Knight Time 2012 - RL Coaching Diary

[BYU 14]

Well, after my brief one year retirement from HS Football I am returning to Westview to once again assume the head coaching duties of our Freshman team. Offensively I will also coach running backs and coordinate the offense and defensively I just kind of float around since I have three asistants and will give them all the position duties. I will assist with the linebackers and secondary as needed.

I had an adventurous year away from the game but I missed it a lot and really couldn't stay away, it is just too much fun and rewarding. Even my wife told me after coming to our summer camp one day last week that I need to be coaching to be complete (I am so lucky she supports me in this as much as she does cause it takes a lot of my time!)

So, the first part of the journey ended this week with our summer youth camp and opening the weight room to incoming freshmen. We finished the week with over 30 kids cleared and participating in the weightroom (good numbers for week 1) and we had nearly 40 incoming players participate in our youth camp, which is also very good, considering it is a paid camp and numbers had been down the last 2-3 years with the economy. (Some schools charge a small fee for weight room usage, but ours is always free)

By the time school starts we will have our usual 70-80+ kids out for freshman ball and we do not cut, though a few will always drop along the way as Football is not for everyone, which is perfectly fine and I am glad for anyone to give it a try.

One thing that is a apparent from the camp is the kids out early are a little different than our usual crew here at the View. If you have followed any of these in the past you know we run Wing-T (heavy emphasis on RUN) and usually get a boatload of running backs. We had a few less than usual at the camp, but we did get something we are not used to. Two very solid 6'1 Quarterbacks with good mechanics and rocket arms. As a bonus they are both equally capable as free safeties, so I am pretty confident that both those spots will be in good hands no matter how the competition shakes out. We will pick up some more DBs that will complete for PT, but with the skills these kids have and the head start they got at our camp, one of them will be our starting QB next season.

The top three backs we did get are all very capable and will fit well in our system, the only thing missing at this point is the big breakaway threat though we are still not slow. In the last 4 camps we have routinely had 5-6 kids that ran a 5.0 or better in the 40 as incoming freshman (fastest ever 4.71) and this year there were 3 (4.91 fastest). I can still live with that and the kids that do our speed camp over the summer can shave a .10 - .15 off their 40 if they work hard and stay committed, so we will be fine in the backfield.

Our top left wing is a brother of one of our corners who graduated this year and the older brother ran a 4.4 by his senior year, so the genes are there. Behind him is an interesting 'prospect' who has never played football, but ran a 5.06 and has some tools. He is just raw and needs some development.

At our TB position (our tackle to tackle inside runner) we had a kid show up halfway through camp that I like ALOT. We test on the first day, so I won't get a 40 on him until the fall, but he is probably a 5.0 kid as well and has great feet and you can tell he is a baller. Equally adept at FB and OLB, so there will be a decision on which side he starts at, but he will play some on both sides of the ball. Behind him are 2 shorter bowling ball types that could both get some carries, one ran a 5.13, catches everything out of the backfield and I had to tell him to quit dropping his shoulder during 7 on 7 work. His resoponse "sorry coach, I just really like to punish tacklers." How the hell do you not love that? The third kid that could get some reps only ran a 5.4, but he picked up the scheme well, has a low center of gravity and protects the ball well. He really needs to do speed camp and he could be something.

At right wing we have a a couple of smallish kids, one was our second fastest (5.01) and has the ability to make some nice cuts at full speed. He will make people miss if he gets into the open field on sweeps or powers, but I worry about his blocking ability when we run sweep to his side and that won't be answered until the pads come on. The other two wings on that side right now are a good step below. One is also smallish, ran a 5.3, but picks things up quickly. The other is fairly strong, but ran a 5.4 and will have a better shot at PT at linebacker as he is not the runner to make defenses respect our sweep both ways.

Again, we will have more backs show up by the time school starts, so depth should improve there quite a bit. Bottom line at this time though is we can play and do what we do running with what we have.

Split end we have a few kids that are capable, though nobody has jumped out at me yet. Ususal stuff here, routes need to get a lot more precise and I have seen only 1 player that pretty much catches everything. We play in two passing league events this month and those will tell me a lot more about what we have to work with here. Still looking for that one playmaker and I have a feeling he is not working with us yet.

Didn't get to look at the linemen much as they worked on the other end of the field for individual and group time, so I only saw them during team seassion when we worked the run game. Hard to make judgements here without pads, but we have a nice looking center (who can also play a very solid MLB) a brutish looking tackle, who actually flatbacked one of our vasity guys (who held bags while we worked the run game) which made me happy. Also one of the guards stood out with his athleticism, which is of huge importance as much as we pull them. Tightends, two kids appear capable physically, but need work on their hands and the TE is vital in our two bootleg pass plays we run, so that needs to improve!

Defensively, again i did not watch the linemen in indy or group work, so I am only going on what the coaches working with them tell me and theuy say a couple are good, then a dropoff. The Lineman types were actually our lowest number by position, so I will be looking for help there in the fall.

Linebackers, 3-4 solid kids (if they don't play offense) and I like our size there. Though I took last year off from coaching I went and watched a lot of the Freshmen games and the group last year lacked physicality and size. Don't think that will be a problem this year.

Secondary was actually very impressive during 7 on 7 work for the most part. They picked up our base cover 2 package fairly quickly and made some plays. Would like more speed back there by the time the season starts, but they are smart and won't get beat on alignment and reads....Again, speed needs to be added though.

We play two passing league events as mentioned above and will have three practices next week in advance of those. It will give me a good chance to do some more evaluation of the skill positions since the it will be strictly incoming freshmen (Our Camp is open to kids from 4th to 8th grade) and we will get a lot more reps.

Other immediate goal is to get more kids into the weight room (40-50 would be a nice number by mid June. Open up in less than 3 months, woohoo!!!!!

[MacroGuru]

Hey coach! Welcome back

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by MacroGuru

Hey coach! Welcome back

Thanks Dennis.....Good to be back

Our varsity competed in a 16 team passing tournament and big man challenge yesterday west of Phoenix. Varsity secondary coach was not there, so I assumed those duties for the tournament. We are replacing all 4 starters in the secondary this season and also cross training a couple of offensive kids to play both ways when needed, which hopefully won't be much.

Our linemen dominated winning 5 of 7 events and taking first place. This was a really good showing, considering we only have 2 starters (1 guard and our TE) back from last season. They have been working hard and the kids that are stepping in are looking very good, we will likely be better upfront than last year when the season starts if they continue to work. A good test for them will be this week at ASU when there will be a 32 team field and some tougher competition with a lot of schools there that went to Tucson this past weekend to a U of A conpetition, as opposed to the one we went to.

We also took 1st place in the 7 on 7 tournament, going unbeaten in pool play, losing in the semi's in the tournament, then coming back through the losers bracket to win the championship game against the team that best us in a hard fought contest. We scored late in the final game to go up 20-13, then intercepted them on their last drive to win 23-13. (Picks are 3 points in this tourney) Though we don't consider doing well in these passing tourney's a priority since we run Wing T, it was nice to get the win and our backfield is going to be really nice this season, despite having new starters at QB and both wings. Our slowest kid is a 4.6 (and he has unbelieveable cutting ability) and the others (including the QB) run in the 4.5's. Our top split end runs a 4.48 and is still inconsistent, but he can still stretch the field.

