Hey all,
The media was allowed to see the first two hours of practice, and Michael and I were in attendance to get an up-close look at the team.
Below is our full practice report from Saturday's morning practice.
Thanks for tuning in!
Injury Report:
OC Brett Heggie did not participate at practice today and was still wearing a boot on his right foot. As we've noted, Dan Mullen is not a fan of giving injury updates while in the midst of camp, so we'll have full details when camp closes for good.
From Michael P: Heggie was walking more gingerly this morning compared to when we saw him earlier in the week. We don't want to put a whole lot into it, but that's what it looked like today.
WR Jacob Copeland wasn't in attendance for today's practice. Mullen has an idea of when he'll be lacing up the cleats again, but chose not to share the details with the media.
DE CeCe Jefferson was in a medical red jersey again today. No word on how well his shoulder his doing right now, but he wore a brace on his right shoulder and did not participate in any live contact drills.
Other than that, it was a clean day for the Gators.
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The Gators got the energy going early with the circle of life drill to begin practice after warm-ups.
For the most part, the offense won more than the defense in this drill with the biggest highlight being a Feleipe Franks touchdown. He was stuffed right at the line of scrimmage but simply powered his way into the endzone. It got the entire offense going and was a good way to start practice for the team.
The offensive and defensive line were pretty neck and neck for the most part. Slaton stood out early on as just an immovable force and made it hard to go through the middle whatsoever. CeCe Jefferson really wanted to get in there but the coaches wouldn't allow him to participate.
Malik Davis showed some good physical running in this drill as well. Was not sure how well that part of his game would be, especially returning from injury, but he did a good job and scored a couple of times.
With Davis, he hasn't been favoring his previously-injured leg and has done a great job of making strong cuts and navigating through clutter. A lot of that success comes from his patience around the line. His lateral movement has looked good.
For Franks, today was arguably his best practice since I came on April 1. Michael covered the team all of last year, and he agreed as well. He flashed a good spiral throughout practice and was accurate when dropping the ball in down-field. His touch was very impressive, both down the field and during intermediate throws.
There were times when the pocket collapsed and he should have got the ball out a little fast, but honestly, there wasn't a whole lot to critique in regards to Franks' performance. He did a good job of going through his reads and made sure to step into his throws as well.
Kyle Trask did not have a very good day. For everything Franks did well, Trask only showed flashes. He was not catestrophic but did not impress.
His throws were late at times, and he did not have great velocity on them. He did not really go through his progression very well either. If his first guy was not there, he paniced a bit and wasn't sure where to go.
Trask made some great throws today, one in particular on the far sideline on a corner route to Josh Hammond, who made a great leaping catch, but we did not see enough of that. His footwork was a big concern heading into summer and that does seem a bit better, but could still use some work.
Furthermore, we saw Trask holding the ball too long in the spring game as well. That does not seem to have improved. There were 5-6 times where Trask had an option and couldn't pull the trigger.
His throws were just a bit off, but that is the difference between completions and incompletions in this league and at this level.
And last but not least, Emory Jones still looked like a freshman today. And that is not a bad thing. He had flashes of great plays and there was a very nice throw he made down the sideline. He put the ball where only his guy could get it.
The only problem with that is he could not do it consistently. He would make a nice throw and then make a bad read or overthrow an open receiver by a few yards.
The biggest takeaway from Jones' performance today was the amount he was running the ball. We expected him to carry the ball more than any other quarterback, but today we finally really saw it.
Jones ran a half-dozen QB draws, and a few more option plays and straight runs off the edges. He did not blow anybody away with his running ability, but showcased some shiftiness between the tackles. His biggest gain was only around 5-6 yards, but he looked solid.
Jones' biggest negative was taking sacks. Now that is also on the backup offensive line, but Emory did not look to throw the ball away. That's something that should come in time, but he needs some work there.
