As far as starters go, I'm not convinced we won't see movement in August at RB, LB, CB and maybe safety. I'm not saying we will see movement, or even that we should, but I'm not convinced the guys currently penciled in will be able to hold everyone off coming for their spots. It's great the corners are facing what I think is the most talent receivers they will see all season.
I'll be on edge during field goal attempts more this year than I have in a while. I have no idea how accurate these guys will be when the pressure is on.
No knock on Johnson at all, but that would stun me. This staff has been very complimentary of Morris, and Grubb has a lot of trust in him to operate the offense.
I believe coaches value his knowledge and experience. Many people would love to see Morris give but teammates and coaches love him. He knows the offense and he truly seems to wants to be a Husky for life.
I'm not sure we should accept that Morris might be a pretty good quarterback when there's been little evidence of that. Granted, John Donovan's historically bad offensive scheme might have made any QB look bad, but the spring game didn't allay my fears. He's short, throws a flat ball that gets blocked a lot, and, unlike Penix, he flushes a lot because he can't find a receiver. But, like everyone else, I like the guy. I hope he finds a way to thrive.
I the spring game, Penix missed on virtually all his down field passes, but that doesn't mean we should be worried about him in 2023.
As for evidence Morris might be pretty decent, he has plenty of good games in 2020 and 2021, despite playing in Donovan's offense. We also have this coaching staff who, through their words and actions, clearly trust Morris to run the offense and they have a pretty good track record.
You're right, Sam K. The Grubb/DeBoer offense, and their coaching, might show us what Morris is really capable of. Jake Haener was short, and he set records at Fresno State with a flat, zippy ball. So who knows? But I'll stand by my thought that Morris hasn't shown much so far.
Well yes, but to suggest that that's his ceiling implies that DeBoer and Grubb aren't much of an improvement over John Donovan. And even with Donovan, he still put up a better 2021 season statistically than Penix did. Penix looked downright awful in 2021.
Johnson definitely has talent and he has remarkable size - and he seems to already be able to maintain his cool under fire. But he has an awful long ways to go to get to where Morris is as far as knowing the playbook and all of the details of running the offense. Morris is at least semi-legendary now for being a video fanatic. Johnson would have to show an awful lot in Fall Camp to overtake Morris for the backup QB spot. But having said that, I think that he could be in the mix to be the starter in 2024 if he can continue to pick things up as fast as he has so far. The thing about that, of course, is that Austin Mack will be front and center in that battle - and he is extremely talented and will have had an entire year to learn the offense and gain strength and weight. He is also 6'6 and maybe even 6'7" right now.
I just watched each defensive snap several times so I could see how everybody did. Everybody except for the DBs, of course, because they’re out of the frame most of the time. FWIW, here are my random thoughts: (1) There’s very little violence from our interior defensive lineman. With the exception of Tuli Letuligasenoa now and then, there’s no disruption. (2) Tristan Dunn, a 6’4” thumper playing the husky position, can also cover. He’s super smooth, quick and fast. (3) I saw a lot of solid linebackers: Ulofoshio, Tuputala, Breuner, Goforth, Bryant, Harnetiaux, Fowler. (4) I’m not worried about our DBs; I’m concerned our sluggish big dudes up front will make us vulnerable.
Let's talk center position. Brailsford has been getting a lot of praise - but also reps at Tackle, while L. Hatchett has also been receiving his fair share of praise but (as far as I know) only getting center reps. Does this mean that Hatchett is the likely successor after Mele so they are trying to find another good option for the undersized but athletic Brailsford? I know this season hasn't even started, but i'm already excited for the center competition between those to youngins
At RB, I’m wondering if Newton might get some touches in short yardage situations. He runs hard and is a physical runner. Or has he dropped so far on the depth chart that he’s unlikely to see the field?
As far as starters go, I'm not convinced we won't see movement in August at RB, LB, CB and maybe safety. I'm not saying we will see movement, or even that we should, but I'm not convinced the guys currently penciled in will be able to hold everyone off coming for their spots. It's great the corners are facing what I think is the most talent receivers they will see all season.
I'll be on edge during field goal attempts more this year than I have in a while. I have no idea how accurate these guys will be when the pressure is on.
Great run down Christian.
Is the backup QB job finalized? Alex Johnson looked good for a guy in the program a few months.
