The early report (Wed)

[Gamecock Lifer]

Well.. I got to practice, all ready to get it on, got my note pad, got my pen, got my camera- actually planning to do it right tonight cuz my boy KG could not make it and I promised him I'd do it up big tonight... THEN my pen didn't freaking work!! So, I get one from my buddy's girlfriend... THEN the lightning started and I just knew they'd call it. I was right unfortunately.. so as we leave the stadium the game reports that they called it then decided to try to do it after 9:00, so we turn around and park and wait... Then they REALLY called it and if you don't know- they rescheduled it for tomorrow at 3:00 PM.


Before they called it I did take a few notes and I will share what I know- little though it may be.

The practice was PACKED once again tonight- packed as it was on Friday, if not MORE SO!!! People were all chatty and excited- a real shame we did not get what we really wanted... WE DID get to see some basic drills though, and I missed a few early minutes- but when I got there we had the LBs on the near field working on a drill where they line up two barrels and a line of guys on either side. Basically one guy acted like a RB, the other acted as the LB- the "RB" would start out, juke, try to fool the LB into biting on a direction, then bolt around the barrels. Our LBs were eating this drill up pretty good, in fact Jasper was the only guy who had to re-do it because he got kinda juked.... by a much much smaller guy (john Guery... a back up- back up...). Just funny to me mroe than distressing in the least...

King looks SO DAMN BIG up close!! I was straight SHOCKED!! The OL and DL came to the near side to work vs each other for a bit and I was so distracted by the MASSIVE piles of muscle we have on these units I missed the first few plays of 7 on 7 down at the other end of the near side... Sorry guys, I suck at life!! JK

Cliff AMthews got some praise early on during th OL Vs DL drills... nothing exceptionla really went down though, but it looked like a spirited little boute of pushing going on.

During the 7 on 7 there was the usual set up on the far side of the field- the suspected first team OL and DL running drills with a QB and all of the rBs taking turns getting hand offs and trying to give the OL some run blocking work and the DL some Run STOPPING work... Beecher was the QB over there tonight- apparently for the second night in a row, and thye had been rotating guys mostly, so I guess tommy has proven he can throw and Steve wants to work on his running and clock management more??

7 on 7-
This is as close as we got to "real action" tonight, so I will focus on it for a sec....
Hills had a few nice grabs early on- caught one quick slant over the middle on a nice route and made little juke that got him free for a sec. He is looking better and better. So is Barnes. He ad a few catches also, and I think we could be seeing these guys making a push for some PT.

Moe Brown was looking 100% healthy. Made a few nice grabs, shoulder blocked a DB or two to get separation- Jr stepped in to show him proper technique after he did it one time... looks like he is a very hands on guy...

Carlos Thomas straight ABUSED Lecorn on one play Is aw and Lecorn could not come down with the pass... nothing too ugly, btu it was probably PI in most games. Lecorn made a few catches but they seem to be letting Moe, Barnes and Hills get more looks right now. I personally think that is a good thing. LECORN is the second best option at WR right now- IMO. Moe is very very close behind, but Lecorn has mroe experience, he is fast, strong, shifty and has solid hands. This seems to be why he and Kenny are getting less looks in practice and the other guys are getting more- gotta develope the "raw" WRs.

I did not even see Wes Saunders participate in 7 on 7 tonight... Don't know why, he may have been just working on his blocking.

Smelley looked better tonight, but I will leave it at that as SS made some kind of statement today about how he does NOT like all the reports going around the internet and how they have talked about Chris Smelley.. If he was even partially talking about me and mine- SORRY COACH!! Just calling it how I see it. (Of course I know he wasn't- prolly talking about Joe Person's.. .maybe he reads Spurt's report too though!!! LOL) He made some nice throws though and I thought he looked better than Garcia tonight, though not by much because Garcia looked pretty good too. SG made a few nice throws to CC Whitlock, and over threw him a few times also. SS has them working on sideline routes a lot. I think we all know that he likes that play. Stewart made a big play on one SG pass that got rejected liek a jump shot in basketball... Captain had a similar denial against Smelley...

This was pretty much it folks. The practice part only lasted about an hour and I missed few minutes of that trying to find parking!

The highlight of the night for me?? As the palyers walked out I moved up to the rope and me and a few people around me talked to the guys as they left to try ot find out if they were going to do the scrimmage or not with all this lightning. As I was over there, we see all the big names- then Jasper strolls over and chatted us up for sec, shook my hand (yes it is a mangled pile of broken bone and flesh now... DAMN he is strong!! JK) He told me they were about to put on a show for us when I asked him and he smiled really big at us. Seems like a nice guy to me, and DAMN we have some big ole boys... I am a hair over 6 foot myself, about 220 pounds- not SMALL- but I felt like a kid next to these guys. Then the previously stated fiasco of trying to get into the stadium, people filling out saying the coaches canceled it, then 107.5 saying it was just pushed back.... Then we gave up and left...