Luckily on defense we have 3 linemen and 3 linebackers returning that all started at one point or another last season, which will help while our young secondary finds their sealegs. They played fairly well all day, having a few lapses in coverage in one game in particular that was closer than it needed to be and they were not adjusting coverages in reponse to motion and alignment as quick as they need to, but they also made some big plays and were solid overall.

First practice for the freshman passing league team is Tuesday and I now have a total of 30 kids committed. It will be a little rough getting them all playing time with only 3-4 games in each of the 2 sessions, but they will all see some time on the grass. Having so many also allows me to use the practices as a motivational tool to get them competing and earning their field time. We spent time on all facets of our offense and defense during the camp, where this will be focused on just the passing game (obviously) and coverage, so we will get a lot more done.

Practice set up will be

10 minutes light warmup/track stretches

15 minutes individual offense (position skills, technique)

15 minutes group offense (focused on route spacing and going over reads) We will run our passing game against air using cones as landmarks, QB focus points.

20 minutes Team offense (7 on 7 scrimmage)

15 minutes individual defense (same focus as indy O)

10 minutes group defense alignment (working on getting lined up against 2x1, 2x2, 3x1 and 5 wide sets.) Lots of talking and landmark work here since getting lineup correctly on defense is half the battle.

15 minutes group defense responsibility (working on drops and zone responsibility)

20 minutes team defense (We will be running scout plays from various sets, getting as many kids reps as possible the first day, then tilting the reps towards the top 2 at each spot as the week wears on)

[BYU 14]

OK, first practice tonight and either we are very good defensively or........

Actually most of the kids doing this attended our camp, so they do know our base coverage and they picked it up nicely.

QB's were about equal tonight, both were a little late on their reads and tended to overthrow the ball. It is probably a little frustrating in that our kids playiung defense are pciking up the coverages so well and there were not too many times when we had receivers running free. In addition to that our routes are a long way from where they need to be.....and by that I mean a long way, just timing and reps.

We were missing two kids that will play a lot as well (Malik and Isiah) which took away a solid middle linbacker and a one of our two best tailbacks.

That said, I don't want to take away from the defense as our top 2 corners on each side were both very good in making their reads in our base (cover two) scheme and the safety play was solid as well. We had one player (Castor) really step up tonight at safety and his emergence gives me three good options there, which is good since one of the other two will start at QB. Castor is an example of a kid who will get on the field because he pays attention, learns quickly and is coachable.

Was especially pleased with our Linebacker play (Tyler V, Joseph and Daniel all stood out) as they did a great job getting under the curl routes and jumping the backs out of the backfield.

At the end defensively we worked some adjustments to 3x1 (where we roll to cover 3) and different 2 x 2 and 2 x 1 sets, just to make sure we can get lined up correctly. We will work some different offensive schemes Thursday and throw some out of different sets. By the end of that practice I should be able to get a solid 2 deep on each side of the ball in place and ready for our games Monday.

[Atocep]

I'm reading.

Good luck with your season!

[rjolley]

Enjoying the read. Thanks for sharing.

I must say, working with kids at this age (both this dynasty and the RL baseball dynasty) is a great thing. I'm working with an AAU basketball team and the enjoyment of working with these kids and watching them grow is extremely rewarding. It's definitely something I'd recommend to any former player. Sharing your love of your game with the kids, even if it's on the rec level, is worth the time and effort.

[BYU 14]

Thanks for the well wishes and for following guys and I agree rjolley, there are few things as satisifying as working with kids at any age. Besides the joy that comes watching players improve and their confidence grow, or seeing that underdog kid we are all familiar with do something even he or she didn't think they could do.

Even better than the athletic part of it though is that you never know when and how you can/will make an impact on a kid/young adult that reaches far beyond the sport. Those are by far my favorite moments and the memories that I will treasure long after I have forgotten things that have happened on the field.

Just looking at this group so far, from a pure talent evaluation standpoint we will likely be lacking the caliber of players I have had over the last few years. But from a coaching standpoint these are the groups I usually enjoy the most, because we as coaches and they as players have to work harder and that brings the greatest rewards and has nothing to do with the teams record. I am really looking forward to working with this group and I am sure they will give me a few of those special memories that transcend the game.

[MacroGuru]

I wanted to ask this...do you guys run the Wing T because the varsity team does?

Reason I ask, is when I was coaching the Freshman defense in Utah, they asked me to run a 5-2 defense which was great against the schools they played in the region on the varsity level but for the teams that we played on the Freshman level it wasn't the right fit.

I had to sit down with the head coach and actually plead my case to move to 4-3 and explained that I would be instilling the fundamentals of positional play in. He was fine with it and it benefited the team as a whole when they progressed up through the ranks.

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by MacroGuru

I wanted to ask this...do you guys run the Wing T because the varsity team does?

Reason I ask, is when I was coaching the Freshman defense in Utah, they asked me to run a 5-2 defense which was great against the schools they played in the region on the varsity level but for the teams that we played on the Freshman level it wasn't the right fit.

I had to sit down with the head coach and actually plead my case to move to 4-3 and explained that I would be instilling the fundamentals of positional play in. He was fine with it and it benefited the team as a whole when they progressed up through the ranks.

On the Wing T part correct. That is pretty much non-negotiable, but I am fine with it since I have coached the offense for so long and it benefits us more now than ever since very few teams still run it. The other reason I like it is I can adapt it better to our personel than other offenses. With the linemen we get we could not run a power based attack like I and would struggle trying to run spread as well. Wing T lets us throw more if we have a capable QB without changing the dynamics of what we do and we can win with smaller linemen since the blocking is angle based.

The varsity will obviously have more blocking adjustments and a more robust passing game, but we still run everything out of the base package they do and I get to put in a few freshmen specific wrinkles. We only have 5 line calls to the varsities 9 and I usually only put in 4 base formations, but with the shifts and motions we do it can seem like three times that many to the defense.

Defensively it is a bit different. We run a combo 5-2 Okie/Eagle we call reduced as our base defense and will play a 29 front (4-3) as needed against passing teams or in long yardage situations. It just suits us better since we see more run based teams.

Varsity runs the 29 front mostly and will also run a some 3-4 to get another athlete on the field in passing situations. We will probably run a not more of that this year than last since we have 4 real solid linebackers.

In terms of coverage, coverage adjustments and blitzes we do run most of what the varsity does, just the different base front.

[BYU 14]

2nd passing league practice tonight and the offense was much better. When we went to the team portion we went by passing league rules, start at the opponents 40, 4 downs to pass the 20, then 4 downs to score.

Michael played well at QB directing 3 scoring drives and Sky had 2 and threw the only int of the period. Both showed some flashes, but Mike is a bit ahead in reading defenses. In fact I asked Sky what type of reads he had on his youth team and he indicated the primary was usually open, so he didn't really have to read. I calmly advised him that would change in High School as he was already finding out, so my focus will be to get him reading the designated defender on each route combo. I will be quizzing him tomorrow after each pass as to what he saw in his primary read that caused him to make a particular throw.

Still waiting for Isiah to get cleared, which is a shame because he is a baller, but I had another player move up a few pegs tonight on defense. Wanye was at our camp and is a great athlete, but has never played before, so he was unsure. I am playing him at our Knight Safety spot and he still is slow in making reads, but damn does he have closing speed to make up for it. Him and Sky will be the starting safeties in our first passing league session and Mike will go first at QB.

