CFB Forum

Slack 10 Notes

Posted By: Ben Dover
Date: 12 Aug 03, 3:46 am

PAC 10

Arizona: When star TB Farmer reported last week for pre-season camp he made his feelings about Mackovic known. He let the media know that he has nothing to say to his head coach and that he doesn't plan on speaking to him. He is for all intent and purposes a lame duck coach. After two miserable seasons at Arizona, which included a team revolt against him, John Mackovic is down to his third and final strike. Unfortunately for him, he's stepping up to the plate with a whiffle bat in hand. The 2003 version of Arizona Wildcats football is not one that is going to strike fear into opponents. Special teams continue to be iffy. Danny Baugher, a true-freshman punter last year after being named USA Today's prep all-American team as a kicker, was sporadic. Baugher has a strong leg, and if he can improve his hang time his stats should better resemble the blue-chip prospect he was coming out of high school. Kicker Bobby Gill was 4 of 5 inside of 40 yards, but was only 3 of 6 from 40 to 50 and had three kicks blocked. That's not the best sign for an offense that may need some scoring help from the kicker early on. The Cats can't afford many losses from a defensive line lacking depth. UA has already lost its prefall starting nose tackle, Vince Feula, to academics. Junior college transfer David Sharp is finishing summer school and has not reported to camp. Pelluer is one of seven assistants who have come and gone at Arizona in Mackovic's two years in Tucson, a tenure that has also been marred by player unrest, including an incident last season when roughly 45 players went to the president's office to complain about Mackovic's ways. "Let's just say it's a tough situation and that he's a difficult head coach to work for," said Pelluer. "I recruited the Player of the Year in Arizona and busted my butt and he didn't want to fire me before we got the guy in the boat. Then he told me I didn't fit in to what they were trying to do. I said, 'Really, you're going to do this to me on Feb. 7th? Thank you very much.' "

Cal: Tedford might have to rely on his gut instinct. He doesn't have a quarterback tearing up the defense in practice or hitting an amazing percentage of his throws. He has three athletes fighting every day for the chance to take the first snap in the opening game. Does he go with junior college transfer Aaron Rodgers, who to the eye is the most appealing candidate in terms of footwork, release and arm strength? Should he pick junior Reggie Robertson? The longtime backup looks most comfortable in practice running Tedford's system, but he may not have the firepower in his arm.

Oregon: Bellotti said senior defensive end Quinn Dorsey probably will face a four-game suspension at the start of the season. An investigation by the school last year found Dorsey had exchanged complimentary tickets for breaks in his rent. He redshirted last season for unrelated reasons. Already short on experience at receiver, Oregon's football team has lost a little more. Junior Keith Allen, who played in eight games last season, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee Thursday evening. With Keith Allen (torn knee ligament) and Tony Salazar (hamstring) already out with injuries, Marcus Maxwell being watched to make sure soreness in a leg doesn't worsen and Kellen Taylor still not cleared to practice for academic reasons, the Ducks have gone from expecting to have 11 wide receivers to having only four fully healthy ones as they prepare to practice in pads for the first time today. Both have a lot riding on Oregon's defense being better, particularly in defending the pass and stopping big plays. "We recognize the need to improve on defense," Bellotti said, "and that we probably made some mistakes last year in terms of coaching decisions, personnel decisions and approach.” A cornerstone of Aliotti's defensive philosophy has been to be bold and aggressive - to isolate talented cornerbacks on wide receivers, and load up against the run. Well, the battle-tested cornerbacks weren't there last season.

Oregon State: Weaknesses: 1. Of the projected starters at cornerback, Aric Williams has one start and Brandon Browner is a redshirt freshman. 2. The departure of Noah Happe left an unexpected hole at defensive end. 3. The Beavers still are seeking reliable second and third receivers.

Stanford: Only senior left tackle Kirk Chambers saw regular time last season on an offensive line that lost four starters, including All-Pac-10 pick Kwame Harris, who left early for the NFL Draft. The only players with game experience other than Chambers are senior Mike Sullivan and sophomore Brian Head, with seven redshirt freshmen taking their shot at playing time. Senior Drew Caylor is coming over from the defense to shore things up. Caylor started seven games at defensive end over the past two seasons and is moving to center.

UCLA: UCLA receiver Tab Perry will sit out the season because he is academically ineligible, leaving sophomore Junior Taylor to start along with Craig Bragg. "Before Tab's situation, I was still expecting myself to play a very big role," said Taylor, who made a splash as a freshman by scoring a touchdown off a 49-yard reverse in his first game. He then played mostly as a reserve before starting the final two games, finishing the season with 14 receptions. Sources who have observed both quarterbacks during the spring and summer say the 6-foot-2, 216-pound Olson, 20, has a firmer grasp of Dorrell's offensive system, is more mature and carries himself with a distinct swagger.

