ferguson admitted he never saw Reeves-Maybin buzz underneath receiver Marquez North's comeback route, and his two red-zone series ended in a fourth-down incompletion and a short field goal, though both were forced by pressure from Tennessee's defensive line.

On his last three series, Ferguson helped the Vols get into range for George Bullock to kick a 45-yard field goal, hit Josh Smith over the top for a long touchdown pass and scrambled for a first down on third-and-long on a series that ended in freshman tailback Jalen Hurd's fumble near the goal line.

In goal-line work, Ferguson hit freshman tight end Ethan Wolf on a play-action pass and threw a back-shoulder touchdown to Von Pearson on his two turns.

"I knew I had the rest of the day," Ferguson said. "I couldn't let that one play affect me. I just had to move forward.

"Every quarterback's trying to take care of the football, but interceptions are going to happen, and you just have to not let those affect you and move forward in the game or in practice or whatever it is."

At the end of the scrimmage, though, Ferguson again showed his inexperience. In a "last play of the game" scenario, Ferguson simply ran out of bounds after he was flushed from the pocket, and that prompted a brief lecture from Jones.

"That is invaluable," the coach said. "That's why we practice every situation that can occur throughout the course of a football season. Those end-of-the-game plays, the quarterback needs to know if the pocket collapses, you've got to scramble and you've got to make a play and you've got to throw the ball to give us an opportunity to make a play."

Quarterback chatter

Ferguson and rising senior Justin Worley appeared to get more work than rising sophomores Josh Dobbs and Nathan Peterman, but none of the quartet stood head and shoulders above another in the Vols' ongoing competition.

"We had some of our big explosive plays that we've had all spring, and those are great to have," Worley said, "but we didn't really maintain drives very well and had some penalties that brought us back.

"I think we just have to work on ball location and going through the right reads and getting our protections right."

Worley hit North for a long gain early in the scrimmage, hit Pearson for a touchdown in red-zone work and found Cody Blanc for another score, Blanc making an acrobatic grab with freshman cornerback D'Andre Payne in good coverage.

Peterman hooked up with Blanc for the offense's first big play of the day and hit Smith for a score in goal-line work, and Dobbs commanded a scoring drive on which he hit Wolf for a nice gain and ran it in on a keeper.

"We need an individual who can improvise and make plays but take care of the football and play with a high level of consistency," Jones said. "I thought there were too many ups and downs from the entire practice. ... We'll go back and we'll evaluate it.

"Nathan Peterman hung in the pocket a number of times and delivered some passes as well. Josh Dobbs did some things. All four did some good things, but there's also a lot of things that need to be corrected in a hurry."

Ferguson recovers after early interception | Times Free Press

 

[ChattaTNVol]

USU had a scrimmage yesterday as well.

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/v/iuGJ2RHxgNA&feature=youtu.be[/youtube]

 

[butchna]

Apparently no one is going to be confusing our 5th year senior walk-on with Eric Fisher if the reports about OL play are to be believed. The real story was that Blair, one of our JUCO studs is getting outplayed by the walk-on. You can pretend all you want to that the reason is because we have had this Eric Fisher clone on our bench for the last 4 years and no one noticed before now, but the more likely scenario is that they both have just sucked up to now. Hopefully by fall one of them will have a light come on.

No one compared ERIC FISHER to ERIC FISHER until he became ERIC FISHER :yes:

 

[ChattaTNVol]

Enjoyed your analysis hipster. I do wonder about col st. They lost an awful lot of key players, both their dominant defensive and offensive player are gone. They do return their qb. I guess I don't understand the hype. Although I am looking forward to that game...

And I'd agree with the rest of the order. I'd put wake forest above byu as well because of the power conf and it's at home. I would say it is much more winnable.

Of those games I'd rank most winnable to least winnable in the following order:

1. Colorado st
2. Wake Forrest
3. Tennessee
4. Boise
5. Byu

Utah State lost most of their key players as well.

For tennessee, I'm counting 5 senior starters on their projected depth chart. To compare, we have 13, or 15 if you count kicker punter. That's a stat I like.

they still have more talent. senior or not. it is what it is. I dont believe our talent will do anything to shock their younger talented guys.