As far as the receivers, Van Jefferson, as expected, looked the most polished and was effective when catching in traffic. He would have made a highlight-reel type of catch down the sideline, but blanket coverage from Chauncey Gardner prevented that. WR Daquon had a so/so day, but rebounded towards the end and turned a catch into a lengthy gain after Franks found him between two defenders.
Trevon Grimes, as well as Jefferson, both did a nice job of setting up defenders with their routes and made plays behind the defense when Franks was under center. He dropped a few from pure lack of concentration, but does a good job of getting in and out of his routes for a bigger receiver.
Freddie Swain lacks that second gear, but is a reliable kid who is showing nice leadership as well. Grimes went back and forth on what route he was supposed to run after the play finished up, but Freddie simply said that's what practice is for and let's get better next time. He made some blocks out there, too.
Swain was that way when I covered him at North Marion. Freddie is a well-deserved kid who does everything asked of him.
The first team o-line was reliable and gave the quarterbacks plenty of times to operate, but they did a good job of pumping their legs to open up holes as well. Like Mullen said yesterday, the questions remain in regards to the backups. There was some miscommunication there and coach Hevesy was certainly not the happiest camper. Very few penalties from the first team as well.
Tyler Jordan filled in for Heggie at LG and did a solid job. He's a kid who rarely makes the costly mistake and does a little bit of everything at the position. Jordan is a solid utility guy. Basically their sixth OL and next guy in.
OC Nick Buchanan fumbled a snap when chipping in with the backups and looked somewhat overwhelmed at times as well. Hevesy and Mullen have been vocal about building OL depth and having those guys to step in and not miss a beat if a starter comes out of the game. Those questions weren't answered today.
ILB David Reese was solid as usual, while Ventrell Miller and James Houston made some plays of their own as well. Hard-hitting, physical group who didn't really jump out in today's setting, but looked decent in coverage.
Michael and I are going to be adding more as it comes to us, but we wanted to get this out to you guys in a timely matter.
Stay tuned !
- Corey & Michael
The media was allowed to see the first two hours of practice, and Michael and I were in attendance to get an up-close look at the team.
Below is our full practice report from Saturday's morning practice.
Thanks for tuning in!
Injury Report:
OC Brett Heggie did not participate at practice today and was still wearing a boot on his right foot. As we've noted, Dan Mullen is not a fan of giving injury updates while in the midst of camp, so we'll have full details when camp closes for good.
From Michael P: Heggie was walking more gingerly this morning compared to when we saw him earlier in the week. We don't want to put a whole lot into it, but that's what it looked like today.
WR Jacob Copeland wasn't in attendance for today's practice. Mullen has an idea of when he'll be lacing up the cleats again, but chose not to share the details with the media.
DE CeCe Jefferson was in a medical red jersey again today. No word on how well his shoulder his doing right now, but he wore a brace on his right shoulder and did not participate in any live contact drills.
Other than that, it was a clean day for the Gators.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Gators got the energy going early with the circle of life drill to begin practice after warm-ups.
For the most part, the offense won more than the defense in this drill with the biggest highlight being a Feleipe Franks touchdown. He was stuffed right at the line of scrimmage but simply powered his way into the endzone. It got the entire offense going and was a good way to start practice for the team.
The offensive and defensive line were pretty neck and neck for the most part. Slaton stood out early on as just an immovable force and made it hard to go through the middle whatsoever. CeCe Jefferson really wanted to get in there but the coaches wouldn't allow him to participate.
Malik Davis showed some good physical running in this drill as well. Was not sure how well that part of his game would be, especially returning from injury, but he did a good job and scored a couple of times.
With Davis, he hasn't been favoring his previously-injured leg and has done a great job of making strong cuts and navigating through clutter. A lot of that success comes from his patience around the line. His lateral movement has looked good.
For Franks, today was arguably his best practice since I came on April 1. Michael covered the team all of last year, and he agreed as well. He flashed a good spiral throughout practice and was accurate when dropping the ball in down-field. His touch was very impressive, both down the field and during intermediate throws.
