Notes from Richt after spring practice #10

Peter Ariz

Apr 11, 2017 2 min read

**Mark Richt said today that QB Jack Allison did not have a “separated shoulder”, but rather a bruised shoulder. He said that Allison is day-to-day.

**Richt’s final thoughts on the first scrimmage after reviewing film – “Offensively, very few times did we have a situation where the play didn’t have a good chance of success.”

He added, “When you see three guys, four guys messing up – that’s a scary day. Most of the time it was only one or two guys offensively.”

**Richt said he hasn’t decided yet if there is a leader after the first scrimmage. He said that freshman QB Cade Weldon got some work with the 2nd-team unit.

**Richt spoke about Travis Homer’s development at running back and explained that his biggest area of work is still needed in the blocking game.

“We spent more time pass-protecting last scrimmage than running, and that’s the thing we have to make sure he can do well,” Richt said. “I think he knows what to do and I think he knows how to do it, but you still have to be physical in pass protection. People are still kinda bull-rushing him and he’s got to learn when to cut block in a scrimmage and when to man up and strike a guy.”

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Cribby

Apr 11, 2017

Blocking is the biggest issue for a young running back.

dfagundo

Apr 11, 2017

Glad to hear it was only a bruise for Jack. Even though my dawg N'kosi is gonna come in here and snatch everyone's cookies, it's good to maintain a high level of competition in the meantime

Homer needs to jump on that Big Vaughn diet and get his weight up if he wants to run in Richt's system

https://www.instagram.com/p/BSv7EKiAIoK/

The Franchise

Apr 11, 2017

Surprised to hear Homer is struggling with being physical in pass protection considering the ferocity with which he attacked special teams.

ghost2

Apr 11, 2017

The Franchise said:
Surprised to hear Homer is struggling with being physical in pass protection considering the ferocity with which he attacked special teams.

I think lining up to block a kick or chase down a returner is a lot easier and more instinctual than learning where a blitz is coming from. On ST he can probably just fire away, whereas in protection there's more "thought" involved right now, limiting his physicality.

Cribby

Apr 11, 2017

The Franchise said:
Surprised to hear Homer is struggling with being physical in pass protection considering the ferocity with which he attacked special teams.

Most of the time it's not the physicality ( unless you're just too small). Normally it moves too fast . In pre snap not knowing the protection or where it slides to . Or just choosing the wrong man, pretty much ******** up your assignment.

More mental than physical. Which is understandable, he's pretty much a Fr. He wasn't getting many snaps as a fourth team rb.

The Franchise

Apr 11, 2017

ghost2 said:
The Franchise said:

Surprised to hear Homer is struggling with being physical in pass protection considering the ferocity with which he attacked special teams.

Click to expand...

I think lining up to block a kick or chase down a returner is a lot easier and more instinctual than learning where a blitz is coming from. On ST he can probably just fire away, whereas in protection there's more "thought" involved right now, limiting his physicality.

I agree with you and Cribby.

But unless I read it wrong, Rick made mention of manning up and being physical. I think I remember Homer being mentioned as a very high scholastic achiever, so I'd be surprised if he's struggling too much with the fairly simple mental aspects of pass blocking. Guys a lot dumber than him have picked that part up quickly.

ghost2

Apr 11, 2017

The Franchise said:
ghost2 said:

The Franchise said:

Surprised to hear Homer is struggling with being physical in pass protection considering the ferocity with which he attacked special teams.

Click to expand...

I think lining up to block a kick or chase down a returner is a lot easier and more instinctual than learning where a blitz is coming from. On ST he can probably just fire away, whereas in protection there's more "thought" involved right now, limiting his physicality.

Click to expand...

I agree with you and Cribby.

But unless I read it wrong, Rick made mention of manning up and being physical. I think I remember Homer being mentioned as a very high scholastic achiever, so I'd be surprised if he's struggling too much with the fairly simple mental aspects of pass blocking. Guys a lot dumber than him have picked that part up quickly.

I think it's less about brain power and more about reaction time. You can fire off on ST and just look for the ball. Even a split-second hesitation of "where's my guy?" in protection can mean the difference between locking a guy up or ending up on your butt.

Cribby

Apr 11, 2017

ghost2 said:
The Franchise said:

ghost2 said:

The Franchise said:

Surprised to hear Homer is struggling with being physical in pass protection considering the ferocity with which he attacked special teams.

Click to expand...

I think lining up to block a kick or chase down a returner is a lot easier and more instinctual than learning where a blitz is coming from. On ST he can probably just fire away, whereas in protection there's more "thought" involved right now, limiting his physicality.

Click to expand...

I agree with you and Cribby.

But unless I read it wrong, Rick made mention of manning up and being physical. I think I remember Homer being mentioned as a very high scholastic achiever, so I'd be surprised if he's struggling too much with the fairly simple mental aspects of pass blocking. Guys a lot dumber than him have picked that part up quickly.

Click to expand...

I think it's less about brain power and more about reaction time. You can fire off on ST and just look for the ball. Even a split-second hesitation of "where's my guy?" in protection can mean the difference between locking a guy up or ending up on your butt.

I agree. If you pause for a split second you're toast. The de or blitzing lb has a head of steam and you've hesitated or was thinking too much. So you're toast. Once he gets reps he'll just start reacting.

LuCane

Apr 11, 2017

It's on Thomas Brown to get Homer ready in pass pro. As far as we know, Homer has shown a willingness to tackle and be physical in ST, he's supposedly a smart guy, and everyone says he's a hardworker. So, it's pretty much a matter of technique, refinement and preparation, no? I remember RBs used to rave about how Soldinger changed their lives because of how he'd prep them for pass pro. Gore and Mcgahee were two of the best. Gore is still one of the very best in the NFL today.