I disagree, on grounds of Auburn. DJ Tialavea was very clear in saying that when the team played down there, it was quite obvious that Auburn wasn't expecting the kind of skill that some of our players had.

Inexperience leads quickly to ego. Not saying that is going to be the case, but its significantly easier for 40 freshman to look at Utah State and because they don't know who we are to write us off than it would be for 40 seniors to do it.

considering the tough years they have had i really doubt they overlook USU. they will want to win. To act like it wont be tough going into a mad house of 103k fans starving for a winner on opening weekend is ridiculous. they wont be overlooking anyone. they cant afford to. they will be young but dont fool yourself thinking they wont be talented bc of 5 seniors in the depth chart. Dan Gray was never going to play there. he will start here. thats just an example.they should be similiar to Ole Miss last yr. Youthful and talented. They will be up and down but they have an influx of serious talent and speed. it should be a good game.

IMO every conference game is more important that every non-conference game. If we go undefeated in the non-conference games but lose all our conference games, those wins are useless.

Now some of those conference games shouldn't be challenging and winning them won't be anything to boast about, but losing them will be tragic. They are very important games.

So after our MWC games the importance goes like this for me:
Tennessee
BYU
Wake Forest
Arkansas State
Idaho State

USUFans.com • View topic - Most important games of 2014 IMO

 

[nicksjuzunk]

USUFans.com • View topic - Most important games of 2014 IMO

Interesting.

It sounds like when Montana thought they were going to waltz in here and give us a tough time

Tn 38
Usu 13

 

[LotteryPick]

Interesting.

It sounds like when Montana thought they were going to waltz in here and give us a tough time

Tn 38
Usu 13

It'll be a lot closer than that, IMO.

I'm not sure our DL will be able to pressure Keeton.

 

[OddFuture]

Our roster compared to there's is much more talented. I wouldn't be surprised if our DL surprises us in a positive way (especially against a bad team like USU). Yes I know they have Chuckie and how good he is. Yes I know they have 1-2 pretty damn good defensive players. Outside of that we are much much better collectively. If we don't win by more than 2 touchdowns I will be upset. 3 touchdowns + is easily doable as well IMO.

 

[LotteryPick]

Our roster compared to there's is much more talented. I wouldn't be surprised if our DL surprises us in a positive way (especially against a bad team like USU). Yes I know they have Chuckie and how good he is. Yes I know they have 1-2 pretty damn good defensive players. Outside of that we are much much better collectively. If we don't win by more than 2 touchdowns I will be upset. 3 touchdowns + is easily doable as well IMO.

I just can't see it. USU is a team that plays better than their talent would indicate.

I think as long as they have Keeton, they have a chance.

Our LT spot scares the sh!t out of me, too.

10 point win, IMO.

 

[vol2002]

45-24 UT over USU. Will be close early but we will overwhelm them before it's over.

 

[butchna]

If you remember just a few years ago we had walk-ons playing on the OL. That year those walk-ons helped lead the offense to right at 5000 yards for the season. Just because a walk-on did not come with all the *'s by his name, does not mean he did not become an SEC talent.

But...."they"ll laugh at us" Leb. :unsure:

 

[butchna]

Funny how everybody loves Ferguson but hated the last guy he plays like.......

We have no way to see from practice and high school videos,whether this kid will lose focus and get complacent in crunch time situations,against quality opponents. WE DO KNOW that if has that famous Cali MEH knuckleheadedness...HE AIN'T SEEING THE FIELD!...not under Butch.

 

[Burger]

Anybody notice that its JRM who is Ferguson's nightmare? It seems like he picks off Ferguson every practice. I love how JRM fits in our defense.

 

[ChattaTNVol]

We have no way to see from practice and high school videos,whether this kid will lose focus and get complacent in crunch time situations,against quality opponents. WE DO KNOW that if has that famous Cali MEH knuckleheadedness...HE AIN'T SEEING THE FIELD!...not under Butch.

I think I'm always going to feel some special debt toward all the kids who played for us during our staffing debacles but that's probably just me. The truth is if you wore the orange and white you're family for life, good and bad. It's unconditional.

