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Jimbo 2022: Balls To The Face

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billfromlaketravis

billfromlaketravis 11784

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1 hour ago, Lobwedgephil said:
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Billly

Though the Ags are just three practices into the spring season, there is more than enough intrigue and excitement to warrant a 'weekly recap' type of update. Consider this an Easter egg from yours truly, because the truth of the matter is that the Ags haven't even put on the pads yet during closed practices. That happens this week when the presumptive top-ten squad will cap things off with a Kyle Field scrimmage on Saturday. Here's an update on how things went for Jimbo's bunch as the Aggies began practicing in the spring for the first time in two calendar years, believe it or not.

Oh, and a quick reminder, if I didn't mention someone you're wondering about or your favorite player, it doesn't mean he's injured or not playing well.

• At receiver, you tend to get a little more of a feel for how things are going during the first couple of practices than you typically would along the offensive line and in the running game prior to pads popping. Initial returns at what promises to be a pivotal position for the Aggies have been pretty encouraging, the primary reason being that second-year wideout Demond Demas has gotten off to a strong start. The gifted sophomore was slow in adjusting to the rigors of the college game last fall but hung in there and worked his way into playing time late in the season, even seeing meaningful pass game reps in the Ags' Orange Bowl win over North Carolina. Well, Demond has continued his progression and has strung together good practices to open up spring ball. For Demas, it's as much about day-to-day consistency as it is making highlight-worthy catches, and that's something he's been able to do so far. If #1 continues to gain confidence, watch out.

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Craig Bisacre/Texas A&M Athletics
Leal is picking up where he left off in what should be a dominating season.

• The Ags have so many established stars on the team right now that sometimes you just have to say things like "DeMarvin Leal is out there doing DeMarvin Leal type things." The same goes for guys like Ainias Smith, Isaiah Spiller and Kenyon Green, each of whom have looked like exactly what you'd expect in the early going. They look like All-SEC dudes out there and that's particularly true with Leal, who really does have game-wrecking potential as a junior. A different type of defensive end than Myles Garrett, but #8 is getting just about as difficult to block.

• Speaking of blocking, let's talk briefly about the Maroon Goons. Again, no pads yet so this is more about who's playing where and some first impressions. After a shaky day one going up against an A&M d-line that should prove to be one of the best in the country, the offensive line has strung together a couple of good days to end the first week of work. The most encouraging news might be that Luke Matthews has looked good in the middle at center. Josh Henson is going to need the veteran to step into the starting lineup in year four and perform at a high level. The first step is a solid spring, and Luke's Week One showing was what Henson needed to see.

Across the board with the 1s, your usual first-team has consisted of Kenyon Green at left tackle (the future All-American has looked good when lined up on the end of the line), Akinola Ogunbiyi and Layden Robinson at guard and third-year tackle Blake Trainor on the right side.

Couple of dudes worth mentioning: Ogunbiyi really impressed during the Ags' 'Fourth Quarter' drills leading into fall camp, and he's hit the ground running in the Ags' first few practices. Aki has been primarily lining up at guard and has a real chance to start there as a redshirt freshman in 2021, but I'm still not convinced he won't see some time at tackle because he's plenty athletic enough to handle it. True freshman Matthew Wykoff is looking like he could be another versatile piece for Henson to move around this spring. In Wykoff's case, it's center and guard, and the 6-6, 320-pound mid-termer continues to turn heads early.

Across the board with the 1s, your usual first-team has consisted of Kenyon Green at left tackle, Akinola Ogunbiyi and Layden Robinson at guard and third-year tackle Blake Trainor on the right side.

• One area of concern when it comes to the offensive line could be when the Ags are trying to get the young quarterbacks and receivers a good look behind the second-team OL. The Ags will welcome a half dozen new faces to the practice field once fall camp begins (five true freshmen including injured mid-termer Trey Zuhn plus Tennessee transfer Jahmir Johnson) but for now, the group is fairly thin and the second-team unit features virtually nothing in the way of playing experience. When that group is lining up against a loaded A&M first-team d-line, I suspect things could get problematic for the offense, which is all the more reason why I believe you'll see Fisher regularly shuffle his QBs when it comes to first- and second-team reps.

• Did I say quarterback? Okay, we'll talk about the very, very early stages of the fight for QB1, but there's not much to report. A good first few days for Haynes King, and I believe that he has the potential to really change the way things have looked at the position at any point during Fisher's first three years at the helm. He's just a different player than Kellen Mond and is extremely dynamic as a running threat. Mond was a real problem for opposing defenses in the designed run game and King will be as well, but where Haynes really opens eyes and causes the defense issues is when he scrambles to make things happen. He's done that a few times already in practice and has shown that he can outrun the angles of even some of the Ags' faster defenders. 

