Spring Training 2021

[SandySpringsJacket]

I was at practice today. There were refs participating in practice with one ref on each sideline on the line of scrimmage.. On several occasions the offensive wideouts lined up incorrectly with the WR more than a yard back and aligned evenly with the slot. In each case the ref put his arm up indicating the WR was in the backfield. Those were pass plays and the WR sprinted downfield. There was no flag thrown and no corrective communication was seen. Maybe the alignment infractions were on tape and the correction will be made later. The plays as I saw them would have been penalties.

In Spring practice as it should be there is a lot of time spent on drills. These should be done correctly with good football technique and body position (you know the old feet wide, knees bent, shoulders square stuff). There is a lot of sloppy drills going on. The emphasis seems to be on getting a lot of repetitions and not so much in doing them correctly. I personally would like t see more discipline involved in the coaching as this overall lack of attention to detail leads to unnecessary penalties..

That does not bode well but is not surprising. I would much prefer fewer reps with attention to detail.

 

[TruckStick]

Here is the thing... I cannot go through another season engaged into a team that has offensive line issues. Penalties or not. It’s got to get better this Spring.

 

[GTZachary]

It’s Year 3.

Has nothing to do with the year. 3rd practice of year 20 would be sloppy, for any coach.

 

[00Burdell]

I was at practice today. There were refs participating in practice with one ref on each sideline on the line of scrimmage.. On several occasions the offensive wideouts lined up incorrectly with the WR more than a yard back and aligned evenly with the slot. In each case the ref put his arm up indicating the WR was in the backfield. Those were pass plays and the WR sprinted downfield. There was no flag thrown and no corrective communication was seen. Maybe the alignment infractions were on tape and the correction will be made later. The plays as I saw them would have been penalties.

In Spring practice as it should be there is a lot of time spent on drills. These should be done correctly with good football technique and body position (you know the old feet wide, knees bent, shoulders square stuff). There is a lot of sloppy drills going on. The emphasis seems to be on getting a lot of repetitions and not so much in doing them correctly. I personally would like t see more discipline involved in the coaching as this overall lack of attention to detail leads to unnecessary penalties..

I had the privilege of having two world-class martial arts instructors. Both said the exact same thing - practice does NOT make perfect - Perfect practice makes perfect. I'd say there are about 1,000 years of experience behind that sage wisdom.

If we continue to overlook dumb infractions then why bother to have officials present? I guess we'll see in the fall if this is a problem or not. But I must say, I don't recall a single penalty last year over a WR too far off the line. Let's see how it plays out, I guess.

 

[SteamWhistle]

Clayton for me.

Did White and Harris get reps?

 

[SteamWhistle]

I still hope Yates is being given a fair shot. Make Sims earn it every year.

 

[boger2337]

Did White and Harris get reps?

Yeah, Harris looked good.

 

[slugboy]

That does not bode well but is not surprising. I would much prefer fewer reps with attention to detail.

Different coaches approach that in different way. I’ll say, in support of what you’re saying, that Urban Meyer was infamous for stopping practice and drilling if he saw something “as minor as” an offensive linemen put his hand down turned incorrectly. Saban is also known for the same kind of meticulous, almost OCD, level of attention to detail.
A public practice might get treated differently than a private one, but from what I’ve seen from the last few years makes me think that this team needs tighter control early in the season to get details set right—especially when they’re still practicing in shorts.

 

[boger2337]

I still hope Yates is being given a fair shot. Make Sims earn it every year.

Yates is being given the shots, but man... it is blatant he is behind Sims. If yesterday was any indication to the future Yates is a sideline coach. I hate it for Yates, but he really had to be Kyler Murray, Russell Wilson 2.0. His height and lack of arm are just a huge hill for him to climb.

