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Well,
KFFL survived Day 1 of the 2008 Senior Bowl week in Mobile, Ala. I'm
coming to you from Day
2 with thoughts and tidbits from today's practices.
It
was a cold, gloomy day, and now the sun is setting. The morning
practice, which
began at 9:30 a.m. local time, featured the North squad working
once again at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. The FieldTurf that covers from end
zone to
end zone is surrounded by a row of shrubbery and a short chain-link
fence to
prevent the fans from spilling onto the field of play. The downside is
that,
unlike the Fairhope Stadium field, home of Monday's South squad
practice, we as
attending media cannot lay foot on the field, either. With the
occasional fan
trying to mingle in with the crowd of reporters, cameramen, scouts,
coaches and
NFL executives, sometimes getting a clean view of what was happening on
the
field was a bit of a challenge, especially since I stand at a whopping
5-foot-9!
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With
the wind blowing at a fair clip and inadequate clothing being my M.O.
of the
morning, the notes I jotted down were even more illegible than usual.
Today, my
KFFL cohort, Richard Garcia, was along side all day long. He wasn't as
dumb as
I was and dressed accordingly, however.
For
the North squad, several things surprised me to varying degrees. First
of all, University of Michigan quarterback Chad Henne can
actually avoid a pass rush, albeit a mock pass rush. Henne looked the
best out
of the trio (University of Southern California quarterback John David
Booty and University of Delaware quarterback Joe Flacco)
with his footwork, and he wasn't too shabby tossing the rock, either.
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East Carolina University running back Chris Johnson
showed off his agility and blazing speed, but he really left a sour
taste in my
mouth when it came to his pass-blocking skills. He was pushed aside
once,
completely bowled over once and completely missed the block twice
during
one-on-one drills that sent a free linebacker at the simulated
quarterback.
University of New Mexico wide receiver Marcus Smith
didn't help his draft stock much in my eyes, dropping two easily
catchable
passes. When you're a little-known receiver from New Mexico, how many
passes can you
really afford to drop?
The
aforementioned Flacco probably wished he was back in Dela-where, after
throwing
a silly interception that IndianaUniversity cornerback Tracy Porter
took back to the imaginary house. Flacco drew the ire of the coaching
staff
from a verbal sense, as well as managing to gain a few boos from the
slim
crowd.
The
South squad returned to the field to practice at 1:45 p.m. CST and the
clouds threatened
rain but didn't provide much more than a few droplets. The wind had
died down,
and this time around I was overdressed, of course. With one layer too
many, I
felt like the little kid from A Christmas Story while waddling my way
around
the field.
In
what I thought was the most impressive play of the afternoon for either
squad, University of Florida wideout Andre Caldwell
snagged a pass over his right shoulder while being blanketed in
coverage by University of Oklahoma cornerback D.J. Wolfe. Caldwell
landed on the 1-yard line
before sliding into the end zone. Wolfe couldn't have played the route
any
better, even having a hand in Caldwell's grill before the Colt
Brennan-thrown pass of some 40 yards was hauled in. It was textbook
coverage
but an even prettier catch!
Almost
as nice of a play, Louisiana State University wide receiver Early
Doucet,
who clearly has separated himself through two practices to be the most
consistent of the senior class, caught one over his former LSU
teammate,
cornerback Chevis Jackson, in nearly identical fashion to the pass that
Caldwell landed. There wasn't much Jackson could have done better, and
he patted Doucet on the side as they walked back to the origin of the
play. The
coaching staff didn't much care for that, however, telling Jackson to
ignore the fact that he
played with Doucet. Do you get the feeling that these two guys have
lined up
like this before?
I
wasn't a fan of University of Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan's
footwork, and neither was freshly named San Francisco 49ers offensive
coordinator
Mike Martz. While working closely with the South quarterbacks, Martz
repeatedly
had Brennan drop back to work on his feet before jovially telling the
former
Rainbow Warrior, "You're so quick with everything," in reference to
Brennan being in a hurry to get through the drill and not absorb what
Martz was
offering.
In
case you are curious, here are some of the notable attendees from
around the
league: St. Louis Rams defensive coordinator Jim Haslett, Detroit Lions
head
coach Rod Marinelli, Lions president and CEO Matt Millen, Jacksonville
Jaguars
head coach Jack Del Rio, Jaguars assistant head coach/tight ends coach
Mike
Tice, Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin and
University of
Alabama head coach Nick Saban. I know I am in Saban country, but it was
a bit
ridiculous to see all of the cameras pointed at watching him talk on
his cell
phone while he paced the sidelines.
Signing
off for this evening, please join us tomorrow for another installment
of KFFL's
Senior Bowl coverage. Perhaps tomorrow I'll have some clue as to how
many
layers I should be wearing!
Senior Bowl
Notes: Day 1
Michael
Abromowitz's
2008 NFL Mock Draft
Gregory Cox's
2008
NFL Mock Draft
Paul Eide's 2008 NFL
Mock Draft
Jared
Donnelly's 2008 NFL Mock
Draft
Mock
Draft Database
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