Ferguson has continued to grow as a quarterback after an incredibly hectic sophomore season in which he was thrust into a starting role after Christian LeMay, who is now a freshman at Georgia, was suspended. All Ferguson did was lead Butler to an undefeated season and a state title.

Yet there was still room for improvement as he came into his junior year. That's why Hales started allowing Ferguson to call plays during two-minute drills. The maturity showed up when Ferguson deftly chose efficient plays, not just deep routes.

Then there was a series of plays last month in which Ferguson truly showed his moxie. It came right after a bad interception.

"He shouldn't have thrown it," Hales said. "He had no business throwing it. He was getting drug to the ground. He had an idea where the open receiver was and he tried to get it out there and hit a D-lineman right in the chest with it and the kid took it about 50 yards for a score.

"But I couldn't get mad at him. We get the ball back and we go 75 yards in about a minute and a half. He's just throwing strike after strike after strike. He's the kind of kid if you take the previous drive away from him, you're also taking away the kid that's going to go 75 yards in a minute and a half when you have to have it to win. He's just confident, maybe borders on cocky sometimes."

Riley Ferguson and Zach Ferguson have a strong connection on and off the field - ESPN

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/v/Sf8phrLwDtI[/youtube]

 

[butchna]

I think I'm always going to feel some special debt toward all the kids who played for us during our staffing debacles but that's probably just me. The truth is if you wore the orange and white you're family for life, good and bad. It's unconditional.
Riley Ferguson and Zach Ferguson have a strong connection on and off the field - ESPN

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/v/Sf8phrLwDtI[/youtube]

I respect this point of view...just lost respect for him after the KY game...don't care if fair.

 

[butchna]

Great link by the way :thumbsup:

 

[ChattaTNVol]

Great link by the way :thumbsup:

On a side note I really like Dani. She does a really good job I think. She's really natural and I think the competition has let to huge improvement by Sara. Last year I wasn't all that impressed with Sara but this year she's really stepped up her game. Every time I saw her last year I thought of the girl in the clip below:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/v/lj3iNxZ8Dww[/youtube]

 

[Glitch]

Just manage the game and don't make mistakes. Let the playmakers make the plays. I think JW will get it done.

I understand that everyone was upset with JW last year but they were implementing a new O and had ZERO experience at WR. With a year in the system and better WR play JW can be a very effective QB.

 

[ChattaTNVol]

I understand that everyone was upset with JW last year but they were implementing a new O and had ZERO experience at WR. With a year in the system and better WR play JW can be a very effective QB.

Some time ago I looked into how coaches evalutate QBs and one of the more interesting articles I found out of many is the link below. It's a pretty long read but I think it's insightful.

On the day of the big football game between the University of Missouri Tigers and the Cowboys of Oklahoma State, a football scout named Dan Shonka sat in his hotel, in Columbia, Missouri, with a portable DVD player. Shonka has worked for three National Football League teams. Before that, he was a football coach, and before that he played linebacker—although, he says, “that was three knee operations and a hundred pounds ago.” Every year, he evaluates somewhere between eight hundred and twelve hundred players around the country, helping professional teams decide whom to choose in the college draft, which means that over the last thirty years he has probably seen as many football games as anyone else in America. In his DVD player was his homework for the evening’s big game—an edited video of the Tigers’ previous contest, against the University of Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Shonka methodically made his way through the video, stopping and re-winding whenever he saw something that caught his eye. He liked Jeremy Maclin and Chase Coffman, two of the Mizzou receivers. He loved William Moore, the team’s bruising strong safety. But, most of all, he was interested in the Tigers’ quarterback and star, a stocky, strong-armed senior named Chase Daniel.

“I like to see that the quarterback can hit a receiver in stride, so he doesn’t have to slow for the ball,” Shonka began. He had a stack of evaluation forms next to him and, as he watched the game, he was charting and grading every throw that Daniel made. “Then judgment. Hey, if it’s not there, throw it away and play another day. Will he stand in there and take a hit, with a guy breathing down his face? Will he be able to step right in there, throw, and still take that hit? Does the guy throw better when he’s in the pocket, or does he throw equally well when he’s on the move? You want a great competitor. Durability. Can they hold up, their strength, toughness? Can they make big plays? Can they lead a team down the field and score late in the game? Can they see the field? When your team’s way ahead, that’s fine. But when you’re getting your ass kicked I want to see what you’re going to do.”