As you'd expect, there is going to be a lot more to talk about once the Ags start working into some full pads, 11-on-11 situations and conduct their first full scrimmage (something Jimbo Fisher has always placed a great deal of value on when evaluating his QBs) on Saturday.

• Linebacker is a position that Mike Elko is probably feeling good about coming out of week one. It's one of those positions that you're going to know a hell of a lot more about once the pads go on and we start seeing things like inside drill and full-contact scrimmages, but the Ags are in a good spot with a returning sixth-year vet (Aaron Hansford) as one of two starters and a junior in Andre White who has looked very good throughout the off-season. Prior to spring ball, I talked about what a big month of April it was going to be for emerging youngsters like Chris Russell, Edgerrin Cooper (my pick to click) and Antonio Doyle, but one of the guys I didn't mention who had a solid first week of work outside of the first-team is third-year man Tarian Lee. Tyler Santucci has a lot to work with as he looks to round out the playing rotation at linebacker, and any of the guys mentioned could push.

• With Bobby Brown gone and Derick Hunter making the move to offense at right tackle, there's an opportunity for playing time on the inside, as Mike Elko and Elijah Robinson typically play two-deep every Saturday. The guy who looks most equipped to force his way into action may be second-year man Isaiah Raikes. The 320-plus pounder is moving dudes around and beating blocks in the early going, so he'll certainly be one to watch once the pads go on and the Ags attempt to slow down a potent ground game in practice.

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Lia Musgrave, TexAgs
Thin at TE early on, the Aggies are eager to get Baylor Cupp back on the field this spring.

• As I said prior to camp, Baylor Cupp was slowed by an injury suffered during the off-season. He's expected back in the near future, but the tight end position is very light without All-SEC starter Jalen Wydermyer, Cupp and Blake Smith (the redshirt freshman is out this spring as he continues to recover from last September's knee surgery). When Baylor returns to action, he should get all kinds of work with the first-team offense, something that will pay big dividends in the fall when Fisher wants to put two pass-catching weapons on the field at the position, both of whom stand better than 6-4.

• I've had a couple of longtime insiders tell me this spring that the Aggie secondary looks as good physically as any unit A&M has fielded since joining the SEC (and certainly dating back long before that). Jaylon Jones is a manchild at corner, and Myles Jones looks like you'd expect a 6-3 (and nearly 6-4) cover man entering year five would look. Veteran cover man Elijah Blades has picked off a couple of passes in the early going, and true freshman Deuce Harmon had a strong first few days. As anyone who follows recruiting closely knows, Harmon is just a tough, football-playing dude, and he's looked good so far, even during some extended time with the 1s when Myles Jones was dinged up during one of the practices. Fellow true freshman Tyreek Chappell has also jumped out with his combination of speed, athleticism and on-field attitude. Two impressive youngsters who should still be in high school.

At safety, Demani Richardson simply doesn't get enough run when talking about the team's star players. Injuries slowed his progress some as a sophomore, but he's looked like a guy primed for his best season in Maroon & White. Antonio Johnson is another safety who has turned heads during the first few practices.

 

 

 

What the f*** is a “meaningful pass rep”?!

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AntsInMyPants
AntsInMyPants

A&M is playing the NIL game smarter than everyone else. You can bitch and moan all you want, but they are ahead of us. Our OL package is us (finally) trying to catch up.

closetojumping
closetojumping

I talked to two people separately that are connected at ATM.  I know this will sound unbelievable because it is so predictable, including us saying it a bunch here, but apparently they really did

Chuckie Finster
Chuckie Finster

I think my favorite part of all of this is the unquestioned agreement that the dude who threw three interceptions vs. Kent State would have solved all of their problems.

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Scholz

Scholz 12301

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So many established stars. 😂


Maroon Goons:

A) Is there anything aggy can’t dork up? Mein Gott im Himmel.

B) Is it me or was that some premium turd polishing re this group? Seems like he mentioned a lot of true freshmen as well as multi year players who’ve never been good enough to start. Guess it’s good that King can scramble.

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Hornlover

Hornlover 8916

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10 minutes ago, Scholz said:

So many established stars. 😂


Maroon Goons:

A) Is there anything aggy can’t dork up? Mein Gott im Himmel.

B) Is it me or was that some premium turd polishing re this group? Seems like he mentioned a lot of true freshmen as well as multi year players who’ve never been good enough to start. Guess it’s good that King can scramble.