Still looking for a split end to jump out at me, Robert G and DePatric have the most upside, but both need a lot of polishing. There is a group of probably 3 that are technically a bit more sound, but those two are the ones I want to be out there first and I have one more practice tomorrow to get them there. The backfield to start will be Fernando and Rodney at the HB spots and Malik at TB, but only because I need Joseph to start at Will LB. When Isiah gets cleared he will likely start at TB, but he also plays Will, so i have some flexibility there.

I still am not comfortable with our coverage adjustments once we have to lineup against a 3x1 or 5 wide set, so that gets the focus on Defense. I gave both QB's a crib sheet to study that lists reads and route progression for each play, as they both need to get a bit quicker in making decisions, so we will see how much they both study tonight at practice tomorrow

Quite honestly, I could choose 7-10 kids to take and play with anybody, but that is not the purpose of doing these passing leagues. I am taking all 28 that are cleared and I am going to play them all as much as possible as I want to develop some depth. Like I told them tonight, I care about what happens in the fall, not in some spring 7 on 7. That said, I am competitive and I expect them to be as well and I want to see it on the field. If we are competing and learning, then I am happy and they can be proud no matter the results.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by BYU 14

... and will play a 29 front (4-3) as needed

Okay, you just lost me.

"29 front" is just your in-house designation for a 4-3? Or does this have some deeper meaning that just flew way the hell over my head?

Not a coach but I have played one on radio a few times, so an inquiring mind wants to know (and please, feel free to dumb it down sufficiently so I can get the general idea)

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Okay, you just lost me.

"29 front" is just your in-house designation for a 4-3? Or does this have some deeper meaning that just flew way the hell over my head?

Not a coach but I have played one on radio a few times, so an inquiring mind wants to know (and please, feel free to dumb it down sufficiently so I can get the general idea)

Glad to answer, there are several different versions of a 4-3 we use based on front alignment. One way to designate the alignment is with a series of numbers that correspond to the techniques the linemen play on the strong side. Different variations of this type of system are used by many programs.

So with a 29 call the strong side defensive end plays a 9 technique (aligns on the outside shoulder of the TE) and the defensive tackles start in 2 techniques, then shade to the strong side once the offense aligns. So the strong side DT ends up in a 3 technique (outside should of the guard) and the weakside DT aligns in a 1 technique. (Inside shoulder of the guard) The weakside DE (stud end in our defense) then aligns on the outside shoulder of the tackle (5 technique)

The alignment also defines the gap responsibilities, so from strong to weak. DE = D gap (leverage player) DT = B gap, DT = A gap, Stud = C gap.

The linebackers have 2 gap reponsibilties based on flow for the gaps not covered by the line
SLB - Flow strong = C gap / Flow Weak = Strong A gap to leverage
MLB - Flow strong = Strong A gap / Flow weak = Weak B gap
WLB - Flow strong = Strong A gap to leverage / Flow Weak = Lock technique (Weak B gap if backs inside, weak D gap if backs outside.

Other 4-3 alignments we use on varsity:

27 = Same as above but DE aligns in a 7 tech inside should of TE and SLB becomes the leverage player responsible for D gap on strong side flow.

27 or 29 Canes = Weakside DT moves to an offset technique to the weakside of the Center. This gives the MLB a free scrape on teams that run a lot ow weakside stuff and the MLB is now responsible for B gap flow weak.

Steeler = Strong side DT moves to an offset strong technique on the center, DE kicks down to a 5 technique and we walk the SLB up to a 9 technique with the MLB shifting to a 2 tech over the guard instead of directly over the center. Not a true 5-2, but it still creates an odd front and gives us more bodies to strong side to play the run, while doing a good job of protecting the MLB.

24 = Similar to Steeler, but the MLB stays over the center, SLB still walks up and we have 9,5 and 1 techniques strong and 3 and 5 techniques weak. We would use this when we had an athletic MLB who can get sideline to sideline well, as a Center would never get to him and we have all other linemen occupied with players shading them one side or another.

So basically the different number calls are just used to move our shades around up front to exploit opponents weaknesses, cover ours or to take away certain play tendencies, or one or more combinations of those reasons

[BYU 14]

Pretty good final practice before our first passing league game, though we are still not where I want is to be.

On Defense the kids struggle at times when adjusting to cover 3 vs 3x1 sets, with the problem coming on the 1 receiver side. Since we roll our coverage away from that side the CB on the 1 receiver side is alone (solo call) and HAS to stay on top, with the LB to his side being responsible for anything underneath. We ran routes that released a a running back to that side and the CB jumped that route a couple of times leaving the deep third uncovered. Basically they are playing cover 2 principals in a cover 3 alignment, which creates a problem and since two different kids did the same thing we had to wind it down and really talk/walk through it. Apart from that, defense looked fairly solid against the scout plays we ran and I am happy with the effort. I anticipate a couple of blown assignments Monday and I an OK with it. Like I told the kids again, we care about what happens in the fall and all I want in passing league is to play hard, compete and learn.

On Offense Mike has definitely siezed an early lead in the QB battle. It was apparent he studied the crib sheet I made and while I think Sky did as well, Mike just seems to grasp the reads better and his throws were generally on time, while Sky was still a tad late from read to release. Put in some tags on a couple of plays, one of which (China - Which is a play you couldn't run in a real game) was very nice. The play is basically mirrored go/out combos on both sides, then I release the TB straight down the middle of the field, since in cover 2 the safeties would each climb on the outside go routes and the MLB would have to run with the TB, which is usually a mismatch. It is a total bullshit 7 on 7 play, but what the heck, we'll have some fun with it.

Wanya and Sky look solid at safety, the CB spots are still up for grabs and Joseph is the only LB entrenched as he will play the Willie and I will start Malik at TB in passing league. A stud RB moving in from south Phoenix stopped by weights to get his clearance package today and though I won't have him for passing league, I am excited to know he will be with us in the fall. Isiah still doesn't have a physical, so we will make do without him Monday, hopefully he hits a walkin clinic this weekend and he can practice next week. The #1 halfbacks right now are Fernando and Rodney, with TE and SE still being wide open.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by BYU 14

Glad to answer, there are several different versions of a 4-3 we use based on front alignment. One way to designate the alignment is with a series of numbers that correspond to the techniques the linemen play on the strong side. Different variations of this type of system are used by many programs.

Cool, pretty much 'splains what I was looking for.

As for the rest of it, how any player at any level learns all of this stuff but somehow struggles to pass physics is a complete mystery to me

(I kid, but at the same time I really do think it's underrated just how complex formations/assignments are and how much players start to take in at a fairly early age)

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

(I kid, but at the same time I really do think it's underrated just how complex formations/assignments are and how much players start to take in at a fairly early age)

It really is true, LOL. Football is almost like a foreign language class, but I guess just a lot more fun than learning French

[BYU 14]

First passing league games tonight and I half the say the kids really exceeded my expectations. We ended up 3-0-1 for the night, with the tie coming against our old nemesis from years back Centennial 14-14, who we don't play during the season in this 2 year block since they realigned divisions.

Obviously since we are a running team I don't have high expectations for Passing league, but we came out clicking and won the first two games handily (Shadow Ridge and Kellis) before the tie with Centennial, and then closed out the evening with a shootout win over Dysart as our kids had a couple of lapses on defense.

Mike was extremely impressive at Qb and was the engineer of all of our TD drives but 2. Sky can make every throw there is, and is getting better at reading defenses, but his release is still a split second late on a lot of the route packages. That said he is a monster at free safety and has a home there regardless.