 

[boger2337]

Different coaches approach that in different way. I’ll say, in support of what you’re saying, that Urban Meyer was infamous for stopping practice and drilling if he saw something “as minor as” an offensive linemen put his hand down turned incorrectly. Saban is also known for the same kind of meticulous, almost OCD, level of attention to detail.
A public practice might get treated differently than a private one, but from what I’ve seen from the last few years makes me think that this team needs tighter control early in the season to get details set right—especially when they’re still practicing in shorts.

Agree.

If you're not practicing you craft correctly, you're actually getting worse.

 

[4shotB]

Different coaches approach that in different way. I’ll say, in support of what you’re saying, that Urban Meyer was infamous for stopping practice and drilling if he saw something “as minor as” an offensive linemen put his hand down turned incorrectly. Saban is also known for the same kind of meticulous, almost OCD, level of attention to detail.
A public practice might get treated differently than a private one, but from what I’ve seen from the last few years makes me think that this team needs tighter control early in the season to get details set right—especially when they’re still practicing in shorts.

I have learned from teaching HS math that teaching concepts is fairly easy but worthless if the basic arithmetic and fundamentals aren't in place. The devil is indeed in the details. It is more common to see a basic mathematical or algebraic error being the root cause of an incorrect solution vs. failure to grasp the concept or idea being taught. I also have come to believe that sticking to an agenda is not as important as constant practice and repetition of basic skills for some students. So, we spend time on basics if required. Only when those are mastered should on layer on more advanced problems. I am not sure but have to believe that the same philosophy would and should apply to coaching a sport.

 

[Jacketfish]

Did White and Harris get reps?

I don’t think White has enrolled yet.

 

[SteamWhistle]

I don’t think White has enrolled yet.

Yep I shot Rod a DM this morning said he’s finishing up a degree first.

 

[smokey_wasp]

Yates is being given the shots, but man... it is blatant he is behind Sims. If yesterday was any indication to the future Yates is a sideline coach. I hate it for Yates, but he really had to be Kyler Murray, Russell Wilson 2.0. His height and lack of arm are just a huge hill for him to climb.

I think he would have been great in the old O. If he plays it right, he can probably graduate with 2 years eligibility left.

 

[SOWEGA Jacket]

Doesn't matter. We are 3 practices into spring practice. If you were expecting a well oiled machine after 3 practices you are setting yourself up for disappointment.

I don’t know man. You’d think after looking not so good last year that our QB and WR’s may have put in some off season pitch and catch workouts together. I see high school players at fields every weekend putting in work. I’m afraid of what we may see this season.

 

[JacketOff]

I don’t know man. You’d think after looking not so good last year that our QB and WR’s may have put in some off season pitch and catch workouts together. I see high school players at fields every weekend putting in work. I’m afraid of what we may see this season.

“Pitch and catch” workouts are a lot different than an 11 on 11 scrimmage. It’s not like they haven’t been on a field since November. It’s no different than spring training in baseball. It just takes time to get fully back into the swing of things when you go from individual workouts and small group practices to full scrimmages. And then from scrimmages to game-like preparation. You don’t just turn it on and everything is going 100% overnight.

 

[Sheboygan]

I would really be curious if other teams are having issues with WRs not knowing how to line up in spring practice. Is that something an "experienced" -
i.e. not a new transfer to the position- would simply forget in less than 6 months ??? I seriously doubt it. It sounds to me like a lack of focus, something that seemed to plague us
a lot last year. If competition is king as they proclaim, then the person simply not knowing where to line up should be BTL, IMO.

 

[MGTfan]

I don’t know man. You’d think after looking not so good last year that our QB and WR’s may have put in some off season pitch and catch workouts together. I see high school players at fields every weekend putting in work. I’m afraid of what we may see this season.

Do you know that they didn’t?

 

[SWATlien]

I still hope Yates is being given a fair shot. Make Sims earn it every year.

Lol.

 

[green&gold]

Let’s just fire Collins now. He doesn’t practice like Saban, so enough is enough! Maybe we can have someone on staff that worked with Saban, then maybe things would be different.