Have to wonder if he’s gonna be given a shot to win the backup spot...
No knock on Johnson at all, but that would stun me. This staff has been very complimentary of Morris, and Grubb has a lot of trust in him to operate the offense.
I believe coaches value his knowledge and experience. Many people would love to see Morris give but teammates and coaches love him. He knows the offense and he truly seems to wants to be a Husky for life.
A lot of people have a weirdly hard time accepting that Morris might actually be a pretty decent QB. There's a very good chance he's QB1 in 2024.
I'm not sure we should accept that Morris might be a pretty good quarterback when there's been little evidence of that. Granted, John Donovan's historically bad offensive scheme might have made any QB look bad, but the spring game didn't allay my fears. He's short, throws a flat ball that gets blocked a lot, and, unlike Penix, he flushes a lot because he can't find a receiver. But, like everyone else, I like the guy. I hope he finds a way to thrive.
I the spring game, Penix missed on virtually all his down field passes, but that doesn't mean we should be worried about him in 2023.
As for evidence Morris might be pretty decent, he has plenty of good games in 2020 and 2021, despite playing in Donovan's offense. We also have this coaching staff who, through their words and actions, clearly trust Morris to run the offense and they have a pretty good track record.
You're right, Sam K. The Grubb/DeBoer offense, and their coaching, might show us what Morris is really capable of. Jake Haener was short, and he set records at Fresno State with a flat, zippy ball. So who knows? But I'll stand by my thought that Morris hasn't shown much so far.
It's because of 2021 though a lot of that was the offense. Not sure if I was him as QB1. Though fine as QB2.
Well yes, but to suggest that that's his ceiling implies that DeBoer and Grubb aren't much of an improvement over John Donovan. And even with Donovan, he still put up a better 2021 season statistically than Penix did. Penix looked downright awful in 2021.
Johnson definitely has talent and he has remarkable size - and he seems to already be able to maintain his cool under fire. But he has an awful long ways to go to get to where Morris is as far as knowing the playbook and all of the details of running the offense. Morris is at least semi-legendary now for being a video fanatic. Johnson would have to show an awful lot in Fall Camp to overtake Morris for the backup QB spot. But having said that, I think that he could be in the mix to be the starter in 2024 if he can continue to pick things up as fast as he has so far. The thing about that, of course, is that Austin Mack will be front and center in that battle - and he is extremely talented and will have had an entire year to learn the offense and gain strength and weight. He is also 6'6 and maybe even 6'7" right now.
I just watched each defensive snap several times so I could see how everybody did. Everybody except for the DBs, of course, because they’re out of the frame most of the time. FWIW, here are my random thoughts: (1) There’s very little violence from our interior defensive lineman. With the exception of Tuli Letuligasenoa now and then, there’s no disruption. (2) Tristan Dunn, a 6’4” thumper playing the husky position, can also cover. He’s super smooth, quick and fast. (3) I saw a lot of solid linebackers: Ulofoshio, Tuputala, Breuner, Goforth, Bryant, Harnetiaux, Fowler. (4) I’m not worried about our DBs; I’m concerned our sluggish big dudes up front will make us vulnerable.
Let's talk center position. Brailsford has been getting a lot of praise - but also reps at Tackle, while L. Hatchett has also been receiving his fair share of praise but (as far as I know) only getting center reps. Does this mean that Hatchett is the likely successor after Mele so they are trying to find another good option for the undersized but athletic Brailsford? I know this season hasn't even started, but i'm already excited for the center competition between those to youngins
Here's an unpleasant thought. Might Michael Penix take a step back this year? I mean, last year was magical -- and magic seldom sustains.
At RB, I’m wondering if Newton might get some touches in short yardage situations. He runs hard and is a physical runner. Or has he dropped so far on the depth chart that he’s unlikely to see the field?
Do the special teams seem somewhere between "meh" and "fingers crossed" entering fall practice?
August will start with hoping at least one of two sophomore walk-ons can distinguish himself.
The punting numbers were middle of the road in 2022, but it wasn't always a smooth operation.
And our return games seem to have gone into hibernation since the great Dante Pettis was breaking NCAA records.
Good things is that CKD has fixed about everything else. We'll just wait for him to sprinkle some of his magic dust and it'll all work out
two sophomore walk-on "kickers" ...