Predicting success in football and teaching : The New Yorker

 

[Nashvegas31]

I respect this point of view...just lost respect for him after the KY game...don't care if fair.

What exactly did he do after ky game that you seem to know about and nobody else does?

 

[wU-Tang Vol]

The newcomers to*Tennessee's football team are making quite a statement without speaking a word.

Tennessee hasn't made any of its early enrollees available to the media thus far in spring practice, but the first-year players already are making their presence felt. They're the products of a signing class ranked among the top five in the nation by multiple recruiting services.

Several newcomers are challenging for starting roles on a team lacking experience at key positions.

"It's where we're at in the program," Tennessee coach Butch Jones said. "We can't hide it. It is what it is. But I'm encouraged by their youthfulness, their eagerness and the talent that we have and the talent we have coming in."

The newcomers getting much of the attention, due to the positions they play, are running back*Jalen Hurd*and receivers*Josh Malone*and*Von Pearson. They should instantly upgrade the big-play ability of Tennessee's offense.

Hurd should form a one-two punch in the backfield with senior running back*Marlin Lane. Hurd and Malone are freshmen who were rated as five-star prospects by at least one recruiting service.

Pearson, a transfer from Feather River College in Quincy, Calif., showed his big-play ability by making a spectacular one-handed touchdown catch with a defensive back grabbing his jersey during a spring one-on-one drill. Tennessee's sports information department put a clip of the catch on YouTube, where it's been viewed nearly 90,000 times.

"With Von and Josh, just getting them on the right page first was the big thing," senior quarterback*Justin Worleysaid. "Now that they've kind of grasped the offense better, they've been able to go out there and play more fluidly and consistently for us. They've started making some big plays for us. It's good to have them here now instead of (arriving) in the summer."

They're not the only new faces who could play right away.

Tennessee must replace its entire starting offensive line from last season. Senior linebacker*A.J. Johnson*is the only returning starter from last year's front seven on defense. The Volunteers are counting on newcomers to plug many of those holes.

MOSELEY"I don't think I've ever been a part of a program where you have to rely on so many newcomers at one or two particular positions," Jones said. "Usually your newcomers that are playing, (there are) a couple at one position, a couple at this position, a couple at that position. There's no secret (here). They're going to have to play at linebacker. They're going to definitely have to play on the defensive line and the offensive line. ... Throw in it's the SEC, which is an unforgiving conference up front."

On offense, freshman*Coleman Thomas*has been working as the first-team right tackle all spring. Garden City (Kan.) Community College transfer*Dontavius Blair*is competing with senior*Jacob Gilliam*at left tackle. Freshmen*Daniel Helm*and*Ethan Wolf*have stood out at tight end, where the Vols didn't get much production last season.

On defense, the Vols need Butler (Kan.) Community College transfer*Owen Williams*and freshman*Dimarya Mixon*to contribute immediately on the line. Freshman cornerbackEmmanuel Moseley*has spent time working with the first-team secondary.

"They're going to bring a lot to the table," sophomore cornerback Cam Sutton said of the newcomers. "You can see that now during the spring. Guys are making plays on both sides, offense and defense. And it's going to roll over into the season."

Jones expects this highly touted recruiting class to continue paying dividends when the rest of the first-year players arrive this summer.

"The great thing is we'll welcome 18 newcomers in June," Jones said. "It will almost be like starting the process over again. A lot of them will have to play as true freshmen. They have no choice. That's where we're at."

Free Read

Scout.com: Difference-making newcomers

 

[Neyland2nd2none]

Maggitt got big.

Dreads.....:thumbsup:

 

[wU-Tang Vol]

Scout.com: Highlights, Insider Report: Scrimmage 3

Free highlights

 

[PassedOutAwake]

Gosh... I cant wait until the 2016-2017 season.