Scrimmage Notes

[cmhatter]

http://www.tboblogs.com/index.php/sports/comments/saturdays-scrimmage/

University of South Florida coach Skip Holtz was pleased with Saturday’s scrimmage, but knows there is a lot of work to be done before the opener against Stony Brook on Sept. 4.

“I don’t think we’re consistent enough as a football team right now to be where we want to be. I’m grateful that we have every day between now and the opening game of the year to get ready,†Holtz said. “We’re going to need it. We’re going to have to have a great summer. These guys are going to have to do an awful lot on their own for us to get to where we want to be.â€

MURRAY MAKING A MOVE: With senior RB Mo Plancher (hamstring) sitting out Saturday, sophomore Demetris Murray used the opportunity to showcase his talent.

“Murray is running the ball extremely hard. He’s doing some good things. I think he’s been a bright spot, definitely,†Holtz said. “I think he’s getting better and better. He’s showing some toughness and being physical. He’s getting to the point where he can be an every down back, and as a young player that’s a nice thing to have.â€

LINDSEY LEARNING: Sophomore Lindsey Lamar, a former running back, has settled nicely into his new position at receiver.

“He’s doing a nice job picking it all up,†Holtz said. “I think his role will continue to increase because with his speed and athleticism we’re going to have to find some ways to get him the ball in space.â€

Offensive coordinator Todd Fitch agrees.

“In terms of our skilled athletes, he’s the one that has a little juice and will give us a chance to make some big plays,†Fitch said.

B.J. COMING ALONG: Sophomore QB B.J. Daniels, who had surgery on his left (non-throwing) shoulder in February, is learning his role in the new offense.

“You throw it all at him and see how much he can absorb, then pull back a little bit,†Holtz said. “B.J.’s got to continue to play in the system. I don’t know how much freedom B.J. had before … but he just needs to be able to take what the defense gives him and let some people around him make some plays.

“I’m taking probably about 80 percent of the offense from a year ago out of this spring, which was B.J. running around making some things happen.â€

GETTING BETTER: With the Spring Game a week away, defensive coordinator Mark Snyder has been pleased with his unit’s progression.

“I think the guys are performing at a pretty high level right now to only be three weeks into this system,†he said.

Snyder’s biggest concern?

“We’re not very deep at corner, that’s the one thing that’s concerning right now,†he said. “That’s a position a young kid, a freshman, might have to come in and help us.â€

ODDS AND ENDS: With USF’s practice fields in less than ideal condition, the Bulls were grateful to be able to conduct their scrimmage at One Buc Place. “I can’t say thank you enough to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers organization for giving us the opportunity to come out here and do this on their practice fields,†Holtz said. … OL Mark Popek (hip) and Chaz Hine (foot), and TE Andreas Shields (leg) suffered injuries, but Holtz expects all three to be OK.

[slowdown]

There you have it.  A real football coach describes our 09 offense as 80% "qb make a play"

[zarnozdabull]

There you have it.  A real football coach describes our 09 offense as 80% "qb make a play"

We kind of knew this already.

[LunchTimeBully]

B.J. COMING ALONG: Sophomore QB B.J. Daniels, who had surgery on his left (non-throwing) shoulder in February, is learning his role in the new offense.

“You throw it all at him and see how much he can absorb, then pull back a little bit,†Holtz said. “B.J.’s got to continue to play in the system. I don’t know how much freedom B.J. had before … but he just needs to be able to take what the defense gives him and let some people around him make some plays.

“I’m taking probably about 80 percent of the offense from a year ago out of this spring, which was B.J. running around making some things happen.â€

This quote pretty much confirms what we already knew about our offensive "coaching" ability from last year. Matt Grothe and BJ Daniels had to play backyard sandlot football to make our "offense" move the chains the past few years. Sounds like BJ has had trouble adjusting to a real offensive system. Man it feels good to be right.

[DELdaBull]

How can you infer that BJ has had trouble adjusting to this offensive system?

[mikebeau]

that was the quote of the year

[smazza]

what is scary is that most on this board actually enjoyed and supported our prior offense

heck i said same thing 6 years ago about our offense when jewelmist was qb

[bulldozier1]

Wow, QB Pat JEWELMIST! What the hell??

[The Great 8]

How can you infer that BJ has had trouble adjusting to this offensive system?

Agreed. I missed that in the article as well.

They noted they've pulled back on BJ after dumping all sorts of information on the kid and that  makes sense. There's been similar statements about simplifying things for the entire team at various points during spring practice. It's pretty normal given that they're completely changing staffs; and amplified by the fact that they're seemingly competent on both sides.

[dabull80]

what is scary is that most on this board actually enjoyed and supported our prior offense

heck i said same thing 6 years ago about our offense when jewelmist was qb

Hey waterboy - do you have calluses on your hand from patting your self on the back ?

So far I have yet to see an offensive play in a single regular season game so IMHO I think lets see what the season shows us and go from there.