Wish I had a glowing practice and scrimmage to report on but you could tell they were waiting to unleash these guys until they got in the WB... wish I could go tommorrow, but work does not pay me to be a FAN!!

Any questions, comments?? hit me up! If you start braggin about going to the scrimmage tomorrow, I am not promising I won't cry though...

[jaytda4th]

Wes was def. in the 7 on 7.. he looked pretty good.. He has a quick speed burst you wouldn't expect from such a huge man

[akn4bkn]

Yeah, I can't make it tomorrow. I was there all night tonight, they called it for half an hour at 8:30. The problem was the scrimmage was supposed to start at 8, according to Spurrier. So they were slow and behind the whole night. Very disapointed that I didn't get to see anything, even for a half hour (from 8-8:30, when the lightening started), but oh well.

[jaytda4th]

by the way.. Garcia had a couple passes again tonight that were NFL worthy passes.

Garcia hit an absolute STRIKE to dimarco down the middle that was one of the most beautiful passes i have seen a USC QB throw in probably a couple years except maybe Smelley's pass to Kenny in the UNC game.

Although Garcia would later be intercepted on a ... WTF? kind of play in whch you could hear spurrier jr saiyng (GOD D***MNT GARCIA) lol

[Gamecock Lifer]

Wes was def. in the 7 on 7.. he looked pretty good.. He has a quick speed burst you wouldn't expect from such a huge man
I was at the opposite end zone from that drill, so I could have missed him, but I watched close for the most of the drill and I did not see him catch a single pass? did he catch his early in the 7 on 7 portion?? I did miss some plays early as I was awe struck by our linemen that were right in front of me!

Coudl you see who was getting most of the carries on the far side? I ehard form one guy clos4e to em that Kenny Miles is still getting a lot of touches. I ahve been VERY imrpessed with him. true freshman or not, he has all the talent in the world. I'd like to see us give the boy a chance!

[jaytda4th]

I was at the opposite end zone from that drill, so I could have missed him, but I watched close for the most of the drill and I did not see him catch a single pass? did he catch his early in the 7 on 7 portion?? I did miss some plays early as I was awe struck by our linemen that were right in front of me!

Coudl you see who was getting most of the carries on the far side? I ehard form one guy clos4e to em that Kenny Miles is still getting a lot of touches. I ahve been VERY imrpessed with him. true freshman or not, he has all the talent in the world. I'd like to see us give the boy a chance!

he was in the part when Beecher was still in the drill.. Did you see them doing the QB drills when Beecher was also in there? He was there then

Oh and Kenny Miles was getting about as many reps ad Mike Davis

If i had to guess it was.. Mike davis... then B-mad and Kenny tied

[cofcgamecock9]

Can you explain a little more about what you meant by Spurrier made a statement about people talking about Smelley??

He made a statement to who? Media? Fans in attendance?
Did he just walk right over and start talking?

Did he specifically mention Chris??

I don't need to know for any reason other than curiosity. I just think it is interesting.

[Gamecock Lifer]

by the way.. Garcia had a couple passes again tonight that were NFL worthy passes.

Garcia hit an absolute STRIKE to dimarco down the middle that was one of the most beautiful passes i have seen a USC QB throw in probably a couple years except maybe Smelley's pass to Kenny in the UNC game.

Although Garcia would later be intercepted on a ... WTF? kind of play in whch you could hear spurrier jr saiyng (GOD D***MNT GARCIA) lol

NFL worthy Ehh?? LOL!!!

Well I guess I can agree with that... I sure hope we have SOMEBODY throwing NFL worthy passes, cuz we might have 3 or 4 NFL worthy RECEIVERS who are fighting for touches!! (ONE at least is a no-brainer)

Garcia has some talent no doubt, but he is still very "raw". the WTF play you mentioned has popped up too often with him over the past few nights. He HAS shown improvement every night I have gone though...

[Gamecock Lifer]

Can you explain a little more about what you meant by Spurrier made a statement about people talking about Smelley??

He made a statement to who? Media? Fans in attendance?
Did he just walk right over and start talking?

Did he specifically mention Chris??

I don't need to know for any reason other than curiosity. I just think it is interesting.


One of the guys on the Game was talking about it- I only heard part of what he was talking about but he said something about Spurrier saying he was kind of sick of seeing all these internet reports that talk about how poorly Smelley is doing. He basically gave the impression that SS was locking down practice after the scrimmage tommorrow because people (like myself I suppose) are talking about specifics too much. I try to stay vague and not mention specific schemes or much detail on specific plays. I am sure I get carried away sometimes myself, but I am trying to be aware of it from now on... Oh wait- this is the last one, so I won't have ANYTHING to report any more!!

