Louisville Football Open Practice Report: Practice Two

Another open practice started this morning and we got another pretty dull day from the team. There weren’t many mistakes outside of the offense that was wrong a few times. We did see some drops from the receivers, but nothing that was alarming.

Defense won the day in the team segments, which is not abnormal. I wouldn’t say that anyone stands out as much better than anyone else from an individual or position perspective, which leads to the boringness of things. I think it’s a positive because it doesn’t have any glaring weaknesses. This was not always the case.

VIOLATION

• I know it sounds stupid, but Jack Plummer really looks like a quarterback. There is nothing spectacular about him and no real problems have arisen so far. He and Jamari Thrash also seem to have a very good connection. I’ve only seen one throw that didn’t hit the target between the pair.
• Brock Domann and Evan Conley looked much better today. Both guys hit receivers more consistently and seemed to have better timing. Khalib Johnson continues to throw the ball downfield with throws. I would like to see some improvements by the spring game.
• All runners have great speed, but Maurice Turner was the guy who looked a step faster today. There’s not much to learn about these guys in practice, but Turner and Jawhar Jordan shared reps with the first group today.
• William Fowles started the day thinking he could be the third starter at receiver, but he had a couple of mistakes and ended up missing a few opportunities to make standout plays.
• Jamari Thrash and Kevin Coleman continued to stand out above the rest of the receiver group. Ahmari Huggins-Bruce was the victim of some off goal passes, but he hasn’t played as many games as Coleman in the slot.
• Garick McGee had coin flips separated from the outside receivers during some drills today. Coleman, AHB and Cataurus Hicks all ran with the slots.
• Right now, I’d say the third wide receiver spot is wide open. Jimmy Calloway is getting the first reps right now, but I could see Fowles, Chris Bell (once healthy) or Jalen Thompson (also once healthy) getting the snap.
• The tight ends had a rough day in the whole group. Jeff Brohm started the practice having to fix tight ends when they misaligned, and he ended the practice by yelling at them when the problem persisted.
• The forward line looked better today with a full court. They opened up some big holes for runners that got them to the third level. They had problems with the pass blocking, but I think it will get better as the guys start to adjust.

DEFENSE

• The defensive line was without Dez Tell today as he practiced on the sideline. It didn’t seem serious to me, but of course I don’t know any details.
• Tawfiq Thomas slid with the first group at nose tackle, while Jermayne Lole moved to defensive tackle. That’s 630 pounds for a defense that we haven’t seen here in Louisville. Some SEC schools don’t even have it available.
• Stephen Herron put on a spirited performance against the offensive line that drew a reaction from the fans. He beat every lineman who stepped up against him, and had a particularly impressive play against Isaiah Reed that left him standing still and absolutely barking at his block. The rest of the defensive line strengthened after that.
• Gilbert Frierson ran with the first group today in place of TJ Quinn. This seems to be the place with the most competition this spring. Frierson got his hands on another pass in coverage today that could have been picked off. He did the same on Tuesday.
• The only other notable thing I saw from the defense was KJ Cloyd and Jackson Hamilton’s shooting openings to get into the backfield. Cloyd had a loss in the first game of the live hitting series.
• Antonio Watts moved to the nickel/rover position behind Ben Perry and had a nice hit on one play. I also think he did well in coverage.
• Jarvis Brownlee had at least two interceptions today and looks like the veteran corner for this team, which is a great sign. Going back to Charles Gaines, it’s been evident when guys turn a corner and start showing dominant play in practice. Not to say Brownlee didn’t have some tough times, but he challenged every one of his receivers and made some plays.
• It was a pretty uneventful day to day, but MJ Griffin has looked very good to me. He’s in the right spot every game I’ve watched, and he’s been exceptional in coverage when the team plays one-on-one. Griffin, Perry and Ashton Gillotte are still the guys that give me the most confidence out of the defensemen. They just seem to embrace the new defense the best.
• I missed special teams on Tuesday, but we got an extensive look at players today with Brady Hodges and Brock Travelstead sharing reps. Hodges took the first snaps but Travelstead had the best sire. He pounded at least three punches that drove the returner back to score. They all had great distance but also really good hang time. Travelstead hasn’t gotten on the field outside of kickoffs, but if he can continue to be consistent with his hitting, I could see him winning the job.

NOTES

• Quincey Riley, Jadon Thompson and Josh Minkins resumed practice on the sidelines. Riley ended up returning points and practicing corners later in practice, but did not join any of the live team segments.
• I didn’t see Pierce Clarkson until the end of practice, but he’s no longer in boots, he’s wearing one of those sandal-like clothes that people are put in before they can get back into their shoes.
• TJ Capers was the only recruit I could pick. It helps that he wore a custom Louisville jersey with his name on it, but he’s also physically built like a guy who’s already ready to play. Steve Wiltfong at 247 posted a few guests from this weekend but I’ll also have a list of highlights and analysis soon.
• The different approaches of the coaching staff interest me, and maybe only me. Steve Ellis and Ron English are very loud and shouty. A lot. Mark Ivey and Mark Hagan are much quieter, but are also just as talkative. Each play is followed by walkthrough, with Ivey spending a lot of time today focusing on Stanquan Clark. On the other hand, the offensive coaches are all pretty calm. Richard Owens voiced a little a couple of times, but the whole group got close to the players to give instructions.