I rotated three groups of kids and on defense they all did a solid job, with the first group only giving up 2 scores on the night. Even the 2nd and 3rd rotations where in the right places for the most part and when they gave up scores it was usually just better athletes making plays. The tying TD we gave up to Centennial on the last play is a perfect example. They ran their slot on the crossing route and the WR on a go. Jasen was in at FS and read #2 perfectly, climbing on top of the go route to help Antonio. They had him blanketed and the the ball was just in a perfect spot and the receiver out jumped us and made a great catch. you can not get upset about that because the kids did what they are coached to do and it was just a great play by the offense.

Some kids that stood out on offense besides Mike were Daniel, who I just moved to TE. I hope he can block because he has great hands and made a couple of outstanding catches. Joseph Y is a play maker at TB and a very heady player. He made some nice catches, scored twice and was solid when he got reps at WLB as well. Anthony B made a beautiful catch on a slant in traffic for a score and Fernando is also a threat from our Left Wing spot, adding a couple of scores of his own.

On defense Wanya is going to be a player. He chipped in a couple of catches, made a great play jumping a sail route for a pick and has transformed form an athlete playing football 2 weeks ago to a football player who is very athletic. His progress has been amazing. Tyler picked off two passes from the MLB spot and has a very good knack for getting underneath the curls and deep crossing routes. Not very fast, but a smart player.

Even more important that the results, the kids were very coachable tonight, played hard and I saw a lot of light bulbs going on. Kids are buying into what we do now, which makes our job in the fall easy since we will already have a group of leaders that believe in what we do. We had 25 of 27 kids show (1 is still not cleared and 1 told me in advance he could not make it) and they all got reps in every game we played, so they are all getting development opportunities.

If I had any complaints, it would be the short frickin attention span of teenagers. My god, it gets worse every year and I had to ride the kids that were on the sideline a couple of times to stay focused, give us pass / ball calls on defense and get mental reps of their position when we had the ball on offense. This is the ADHD generation though and I have to accept it takes a bit longer to develop the long term focus I like from a team, but they WILL acquire it.

[MacroGuru]

Originally Posted by BYU 14

This is the ADHD generation though and I have to accept it takes a bit longer to develop the long term focus I like from a team, but they WILL acquire it.

I found gassers always helped with developing focus...or running till coach was tired as he sat underneath a shaded tree.

But when I was in shape, to help them stay focused it was I ran with them...if they beat me, they could sit. No one did...it also set the tone for...I wouldn't ask you to do it if I couldn't, so trust me.

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by MacroGuru

I found gassers always helped with developing focus...or running till coach was tired as he sat underneath a shaded tree.

But when I was in shape, to help them stay focused it was I ran with them...if they beat me, they could sit. No one did...it also set the tone for...I wouldn't ask you to do it if I couldn't, so trust me.

I close each practice during the year with pursuit drills and after I wear them out with that, anybody on my "reminder" list stays after for the ring of fire. It is a brutal way to end after a hard practice and definitely serves as a "reminder" to stay focused, behave in class, stay out of trouble and respect the program.

I carry a little notebook and after a 1 week grace period I start writing names and they get the pleasure of spending that extra quality time with me

[BYU 14]

Now have 56 kids cleared already, who are good to go when practice starts on July 23rd. This is key with our early start this season and Isiah's mom just sent me a text that he is cleared now also. One more offensive weapon for passing league next Monday

[BYU 14]

Still no Isiah

I will have to see if maybe he was missing some of his packet. Even if he comes tomorrow he will get very limited time Monday......

Worked tonight on coverage adjustments to motion, which were slow Monday and they looked good with the first group, the other two still need to grasp what it means to transition from cover 2 to cover 3 as our solo corner kept jumping back out in both the 2nd and 3rd groups, which means cheap TD's if the other team runs a back out/Vert combo to the 1 receiver side. One more practice to get that drilled home.

The rest of the time we scrimmaged our JV passing team and actually beat them 28-10, though to be fair they do not really have a true QB, since their starter last year is recovering from a knee injury and will be on varsity when he is healed. They do have some bruising backs though, so they will make their money there. We, on the other hand may be throwing more than I ever have with a frosh team, even though it goes against all I consider morally correct.

One play I put in that i can't wait to see in pads is our flood pass out of belly action. We run the weakside belly very well and it is one of the plays teams game plan to stop when we play them and this pass will create some serious havoc on teams that have hard downhill weakside linebackers and safeties coming down too quick on run support to take the belly away. It is killing people in 7 on 7 when they know we are not running, so I can't wait to unleash it in the fall!!!

[BYU 14]

Yesterday's practice was.........Well, it was Friday and that is the best way to put it.

Worked coverage adjustments and zone responsibilities first and it was downhill from there. Focus was poor, execution was poor and it was generally unproductive from that point on.

I was calm, still only the spring, but reminded the kids about how limited prep time was during the season and that a poor practice was a wasted day of preparation, emphasizing they need to hold themselves to a higher standard than that.

I think part of it was how well they did against the JV squad Thursday as well and I reminded them that remaining humble was a very large part of being a successful team. Lose humility and you lose the drive to better yourself.

I have to recommend some kids to go to camp with the varsity and JV at the end of July and right now only 3 from the skills group get a definite yes and it has to do with maturity. My line coach says there are 2-3 linemen that get a definite yes based on weight room work ethic, so that will leave 6-8 kids on the bubble. Conditioning runs the same week for those that do not go to camp and I would rather have a good number learning Football in California, vs. running and doing drills in the AZ heat with no Football instruction. That will be up to them though.

[BYU 14]

Well, practice from friday carried over to passing league in this one. We won 1, lost 1 and tied 2 and with the exception of the win, we were just not clicking all night. It was hot and and a couple of kids got their right before the first game (which never pleases me), but the other teams had the same heat to deal with and it showing with them as well.

Game 1 was contentious as we played to a 12-12 tie against Chavez, a team we have bad blood with at all three levels. In 2009 and 2010 they sent kids to tape our games. (which is a violation, as you can swap tapes with other coaches, but not tape an opponent) I know this because one of our varsity players knew the kid and the kid was bright enough to tell him he was taping for his uncle who is a coach there.

We won a close game 29-13 on 2009 and I saw the kid again the next year, which I anticipated and ran a very vanilla offense, staying in T formation and running some Wildcat, which I had no intention to use against them. Their coaches in 2010 knew a couple of our kids through relatives and got word to them that they would have no trouble shutting us down. Over 500 yards rushing and a 72-45 win said differently. That was an ugly game as we were up by 40 at half, I had all the starters out, but even our backups on offense were able to move the ball somewhat effectively. They kept their starters the whole game and scored 24 points in the 4th quarter throwing over our 4th string DB's, onside kicking, running trick plays on extra points finally cutting the score to 66-45. I was annoyed at that point because he had only played the same 15-16 kids the whole game trying to pull out an impossible win, while almost 40 of his kids never got on. So, I put the starters back in with 2 minutes left and scored once more. Never intentionally done that to score before or after EVER, but he was on my last nerve.

So, with that as the backstory and the fact they are not on this 2 year block for us, this was a big deal to them and they argued spots, catches and were just general dicks. I finally said whatever, didn't realize we are playing for the no pads June superbowl trophy. Play to win and we will will play to develop. Same issue, we played all 27 kids that came, they didn't, we tied and they were pissed they didn't beat us. Have a nice night and hope we get you back on the schedule in 2013.