There were times when the pocket collapsed and he should have got the ball out a little fast, but honestly, there wasn't a whole lot to critique in regards to Franks' performance. He did a good job of going through his reads and made sure to step into his throws as well.
Kyle Trask did not have a very good day. For everything Franks did well, Trask only showed flashes. He was not catestrophic but did not impress.
His throws were late at times, and he did not have great velocity on them. He did not really go through his progression very well either. If his first guy was not there, he paniced a bit and wasn't sure where to go.
Trask made some great throws today, one in particular on the far sideline on a corner route to Josh Hammond, who made a great leaping catch, but we did not see enough of that. His footwork was a big concern heading into summer and that does seem a bit better, but could still use some work.
Furthermore, we saw Trask holding the ball too long in the spring game as well. That does not seem to have improved. There were 5-6 times where Trask had an option and couldn't pull the trigger.
His throws were just a bit off, but that is the difference between completions and incompletions in this league and at this level.
And last but not least, Emory Jones still looked like a freshman today. And that is not a bad thing. He had flashes of great plays and there was a very nice throw he made down the sideline. He put the ball where only his guy could get it.
The only problem with that is he could not do it consistently. He would make a nice throw and then make a bad read or overthrow an open receiver by a few yards.
The biggest takeaway from Jones' performance today was the amount he was running the ball. We expected him to carry the ball more than any other quarterback, but today we finally really saw it.
Jones ran a half-dozen QB draws, and a few more option plays and straight runs off the edges. He did not blow anybody away with his running ability, but showcased some shiftiness between the tackles. His biggest gain was only around 5-6 yards, but he looked solid.
Jones' biggest negative was taking sacks. Now that is also on the backup offensive line, but Emory did not look to throw the ball away. That's something that should come in time, but he needs some work there.
As far as the receivers, Van Jefferson, as expected, looked the most polished and was effective when catching in traffic. He would have made a highlight-reel type of catch down the sideline, but blanket coverage from Chauncey Gardner prevented that. WR Daquon had a so/so day, but rebounded towards the end and turned a catch into a lengthy gain after Franks found him between two defenders.
Trevon Grimes, as well as Jefferson, both did a nice job of setting up defenders with their routes and made plays behind the defense when Franks was under center. He dropped a few from pure lack of concentration, but does a good job of getting in and out of his routes for a bigger receiver.
Freddie Swain lacks that second gear, but is a reliable kid who is showing nice leadership as well. Grimes went back and forth on what route he was supposed to run after the play finished up, but Freddie simply said that's what practice is for and let's get better next time. He made some blocks out there, too.
Swain was that way when I covered him at North Marion. Freddie is a well-deserved kid who does everything asked of him.
The first team o-line was reliable and gave the quarterbacks plenty of times to operate, but they did a good job of pumping their legs to open up holes as well. Like Mullen said yesterday, the questions remain in regards to the backups. There was some miscommunication there and coach Hevesy was certainly not the happiest camper. Very few penalties from the first team as well.
Tyler Jordan filled in for Heggie at LG and did a solid job. He's a kid who rarely makes the costly mistake and does a little bit of everything at the position. Jordan is a solid utility guy. Basically their sixth OL and next guy in.
OC Nick Buchanan fumbled a snap when chipping in with the backups and looked somewhat overwhelmed at times as well. Hevesy and Mullen have been vocal about building OL depth and having those guys to step in and not miss a beat if a starter comes out of the game. Those questions weren't answered today.
ILB David Reese was solid as usual, while Ventrell Miller and James Houston made some plays of their own as well. Hard-hitting, physical group who didn't really jump out in today's setting, but looked decent in coverage.
Michael and I are going to be adding more as it comes to us, but we wanted to get this out to you guys in a timely matter.
Stay tuned !
- Corey & Michael
