In case anyone needed one, here’s another sign that Isaiah Crowell will be given every chance to start at tailback once he arrives for summer camp.
Practices and scrimmages have been closed, but players have said that Caleb King, the rising senior, has looked great this spring. Meanwhile Washaun Ealey has hardly practiced because of a hamstring injury, while Ken Malcome has been slowed too.
Despite that, when offensive coordinator Mike Bobo was asked on Tuesday if King had done a lot for himself, Bobo demurred.
“Caleb has shown flashes,” the assistant coach said. “Caleb had a decent day the other day running the ball, and then today he did OK. But I wouldn’t say anybody’s stepped out and said, ‘Hey I’m the man.’ But we still have another scrimmage, which is the G-day. (That’s) another opportunity to get better.”
Translation: Nothing much has changed on the Crowell front. The day the Columbus tailback signed, Mark Richt said Crowell had a good chance to start against Boise State if he did everything right. And that still stands.
Bobo sounded a bit more positive about the spring performances at the other skill positions.
The top two quarterbacks, Aaron Murray and Hutson Mason, have played “extremely well,” according to Bobo.
“Murray it’s his third spring, and Mason it’s his first spring but he’s got a year under his belt. They understand a lot of what we’re trying to do and able to make plays within the system,” he said.
As for the receivers, Bobo said they’ve made some plays but have to be more consistent. (“We’ve had too many drops,” the coach said.) Specifically, Marlon Brown wasn’t very good early in camp but has improved. Michael Bennett, Tavarres King and Taylor Bradberry earned positive mentions from their coach. And tight end Orson Charles “has made a tremendous amount of plays,” according to Bobo.
“I feel good about the energy level of this football team,” Bobo said. “I feel good about the camaraderie of the group and how they went out and competed hard every day and tried to get better. Every day hasn’t been what we like but I’ve seen improvement and strides in that area.”
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
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33 comments:
how many years do the running backs need to be here before one of them learns to run?? its been 3 years and every year is the same, "well, no one has stepped to the front yet" ummm i would think by now we would know what we have!!
From my perspective (albeit limited knowledge)our coaching or lack thereof at the RB position is the problem.
Guys that are real studs perform well but they would likely perform well under any coach. Our coaches don't seem to be able to get much out the less than stellar RB's.
I heard our graduate assistants were the reason why the running back aren't performing. We should fire them.
Don't think its gonna matter who our (UGA) tailback will be if the line cannot open up holes. We've had these heralded running backs before along with the ones now who simply cannot get it done. Even Moreno earned every yard the tough way and didn't score a TD against SC in 2007 which cost UGA both a SEC and MNC title. Lets face it, Mark Richts running game hasnt really been all that since he has been at UGA. Okay Kool aid drinkers fire away!
Fire Dave Perno! That goes for the rest of the Clowns in our football program too.
I'm sure Bobo is resting easy knowing Ealey's back there. I think I read that Ealey's at bout 5.5 yards a carry, and getting 1 touchdown every 14 carries. Ealey's year was comparable to Mark Ingram's on a yards per carry averaghe and a td production basis. I have a hard itme beliving Crowell can come in and learn everything in 6-8 weeks, but hey, Lattimore got it done. But can Crowell average more than Ealey per c arry and be as productive in scoring as Ealey? Would be amazing if he was.
I agree Anon 5:47. When you get a series of 4 star RBs in your program and the run game is FLAT for all of them, the problem is bigger than just whose in the game. Run blocking, play calling, coaching, all of it. Maybe Bobo should say, "there's still no coach who has stepped up and said, 'I'm the man.'"
Anon 6:14, you should check your stats. Caleb had a higher yards per carry average last season. He was like 5.4 ypc and Ealey was 5.2.
I think it's ridiculous to expect Crowell to do anything the first few games, let alone start the first game. The reason we all know about Lattimore is because he's the rare exception. He was much more decorated coming out of HS than Crowell is, and even then Lattimore's freshman year is astounding. And we all know about it because it almost never happens. There are four and five star recruits every year on every team, but it almost never happens that they can make a difference as freshmen. If Crowell does perform right out of the gate, you can be sure our coaches will coach it right out of him, though. If you want evidence of that, see Ealey's first season vs. his second. Or Caleb's 95 yards his very first game and then what?
Murray has played well from an interception standpoint, 0 picks so far in 2 Spring games. Murray also completed near 70% of his passes last scrimmage. Murray's 3 touchdowns are less than Mason's 5.
Mason's been up around 63% completion average--which is NFL type numbers, but less than Murray's 70%, and Mason has thrown 2 picks to Murray's 0, but has 5 touchdowns, which, Bobo's right, the 5 td's in 2 Spring games are amazing, perhaps the best Spring in UGA history so far that Mason's putting up. Both QB's have some good things going. Overall, you've got to feel great about the Georgia QB situation & depth.
Crowell has been mentioned a couple of times by ESPN as a Heisman candidate THIS SEASON.
It could happen. If Crowell is good enough to beat out Ealey & King, and is as fast as people say, and as good of a receiver as people say, he really could have an incredible season 2000 total yards, 15 td's rushing, 5 td's receiving. Which is exactly what we need.
It's the oline guys. They are not very good at driving the D off of the line. Olines, even in the pros, are usually designed to either pass protect or run block. If they are great at one they are usually weak at the other. If Mark had been a Olineman or a running back our Oline would be a run blocking line but he was a QB and the line's first job is to protect the QB and oh by the way do a little run blocking too. We pass to establish the run. We are the opposite of Alabama who runs to get a passing game going. That's why our use of play action is sometimes a joke. Let's look at those yards per carry average against the SEC teams. Our cream puffs were there to pad the stats of everybody.