Beat Kellis in game 2, our best of the night, then got waxed by Centennial (who we tied last week) and had a bunch of drops, QB's were inaccurate and defense was not too active. We just plain looked flat. Final game against Willow Canyon was also a tie, though they got down to the 3 as time ran out. Same issues, dropped balls and some poor reads, but the defense played well again (final was 3-3, each of us got a pick, the one we threw came in the end zone )

Had a nice talk with the kids after and focused on better preparation, pointing out how Friday's practice carried over and that I also did not like the body language when things were not going well. I really stressed that the ability to stay positive, focus and work harder (while not pressing) will make a difference when things don't go right, while getting down, pouting and showiung frustration will only compound things. The real trick with freshmen, especially now days is keeping the mental part tuned up and making them believe, like we do, that we are always in every game we play because we prepare and work harder than anyone. It will come and this is actually a good head start for the kids that participated.

Varsity will probably take 10-15 incoming freshmen to pre-season camp in California as mentioned in my last post and I reminded them that earning an invite there should be their next goal and it was based on effort in our conditioning program and not talent, so everybody has a chance to go.

I will post a couple of small updates before conditioning startes July 23rd, but this is pretty much it until we get at it in preparation for the season. This was a good experience and we will do it again next year, got all our coverages in and our entire passing game, so we will have a leg up when practice starts, plus the kids had a good time overall and did a lot of nice things both nights out.

[rjolley]

Winning against older teams is a mixed blessing depending on the maturity level of the leaders on the team, more so with football, I would imagine, as there are more players to contain and having good leaders on the team will help you.

Early in the season, I'm always worried about too much success too soon, as the players will tend to listen to their own press and not work as hard as they need to improve. A bad game against a team they feel they should beat usually cures that, and hopefully they're able to recover to get the win.

Hopefully, your kids have learned that lesson and will come into the season ready to work and will handle their success better as they do well.

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by rjolley

Winning against older teams is a mixed blessing depending on the maturity level of the leaders on the team, more so with football, I would imagine, as there are more players to contain and having good leaders on the team will help you.

Early in the season, I'm always worried about too much success too soon, as the players will tend to listen to their own press and not work as hard as they need to improve. A bad game against a team they feel they should beat usually cures that, and hopefully they're able to recover to get the win.

Hopefully, your kids have learned that lesson and will come into the season ready to work and will handle their success better as they do well.

Yeah, I am wishing the JV had laid it on us now, kids don't even realize how their mental make up changes some times, but I could tell real quick Friday, which is why I talked about it then. This is a good learning tool for them and I think we have some kids that will step up. Going to camp is a usually a good thing too as the they are away from Mom and Dad and have to mature a bit by necessity. I get them 3 hours a day between class room and field when practice starts and I already know this is a group I will need to keep humble. They are not as deep in talent as the 2009/2010 teams, so we can not afford to let them get even the slightest bit overconfident.

There will be an even bigger focus on position mastery and scheme knowledge than usual.

[BYU 14]

Just a quick update, 10 frosh were invited to camp the week of July 23rd, the rest of us will be here in the heat conditioning and acclimating to the temperatures as practice starts 07/30/12. This is still a week before school starts and I am worried about numbers a bit. Right now we still have around 50 cleared, I am hoping for 65-70 when practice starts.

Going to be here fast now!!!

[BYU 14]

Conditioning started tonight and runs all week from 6-7pm. It is basically just heat acclimation and condition drills/running and it is not fun.

The good news

53 kids are listed as cleared at this time, more than I can ever remember having at the start of conditioning before (usually 30-40)

The bad news

Because this got bumped back a week because of the early game that was added this summer, it coincides with our Camp in California and 14 freshmen are attending that based on their abilty to go and attendance in the summer weight program.

Of the ones listed as cleared, 2 are hurt and 1 I was told moved.

Of the reset that were able only 21 showed up, along with 8 JV kids that did not go to camp.

So of all the kids cleared, we only have 35 doing something as of right now between conditioning and camp. This actually would be normal conditioning numbers in most seasons, so that is the positive spin I am going to put on it, but I still not happy that 15 kids who are cleared and not hurt, moved or in California were not there.

I sent out emails to their parents tonight, but it will be the only reminder that goes out as every kid that was working out in the summer was reminded the last week of the weight program about the schedule. I know some people are also taking end of summer trips and what not, so that has to be accounted for too and I am good with that.

Just stressing a bit more because we play so early and if I have a bunch of kids that show up the first day of school (2 weeks from today) wanting to play, and it will happen, it will be tough to get them cleared and with enough time in pads to be ready for our first game, mainly because of physicals. Luckily we have places in Safeways that take walk ins and i also have coupons for a place near the school that will get kids in quickly and do a physical for $25.

Maybe i just worry too much On a good note I have film on our first opponent broken down in full and we will start watching it the first week of school, so no matter how many kids we have ready to go, the ones that are will be prepared!!!

[BYU 14]

Just a brief expression of happiness, 2 more kids showed up cleared yeaterday that looked pretty solid. One in particular (Francisco) should add sorely needed depth at corner and runningback....Makes me

Total cleared now 55, Goal of 75-80 by the end of the first week of school (August 10th) which is when we will accepting players

[BYU 14]

They made it through hell week and tonight will be testing in the 40, 20, vertical, standing LJ, T shuttle and Pro shuttle.

29 kids cleared did not test at the end of summer weights though not all of them have attended conditioning either.

We had 27 kids show up last night, added to the 14 at camp, so 41 of 55 cleared were doing something the week before practice starts, still not ideal, but still a good number for "optional" training.

Have had a couple of kids improve their stock this week, including Scott Y who we will move from SLB to DE and Dusty P who will compete for time in the secondary and Billy W who went hard and can challenge for a starting SE spot if his hands have improved since spring.

Some new kids that just started this week that showed well are Francisco P (DB and possible RB), Moses R (LB), Robert C (should be able to add much needed depth at OL), Johnathon S (possible TE) and Rodrigo M (LB or OG)

All told the kids worked hard and improved every day which is all I ask. Do good today and better tomorrow!

Can't wait for practice to start Monday

[BYU 14]

First practice last night and we now have 60 kids cleared, though 2 are still hurt and one moved, plus a piece of really bad news.

Skye, who would have been our starting Knight Safety if he did not win the QB job does not live in our boundaries and we have no variances available. This came to light when his Mom went to enroll him and there is nothing I can do about it. This one hurts a lot! As an added bonus we also only have 1 QB (albeit a very good one!!) on the roster now. Need to develop an emergency QB, which will probably be Anthony B (one of our best receivers)

On a positive note, Isiah M showed up cleared, so we have more depth in the backfield and at linebacker. Also picked up Kaleeb who will give us need athleticism on d line and Robert G is moving from linebacker to stud end (weakside DE) and could be a force there. He is 5'10 and weighs only 160ish, but will be hard to handle off the edge because he is so athletic. (Can get above the rim on the basketball court). He is a receiver on offense, so that is a strange combo, but it will work

This week is both fun and often frustrating, as we we constantly re-evaluate and shuffle kids to get as strong as possible at every spot. I want to be as stable as possible with positions by weeks end so we can start implementing our game plan for the opener and having the expected 15-20 new kids show up when school starts will affect this.

Practice wise we put in trap and our base defensive front, identified long snappers and kickers (who will compete this week for the starting spots) and of course worked a ton of techmnique in individual and group sessions.