:thumbs:

[jaytda4th]

Garcia should not be the starter this year no way.. i'm just telling you he is the first QB we have had that has the ability to put a pass in a small window in a hurry.

Garcia has an absolute arm and we haven't had a QB with an arm like he has in a long time.. if ever... But Garcia is no where near consistent enough and having a big arm doesn't mean anything. But every now and then garcia has a flash of brilliance.

[TheGuitarCock]

Nice. Thanks. You get any pics?

[Gamecock Lifer]

Nice. Thanks. You get any pics?

Nahh they had stopped allowing them by the time I got there and i planned to snap a few at the scrimmage, but.... C'est la vie...

[cofcgamecock9]

I really appreciate all of these reports and they are fun to read. They can definitely be valuable for some information.

But every time I start to read too much into a player's practice performance, I think back to one season where Dondrial Pinkins went the entire Spring and Summer without throwing an interception. He also had a stats in all of the scrimmages that would have put him on par with Tom Brady.

There is just no way to know how it is going to work out in game situations.

Do any of the rest of you remember what I am talking about in regards to Dondrial? Man, these message boards were buzzing with talk about how great he was doing in practice.

[Gamecock Lifer]

I really appreciate all of these reports and they are fun to read. They can definitely be valuable for some information.

But every time I start to read too much into a player's practice performance, I think back to one season where Dondrial Pinkins went the entire Spring and Summer without throwing an interception. He also had a stats in all of the scrimmages that would have put him on par with Tom Brady.

There is just no way to know how it is going to work out in game situations.

Do any of the rest of you remember what I am talking about in regards to Dondrial? Man, these message boards were buzzing with talk about how great he was doing in practice.


I was not part of this community then, so no... but I do know what you mean! NOTHING that happens on the practice field means a thing. NOTHING. It is the GAME performance that matters, and we will not really know anything until then. come August 28th, we should get another "Cockytalk GAME report" from Spurt so he can break it down for us!!! I'd read it- prolly be better than the newspaper coverage!! LOL

[The Octopus]

Have they been allowing the QBs to scramble so far at the practices or are they just making them focus on fundamentals? I ask because Garcia's high school vids made him out to be a decent runner. I have read that Tommy has some wheels, but I'm wondering if Garcia or anyone else has been allowed to scramble on broken plays and what-not or if the coaches have just been stopping the busted plays if/when they happen.

[cofcgamecock9]

Just for fun, I went back and found part of an article from August when Dondrial Pinkins and Mike Rathe were competing for the starting job. This just gives you an example of how deceiving practice play can be. Look at some of the stats!

Junior college transfer quarterback Mike Rathe was expected to compete for the starting position this fall, but returning junior Dondrial Pinkins has secured the job. Both quarterbacks played well in the spring scrimmage, when Pinkins went 16-24 for 212 yards and one rushing touchdown. Rathe also did well, going 18-30 for 229 yards and one touchdown along with one rushing touchdown.

Last season, Pinkins started the Florida and Clemson games completing 32 of his 65 passing attempts for 431 yards. He also had two touchdowns and four interceptions. One of the contributing factors to Pinkins' choice as the No. 1 quarterback is that he did not throw an interception through the entire spring practice season.

[Gamecock Lifer]

Just for fun, I went back and found part of an article from August when Dondrial Pinkins and Mike Rathe were competing for the starting job. This just gives you an example of how deceiving practice play can be. Look at some of the stats!

Junior college transfer quarterback Mike Rathe was expected to compete for the starting position this fall, but returning junior Dondrial Pinkins has secured the job. Both quarterbacks played well in the spring scrimmage, when Pinkins went 16-24 for 212 yards and one rushing touchdown. Rathe also did well, going 18-30 for 229 yards and one touchdown along with one rushing touchdown.

Last season, Pinkins started the Florida and Clemson games completing 32 of his 65 passing attempts for 431 yards. He also had two touchdowns and four interceptions. One of the contributing factors to Pinkins' choice as the No. 1 quarterback is that he did not throw an interception through the entire spring practice season.

Soooooo , RU saying Dondrail did not work out well?? I mean come on man- he was freaking AWESOME!!! JK

Different coach, different era... We are all "experts" now- no more mistakes! :) JK

Like Is aid- who knows what will happen. I can telly you this though- Dondrail was not throwing against Captain, he did not play against LBs like Norwood and Brinkley and he did NOT have a QB coach like SS. Our guys today DO. Hopefully some of the hype is true...

[cockofstono]

Soooooo , RU saying Dondrail did not work out well?? I mean come on man- he was freaking AWESOME!!! JK

Different coach, different era... We are all "experts" now- no more mistakes! :) JK



It is difficult to throw interceptions practicing the option.