Who says a freshman running back can't be a huge factor? Have you ever heard this?
"He's running OVER people with those big thighs. My God he's a freshman."
Bruce Feldman is big on Crowell, has him as a darkhorse top 10 Heisman candidate. Likes his speed, and likes the way a more experienced Murray will keep defenses from jamming 8 in the box.
http://insider.espn.go.com/ncf/blog?name=feldman_bruce&id=6250663&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncf%2fblog%3fname%3dfeldman_bruce%26id%3d6250663
ESPN thinks a bunch of Crowell, here's another writer predicting Crowell to be a runner up for the Heisman in a few seasons:
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=6062312
Crowell has all of the tools. You hope he can stay out of trouble, stay free of injury, and learn the playbook fast. Then it's all about attitude--does he really want to be the best, this year, and every year?
Nervous about trying to replace AJ & Durham, but feel solid about King & Charles, hopefully Bennett & Brown will make an impact too.
Too many drops? What's going on there? Inaccurate throws or just poor technique or great defense? Hard to say.
Crowell also needs to protect the football well. Lattimore only had 1fumble all season, that was on a hit that broke his jaw.
Like Fran Tarkenton said" UGA is in BIG BIG Trouble"......
1500 rushing and 18 td's is what it takes to win a Heisman for a running back. That's 125 yards a game rushing and hitting 1.5 td's a game over 12 games. Probably need 300 carries to do that, about 25 a game.
And your team winning a bunch of games :)
No one says they CAN'T but we can name those few who are because they are the exception to the rule. You have that quote memorized because it was unreal that he was a freshman.
The point is, how many four or five star recruits show up on college campuses all over the country and don't do that as a freshman? It's unlikely. No one said can't, but since it's unlikely, since our coaches and O-Line have shown they're not invested in the run game except for when they recruit, it's even more unlikely.
And Crowell is smaller than Lattimore and Walker. That's an issue, too.
Maybe he will rush for 2000 yards and rock the world, but let's hope the coaching staff has something real planned to change the way things have been and they're not banking on a miracle.
You guys are pathetic. Crowell, Heisman? The kid has yet to step foot on campus. Let's see what he does in the first few games.
The Apologists forget:
This was suppose to be the most experienced offensive line in the nation last year and King,Ealey and Thomas only averaged 3.87 ypg against SEC competition......this new line and Crowell have a lot to prove this year and so far we haven't seen it in the spring.
No offensive line, no running game and a pourous secondary so far in the spring.
South Carolina's line looked weak before Lattimore arrived. The right back makes everybody look better. Maybe Crowell has the same effect on our line. ESPN seems to agree, saying great things about Crowell, I'll go with their opinion over an anonymous blogger.
Anon 11:12
You've made your point about how bad you think the O-Line and Crowell are, now move on to a new topic.
Crowell needs to be given a serious look when he arrives. King & Ealey have been out of games a bunch due to suspensions & injuries, and when they've been in, they've fumbled at inopportune times. King & Ealey have both been productive in their own way, King had an excellent per carry average in 2010, and Ealey scored 11 touchdowns on @150 carries, but suspensions, injuries, and fumbles, have hurt the running game. Ealey's passblocking has also been an issue. Neither guy has played well against ranked teams.
Our Football team and coaches are a bunch of choke artist. Grantham looked clueless at times on the sidelines and Boo Boo's play calling is so little league predictable at times. Now once again its the same ole crap and excuses are cropping up once again. Injuries, offensive line and secondary woes. Players transferring and now thieves in the locker room. I think its time for Richt to go. just saying....
If you look at the past few SEC Champs, they've usually had 2 play makers that helped them win.
Florida had Harvin & Tebow.
Bama had Ingram & Cody.
Auburn had Newton & Fairley.
South Carolina had Lattimore.
Georgia had a nice run with Pollack & Greene, then Stafford & Moreno.
Jenkins or Geathers or Ray Drew needs to be an impact on the line.
Need another playmaker on offense to step up at QB or RB. Crowell is the most likely playmaker. Murray could be if Richt would let him run, but I don't think Richt will let Murray use all his skills.
Auburn & Florida won 3 National Championships with running QB's. It works in the SEC. 3 out of last 4 seasons. Probably the best way to win the SEC is with a dual threat QB.
Alabama is the only exception over last 4 years, they did it with a bruising run game & run stopping defense.
Florida, Auburn & Alabama all had excellent run defenses.
You've got to be able to run the ball to win the SEC.
Come on guys! It's ridiculous to be predicting stats for Crowell. Right now, his stat box reads a ?. Which is exactly what he is right now: a ?. I mean jeez, the kid hasn't even put on a UGA practice jersey.
I am one who is excited about Crowell but at the same time the 3 current RB's can step up and play better. Ive always been disappointed in a RB that is fast, strong and agile but seems to be shoe string tackled every time or the first man that touches him tackles him. A good RB should be able to break a tackle or two. Thats what I will be watching for. Granted I cant expect as much of that from a scatback. But yall understand. King and Ealey are not breaking tackles hardly ever. open field has been their only hope.
Crowell has a legit shot at the Heisman. He'll electrify people with some long runs, everybody will be talking about this kid after game 1. Especially if he shreds South Carolina's hyped up d-line, which he will, they just don't have the speed to stop him. Crowell should break 1650 yards, and score @20 touchdown's, some will be catching apsses, where he's a dazzler. Best back Richt has recruited at UGA-ever. Moreno did well, Crowell will better Moreno.
I think you might see some of the O-Line run blocking a little bit harder for the kid if he 'shows up' at practice in the fall. Crowell might be able to inspire those guys to really put it on the line. (no pun intended).
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