Went to spring practice today. A few things stood out.
First off, it was a good day to be out there. People seemed to be in good spirits and the weather was perfect.
I didn't see the defense with the ball once. Now, I was only there for about 45 minutes and I watched some offensive drills as well. But when I watched the D, Joe Lee Dunn was putting them through heavy running and cardiovascular drills. He worked them hard. And I don't think that's a bad thing at all. This is football, more than any other sport, you need to be in great physical and mental shape in order to succeed. The game is unforgiving. NMSU needs a hard edge on D this year. Last season, there was no edge at all. They need to play mean and tough. It looks like they'll certainly toughen up under Dunn.
LaVorick Williams is big and tall. He doesn't look like your average freshman. Williams will play receiver this year for NMSU and I think he'll play a big role. They've talked about his speed. He has ability too. I saw him make a tumbling grab in the endzone today. No one was on him but the ball was badly underthrown. Williams made a shoetring grab and was praised by some coaches and teammates as he maintained possession. It caught my attention for sure. Keep an eye out.
I tried to look closely at Nick Paden, who is expected to see action at middle linebacker this year. It was tough to really get a feel for him though as he ran around with the rest of the defense under the direction of Dunn's whistle. Nose guard E.J. Cannon is seeing some action this spring. D-lineman Rhyan Anderson is huge. Still waiting for production from there though.
Check out some practice if you're bored. It's an easy way to kill an hour.
5 comments:
I think JL Dunn's defense is perfect for the pass happy WAC. Just look at what UNM did to Nevada in the New Mexico bowl...just blitzed and confused the Wolfpack!
It should give us those much needed breaks on defense.
Teddy,
Is the team picking up the new system?
How long is the learning curve going to take?
We have a special group of players and I feel this can be our season...depending on the defense of course.
Teddy, How is the kicking game going on? I read in a news article that Mumme said the kickers / special teams would be coached by all the coaches as Gerela is gone? Doesn't sound to me like Mumme has learned his lesson yet about the kicking game. He has a bunch of young, inexperienced kickers who he is expecting to be hero's with no real experienced kicking coach? I predict the same performance / excuses in his kicking game as he had last year. Is this high school or D1 football? Get real Mumme!!
pass happy wac? I think most teams will be relying on the run this year.
I see that there's been a significant improvement in the weight room.
Most schools pride themselves in the number of players in the 3 4 5 club.
That's 300Lb, 400Lb, 500Lb in the deadlift, bench and squat for you weight room challenged fans.
NMSU has a 4 5 6 and 7 club members!!
Those are NFL numbers guys!
I see the team 40yd dash average is also under 5 seconds!! That is really impressive!
I really hope this strength and speed equates to more wins this year!
We shall see.
Who's your Mumme
Anon. 3:56
Until I see WAC teams run the ball, the WAC is pass happy.
Look at NMSU, Hawaii, Boise, etc. They throw and then throw some more!
This defense is perfect for causing QB's to rush there throws. If the "D" can make some disruptions, we will be smoking stoagies or better things in December!
I hope the "D" is catching on quick.
Teddy,
What's the word on the Defensive learning curve?
Inquiring minds want to know!
Ganja Boy
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