Our final day of observation before the Spring Game on Monday night.
With only 15 minutes of watching each time, you don't get to see much.
Today when our 15 minutes began, the special teams unit was out practicing, which is something we hadn't seen up to this point.
Blake Hayes can still boom the ball. Fellow Aussie Hugh Robertson was also out there kicking alongside Hayes. Both have strong legs, so I look for Hayes to once again give the Illini the advantage in the field position battle. However, here's hoping that the Illini won't need to punt so much this season as a result of the offense moving the ball and getting in the red zone much more often.
James McCourt was the only placekicker warming up. Caleb Griffin was already warming up with the returners fielding punts from both Hayes and Robertson. I don't see McCourt getting unseated at this point. Monday's Spring game will feature two different periods where they will do rapid-fire kicking drills from various distances. We should expect to see Griffin out there at some point with McCourt, but I certainly don't know that to be a definite.
Quite an array of green jerseys on the practice field. The green jerseys signal limited contact, and there were guys from all position groups that were donning those jerseys. Most likely a precaution at this point, and since those aren't numbered, there is no idea who they were.
Did notice Calvin Avery out there running through opening drills. The Illini need Avery to step up in a big way this coming year and find a way to stay on the field for longer periods of time. His weight has been an issue for most of his Illini career, and he certainly has the talent to help the Illinois defensive unit up front.
Apparently there was another scrimmage happening after our 15 minute viewing window had ended. The players were either in orange or blue jerseys, with the exception of the quarterbacks, who were wearing white today. Bret Bielema was talking to a group of officials on the north end of the stadium, so I assume they were going to at least do some sort of game-like prep.
We'll hopefully know a lot more after Monday night's Spring game, as we'll get to see much more than 15 minutes at a time.
With only 15 minutes of watching each time, you don't get to see much.
Today when our 15 minutes began, the special teams unit was out practicing, which is something we hadn't seen up to this point.
Blake Hayes can still boom the ball. Fellow Aussie Hugh Robertson was also out there kicking alongside Hayes. Both have strong legs, so I look for Hayes to once again give the Illini the advantage in the field position battle. However, here's hoping that the Illini won't need to punt so much this season as a result of the offense moving the ball and getting in the red zone much more often.
James McCourt was the only placekicker warming up. Caleb Griffin was already warming up with the returners fielding punts from both Hayes and Robertson. I don't see McCourt getting unseated at this point. Monday's Spring game will feature two different periods where they will do rapid-fire kicking drills from various distances. We should expect to see Griffin out there at some point with McCourt, but I certainly don't know that to be a definite.
Quite an array of green jerseys on the practice field. The green jerseys signal limited contact, and there were guys from all position groups that were donning those jerseys. Most likely a precaution at this point, and since those aren't numbered, there is no idea who they were.
Did notice Calvin Avery out there running through opening drills. The Illini need Avery to step up in a big way this coming year and find a way to stay on the field for longer periods of time. His weight has been an issue for most of his Illini career, and he certainly has the talent to help the Illinois defensive unit up front.
Apparently there was another scrimmage happening after our 15 minute viewing window had ended. The players were either in orange or blue jerseys, with the exception of the quarterbacks, who were wearing white today. Bret Bielema was talking to a group of officials on the north end of the stadium, so I assume they were going to at least do some sort of game-like prep.
We'll hopefully know a lot more after Monday night's Spring game, as we'll get to see much more than 15 minutes at a time.