Genghis Cane

Apr 11, 2017

Weldon comin'

#26-MEAST

Apr 11, 2017

I don't think Homer is struggling in passpro. the coaches are just spending the most amount of time on the weakest part of his game. smart move.

The Franchise

Apr 11, 2017

LuCane said:
It's on Thomas Brown to get Homer ready in pass pro. As far as we know, Homer has shown a willingness to tackle and be physical in ST, he's supposedly a smart guy, and everyone says he's a hardworker. So, it's pretty much a matter of technique, refinement and preparation, no? I remember RBs used to rave about how Soldinger changed their lives because of how he'd prep them for pass pro. Gore and Mcgahee were two of the best. Gore is still one of the very best in the NFL today.

Exactly.

ChosenOne

Apr 11, 2017

Also saw somewhere that Rosier was still the 1st team QB. So my guess is.. when, before the scrimmage, Richt said he started to see some separation at QB.. I think he meant that Rosier was the leader.. I'm guessing he lost some of that lead in the scrimmage.

The reason I say this is because we've heard a lot more praise about Sheriffs after the scrimmage and if he is still taking 2nd team reps that might mean Malik created some distance in practice, but Sheriffs gained ground after the scrimmage but not enough ground to take the lead.

fivecent

Apr 11, 2017

LuCane said:
It's on Thomas Brown to get Homer ready in pass pro. As far as we know, Homer has shown a willingness to tackle and be physical in ST, he's supposedly a smart guy, and everyone says he's a hardworker. So, it's pretty much a matter of technique, refinement and preparation, no? I remember RBs used to rave about how Soldinger changed their lives because of how he'd prep them for pass pro. Gore and Mcgahee were two of the best. Gore is still one of the very best in the NFL today.

Maybe Richt needs to have another offensive special adviser coming in again, ie. Soldinger

G
gcane44

Apr 11, 2017

ChosenOne said:
Also saw somewhere that Rosier was still the 1st team QB. So my guess is.. when, before the scrimmage, Richt said he started to see some separation at QB.. I think he meant that Rosier was the leader.. I'm guessing he lost some of that lead in the scrimmage.

The reason I say this is because we've heard a lot more praise about Sheriffs after the scrimmage and if he is still taking 2nd team reps that might mean Malik created some distance in practice, but Sheriffs gained ground after the scrimmage but not enough ground to take the lead.

Maybe just a little speculation on your part

ThomasM

Apr 11, 2017

ChosenOne said:
Also saw some where that Rosier was still the 1st team QB. So my guess is.. when, before the scrimmage, Richt said he was starting to see some separation at QB but wanted to wait till the scrimmage.. I think he meant that Rosier was the leader.. guess he lost some of that lead in the scrimmage.

The reason I say this is because we've heard a lot more praise about Sheriffs after the scrimmage and if he still taking 2nd team reps.. that might mean Malik created some distance in practice but Sheriffs gained ground after the scrimmage but not enough ground to take the lead.

I think Richt is just waiting for one guy to stand out, for more than one or two practices/scrimmages in a row. So far it appears no one has done that, so order just doesn't matter. He's giving everyone a fair chance to win the job, and it's great to see. It's still early, too. I don't think anyone is stinking up the joint, but no one is running away with it either.

Cribby

Apr 11, 2017

gcane44 said:
ChosenOne said:

Also saw somewhere that Rosier was still the 1st team QB. So my guess is.. when, before the scrimmage, Richt said he started to see some separation at QB.. I think he meant that Rosier was the leader.. I'm guessing he lost some of that lead in the scrimmage.

The reason I say this is because we've heard a lot more praise about Sheriffs after the scrimmage and if he is still taking 2nd team reps that might mean Malik created some distance in practice, but Sheriffs gained ground after the scrimmage but not enough ground to take the lead.

Click to expand...

Maybe just a little speculation on your part

Imo it looks like it's pretty much a two man raceright now , and Rosier and Evan are even. When Perry arrives it'll be a three man race.

Last edited: Apr 11, 2017

KrazyCane

Apr 11, 2017

LuCane said:
It's on Thomas Brown to get Homer ready in pass pro. As far as we know, Homer has shown a willingness to tackle and be physical in ST, he's supposedly a smart guy, and everyone says he's a hardworker. So, it's pretty much a matter of technique, refinement and preparation, no? I remember RBs used to rave about how Soldinger changed their lives because of how he'd prep them for pass pro. Gore and Mcgahee were two of the best. Gore is still one of the very best in the NFL today.

It's on Thomas Brown only bc he's the asst coach / rb coach.... but if Travis Homer isnt able to earn the trust of this staff by improving in that area, it's on him as a player definitely not the coach.

Canezum5

Apr 11, 2017

Come on man, Are yall serious?

Travis is having to block either LBS or Dlineman that are waay bigger and stronger than him. You have to be decisive af and it isn't easy AT ALL. It doesnt matter how ferocious and fearless you are.

Like Richt said, it's only a split second to figure out if you need to cut or thump.

Shaq gets sent on a blitz, trav sees it and thumps him at the LOS. Chad bust thru the LOS and you gotta cut block him cuz you're not gonna thump him, you'll get bull rushed tf over.

that's what Richt is talking about recognizing when to use specific techniques, especially against different body types.

Its hard to pick up!

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Notes from Richt after spring practice #10

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