I'm guessing the OL will look like this (from left to right):


Cube, Cube, Bread, Cube, Bread

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Fud

Fud 9697

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13 hours ago, Getafix said:

 

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image.thumb.png.c1a60b95d29302b68315c26062e72165.png

 

 

The main competition is Clemson, not A&M. Although a third team jumping into the race thus making it a little more difficult for OU is welcome, even if it's A&M

He's likely going to OU though

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Hiphopopotamos

Hiphopopotamos 21158

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2 hours ago, Elmer_Fudd said:

Anything from the aggy scrimmage?  Is King pretty much running with 1's?  I've seen some chatter that ol' Tarp is saying King hasn't looked all that great.  Is Looch saying everyone from Austin to Tuscaloosa and in between is scared to death?

Hard to believe the kid that couldn't throw the ball 35 yards is having a tough time in the step up in competition.

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Getafix

Getafix 29374

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Tarp on the offense

Spoiler

Quarterbacks....I watched the three quarterbacks for about five minutes in drills and then then again when they were throwing routes to the individual receivers. Purely from a passing standpoint, Zach Calzada looked good in terms of how quickly the ball comes out of his hand and the velocity he generates on his short throws. He's got a quick release but I'm not sure that his footwork is as consistent. Nonetheless, purely in terms of arm strength and accuracy, he can really place the ball.

Haynes King doesn't quite generate the same power as Calzada when he throws the ball. He's also less consistent in that he'll put a ball in the deep and intermediate zones right it where he needs to be and then miss the next time. He's a little quicker getting the ball up shoulder height, setting his feet, and turning into his throw. King is probably a little more thoughtful and measured in everything he does.

Eli Stowers has more of an elongated, overhand delivery at this point and a taller release point. You're going to see him start to shorten these items and hold the ball higher as he grows into his career at A&M.

Ball security as opposed to athleticism is going to decide who starts.

Running backs...Isaiah Spiller is obviously down some weight and looks quicker than he ever has in his career in Aggieland. He's more fluid, especially with his feet. He really picked them up and set them down quickly in a lateral movement drill and has quicker cuts and better bend. The remainder of the group (Deondre Jackson, Darvon Hubbard, and Earnest Crownover) are best at one thing and then lacking in another aspect compared to everyone else. It's going to be hard to say who is going to come out of this group as the third best back of the spring but Hubbard probably showed more.

Tight end...Max Wright ran with the ones and the remaining guys were walk ons.

Offensive line....You've had a number of injuries here and so the first five were (left to right) Kenyon Green, Akinola Ogunbiyi, Matthew Wykoff, Layden Robinson, and Blake Trainor. There were only three backups and two of them were walk ons. Robinson is one massive guy. Ogunbiyi has slimmed down as evidenced by the fact that he weighs 305 on the spring roster. He's lost the weight that high school seniors carry with them when they go to college and you know that he had to work really hard do that. Wykoff moves like someone who's best suited to play on the interior. He's got a big base and hopefully he'll get the season to spend sometime in the weight room.

Wideouts....the veterans (Chase Lane, Hezekiah Jones, and Ainias Smith) are ahead of everyone else right now. They really know how to plant and cut quickly which gives them the ability to get open. Moose Muhammad is probably the best of the rest at his cuts, etc. Demond Demas is a gifted guy who can get upfield fast but he is going to have to learn how to come out of his breaks more quickly and not round off his routes so much.

 

 

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blacklab

blacklab 12049

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49 minutes ago, Getafix said:

Haynes King doesn't quite generate the same power as Calzada when he throws the ball.

That's probably the nicest I've ever seen someone say "he has a week arm". Of course anyone who saw the ducks he put up in high school or the bama game would know this but somehow the aggy borg is just now realizing it.

51 minutes ago, Getafix said:

Tight end...Max Wright ran with the ones and the remaining guys were walk ons.

One healthy TE, who has blown out both knees in the past, in the position that's the most important in the jimbo offense. 

 

53 minutes ago, Getafix said:

He's more fluid, especially with his feet.

I've always thought it's more important that RB's are fluid with their hands. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

55 minutes ago, Getafix said:

(OL) ... There were only three backups and two of them were walk ons.

Funny how we've been talking about this for a while and they are just now realizing this might not be the same OL as last year.

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Bevo14

Bevo14 8468

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1 hour ago, Getafix said:

Tarp on the offense

  Reveal hidden contents

Quarterbacks....I watched the three quarterbacks for about five minutes in drills and then then again when they were throwing routes to the individual receivers. Purely from a passing standpoint, Zach Calzada looked good in terms of how quickly the ball comes out of his hand and the velocity he generates on his short throws. He's got a quick release but I'm not sure that his footwork is as consistent. Nonetheless, purely in terms of arm strength and accuracy, he can really place the ball.

