The Illini had their first practice in Rantoul today from 10:45 to 1:10. The BTN crew were there for practice. Next practices are Tuesday at 9:45 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
Position drills, running game, 7 vs. 7, then a lot of team stuff today. It was pretty evenly matched between the offense and defense. Overall, a good, spirited practice. One early take-away is that this team is deeper than years past. The 2nd and 3rd units can complete.
A few guys were held out for precautionary reasons. Sean Adesanya has a hamstring. Gabe Megginson had a little swelling in his knee. Others were Kendrick Foster, Kenny Nelson, Chris O’Connor, and Joe Fotu. Mike Dudek was in pads and red jersey. He did conditioning and strengthening exercises. Dre Brown wasn’t dressed out. Justin Hardee is still in a boot.
Newcomers who stood out today included WR Sam Mays, OT Adam Solomon, RB KeShawn Vaughn. RB Reggie Corbin, and WR Desmond Cain. They got a steal in Mays. He’s very similar to G-Mo, but with more jets. Adam Solomon is ahead of where I thought he would be. He’s a very good run blocker, needs work on pass pro. And they would like him to trim down just a bit. Vaughn and Corbin split reps with the 2’s. Cain had a great catch in traffic in the deep middle.
Wes Lunt was very sharp. He’s ahead of where he was at this time last year. Really accurate and making good reads. Chayce Crouch is the No. 2, and they adjust the offense when he’s in there. More quick throws, designed runs. Of the younger QB’s, Jeff George Jr. throws the best ball. They kept it pretty simple with the play calls – short throws, and inside zone running plays. Ferguson got very few carries. Others standouts today on offense were OG Ted Karras and WR Geronimo Allison.
It wasn’t’ a great day for Malik Turner and Tyrin Stone-Davis. They just weren’t real sharp in their route running, and TSD dropped some balls.
You can’t tell much about the run defense since there was no live tackling. But they were good against the pass, especially in 7 vs. 7. The pass rush was okay, but the offensive line probably won that battle. Standouts on defense were LEO DJ Smoot, LB LaKeith Walls, CB Eaton Spence, CB Jaylen Dunlap, S Clayton Fejedelem. Basic stuff in terms of the coverages and blitzes. They played a lot of press coverage, and Eaton Spence stood out.
Offensive line two-deep
LT Austin Schmidt / Pat Flavin
LG Chris Boles / Zach Heath
C Joe Spencer/ Nick Allegretti
RG Ted Karras / Connor Brennan
RT Christian DiLauro / Jordan Fagan
Your questions?
Position drills, running game, 7 vs. 7, then a lot of team stuff today. It was pretty evenly matched between the offense and defense. Overall, a good, spirited practice. One early take-away is that this team is deeper than years past. The 2nd and 3rd units can complete.
A few guys were held out for precautionary reasons. Sean Adesanya has a hamstring. Gabe Megginson had a little swelling in his knee. Others were Kendrick Foster, Kenny Nelson, Chris O’Connor, and Joe Fotu. Mike Dudek was in pads and red jersey. He did conditioning and strengthening exercises. Dre Brown wasn’t dressed out. Justin Hardee is still in a boot.
Newcomers who stood out today included WR Sam Mays, OT Adam Solomon, RB KeShawn Vaughn. RB Reggie Corbin, and WR Desmond Cain. They got a steal in Mays. He’s very similar to G-Mo, but with more jets. Adam Solomon is ahead of where I thought he would be. He’s a very good run blocker, needs work on pass pro. And they would like him to trim down just a bit. Vaughn and Corbin split reps with the 2’s. Cain had a great catch in traffic in the deep middle.
Wes Lunt was very sharp. He’s ahead of where he was at this time last year. Really accurate and making good reads. Chayce Crouch is the No. 2, and they adjust the offense when he’s in there. More quick throws, designed runs. Of the younger QB’s, Jeff George Jr. throws the best ball. They kept it pretty simple with the play calls – short throws, and inside zone running plays. Ferguson got very few carries. Others standouts today on offense were OG Ted Karras and WR Geronimo Allison.
It wasn’t’ a great day for Malik Turner and Tyrin Stone-Davis. They just weren’t real sharp in their route running, and TSD dropped some balls.
You can’t tell much about the run defense since there was no live tackling. But they were good against the pass, especially in 7 vs. 7. The pass rush was okay, but the offensive line probably won that battle. Standouts on defense were LEO DJ Smoot, LB LaKeith Walls, CB Eaton Spence, CB Jaylen Dunlap, S Clayton Fejedelem. Basic stuff in terms of the coverages and blitzes. They played a lot of press coverage, and Eaton Spence stood out.
Offensive line two-deep
LT Austin Schmidt / Pat Flavin
LG Chris Boles / Zach Heath
C Joe Spencer/ Nick Allegretti
RG Ted Karras / Connor Brennan
RT Christian DiLauro / Jordan Fagan
Your questions?
