No full notebook from today's practice because we weren't able to talk to any assistant coaches, but here's a few tidbits:
Practice appeared a bit more physical than usual this morning. Barry Odom called it a "thudded practice." In 11-on-11 situations, the team ran full speed and defenders could hit ball carriers, but tried not to wrap them up and take them to the ground. A few times, that rule was not exactly followed. Aubrey Miller Jr. laid a thunderous hit on Dawson Downing on a run up the middle. Walter Palmore burst through the offensive line on one play and nearly tackled the running back before he could take a handoff — reminiscent of Jadeveon Clowney against Michigan, but a bit less violent. Terez Hall also had a big hit, and afterward he pointed at the reporters present and yelled "I know you all saw that."
Odom said the main focus of today's practice was not just 11-on-11 scrimmaging, but mimicking specific situations. The first team offense practiced against the first-team defense in a two-minute drill, various third down situations (depending on the distance) and some short-yardage situations.
Odom said the team scrimmaged during Saturday's practice, which was closed to the media. He said the coaching staff "put some guys in some different spots." He said those players generally responded well. He also said that the team escaped the scrimmage with no significant injuries. As has been the case all spring, A.J. Harris did not participate in practice Tuesday, while several players went through drills but did not participate fully in the contact portions.
Practice appeared a bit more physical than usual this morning. Barry Odom called it a "thudded practice." In 11-on-11 situations, the team ran full speed and defenders could hit ball carriers, but tried not to wrap them up and take them to the ground. A few times, that rule was not exactly followed. Aubrey Miller Jr. laid a thunderous hit on Dawson Downing on a run up the middle. Walter Palmore burst through the offensive line on one play and nearly tackled the running back before he could take a handoff — reminiscent of Jadeveon Clowney against Michigan, but a bit less violent. Terez Hall also had a big hit, and afterward he pointed at the reporters present and yelled "I know you all saw that."
Odom said the main focus of today's practice was not just 11-on-11 scrimmaging, but mimicking specific situations. The first team offense practiced against the first-team defense in a two-minute drill, various third down situations (depending on the distance) and some short-yardage situations.
Odom said the team scrimmaged during Saturday's practice, which was closed to the media. He said the coaching staff "put some guys in some different spots." He said those players generally responded well. He also said that the team escaped the scrimmage with no significant injuries. As has been the case all spring, A.J. Harris did not participate in practice Tuesday, while several players went through drills but did not participate fully in the contact portions.