The identity of this team will have to be built on defense as we are not going to be explosive on offense, so the best athletes will go on the defensive side of the ball first. I like a fast defense and we have to have kids that can move on the edges and at linebacker especially. Safeties don't have to fly, but must be smart and of course the corners do need to fly. One wildcard is JaPatric, never played and needs a lot of development, but he ran a 4.8 Friday in testing and looked even faster than that in pursuit drills last night. We need to develop him as either a corner or running back to the point he can start as his quicks will be a huge assest at either position. I am hoping it can be running back, so I can move either Rodney K or Fernando C to corner as they are both experienced, heady players that are very good athletes.

[BYU 14]

Recap from the first week of practice along with current concerns/questions to be answered.

We have 67 kids cleared as of now and the last two days (Fri/Sat) we have gone in shells and engaged in contact for the first time.

Offensively we have 3 running plays installed including 50/51 (Trap) 58/59 (Buck Sweep) and 34/35 (inside Belly), along with 2 pass plays (208/209, play action off the Trap/Sweep series) and 136/137 naked (Play action off the belly).

Things looked really solid against air (as usual, LOL) heading into Friday when we put a defense in front of the kids for the first time. By the time we got to the offensive team period, our best center was out after banging his knee and we had a lot of dropped snaps with the 2nd and 3rd kids. It got to the point where I just had our QB's take the ball off the centers back so we could get some rythym going and I could see the blocking.

Yesterday we had some more issues with the snaps and it really can be attributed to rushing things due to the center being covered. We are working against nothing but an odd front as our first opponent runs a 3-3 stack and the kid we have at scout Nose Guard is giving us a very solid look. I have had the QB's and Centers go out before the rest of the team every day and take snaps, so the issues are disturbing to say the least and worse than I can ever remember. No problem, I have a drill for Monday and I will go out early with them and fix things.

In terms of execution when the snaps were good Friday was inconsistent and nothing really noteworthy happened outside of a couple nice sweeps. Yesterday was much better, Belly looked good with the first group, Sweep had its moments and Trap was much better, even though we will not run a lot of it in game 1 due to the alignment of the defense. (It is hard to get to the playside stack backer and the center also has to handle the nose 1 on 1 since we need the playside guard to work to the stack backer behind the nose)

Defense is always ahead of the game at this point and we had some kids standout on scout and our first group of defenders in looked really solid, which should be expected. Overall we are still very thin at some spots (yes even with 67 players) and we will need to work hard to develop some depth in the next 2 weeks. I also expect another 10-15 kids to come out when school starts monday, so hopefully there will be a few solid players that still turn up.

Quick position previews:

Offense first

QB - Right now it is Mike B and that is it. Thankfully he is very good, tall, athletic and smart, he does not have a cannon, but can make all the throws we need him to make and he can read a defense. After this we have nobody right now. We tried to get Anthony B trained (He is one of our best receivers) but it has not panned out and we are working with Josh C, who has only been out to 2 practices at the moment. Josh is also tall, strong armed and eager, but very stiff and has never played Football before. He will be a project. Still hoping a QB with experience comes out when scool starts.

RB - Fernando C and Rodney K have the inside spot at left and right Halfback in our Wing T offense, but there is emerging depth behind them. Fernando is one of our fastest kids, good build and is a slasher type. He needs to improve his blocking, bur will be fine running the rock. Rodney is not as fast, but has very quick feet, makes great cuts and will finish a run very well for a smaller kid. Behind them at LH is Xavier S, with us since tuesday of last week he has good instincts and just needs to get comfortable. I moved JaPatric W from RH to LH and he gives us a big play threat as our fastest kid. He is still really raw as running back and still does not consistently play at full speed, but he could be dangerous when he gets it. At RH we have Wanye P and Albert C as the two best after Rodney, but Moses R is in the mix as well. TB is very much up in the air, with Joseph Y still the overall leader and will get his carries, but he will start at LB so I need another player to step up and start. Right now it is a three way battle between Torrey W, Malik R and Isiah M. All three are similar body types, squatty and low to the ground, so we will not have a big play threat at this position, but they are all capable of moving the pile.

Receivers - I hope to throw more this season due to the talent of our QB, but I am still looking for a go to guy here. Robert G is a freakish athlete (5'9 and can get above the rim on a basketball court) but needs a lot of work on his hands. Anthony B (who we tried to make our emergency QB) is the most consistent right now and runs very precise routes. Joseph S is not very fast, but has the best hands of the group, problem is he hurt his knee in speed camp and has yet to practice since our spring passing league games. Others in the mix here include Billy W, Francisco P and Castor C. If nobody takes hold of the top spot here, a move of Xavier from running back to receiver is not out of the question as he has amazing hands and is athletic.

Line - Again the buzz word is depth as we are shaky after the leading contenders to start at this point, though there is a lot more potential now then I would have thought earlier. Tyler V is the clear cut leader at center, with Scott B behind him and capable if he can cure his "snap-a-phobia" when a defendeer is in his face. At the guard spots Alejandro H is pretty much penciled in to start, he is athletic, nasty and bigger than our stereotypical guard. Robert C is the leading candidate at the other spot, he is also very athletic for a lineman, just needs to get more comfortable with his rules. In the mix at right are Tyler G, a shorter and not as athletic, but very smart. Austin W is really solid at LG as well, and will see some time, but is nicked up ATM. Others here are Rodrigo M and Andre H, both hard workers, but just a step below.

At Tackle we have Lake A at left head and shoulders above the others, while the right spot is a dog fight between Joseph L and Austin W #2, with Scott Y also in the mix. Giving us depth at the left spot will be James T and Oscar M. At TE Daniel B is the top guy right now, but he will likely start on defense and I am hoping Jonathan S can step into the role. Jonathan is bigger and a little faster, but is another kid with very little experience. One intriguing possibility here is 6'2 newcomer Stephan M, a hoopster trying football for the first time. He is very raw as expected, but has a great frame and will be a project that could contribute if we can get his footwork better. Kaleeb B is in the same boat, good size, fairly athletic, but raw and we are also hoping he can compete for a starting spot on defense as well.

Overall I see our personality on offense being more about grinding it out, 3 yards and a cloud of dust, type of attack. We will not have the home run threats we have had in the backfield, dating back to 2007, so we will be a lot more deliberate and need to sustain drives. Because of this I am working more than usual on ball security and also really stressing fakes and blocking. Something we always stress with the backs, but this season it will be more important than ever.

I will also probably throw more, mainly in 2nd and short situations that would have been a sure running down in the past. We know we will always see 8 (or more) in the box, so the play action passing in these running situations will be huge for us!

[BYU 14]

The Football gods must hate me....I get a kid show up just ripped and he comes out on the field during a break with his Dad. A couple of the kids whisper, coach he is a beast as they go to get water.

Well, turns out they are closing on a house and it has been dragging on, so the school won't let him register yet, hence no Football.......Why???? Keeping my fingers crossed, but he is way behind, so if he does get accepted he won't be ready for the first game, but will be good to go after our bye week 2.

Been a mixed bag this week and I am tired since it was 117 today when practice started, so it will be short, in a positive way. Despite the heat it was our best session of the week and some kids are standing out on Defense. Wanya P is pretty much a lock to start at free safety. For a kid who had never played he has been amazing. Breaks well and covers a ton of ground in the secondary and will lay a hit on you....in a knock you out of your cleats kind of way. Moses R was all over the field tonight from his Will linebacker spot and it suddenly seems our scheme has clicked with him. This is good news on two fronts. First, Joseph Y is a better offensive player than he is linebacker, but I had no other options until Moses emerged. Now I would feel completely comfortable with Moses at Will, which would let Joseph start at TB and out backfield would be pretty much set.

