2015 Fall Camp Scrimmage I Thoughts

Let me start off by saying I was completely unprepared today. I didn't bring any paper with me so I ended up jotting notes in the margins of my most recent follow-up from the Doctor. Because of that, I don't really know when a lot of these plays happened, instead I will just talk about the 1 Offense vs 2 Defense, 3 Offense vs 3 defense, etc. First for some injuries. Some of the noteworthy injuries were Nicholas with the hand injury, Wade Hansen was in a boot, Dooley didn't play and neither did Cam Phillips. The format of the scrimmage was typical for VT. They mixed things up each drive with matchups and started the offense at different places on the field.

1st Offense Vs 1st Defense:

The first team offense put up one very nice drive. On 1st down Brewer hit Ford on a perfectly timed 10-yard hitch. Facyson had terrific coverage but the timing was just too good. Ford was able to turn up field and make a few moves to pick up about 35-yards on the play. The offense immediately came to the line and quick snapped the ball twice running over the left side. Edmunds picked up 6-yards on back-to-back carries for another 1st down. The left side of the OL got huge push on both of these plays. On the following 1st down they wanted to hit Cline on a double move but Clarke hit Brewer as he threw it for a sack. It is worth noting that throughout the scrimmage Clarke blitzed on the edge the majority of the plays he was in and easily had 3+ sacks. On 2nd and long we tried an outside zone to the short side of the field and it got blown up playside. McMillian tried to cut it back but Mihota was there for the 5-yard TFL. On third and long Brewer tripped stepping up in the pocket. He had some space but would not have picked up the 1st down. Slye missed the FG attempt.

2nd Offense vs 1st Defense:

On the first drive the defense started out with a sack. Clarke came free and got to Motley with Mihota also coming from the backside. On 2nd down Motley hit C.J. Carroll on a slant from the slot for an excellent throw-and-catch for about 12-yards. After a penalty on the offense, it was 3rd and 10. Again it was Clarke. This time he completely ran over the RB in pass protection for another sack... I believe it was McMillian. This forced a punt.

The second drive opened up with Ekanem winning his battle up front and eating up McMillian for a 4-yard loss on a jet sweep. On 2nd down Mihota made a quick inside move for a sack. He did a great job with his hands and feet on this play. On 3rd and 20 Mihota was offside and then Clarke again hit Motley on the release. They redid the play and made it 3rd and 15. Motley had good protection this time but Mihota was able to keep working and force a scramble. Motley was able to pick up about 10 yards on the run and give them a chance at a FG. Slye DRILLED a 56-yard FG that would have been good from 65.

The third drive had Motley in at QB and he hit Ford on a 55-yard fly route against Fuller for a TD but the play was blown dead. Even though some of the guys up front slowed for the whistle, I don't think Ford or Fuller knew it. Still I am not positive that Fuller didn't slow up, though it didn't look to be the case. Later on McMillian had an 11-yard run and almost avoided Fuller at the last defender for a TD. At one point defensively they subbed in Huelskamp and McKinnon at LB and Alexander even got 1st team reps. On one play Huelskamp and McKinnon combined for a sack and Alexander completely blanketed Bucky Hodges on press coverage.

1st Offense vs 2nd Defense:

On 1st down Coleman picked up 3. The play was very well blocked but Adonis Alexander flew up from Rover and made a big hit. Alexander played Rover and FS in the scrimmage and looked good at both positions. On 2nd down the offense went play-actin boot and hit Hodges on the drag route. Donovan Riley flew up to take out Hodges legs in the open field for a short gain. On 3rd down the OL had great pass protection but Malleck ran his out route one-yard short of the sticks and the offense was forced to punt.

They started the second drive an the opposing 30-yard line. Edmunds gained a yard on 1st down before going down on a big hit from Dahman McKinnon, who had a great scrimmage. On 2nd and 9 Brewer hit Sam Rogers in the flats for a 9-yard gain and first down. On the very next play Brewer recognized the blitz and hit Bucky Hodges on a 5-yard hitch. Hodges was able to turn upfield and score for a 20-yard TD.

On the third drive Brewer tripped over his feet on a handoff exchange for a four-yard loss. On second down Brewer missed a wide open Isiah Ford who had toasted Donovan Riley on a post pattern. He overthrew the pass which, with the way Ford was running today, should almost be impossible. Cline did get beat across his face and give up pressure as the throw was being made. On third and 14 pressure forced Brewer to scramble and has able to pick up 9 yards. This time Slye was wide-ride on a 52-yard FG.