Haynes King doesn't quite generate the same power as Calzada when he throws the ball. He's also less consistent in that he'll put a ball in the deep and intermediate zones right it where he needs to be and then miss the next time. He's a little quicker getting the ball up shoulder height, setting his feet, and turning into his throw. King is probably a little more thoughtful and measured in everything he does.

Eli Stowers has more of an elongated, overhand delivery at this point and a taller release point. You're going to see him start to shorten these items and hold the ball higher as he grows into his career at A&M.

Ball security as opposed to athleticism is going to decide who starts.

Running backs...Isaiah Spiller is obviously down some weight and looks quicker than he ever has in his career in Aggieland. He's more fluid, especially with his feet. He really picked them up and set them down quickly in a lateral movement drill and has quicker cuts and better bend. The remainder of the group (Deondre Jackson, Darvon Hubbard, and Earnest Crownover) are best at one thing and then lacking in another aspect compared to everyone else. It's going to be hard to say who is going to come out of this group as the third best back of the spring but Hubbard probably showed more.

Tight end...Max Wright ran with the ones and the remaining guys were walk ons.

Offensive line....You've had a number of injuries here and so the first five were (left to right) Kenyon Green, Akinola Ogunbiyi, Matthew Wykoff, Layden Robinson, and Blake Trainor. There were only three backups and two of them were walk ons. Robinson is one massive guy. Ogunbiyi has slimmed down as evidenced by the fact that he weighs 305 on the spring roster. He's lost the weight that high school seniors carry with them when they go to college and you know that he had to work really hard do that. Wykoff moves like someone who's best suited to play on the interior. He's got a big base and hopefully he'll get the season to spend sometime in the weight room.

Wideouts....the veterans (Chase Lane, Hezekiah Jones, and Ainias Smith) are ahead of everyone else right now. They really know how to plant and cut quickly which gives them the ability to get open. Moose Muhammad is probably the best of the rest at his cuts, etc. Demond Demas is a gifted guy who can get upfield fast but he is going to have to learn how to come out of his breaks more quickly and not round off his routes so much.

 

 

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Getafix

Getafix 29374

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14 minutes ago, blacklab said:

Funny how we've been talking about this for a while and they are just now realizing this might not be the same OL as last year.

 

Don't worry - all concerns will be put to rest at the Spring Game!

Or ... maybe ... 

 

Spoiler

 

image.thumb.png.445ff3cb588ac1bc87b71f3f2ae9c18c.png

 

 

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closetojumping

closetojumping 65246

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ATM’s schedule is indeed hot garbage. 

They open with the mighty Kent State, then travel to CU and then play New Mexico at home. The other non-con game is in November against the mighty Prairie View ATM whatevers. That is as big of a gimme non-conference slate as one could ever dream. 

They are neutral against Arkansas, go to Missouri, and get So Carolina at home. Auburn and SC have new coaches, and Missouri, MSU, Ole Miss and Arky all have second year coaches in rebuild mode. 

They’re a fluke performance against Bama and a win against a dumpster fire program in LSU away from having a fucking shot. I guess it’s going to be interesting to see how things hold up offensively without a 4 year starter at QB. 

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Elmer_Fudd

Elmer_Fudd 22957

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I'll go ahead and predict that they'll "aggy up" a game or 2 this year.  You don't have a new starter at every OL position and expect easy sailing, especially when the ones you lost weren't any good until the last 2/3 of the final year they played having 30-40+ starts between them.  Throw in a new QB and yeah, I see some struggle.  They should be pretty good defensively, but man, looking at the starting lineup, they lose around 9 starters on D' after this season.

IMO @ Ole Miss and @ Mizzou after the Bama' game could be ones to watch.  I think LSU will get them in Baton Rouge as well, they return the entire team.

Not sure if the Pirate can pull off a win in CS, but Arnett and that D' may keep it close.  Auburn?  Who knows.  Same with Arky.  SC and Colorado are trash.

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Fud

Fud 9697

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A&M was old on the OL last year, and four of those guys are gone, although they’re adding a starting OT from Tennessee. Their offense should take a step back, especially at QB. Their defense should pretty good due to the DL and a bunch of returning experience at DB and LB. 

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Elmer_Fudd

Elmer_Fudd 22957

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44 minutes ago, Fud said:

One of their insiders who was at the practice thinks that they’ll be handing it off a lot because the passing game doesn’t look good 

Seen a thread on Texags of a few who claimed to be in attendance.  One actually said King was still throwing "ducks".  Also said lots of drops by WR's, mostly nothing but short routes.  Another flat out said QB's were not good.

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