Still need to fill in a couple of pieces on the D line, but Raul C has proven to be tenacious, despite being a tad undersized and we need to get him on the field...Kid has motor. Stacey C was a late comer, but has already staked a strong claim to start at one corner, with JaPatric holding a slight lead at the other corner, though he still has lapses. SLB is likely Daniel B at this point, a really smart kid that is very coachable and is athletic enough to hold an edge and drop into coverage when we go to a 29 (4-3) front. Mike is still very much up in the air, with Isiah M holding a slight edge and there is no front runner at our Knight (strong) safety spot yet.

Overall tonight Defense looked good and during skellies the secondary made some plays. The frontrunners to start on the offensive line are starting to gel and I am seeing some holes open up.....Still wish we had more depth and some more speed, but things are looking up for sure.

Have our program scrimmage Saturday and the depth chart will really start to take shape after we watch film of it on Sunday.

[BYU 14]

Just a quick rant....The way kids freely use the N word is a big pet peeve of mine, to the point that it is one of the things addressed in the team rules. i just don't get it and it gets worse every year.

This group had been good, but today I heard it twice from the same kid. He did up downs and was warned that once more and he would be suspended. Then I head it a third time from another kid less than 5 minutes later....

I am not a yeller, but that pushed me over the edge and I had an epic meltdown........I think they got the message, but it was bad enough that if a parent complains I will have some 'splaining to do. Never had a parent complaint in 25 years, so I hope it doesn't happen now. But that third one was just the last straw today.......and 112 degree heats doesn't help stay calm either...

rant over

[BYU 14]

Program scrimmage today, lost 9 kids this week (Cut 3 for not following team rules, 1 lasted one day and 5 more got cleared but never even showed up so were dropped)

65 cleared, but only 44 will be able to play today:
9 don't have enough time in pads yet
8 have not paid their athletic fee
3 vacations/personal absences
1 injury

It is the lowest number participating in a scrimmage since 2006, which is a good news/bad news thing obviously. Good because some players will get extra reps and bad because others will miss valuable reps.

Of the 9 not yet eligible due to practice time, 5 look like they will compete to either start or see signifcant time on the field right now, so that is good and I was also informed the player I mentioned two posts back did indeed get registered and will be joining us Monday, so we definitely have some much needed depth in the wings, they just need to get up to speed. This early game and practice starting two weeks before school this season is a hinderance, but we should be in good shape by the opener, and with a bye the week after we will definitely be where we need to be by game 2.

So, overall a little but of a drop in numbers this year as I believe we had 4-5 other players cleared Friday who will also join us Monday, which puts us at 70 or so for our final numbers, about 10-15 less than usual. This is pretty much directly tied to not taking any variances through open enrollment this year, as there were easily probably a dozen kids that wanted to come to WV to play Football that could not get in due to the freeze. (I know of 8 for sure)

Will watch film tomorrow and start to firm up depth charts heading into next week, just 6 more practices and a walk through before we play!!

[BYU 14]

Will post a more detailed report later after I finish breaking down all the film, but here is a nice trap play we popped against the JV 2nd Defense in our 10 play session with them. Overall I was really plaesed with the effort, but as expected there is a lot to refine and correct technically this coming week in preparation for our opener in 10 days

[BYU 14]

Been busy doing paperwork, which I swear has doubled this season for non-football related stuff, so sparse updates lately.

The past week has been dedicated to making sure each player has their athletic fee paid, concussion education test, baseline concussion test, fund raising cards sold/turned in, district code of conduct and freshman specific rules/expectations. Getting all this done for the 71 active players left is like herding cats!! We had a total of 82 that got cleared, but have lost 11 either to them quitting or me cutting them due to failure to commit (missing 3 straight days with no call)

So, our final roster is set and we play in 3 days....yikes!!!

It never seems we are ready for the first game to the level I like, so I focus on defense and special teams getting us through the opener, as I know the offense will be a bit rough around the edges. Some good news is we picked up some players next week that should eventuall start/play a lot, though their contributions in game 1 may be minimal due to comfort level and none of them will start.

Offensive 2 Deep
QB
Micheal B
Robert J

Never a doubt here as he has a solid command of things, but will occasionally press, which causes some missteps. I have talked to him about slowing things down and managing and will really focus on that in the next practice and walk through. Can not afford any miscues on snaps/exchanges. Robert was a late add and thankfully will be very competant as an emergency/backup QB, but his primary spot wil be on Defense.

LH
Fernando C
JaPatric W/Frank J

We have a number of other capable options here, who will focus on defense first. Fernando has been involved in passing league and been in the lead pretty much from day 1. He is tough, more of a slasher, with decent speed. JaPatric and Frank are both faster, but neither have as good a grasp of the offense (Frank is another new kid last week) and JaPatric will likely start at corner.

TB
Joseph Y
Isiah D/Isiah M

The emergence of Moses at Will Linebacker will allow me to start Joseph here, a good thing since nobody else was emerging from the pack. Joseph has good quicks and runs hard. (See video above from scrimmage vs the JVs) He has improved on his blocking as well and we will be fine here. Of the Isiah's, Isiah D has the most upside, but is another late signup and is still learning the offense. I am looking at him on D as well at Sam and Isiah M will be starting at Mike in game 1 at least, but I will get to that.

RH
Rodney K
Wanya P

Another kid that has benefitted from being with us from the start, Rodney is not as fast as are other two backs and is the smallest, but has great feet and vision and will still lower his pads and finish a run when hemmed in. I worry about his blocking, and that is something we will have to continue to work until he masters the technique, which will be needed to black the biggers ends he will face on sweep his way. Wanya could start here, but his is the undisputed starter at FS. One wildcard will be Robert J, who will also learn this spot once he is comfortable with QB and will get some carries.

SE
Anthony B
Carlos S
Lathan H
Sullivan S

Probably the best of the bunch at this point and they will get the rotations in the opener. All have good hands and Sullivan is a legit deep threat, but he will miss the first quarter of the opener for an unexcused absence. He sometimes has to watch siblings, but that can not affect our preparation. Anthony B is the top dog ATM, good routes, good hands. But both Carlos and Lathan (2 more kids who joined after practices started) can get to that level.

TE
Jonathan S
Daniel B

Jonathan is the best blocker, Daniel the better receiver, but he will also play primarily on defense. The most important thing is they can get the down block and catch the few passes we throw to them as they are generally wide open. Ever S is probably going to get PT eventually as he is more athletic than either, but is another late kid who will not even have enough time in pads to play in the opener.

Offensive Line
LT
Lake A
Gilbert C

LG
Alejandro H
Raul C

C
Tyler V
John B

RG
Robert C
Tyler G

RT
Joseph L
Austin W

Overall a very competant group, both tackles are mean and nasty and Alejandro is one of the most athletic guards (with size) we have had in the last several years. Robert is also very athletic, but has issues remembering his blocking rules at times and we have to watch him. Once it clicks he will be good as well. We may make a wrist band for him game 1. If he falters Tyler G can fill in, he is undersized, but works hard and knows the plays better. Tyler V is our smallest #1, but is also a scrapper and has a good first step, which is key for a center. He will sometimes block wrong side on sweep, which can be an extreme problem, but has all his other rules down. As some of the commentary above illustrates, this is where I worry about sloppy play in game one. If they nail their rules, we will move the ball ocnsistently, but if they make some of the mental mistakes I listed above, we will be in some undesireable down and distance situations. They will gel, just hasn't happened as quickly as I would have liked.