2nd Offense vs 1st Defense:

Lawson at QB on this drive. On 1st down Mihota was able to string out a rollout (Although it wasn't perfect) and it allowed AM to make the sack for a big loss. On 2nd down Ekanem tackled McClease for a short gain setting up 3rd and long. On third down Lawson tried to hit Knowles on a back shoulder throw to the opposite hash mark. I think this was the best throw any QB made all day against brilliant coverage by Facyson. Knowles was unable to come up with the would be 1st down near the sideline.

The next drive also had Lawson at QB. On first down Lawson threw a perfect pass under pressure to C.J. Carroll right on the hash mark for a 25+ yard gain. On the very next play Lawson kept it on a zone read and I'm willing to bet that if he didn't have a yellow jersey on, this would have been 6. Only one defender was anywhere near being in position on this play. After the gain of 6 Lawson tried to a pass in the flats and Stroman nearly made a one-handed INT on what would have certainly been a pick-6. On 3rd and 4 Lawson again kept it on a zone read for a short gain. Slye was able to make the 41-yard FG.

There were a few other matchups that I might talk more about later. 3s went against 3s and 1s went against 3s as well. To keep it somewhat short I will just end there. As for the individual players, I will touch on a few.

Mihota is going to be a big-time player. Good in almost every area and never stops working. He did get cut one time and on another play did not keep full contain on a roll-out.

Clarke was lighting fast coming off the edge and the extra weight had made him more physical on contact. It was interesting how much he came off the edge today.

Settle was very big and very tired for most of the scrimmage. He did come down with a tipped INT and almost took it to the house which had every player and all the fans laughing hysterically. On that particular play he either gave no effort on the pass rush or he had screen/spy responsibility (I hope this was the case) either way, he ended up dropping back a few yards and snagging the tipped pass. As tired as he had looked when he caught the ball he had a huge speed burst. If I had to make a decision right now at this point in the season I would redshirt him. This is coming from one of his biggest fans.

Sobczak has impressed me every time I have seen him on the field. He has a huge motor and just makes plays. He can get penetration on running plays and create pressure with his pass rush. If we need to have a big body that can come in and get PT, at this point Sobczak has the edge over Settle.

Lawson started out great but had some issues as the scrimmage went on. His biggest problem right now is ball handling. He struggled some with his fakes and with his reads/keeps in the zone running game. The arm talent is DEFINITELY there and if he didn't have a yellow jersey on, he would probably have broken two of his runs for long TDs. I would NOT redshirt Lawson based on what I have seen and I will discuss that further if anyone would like to.

I am not positive that the LB situation is settled. We know what we have in Clarke but Huelskamp and McKinnon can really play, as can Lydon. AM is going to be pushed very hard to keep his position.

Facyson is definitely healthy now. He is actually noticeably faster than I remember him.

Alexander is probably going to start this year at some point. He can play FS, Rover and CB, although I don't see us needing him at CB.

Nijman has great feet but his hands are not very good right now. That speaks great in terms of potential as good feet normally can't be learned but good hands is definitely an area where he will improve a lot.

McMillian was the victim of some pretty tough play calling and blocking on most of his carries. On the one play he had space he looked very fast and elusive, nearly avoiding Fuller for a TD.

Peoples was solid and does a very good job catching the ball out of the backfield.

McClease was hard to tackle out there. Quick, decisive cuts and stronger than you would think.

Edmunds was just ok for me. Didn't see as much burst as I was hoping for.

Coleman didn't get a lot of carries but we know what we can count on from him.

Osterloh got a lot of 1st team reps at RT and did a pretty solid job.

Teller is a monster and I am not worried about Gallo at all.

Ford looks like the best player on the entire team. He is noticeably bigger and stronger but actually looks way faster than last year. Every team we play is going to have a difficult time covering him.

Malleck looked healthy and fluid, as did Cline. Hodges is still going to be a difficult matchup.

Overall, I feel pretty good about the defense. I think we have some competition at one LB spot and we also are going to have competition at Rover. Chuck Clark should be fine at FS and it is great having a healthy Facyson back. I love the depth on the DL with Baron, Sobczak, Williams and Mihota. Not getting to see Dooley somewhat tempers my expectations here but I know we have 3 DEs and about 5 DTs that can contribute for sure.

Offensively, the line played better than the numbers would show. I really like the interior guys but we will have some struggles with pass protection as a unit. We should be a better run blocking than pass blocking group. We still haven't found a third receiver. If you go by this scrimmage, Carroll looked liked the third best right now but I'm not sure he is big enough to be out there right now.

Slye drilled some very long FGs and pushed a few wide. Hughes was average punting the ball during the scrimmage but then when he was just kicking by himself he was DRILLING massive kicks every time.

As most people here know depth at OT, DE, WR are the biggest concerns this season.

Sorry for all the typos and how jumbled everything is, just wanted to get something out there pretty quick.