USC: Most veterans worked out in the morning, including quarterbacks Matt Leinart — a sophomore who was named the starter at the end of spring practice — junior transfer Brandon Hance and sophomore Billy Hart. Junior defensive tackle Shaun Cody and sophomore middle linebacker Oscar Lua, both coming off major knee surgery, said they felt fine during the morning workout and were almost at full strength Hance also said he felt no ill effects after a summer that included arthroscopic procedures on his shoulder and knee and a bout of viral meningitis Senior offensive lineman Eric Torres, who suffered a broken ankle in the Orange Bowl, went through individual drills and said he "was at about 75%." Senior tight end Alex Holmes did not practice because of a sore back that has plagued him since taking a hit in the Orange Bowl. Holmes is receiving rehabilitation treatments twice a day but said there was no timeline for when he might be able to begin practicing. Carroll has been pleased with almost all aspects of the Trojans' workouts but remains concerned about special teams play. freshman running back Reggie Bush spent three hours making defenders look like they were running in sand. Bush repeatedly broke free for spectacular gains as the Trojans practiced as a full squad for the first time. "He shocks me every day with something," Coach Pete Carroll said. "He's done some remarkable things with the ball." Bush, 6 feet and 190 pounds, rushed for 1,691 yards last season at Helix High in La Mesa. In 2002, he ran the 100 meters in track in 10.42 seconds, the fastest time in the state.

Wash State: Up to 16 seniors could start for the Cougars in the opener against Idaho on Aug. 30, plus the placekicker, with another two or three poised to be significant backups. One of the starters, safety Virgil Williams, has actually been granted a sixth year to use up his fourth year of field time, which is a swell reward for him and tough tomatoes for those impatient understudies. "I don't think we've ever lost as many marquee players," Doba acknowledged. "But I don't think we've had that much depth at those positions, either." "I remember the last Rose Bowl team," Doba said. "Everybody graduated. It was a mass exodus out of here. As I stood in front of this team last night, I thought, `This is a darned good looking bunch of kids.' Unless we screw it up big, there shouldn't be that much of a drop off." Chris Bruhn, who had been recruited two previous times by WSU but had failed to clear academic hurdles. Bruhn last played at Butte Community College in California in the fall of 2001 where he was ranked the No. 27 J.C. player in the nation. Doba said other backs reported in better shape than Bruhn, who didn't play football last fall. Jermaine Green and Jonathan Smith are 1-2 on the Cougars' depth chart but Bruhn, 6 feet 3, 215 pounds, could have the tools to challenge for playing time. Bruhn has two years of eligibility. Missing first-day drills were: linebacker Ira Davis, out for at least a month after a mirror fell and sliced tendons in his right foot this summer; backup wide receiver Robert Franklin, who suffered an off-field knee injury in July when he stepped in a hole and could miss another month; wide receiver Thomas Ostrander, who could miss the season with a low back injury that required surgery in July; and backup defensive end Bryan Boyer, lower back disk bulge, out indefinitely. What are likely to be some differences between Doba's teams and the Cougars under Price? A: The offensive style is expected to be more ball possession, move-the-chains variety while still throwing a lot. This gives the WSU defense more time to rest. Tight ends will be a bigger part of the offense, mostly because of the talent at the position. Defensive coordinator Robb Akey likes to attack, but his players need to prove they can do it before he will turn them loose.

Washington: It appears the only sure things on the UW defensive line are tackle Terry Johnson and end Manase Hopoi. First, redshirt freshman end Dan Milsten unexpectedly jumped to the first-team opposite Hopoi; now senior tackle Jerome Stevens has pushed past Tui Alailefaleula. Stevens is in perhaps the best shape of his career, but this battle figures to go on all season. Line coach Randy Hart said he likes the competition and would like to rotate eight players. While that group likely will include redshirt freshman tackle Stanley Daniels, the status of end Donny Mateaki and tackle Michael Mapu is less clear. Both were highly recruited players. But Mateaki has struggled with injuries, while Mapu is not in top shape. New co-defensive coordinator Phil Snow is scrapping much of the situational substituting the Huskies have done in recent years, but he wants to play 18 to 19 players regularly. He said he wants to keep his best players fresh for the fourth quarter. Cornerback and safety, to name two, are positions he said could be run "by committee." Snow envisions, for instance, rotating Derrick Johnson, Chris Massey and Roc Alexander at cornerback on a regular basis. Linemen also figure to rotate regularly, though junior tackle Terry Johnson — who has a chance to be the dominant player up front UW hasn't had in awhile — doesn't figure to leave the field very often. The biggest questions appear to be at safety, which Gilbertson said yesterday is wide open. Senior Jimmy Newell could lock up free safety if he can stay healthy, but strong safety remains a mystery, with true freshman C.J. Wallace sure to be given a chance to win the job. Sophomore Evan Benjamin disappointed coaches early by coming to camp in less-than-optimum condition. Getting attention in the past few days has been the apparent promotion of redshirt freshman Dan Milsten to starting defensive end ahead of sophomore Graham Lasee. Manase Hopoi looks entrenched as the other defensive end.
The best two-man battle on defense is between seniors Greg Carothers and Tyler Krambrink at one outside linebacker spot. Both figure to play a lot no matter who starts. Senior DT Jerome Stevens has tantalized the Huskies since the day he arrived on campus, flashing moments of brilliance but often seeming to be his worst enemy by not being in shape. That isn't the case this year, however. "He's probably in the best shape of his life, and he's doing a real good job," said defensive-line coach Randy Hart. The Huskies will need Stevens more than ever this year after losing Josh Miller and Junior Coffin to injury in the offseason.

Messages In This Thread

Slack 10 Notes -- Ben Dover -- 12 Aug 03, 3:46 am

Not sure how you assemble all this, but gotta say "Impressive!" -- Bob Milo -- 12 Aug 03, 7:21 pm

Hard work, good luck! (nt) -- Ben Dover -- 12 Aug 03, 8:30 pm

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