Defense 2 deep
Secondary
RCB
Stacy C
Rodney K/Alberto C

LCB
JaPatric W
Fernando C/Ryder V

Stacy is our best overall corner and understands coverages really well, though he sometimes lets receivers eat up too much cushion. He will also come up in run support. Rodney is a better cover guy, but is starting on offense and is not as good on run support, while Alberto is a big hitter, but has trouble when we adjust to cover 3. At the other side, JaPatric will make some mistakes, but makes up for them with his speed. Fernando is very technically sound and could start here if he wasn't starting in our backfield. Ryder knows the coverages well, but is very undersized, so we have to be careful with matchups when he is on the field.

FS
Wanya P
Castor C

K
Francisco P
Xavier S/Sullivan S

Wanya has been one of two huge finds for us on defense, first year playing football ever and he is just money. Has the coverage down, covers a lot of ground and will stick you when he gets there, just a very coachable kid. Castor knows the coverage as well, but is not a consistently good tackler, which he really needs to improve to get on the field more. Anthony B can play here as well. At Knight safety it is a three way battle still, but Francisco will get the start in the opener due to football acumen. He is the slowest of the three, but does not get out of position much (lining up right is half the battle) and is a worker. The other 2 are more athletic, but Xavier has to constantly use that athleticism to recover from misreads and that is not a flame I like playing with at safety. As mentioned, Sullivan needs to be here everyday and learn as he has the highest upside, but I won't play kids that miss practice.

Linebackers
MLB
Isiah M
Robert J/Malik R

SLB
Daniel B
Isiah D/Jonathon S

WLB
Moses R
Joseph Y/Tyler A

A lot of Tylers and Isiahs on this team. Isiah M is a solid hitter at Mike, but a little slow on his reads and is not showing the athleticism I had anticiapted, likely due to his reads, but he is the best option right now. Robert J (yes our backup QB) is a manchild, a solid 175, athletic and physical, but has a lot to learn still and is not ready to start. He will play to get seasoning, but I will watch him close. At Sam Daniel is solid, moves well and is very coachable. He will start here, but Isiah D will play and be nipping at his heels in short order. The plan is to possible bump Daniel down to DE when/if Isiah shows he is ready. Jonathan S is the starting TE, but also more than capable here. Moses has been our other huge find on defense and has the job at Will nailed down. He does not look like a player, but he has a motor and is all over the field. He started on scout and caught my attention early in pads and moved up quickly to the #1 spot. Joseph would also make a capable starter, if not starting on offense and in fact may see some time at Mike in games if we are not getting production there. Tyler is another hard worker, not as gifted athleticall, but fearless and does what he is coached to do.

Defensive Line
DE
Austin W
Michael S

NG
TJ F
John B

DT
Raul C
Lake A/Robert C

Stud
Robert G
Alejandro H

This is probably our thinnest area right now and there are some concerns that will come to light against the better O-Lines we face. At DE we need more physicality, which is whay we are looking at moving Daniel B down there if Isiah D can take the Sam spot as we are a solid 3 deep there. Austin just plays too high right now and if do not get that fixed it could be a problem. Michael is a strong, bull like kid who moves well but is really raw right now. He could develop and do a great job there, but as another late comer he needs lots of development. At NG TJ will not wow anybody, but he is tough to move and will eat up blocks inside, which is all we ask. He plays low and goes hard, but tends to gas quick, so we have to watch him. DT is another spot we are scrambling with. Raul is another scrapper with a good motor, but undersized and I worry about him against bigger guards. He may be another option to move to DE, if we can develop someone here. The two behind him right now both start on offense, so their playing time on D will be limited to situational (Goaline/short yardage). Robert G at our Stud end spot is a freak, he is hooper, but put is put together nicely and very athletic and physical. his spot is definitely our strong spot up front right now and he will wreak havoc off the weakside edge.

That is where we sit right now and as mentioned Defense and Special Teams need to carry us week one, while we eliminate the little miscues on offense. I am confident in both and really like what we will be able to do offensively as well, once everyone is at the correct comfort level.

One thing I have noticed about the mental makeup of this team is that they get easily distracted and if a mistake is made some of the kids dwell on it, so it carries over. It is easy to correalate losing focus = mistakes = potential for more mistakes, and it has been explained to them, but still hasn't sunken in.

You could probably label some of these kids as "game" players, which is a label I detest. If you can practice poorly and play well in a game, then you are cheating yourself and your team. Because if you practiced well, you would play great!!! The next two days I am going to work as much on the mental part of their game as physical and try a different approach then I have been using. We have shown flashes of brilliance, but I would much rather shave the peaks and valleys and be consistent, so that is my mission. With most all of the non-football crap out of the way now, I can focus heavily on this. Even I have to admit I have been distracted at times this pre-season dealing with the administrative stuff and 2 weeks less to get it done than we usually have due to the early game.

[BYU 14]

Game day!!! We are never as ready as I want us to be (pretty much the coach's mantra) for opening day and this year is no exception. Practices have yet to be consistent on a daily basis. Monday was exceptional and the walkthrough last night was a bit sloppy and lacked tempo.

Still working on that focus part, but we have the kids prepared for what we will see and if we play well on defense and special teams, which I expect us to do, we can survive a few rough spots offensively as long as we take care of the ball.

I am making some wrist bands for a few positions this game, just to help the kids play at full speed and not have to think as much. I think that will be a big help and with a bye coming up we should be sharp from here on out.

No big injuries coming in, we have 3 kids out, but no starters, 3 more are out due to lack of hours in pads, one of them will probably help us a lot down the road and I have 5 kids sitting out the first quarter for missing a practice, one of which is a starter.....live and learn.

Game day plan is a massage, workout, then go take care of business.....Can't wait for kickoff!!! Go Knights!!!

[BYU 14]

Ok I have been lax with this (well time constraints) but I will get things caught up this weekend. We are currently 3-1 and coming off a 48-12 win last night against TGB. for now I wanted to share this clip as it was one of the most brutal hits I have ever seen a Freshman deliver. The sad part is our video capture program doesn't upload sound, because that is what really defines the hit. It echoed through the stadium and brought audible gasps from both sets of stands. (Both kids popped right up too)

This is a last play of the first half and we are up 34-6. They are trying to throw a hail mary and their QB has to pull it down and scramble. Our Will Linebacker (Moses R) is in coverage and comes up and just obliterates the kid. It was truly a thing of beauty from the sideline



And a bonus clip of Stacy C housing the 2nd half kickoff

[MacroGuru]

Beautiful wall set up on that kick return coach.

[BYU 14]

Originally Posted by MacroGuru

Beautiful wall set up on that kick return coach.

Thanks buddy, I love that return! We are averaging over 60 yards when we run that and that was our second score this year on it, with another being returned inside the 10.

We spend more time on special teams than we do on either team offense or team defense each week and it makse a huge difference. Our kids love it too and they compete like hell to get on special teams.

I actually had a kid who is struggling a bit at his defensive position, that I was contemplating moving tell me this week. "Coach, I will try anywhere on defense, I just want to stay on the kickoff team"

[BYU 14]

Will get in some game write-ups after the Holiday, but here is our Freshman highlight video for 2012 I made for the banquet.

Error - Hudl