[Gamecock Lifer]

It is difficult to throw interceptions practicing the option.


:lol: fo' real!!

I always meant to ask you Stono: what the HELL is up with that avatar?? I feel like I am being hypnotized into being a homosexual when I see yours...

[Cockmobile]

It is difficult to throw interceptions practicing the option.

ROFLMAO :cocky:

[Cockmobile]

Thanks Lifer, great report and I appreciate it.... :clap:

[Regalcock]

It is difficult to throw interceptions practicing the option.

Absolutely! We ran like 4 total pass plays two of which he would hit you in the shoelaces every throw. 1 WR screen and 2 the bootleg roll out.

Sorry DP I still love ya though.

[Order 66]

Who needs freakin laces?

[Regalcock]

Who needs freakin laces?

Exactly.:angrycoc::angrycoc::confused::confused:

[eaddy1847]

Great post!!

[eaddy1847]

ROFLMAO :cocky:

ROFLMAO? Did I miss the text acronym thread?

I got LOL and IMHO but ROFLMAO couldn't figure out for the life of me.

[Poxx]

ROFLMAO? Did I miss the text acronym thread?

I got LOL and IMHO but ROFLMAO couldn't figure out for the life of me.

Rolling on the Floor, Laughing my Ass off. Pronounced "Roffle-mau"... I guess.

[Cockmobile]

ROFLMAO? Did I miss the text acronym thread?

I got LOL and IMHO but ROFLMAO couldn't figure out for the life of me.

Smart chap that you are, you'll figure it out. :wink:

[MEGA]

ROFLMAO? Did I miss the text acronym thread?

I got LOL and IMHO but ROFLMAO couldn't figure out for the life of me.


ROFLMAO is something some people just use at the end of every sentence .............

[Cockmobile]

ROFLMAO? Did I miss the text acronym thread?

I got LOL and IMHO but ROFLMAO couldn't figure out for the life of me.

And, you have to admit it's kind of funny about throwing interceptions when your practicing running the option.. (ROFLMAO) :lol:

[Bleedin'Garnet]

It is difficult to throw interceptions practicing the option.

classic :rotfl:

[Mecklenburg Cock]

Smelley looked better tonight, but I will leave it at that as SS made some kind of statement today about how he does NOT like all the reports going around the internet and how they have talked about Chris Smelley

Lifer I hadn't heard about this. Would you mind elaborating?

[Sawyer]

I glad that they are focusing on the running game. Finishing in the last 25 teams in division one is not good at all!!

[SouthernCock]

thanks gl!

[Coondog]

Thanks lifer, I sure appreciate any info I can get.

[CockOla]

I was at the opposite end zone from that drill, so I could have missed him, but I watched close for the most of the drill and I did not see him catch a single pass? did he catch his early in the 7 on 7 portion?? I did miss some plays early as I was awe struck by our linemen that were right in front of me!

Coudl you see who was getting most of the carries on the far side? I ehard form one guy clos4e to em that Kenny Miles is still getting a lot of touches. I ahve been VERY imrpessed with him. true freshman or not, he has all the talent in the world. I'd like to see us give the boy a chance!

Concur 100%! Regardless of age, letter year, the look of players, I'll trust SOS and Coach G to put the best players on the field. All indications are that Kenny Miles is very SPECIAL and if he manages to prove just that to our coaches in practices then, the the talk of redshirting Kenny will be muted. This fan will be much happy to see KM play right away if he's capable of long/home-run threats every time he touches the ball. No doubt, that is bound to positively impact/improve both our QB and OL plays. :clap:

[Gamecock Lifer]

Lifer I hadn't heard about this. Would you mind elaborating?


Man, I would, but I don't know much more- That is all I haeard on t e radio- they did not even have a recorded quote to play, it was one of the two guys they had at the stadium last night who mentioned it so he may have just heard it from SS in passing... Not a BIG story by any means, just a passing remark I ehard the guy mention. He was not ever specific, though I assume it was more pointed at the state...

SS ALWAYS seems to get annoyed a little by the amount of info we all report on the net regardiong practice... He is happy to have such ravenous fans, but not happy about us giving out too much info. Hey- I am with him 100%, we do not need Richt or Bowden to catch wind of the unstoppable option/ long bomb/ super offense we are developing to DESTROY THEM!!! :happycoc::shotgunc:

[Gamecock Lifer]

Thanks lifer, I sure appreciate any info I can get.


youa re welcome sir,. Ig et a kcik out of doing this for you out of towners!! I know how I'd feel if I could not go to these or watch 'em paly in person, so I try to give you guys info as quick as I can... I do not have the kind of home/ familly responsabiolities that I am sure Mr Spurticus has so I can come right home and pound out a report while it fresh in my mind usually...

glad you enjoy it, and let me know if you have any questions about stuff I leave out!